ALICE IN CHAINS guitarist/vocalist Jerry Cantrell's new song "Afterglow" arrives with a video created by award-winning artist Matt Mahurin, whose work is noted for blending realism with abstract and surreal elements, which shines through in the five-minute piece.

"The incredible Matt Mahurin and I created a moving piece of film to accompany the song," Cantrell says, adding "Check it out. If you want blood, you got it."

Mahurin says: "Two of my all-time favorite videos I've directed are 'No Excuses' and 'Angry Chair' for ALICE IN CHAINS in the early 1990s. To be able to once again offer my visual work to Jerry's 'Afterglow' some thirty years later was a blast. From opera aria to pop tune, everybody sees a movie playing in their mind's eye when they listen to a song. Jerry inspired a welcome fever dream that I was grateful to lure out of my mind's eye."

Mahurin's work has been featured in The New York Times, Time, Rolling Stone, and his photographs are on permanent display at The Metropolitan Museum of Art.

"Afterglow" is the second song from Cantrell's upcoming album, "I Want Blood", with "Vilified" debuting last month. The track, which features guest performances from Duff McKagan (GUNS N' ROSES) and Gil Sharone (TEAM SLEEP, STOLEN BABIES),was praised by Revolver as "anxiety-stirring" and "eerie," while Metal Hammer simply called it "brilliant."

"I Want Blood", co-produced by Cantrell and Joe Barresi (TOOL, QUEENS OF THE STONE AGE, MELVINS),was recorded at Barresi's JHOC Studio in Pasadena, California. The album also features contributions from bass heavyweights McKagan (GUNS N' ROSES) and Robert Trujillo (METALLICA),drummers Sharone and Mike Bordin (FAITH NO MORE),and backing vocals from Lola Colette and Greg Puciato (BETTER LOVERS, ex-THE DILLINGER ESCAPE PLAN).

"This record is a serious piece of work. It's a motherfucker," Cantrell said of the collection. "It's hard, no doubt, and completely unlike 'Brighten'. And that's what you want, to end up in a different place. There's a confidence to this album. I think it's some of my best songwriting and playing, and certainly some of my best singing."

"I Want Blood" track listing:

01. Vilified
02. Off The Rails
03. Afterglow
04. I Want Blood
05. Echoes Of Laughter
06. Throw Me A Line
07. Let It Lie
08. Held Your Tongue
09. It Comes

A tour with BUSH concludes in mid-September with the North American outing wrapping up at the iconic Greek Theatre in Los Angeles on September 15.

Cantrell's latest solo album, "Brighten", came out in October 2021. The LP was Jerry's first project without ALICE IN CHAINS in 19 years.

Jerry's career outside of ALICE IN CHAINS has consisted of two other solo albums and contributions to major film soundtracks. Cantrell's first solo album, "Boggy Depot", was released in 1998, followed by his second album, "Degradation Trip". In addition to his solo artist work, Jerry has released music on soundtracks for several films, including "Spider-Man", "The Cable Guy", "John Wick 2", "Last Action Hero" and "The Punisher".

ALICE IN CHAINS regrouped in 2006 with William DuVall joining the band, and released its third LP with DuVall in the lineup, "Rainier Fog", in August 2018.

Photo credit: Darren Craig

German metallers POWERWOLF kicked off their 12-date North American tour on August 29 at the Hollywood Palladium in Los Angeles, California.

The band's setlist was as follows:

01. Bless 'Em With The Blade (live debut)
02. Blood For Blood (Faoladh)
03. Army Of The Night
04. Sinners Of The Seven Seas (live debut)
05. Amen & Attack
06. Dancing With The Dead
07. Werewolves Of Armenia
08. 1589 (live debut)
09. Demons Are A Girl's Best Friend
10. Stossgebet
11. Fire And Forgive
12. We Don't Wanna Be No Saints (live debut)
13. Alive Or Undead
14. Heretic Hunters (live debut)
15. Sainted By The Storm
16. Sanctified With Dynamite

Encore:

17. Incense & Iron
18. We Drink Your Blood
19. Armata Strigoi

Fan-filmed video of the concert can be viewed below.

Remaining North American shows:

Sep. 05 - Silver Spring, MD @ The Fillmore
Sep. 07 - Tampa, FL @ Jannus Landing
Sep. 08 - Atlanta, GA @ The Masquerade
Sep. 09 - Charlotte, NC @ The Fillmore
Sep. 12 - Philadelphia, PA @ The Fillmore
Sep. 13 - Worcester, MA @ The Palladium
Sep. 14 - New York City, NY @ Brooklyn Paramount
Sep. 15 - Laval, QC @ Place Bell

POWERWOLF's latest studio album, "Wake Up The Wicked", came out on July 26 via Napalm Records. The highly anticipated follow-up to the extremely successful "Call Of The Wild" (2021) was once again produced by Joost Van Den Broek at Sandlane Recording Facilities and marks a new benchmark and undisputed career highlight for the band. The new album is hard, surprising and full of variety. While staying true to their established, loved sound, POWERWOLF go one step further and showcase a different facet of their deft musical and technical skills. This is evident, for example, on the outstanding single "1589", which is based on a true story from the 16th century.

20 years after their formation in 2004, POWERWOLF are expanding their repertoire with the highest quality and adding many future live hits to their extraordinary discography. "Wake Up The Wicked" is yet another statement cementing the status of the band as a leading force in the world of heavy metal.

The first single from "Wake Up The Wicked", "1589" tells the story of Peter Stump, who lived near Cologne, Germany in the 16th century and is known today as the Werewolf Of Bedburg. After being defamed as a werewolf, the farmer confessed to several murders under torture and was cruelly executed on October 31, 1589. This morbid story has fascinated people all over the world ever since and has been picked up by National Geographic, among others.

For the video for "1589", POWERWOLF traveled to England to stage Stump's fate in the dark woods in a cinematic way. With carefully selected locations, countless actors and crew members, and impressive special effects, it marks the most elaborate music video production in the band's history to date.

POWERWOLF are undoubtedly one of the most celebrated and successful heavy metal bands of the last decade. Multiple No. 1 album chart entries, gold and platinum records, huge sold-out arena shows, as well as headline slots at the biggest festivals have paved their way. In 20 years of band history, POWERWOLF has made it to the very highest league of heavy metal.

POWERWOLF has conquered countless stages at the world's biggest summer festivals, and their last "Wolfsnächte" headline tours (2019, 2022),as well as their North American debut in early 2023, were almost completely sold out — resulting in a massive triumph. They have performed headlining sets at Wacken Open Air and Summer Breeze, as well as held premium slots at genre festival giants such as Hellfest, Graspop Metal Meeting, Masters Of Rock and many more, captivating enormous audiences. No other German metal band has been able to write a success story even remotely comparable in recent years.

Following their onslaught of North America, POWERWOLF will embark on their most impressive European tour yet in celebration of their highly anticipated 2024 studio album. Amid 16 shows in total, the tour will visit colossal venues in Munich, Paris, Amsterdam, Berlin, Prague, Hamburg and Antwerp. POWERWOLF will be accompanied by Swedish heavy metal legends HAMMERFALL as special guests, with support from viral rising stars, dwarven metallers WIND ROSE.

The story of the frontrunners of today's German metal scene, POWERWOLF, began in 2004 and only knows one direction: ever upwards. Their trajectory may seem like something out of a fairytale, but it is the result of the band embodying the highest quality of heavy metal in the universe. Outstanding album production, bombastic live shows and a tireless drive for perfection on and behind the stage are what this exceptional band is known for around the world.

Over the course of their career, the band has not only fascinated metal fans, but has also won over international press and critics. Countless cover stories in the most important magazines, critics' awards such as the Metal Hammer Award, and effusive album and concert reviews underpin POWERWOLF's outstanding international status.

POWERWOLF is:

Attila Dorn - vocals
Falk Maria Schlegel - organ
Charles Greywolf - guitar
Matthew Greywolf - guitar
Roel van Helden - drums

After the great success of TRAPEZE "Lost Tapes Vol. 1" last year, the follow-up album "Lost Tapes Vol. 2" will be released on November 15 by Metalville Records.

Track listing:

01. Homeland
02. Hold On
03. Loser
04. Take It On
05. Must Be In Love
06. Live Fast Die Laughing
07. Wake Up Shake Up
08. Coast To Coast
09. Can You Feel It
10. Way Back To The Bone
11. Turn It On
12. Fighting
13. Welcome To The Real World
14. Midnight Flyer

When rock band TRAPEZE called it a day, they left behind them a series of now classic albums. Their influence on other groups has been immense; individual members themselves going on to join heavyweight rock acts such as DEEP PURPLE, WHITESNAKE, JUDAS PRIEST and URIAH HEEP. But their story's not over, as "Lost Tapes Vol. 2" continues to prove.

Recorded either side of album releases these are great songs, stockpiled, but never released; some with the intention of developing them even further later, as TRAPEZE hit the ground running, playing live relentlessly, honing their craft while rarely seeing home. Here too you'll find rare lineups featured — previously only rumored at, often considered fable at best — but now revealed proudly for the first time and given their deserved day in the sun.

Hard-wired guitars, wailing synthesizers, rhythm sections that kick ass then get the funk out, with out-of-sight vocal performances throughout guaranteed. Be that on hard rockers such as "Fighting" and "Loser", ballads like the exclusive early rendition of "Coast To Coast", even near-country rock asides in "Must Be In Love" through to progressive AOR rock explorations on "Welcome To The Real World". Then, of course, there's their pioneering brand of funk rock on tracks like "Can You Feel It?" and "Way Back To The Bone", among others. Plus, the song that tells you exactly what made this English band tick, the heartfelt rush of "Homeland".

Poignantly, "Lost Tapes Vol. 2" also features "Live Fast, Die Laughing", the last song ever recorded by founding member, band leader and guitarist/vocalist Mel Galley before his passing in 2008.

Having practically retired from the music business, except for the odd session, Galley had a change of heart. "He got his hunger back," revealed his brother, songwriter and producer Tom Galley. "We started working on various things and he was very much up for putting TRAPEZE back together; we'd got the players he wanted to use and were recording again." The guitarist also played a sold-out local solo gig, unaware what destiny had in store when he was later diagnosed with cancer. Tom says: "He was still up for for it. It was so special just to get him in the studio. What you hear is pretty much live single takes of him singing, laying down guitars and bass, with drum programming by Gary Alkins done out at Bloxwich in the U.K."

Rocking out with urgent vitality, in "Live Fast, Die Laughing" you feel Mel Galley's zest for life. Play it loud and he's here with us again, offering sound advice with TRAPEZE style pizazz.

"Lost Tapes Vol. 2" was collated by Tom Galley with assistance from band manager Tony Perry, alongside Marcus Galley once more honoring his father's legacy by designing this very special collection that features rare and exclusive photos by Carl Dunn.

Fresh off a summer festival run, American death metal legends Massacre, spearheaded by growl forefather Kam Lee, announce details of their long-awaited fifth studio album, Necrolution, set for release on November 8 via Agonia Records. The album's first single, "The Colour Out Of Space", is being premiered now in the form of a lyric video. Watch below.


Necrolution is a retrospective, nostalgic album, that turns back time to the late 80s and early 90s era of death metal. Recapturing the essence and style of death metal that was the original formula. Recreating the aesthetic feeling of something from the original style and sound to represent to these modern times. It’s purposefully meant to sound dated as it represents an era of early death metal music. It purposefully does not mimic the band's own original style but rather reflects the styles of many early era bands that influenced generations in death metal music.


Commented by Kam Lee: "With Necrolution the idea was to evolve the band's sound by devolving it. Unlike many bands in death metal that attempt to modernize and update their style and sound to emulate many of the modern contemporary death metal bands, we wanted to go back to the origin. The original sound and style. We wanted to make an album that sounds like it could have come out of the late 80s. The entire concept was to create something that was a de-evolution of the death metal genre and go back to an early style reminiscent of the past. Going back 40 years into the past to immolate the style of death metal that was predominantly influenced by thrash and heavy metal bands of the era. Lyrically it’s still entrenched in the horror genre and influenced by HP Lovecraft stories. We even have three tracks directly dedicated and influenced by the director Stewart Gordon, the filmmaker who was directly responsible for bringing Lovecraft films to horror movies in the 80s. The overall idea was to bring a 1980s aesthetic to the music that’s influenced by 1980s music as well as horror movie genre at the time. My hope is that fans find a unique experience when listening to Necrolution that not only encapsulates the feeling of 80s nostalgia but makes them appreciate the way the era influenced the death metal genre at the time."




Necrolution was recorded at DOA studios, Full S Studios & Gojiden Studio in Florida (USA) and mixed and mastered by Jonny Pettersson at Studio Unbound in Sweden. The cover artwork was painted by Timbul Cahyono of Bvllmetalart. Mark Riddick (Arch Enemy, Autopsy, Morbid Angel) created the merchandise designs.


The recording personnel for the new album - much of whom have been with Massacre since the Resurgence era - comprises, aside from Kam Lee, original Massacre bassist Mike Borders, returning guitarists Rogga Johansson (Paganizer, Rib Spreader, Megascavanger) & Jonny Pettersson (Wombbath, Heads for The Dead), and new drummer, Jon Rudin (Just Before Dawn, Heads for The Dead, Dehumanaut). The band features a separate session lineup for live performances, which consists of Carlos Gonzalez (Grim Reality) on guitars, Elden Santos (Druid Lord) on drums and Tim Wilson on bass.


Formed in 1984, Massacre started out as a heavy/power metal band, but changed its style to death metal with the joining of Allen West and Kam Lee; the latter is often credited for inventing the "death growl" - first heard on the band’s 1986 demo Aggressive Tyrant - and is considered an influential pioneer as far as the death metal genre is concerned. The group went through several personnel shifts and disbandments over the years - with its early lineup toggling between Massacre, Mantas (early Death) and Death - to a triumphant return in 2021, with their last studio album Resurgence.  





Formats:


- Jewel case CD
- Slipcase CD
- Tape
- White LP
- Transparent green LP
- Purple LP
- Yellow w/red splatter LP


Clothing:


- Long sleeve
- T-shirt


Pre-order here.





Tracklisting:


"Fear Of The Unknown"
"Xenophobia" (Prologue)
"Ritual Of The Abyss"
"Ensnarers Within"
"Death May Die"
"Chasm" (Prologue)
"The Colour Out Of Space"
"In The Lair Of Legacy Leeches"
"The Things That Were And Shall Be Again"
"Xothic" (Prologue)
"Dead-Life: ReAnimator"
"Shriek Of The Castle Freak"
"Curse Of The Resonator"
"Horrors Of Hidden Truth"
"Shroud Of Shadows"
"Ad Infinitum: The Final Hour"


"The Colour Out Of Space" lyric video:

Finnish masters of melancholic brutality, Wolfheart, have released a video for "Ancient Cold", the opening track of their forthcoming seventh studio album, Draconian Darkness, out tomorrow (Friday, September 6) via Reigning Phoenix Music (RPM). Watch the clip below.


"'Ancient Cold' is a perfect album and show opener with its massive beginning and an intense amount of riffs and melodies which take listeners onto a rollercoaster ride filled with Nordic fire and ice. It was also worth of the most epic music video shooting location we have even been to. The breathtaking highlands of Iceland are a perfect match," band leader Tuomas Saukkonen says.


He adds, "Draconian Darkness is our seventh album and musically it is the pinnacle of all music we have released since 2013. After a full year of work on the album and now residing under the mighty wings of RPM, this is definitely a milestone in our career."







Pre-order Draconian Darkness in the physical format of your choice (CD-digipak, coloured vinyl), pre-save it on your favourite DSP or pre-order it digitally now, here.


The opus was recorded at Deep Noise Studios and produced, mixed and mastered by the band's long-time collaborator Saku Moilanen; its artwork was crafted by Nikos Stavridakis (VisionBlack).





Draconian Darkness tracklisting:


"Ancient Cold"
"Evenfall"
"Burning Sky"
"Death Leads The Way"
"Scion Of The Flame"
"Grave"
"Throne Of Bones"
"Trail By Fire"
"The Gale"


"Trial By Fire" video:





"Evenfall" video:

Don't Break The Oath, the second studio album by Danish heavy metal icons, Mercyful Fate, will see a special vinyl repress on Metal Blade Records on November 1. Initially issued in 1984 through Roadrunner Records, the Metal Blade edition celebrates the ground-breaking record's 40th anniversary.


Comments Metal Blade founder and CEO, Brian Slagel, "We're here to celebrate the anniversary of one of the most legendary albums of all-time: Mercyful Fate's Don't Break The Oath. At Metal Blade, we're extremely honored and happy to be repressing the album on vinyl and the band will be celebrating the anniversary by releasing a whole bunch of really cool merch. So, check it out, go get the repressing, and enjoy and celebrate the 40th anniversary of Don't Break the Oath!"


Adds Nuclear Blast Records head of A&R and former VP of A&R at Roadrunner Records, Monte Conner, "How do you follow up Melissa, one of the greatest metal debuts of all time? An album that features a song called 'Satan's Fall,' that contains enough riffs for any other metal band to have written an entire album from. You follow it up by doing it again a mere year later with Don't Break The Oath, featuring even better production, and songs that are even more fleshed out and have more meat on the bone. Tracks like 'Gypsy,' 'The Oath,' and 'Come To The Sabbath' are metal classics for the ages, but honestly I could add the other six songs on the album to that list. Every track is an undeniable classic for the ages. They just don't make albums like this anymore! Having later worked at Roadrunner Records, the label that released this album in 1984, I am thrilled to see it reaching a whole new generation of metalheads 40 years later, and what better label to do the honors than the mighty Metal Blade."




The 40th anniversary edition of Mercyful Fate's Don't Break The Oath will see release on special Ruby Red vinyl. Find pre-orders here, and additional merch items

SHINEDOWN frontman Brent Smith has praised LINKIN PARK for recruiting DEAD SARA's Emily Armstrong as the latter band's new co-vocalist.

Smith made his comments just minutes after LINKIN PARK introduced its new lineup during a live performance event, with Armstrong and Colin Brittain, a songwriter and producer for G FLIP, ILLENIUM and ONE OK ROCK, joining Mike Shinoda, Brad Delson, Dave "Phoenix" Farrell and Joe Hahn. LINKIN PARK also released a new single, "The Emptiness Machine", and announced an upcoming album "From Zero", which will arrive on November 15 via Warner. It will mark LINKIN PARK's first full-length effort since 2017's "One More Light", which was the last LINKIN PARK album before the death of lead vocalist Chester Bennington.

Smith took to his social media to write: "I remember the very first time I heard Emily Armstrong from DEAD SARA sing 'The Weatherman'. I said to myself, I believe Rock N' Roll will be OK… And so today I will say LINKIN PARK will be more than OK…

"I know the Internet is a blaze with comments of criticism and also of praise from fans all over the world. Something to think about … Do you honestly believe that the members of this ICONIC Band truly think that of all people Chester Bennington is replaceable??? The entire world knows he will never be replaceable because he was one of a kind. But with all that being said there is an audience that miss this band , and their presence ,and what they represent. So I asked you, ALL of you… Give them the opportunity to not close their chapter. Allow them to celebrate their legacy, and also the opportunity to create a new one.

"Give'em Hell L.P.".

Later this month, LINKIN PARK will embark on a six-date arena tour, making stops in Los Angeles, New York, Hamburg, London, Seoul and Bogota.

Pre-sale tickets for the "From Zero" tour will be available for the LP Underground fan club members starting on September 6. The general sale will start on September 7.

According to a press release, Shinoda, Delson, Farrell and Hahn "quietly began meeting up again in recent years" and "rather than 'trying to restart the band,'" they worked with numerous musicians and "found a special kinship with Armstong and Brittain."

Regarding the band's new lineup and future plans, Shinoda said in a statement: "Before LINKIN PARK, our first band name was XERO. This album title refers to both this humble beginning and the journey we’re currently undertaking. Sonically and emotionally, it is about past, present, and future — embracing our signature sound, but new and full of life. It was made with a deep appreciation for our new and longtime bandmates, our friends, our family, and our fans. We are proud of what LINKIN PARK has become over the years, and excited about the journey ahead."

"The Emptiness Machine" is said to "channel the DNA of LINKIN PARK." Shinoda said the band feels "really empowered with this new lineup and the vibrant and energized new music we've made together," adding that they are "weaving together the sonic touchpoints we've been known for and still exploring new ones."

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Former IRON MAIDEN singer Blaze Bayley has released the official music video for the song "Ghost In The Bottle". The track is taken from Blaze's latest solo album, "Circle Of Stone", which arrived in February.

Blaze states: "Special thanks to the guys at Lion Island Media for their brilliant work shooting & editing the video. Thanks also to Lisa & Martin at the fabulous venue Whittles (Oldham, Greater Manchester) for their hospitality, kindness & friendship whilst allowing us to film there."

"Circle Of Stone" track listing:

01. Mind Reader
02. Tears In Rain
03. Rage
04. The Year Beyond This Year
05. Ghost In The Bottle
06. The Broken Man
07. The Call Of The Ancestors
08. Circle Of Stone (feat. Niklas Stålvind)
09. Absence
10. A Day Of Reckoning
11. The Path Of The Righteous Man
12. Until We Meet Again

The official music video for the LP's third single, "Mind Reader", was made available in February. A month earlier, the video for the LP's second single, "Rage", came out. "Rage" tells the story, from Welsh folklore, of Gelert the faithful hound and his unfortunate demise at the hands of his beloved owner Prince Llewelyn. The animation for the video was developed by Hot Frog Animations. The song features violinist Anne Bakker who also worked with Blaze during the "Infinite Entanglement" trilogy (2016-2018).

Also available is the official music video for the LP's title track, "Circle Of Stone", featuring a guest appearance by Niklas Stålvind of the Swedish metal band WOLF. Bayley said about that song: "I wish to thank especially Niklas Stålvind of Swedish band WOLF for his wonderful performance adding vocals to this song, the guys at Lion Island Media for their brilliant work shooting & editing the video, & my backing band ABSOLVA for their dedication & talent, including my co-producer Christopher Appleton. Thanks also to Paul Hume (owner) & Dean Cowan (sound engineer) from Eleven (Stoke-on-Trent, England) who were kind enough to let us shoot the video at their fine venue."

The 61-year-old Bayley fronted IRON MAIDEN from 1994 until 1999. The two MAIDEN albums he appeared on, "The X Factor" and "Virtual XI", sold considerably less than the band's prior releases and were their lowest-charting titles in the group's home country since 1981's "Killers".

Since leaving IRON MAIDEN in 1999, Bayley has released a number of albums, including several under the moniker BLAZE and more than a handful under his own name. He also appeared on 2012's "Wolfsbane Saves The World", the first album of new material by WOLFSBANE since the group's self-titled 1994 effort, and a follow-up LP, 2022's "Genius".

In March 2023, Blaze underwent a quadruple bypass surgery following a heart attack. He later shared details of the massive outpouring of well-wishes he received after his heart attack, including messages from his former MAIDEN bandmates.

"The thing I feel most lucky about is the incredible support I've had from my fans," he told BLABBERMOUTH.NET. "All over the world. My WOLFSBANE, Blaze Bayley, the MAIDEN fans. Everybody bought a t-shirt for a tour that was postponed. They still bought it to support me. I'm just incredibly lucky. And the letters people wrote to me. Hundreds of cards from all over the place. It's very humbling."

Blaze continued: "I've always put my whole life into music. It is my life. When people get in touch with you and say, 'I wish you well because your music has gotten me through tough times,' 'Your music meant this to me,' 'I first saw you way back when and it's been the soundtrack to my life,' it's incredible. I got a massive card from the MAIDEN fan club. The [MAIDEN] guys all sent me a message. I'm always in touch with Steve Harris [MAIDEN bassist] anyway, but everyone sent messages of support."

A heart bypass surgery, or coronary artery bypass graft (CABG) surgery, is used to improve blood flow to the heart. A surgeon uses blood vessels taken from another area of the body to bypass the damaged arteries.

The term quadruple bypass refers to the number of coronary arteries bypassed in the procedure. In other words, a quadruple bypass means four coronary arteries are bypassed.

Swedish progressive metallers OPETH will release their 14th studio album, "The Last Will And Testament", on October 11 via Reigning Phoenix Music/Moderbolaget. Following the critical acclaim of the album's first single, "§1" (Paragraph One),the band is now revealing the second offering from record, "§3" (Paragraph Three),which can be heard below.

OPETH frontman Mikael Åkerfeldt comments: "So put yourself in my position for a minute: Your band has this new album. You like it. In fact, you love it! It's got this elaborate concept running through all eight songs on there. You've written it over the timespan of, say, six months, effective time. You've invested a lot of passion into putting it together. You've recorded it together with your friends/colleagues. You've had a good time in the process. Now, said album is on the verge of being released and you're expected to talk about it. Prepare your audience for its coming. Talk it up! You do want people to hear it, right? You love the album so it should be easy, right? At this point, all you have to do is put together a few words for the new 'single.' But you're confused with the use of the term 'single,' as you connect it to the olden days where 'singles' often had the word 'hit' next to it. And you know that won't happen! Still you want people to hear it. Your loving 'fans' might think it's awesome. But you don't want to come across as a salesman. On top of that you're not a complete self-absorbed asshole who thinks you've got the Midas touch (well….). Also you have a bad case of that inborn Swedish modesty, sprinkled with some impostor syndrome. What do you say? '§3' is out now!'"

OPETH's fourteenth album was written by Åkerfeldt, with lyrics conferred with Klara Rönnqvist Fors (THE HEARD, ex-CRUCIFIED BARBARA). "The Last Will And Testament" was co-produced by Åkerfeldt and Stefan Boman (GHOST, THE HELLACOPTERS),engineered by Boman, Joe Jones (KILLING JOKE, ROBERT PLANT) and OPETH, with Boman, Åkerfeldt and the rest of OPETH mixing at Atlantis and Hammerthorpe Studios in Stockholm. The strings on "The Last Will And Testament" were arranged by Åkerfeldt and returning prog friend Dave Stewart (EGG, KHAN) and conducted by Stewart at Angel Studios in London. Not one to miss a beat, visual artist Travis Smith returns to the fold, crafting his 11th cover, a haunting "photograph" reminiscent of Stanley Kubrick's infamous "Overlook Hotel" photograph. Miles Showell (ABBA, QUEEN) also revisits mastering and vinyl lacquer cutting at Abbey Road Studios in London.

Åkerfeldt rolls out the red carpet for storied flautist and JETHRO TULL mainman Ian Anderson. Not only do Anderson's signature notes fly on "§4" and "§7", he narrates on "§1", "§2", "§4", and "§7". Joining Anderson, EUROPE's Joey Tempest lends a backing vocal hand on "§2", while Åkerfeldt's youngest daughter, Mirjam Åkerfeldt, is the disembodied voice in "§1".

"The Last Will And Testament" is a concept album set in the post-World War I era, unfolding the story of a wealthy, conservative patriarch whose last will and testament reveals shocking family secrets. The narrative weaves through the patriarch's confessions, the reactions of his twin children, and the mysterious presence of a polio-ridden girl who the family have taken care of. The album begins with the reading of the father's will in his mansion. Among those in attendance is a young girl, who, despite being an orphan and polio-ridden, has been raised by the family. Her presence at the will reading raises suspicions and questions among the twins.

"The Last Will And Testament" is the darkest and heaviest record OPETH has made in decades, and it is also the band's most fearlessly progressive. A concept album recounting the reading of one recently deceased man's will to an audience of his surviving family members, it brims with haunting melodrama, shocking revelations and some of the wildest and most unpredictable music that Åkerfeldt has ever written.

The follow-up to 2019's widely acclaimed "In Cauda Venenum", "The Last Will And Testament" is set in the shadowy, sepia-stained 1920s. It slowly reveals its secrets like some classic thriller from the distant, cobwebbed past, with each successive song shining more light on the stated machinations of our dead (but definitely not harmless) protagonist. The emotional chaos of the story is perfectly matched by OPETH's vivid but claustrophobic soundtrack, which artfully winds its way towards a crestfallen but sumptuous finale. Masters of their own idiosyncratic musical domain, OPETH have never sounded more unique.

"The Last Will And Testament" is destined to be a milestone in OPETH's illustrious recorded history. The band's first out-and-out concept record, it features guest cameos from JETHRO TULL legend Ian Anderson and Joey Tempest, frontman with Swedish rock gods EUROPE. Only one of the album's eight songs has a title: closing ballad "A Story Never Told". The rest are simply labeled as numbered chapters in this slowly unfolding saga of deceit, recrimination and betrayal. Enigmatic, unsettling and immersive, "The Last Will And Testament" is a turbulent, prog metal tale like no other.

Making his recorded debut alongside OPETH's long-established lineup of Mikael Åkerfeldt, guitarist Fredrik Åkesson, bassist Martin Mendez and keyboard maestro Joakim Svalberg on "The Last Will And Testament" is new drummer Waltteri Väyrynen, who joined the band in 2022.

In a recent interview with Bloodstock TV's Oran O'Beirne, Åkerfeldt was asked if "§1", which contains growling vocals from Mikael, is representative of the entire record. He said: "Yeah, I think so. Maybe. I mean, in that sense, yeah. There is some screams on the other songs — not all of them, but on some of the other songs. Good screams, I must say. It's a very restless record. Somebody said claustrophobic. And it's not a very happy record. It's very — I mean, every metal band says the word 'dark', but it's… restless, it is my best, to sum it up. We don't linger on anything. It's just like an explosion of ideas. It's like TikTok."

Regarding the "The Last Will And Testament" album title, Mikael said: "Yeah, well, it is a concept record that basically starts with the… The whole record is about the reading of the last will and testament of this main character that's passed away — a rich, old fuck. Conservative, old, stern, noble patriarch who passed away, and the record starts when he summoned his three children to go through with solicitors, his last will and testament."

Asked how he came up with the concept for the new OPETH album, Mikael said: "It's not completely my idea. I got interested in the topic even on the last record. There's a song on there called, the English title was 'Universal Truth' — I think we did a video for that one — which also dealt with kind of those types of, like how blood's not always thicker than water, how money can drive family members into chaos. So I got interested in that topic. And also along comes the TV series 'Succession', which is, I'm not sure if you've seen it, but a great TV series about a power struggle between siblings taking over after their Murdoch-type father."

He added: "It's interesting. And it also helps me if I have a theme of sorts if I'm gonna write lyrics. Otherwise, I end up writing stuff, I don't even know what they mean."

In a separate interview with Marcus Schleutermann of EMP, Åkerfeldt was asked how "The Last Will And Testament" is different from other OPETH albums. Mikael said: "I don't know. It's weird. That's not really different for us, I guess. But I'm doing some of the screams again, which I haven't done for a long time. And there's some guests on there. Ian Anderson from JETHRO TULL is on there doing spoken word and playing flute. And Joey Tempest [of EUROPE] is on it. But, yeah, it's a concept record. Somebody said it sounds claustrophobic. It's a claustrophobic-sounding record. And there's a lot of ideas. It's a restless record. There's not meandering stuff happening all the time. Even I don't really know the songs yet. But, of course, I would say that, but I think it's good — it's a good record."

Regarding Joey's contributions to "The Last Will And Testament", Mikael said: "Tempest doesn't sound like Tempest on [EUROPE's biggest hit] 'The Final Countdown'. I had him over at my house. I asked him, 'Could you sing a few lines?' 'Let's push the record button,' he said. At the time I didn't have the lyrics ready, so I was, like, 'I'm sorry. I have to record it from somewhere else.' But he's really going for it. He sounds amazing. I mean, I'm a big EUROPE fan, being Swedish. I love them. And I think for him to be on this record, it's a bit different by his standards because it doesn't really sound like a EUROPE record at all."

Asked if he and Joey are friends, Mikael said: "I guess. I guess we're friends. Yeah. He sent me a text one day. It's, like, 'What's up?' And I was, like, 'Hey, Joey Tempest.' And we met at festivals, and he invited me over to his house. I mean, we know the EUROPE guys. Fredrik, one of his best friends is [John] Norum, the [EUROPE] guitar player. So, we're good friends with the whole band. But, yeah, Joey Tempest, we hang out every now and then."

On the possibility of a OPETH/EUROPE joint tour, Mikael said: "We talked about it, but it's hard to know… Ultimately, we make the calls for who we gonna tour with. For instance, we gonna tour in North America soon with TRIBULATION, and they're friends. And then we're going to tour in Europe with GRAND MAGUS, which is also friends. And EUROPE, we have talked about touring together, but it's hard to know if people like that package or not. I'm not sure… I think [EUROPE] would have to play after us then, because you don't want to go up after 'The Final Countdown'."

Asked if the songs on "The Last Will And Testament" all stand on their own or if they are all connected in some way, Mikael said: "They are connected lyrically, but also to a certain extent that one song bleeds into the other, which I always liked anyways. It's basically the reading of a testament. So it's like paragraphs. There are no real songtitles on there. It's a bit odd by our standards even. But you could, of course, extract any song from — we don't have to play the whole record."

OPETH will embark on a North American tour this fall. The trek, which will kick off on October 11 in Milwaukee, includes stops in New York, Los Angeles, Toronto, Washington, D.C., Atlanta, New Orleans, Austin, Denver and more.

Photo by Terhi Ylimäinen

LINKIN PARK has explained the absence of drummer Rob Bourdon from the band's reunited lineup.

LINKIN PARK introduced its new formation during a live performance event on Thursday (September 5),with vocalist Emily Armstrong and drummer Colin Brittain, a songwriter and producer for G FLIP, ILLENIUM and ONE OK ROCK, joining Mike Shinoda, Brad Delson, Dave "Phoenix" Farrell and Joe Hahn. LINKIN PARK also released a new single, "The Emptiness Machine", and announced an upcoming album "From Zero", which will arrive on November 15 via Warner. It will mark LINKIN PARK's first full-length effort since 2017's "One More Light", which was the last LINKIN PARK album before the death of lead vocalist Chester Bennington.

In an interview with Billboard about LINKIN PARK's comeback, vocalist/multi-instrumentalist Shinoda explained that Bourdon — who had founded the band with Mike and Brad — had decided to exit LP.

"Rob had said to us at a point, I guess it was a few years ago now, that he wanted to put some distance between himself and the band," Shinoda said. "And we understood that — it was already apparent. He was starting to just show up less, be in less contact, and I know the fans noticed it too. The 'Hybrid Theory' re-release [in 2020] and 'Papercuts' release [this April], he didn't show up for anything. So for me, as a friend, that was sad, but at the same time, I want him to do whatever makes him happy, and obviously everybody wishes him the best."

Shinoda also spoke about the involvement of Brittain, an artist, songwriter, producer and mixer who has previously worked alongside producers such as Kato Khandwala (BLONDIE, PARAMORE),John Feldman (5 SECONDS OF SUMMER, BLINK-182) and his sometimes-partner Nicholas "RAS" Furlong (5 SECONDS OF SUMMER, PAPA ROACH, AVICII).

"He's playing drums in the live show, and drums are his first instrument, but he plays guitar and bass and keyboard, and he produces and mixes," Mike said. "We have a similar way of looking at music, of starting from scratch, and I really enjoyed working with him and bouncing ideas back and forth."

Later this month, LINKIN PARK will embark on a six-date arena tour, making stops in Los Angeles, New York, Hamburg, London, Seoul and Bogota.

Pre-sale tickets for the "From Zero" tour will be available for the LP Underground fan club members starting on September 6. The general sale will start on September 7.

According to a press release, Shinoda, Delson, Farrell and Hahn "quietly began meeting up again in recent years" and "rather than 'trying to restart the band,'" they worked with numerous musicians and "found a special kinship with Armstong and Brittain."

Regarding the band's new lineup and future plans, Shinoda said in a statement: "Before LINKIN PARK, our first band name was XERO. This album title refers to both this humble beginning and the journey we’re currently undertaking. Sonically and emotionally, it is about past, present, and future — embracing our signature sound, but new and full of life. It was made with a deep appreciation for our new and longtime bandmates, our friends, our family, and our fans. We are proud of what LINKIN PARK has become over the years, and excited about the journey ahead."

"The Emptiness Machine" is said to "channel the DNA of LINKIN PARK." Shinoda said the band feels "really empowered with this new lineup and the vibrant and energized new music we've made together," adding that they are "weaving together the sonic touchpoints we've been known for and still exploring new ones."

ChicagoTRS has uploaded video of MEGADETH's September 3 concert at Credit Union 1 Amphitheatre in Tinley Park, Illinois. Check out the clips below.

MEGADETH's setlist was as follows, according to Setlist.fm:

01. The Sick, The Dying… And The Dead!
02. Dread And The Fugitive Mind
03. Angry Again
04. Washington Is Next!
05. She-Wolf
06. Hangar 18
07. Countdown To Extinction
08. Liar
09. Sweating Bullets
10. Skin O' My Teeth
11. Trust
12. Tornado Of Souls
13. We'll Be Back
14. Symphony Of Destruction
15. Mechanix
16. Peace Sells

Encore:

17. Holy Wars... The Punishment Due

MEGADETH kicked off the "Destroy All Enemies" summer 2024 U.S. tour on August 2 at Walmart AMP, Rogers, Arkansas. Produced by Live Nation, the trek, which features MUDVAYNE and ALL THAT REMAINS as support, is hitting 33 cities, including Las Vegas, Boston and St. Louis, before wrapping up on September 28 in Nashville, Tennessee.

Finnish guitarist Teemu Mäntysaari joined MEGADETH last September after the band's longtime axeman Kiko Loureiro, announced earlier that month that he would sit out the next leg of MEGADETH's "Crush The World" tour in order to stay home with his children back in Finland. It was later revealed that Mäntysaari would continue to play guitar for MEGADETH for the foreseeable future, with Loureiro seemingly having no plans to return.

The 37-year-old Mäntysaari was born in Tampere, Finland and began playing guitar at the age of 12. In 2004, he joined the band WINTERSUN. He has also been a member of SMACKBOUND since 2015.

MEGADETH played its first concert with Mäntysaari on September 6, 2023 at Revel in Albuquerque, New Mexico.

Loureiro officially joined MEGADETH in April 2015, about five months after Chris Broderick's exit from the group.

Since its inception in 1983, MEGADETH has ascended from its raw thrash metal roots to become an unstoppable force in the heavy metal world. With founder Dave Mustaine at the helm, MEGADETH's journey has been marked by a penchant for pushing the boundaries of speed, technicality, and complexity in their music. Their groundbreaking album "Rust In Peace", released in 1990, is frequently cited as a seminal work in the thrash metal genre. Along with the critically acclaimed "Peace Sells... But Who's Buying?", it cemented MEGADETH's place in the annals of metal history.

Over four decades, the band's discography has earned numerous certifications, including platinum and multi-platinum awards, with albums like "Countdown To Extinction" and "Youthanasia" achieving widespread critical acclaim. 2016's "Dystopia" not only marked a high point with their first Grammy Award for "Best Metal Performance" after twelve nominations but also set the stage for their latest triumph, "The Sick, The Dying... And The Dead!" in 2022. MEGADETH's status as part of the "Big Four" of thrash metal underscores their trailblazing role in the genre, laying the groundwork for countless bands and musicians who have followed in their wake.

Veteran metal bassist Steve DiGiorgio has reflected on the experience of laying down his bass tracks on MEGADETH's latest album, "The Sick, The Dying... And The Dead!"

The longtime TESTAMENT bassist temporarily stepped in to record the bass tracks on MEGADETH's follow-up to 2016's "Dystopia" in the summer of 2021, shortly after the exit of David Ellefson. With the kick-off of MEGADETH's tour a couple of months later, MEGADETH alumnus James LoMenzo rejoined the MEGADETH family as permanent bass player.

On Tuesday (September 3),DiGiorgio took to his social media to share a few photos from the "The Sick, The Dying... And The Dead!" recording sessions, and he wrote in an accompanying message: "On the 2 year anniversary of the ['The Sick, The Dying... And The Dead!'] album release, and the 3 year completion of my bass recording... I wanted to introduce the bass that made the cut. This 2015 Ibanez BTB1605-NTF has been seen on stage before and has been heard on a couple other sessions -- but obviously the honor of such a lofty position warrants due recognition. The final sound was a very clear, punchy, mean & ganky bass tone that was worthy of the most metal low end.

"These are the only photos in existence of my presence & participation of the recording session. I functioned well in the extremely behind the scenes, almost ghost-session gig that it was, as I already had sufficient pressure just venturing in that level of arena for my status. Although the 'mystery bass player' incident was fun while many guessed who it was on the floor during Dave's [Mustaine, MEGADETH leader] Cameo video that 'leaked' the clue.

"The man you (barely) see at the console is Chris Rakestraw, and his patience-beyond-the-moon chilled my anxiety to play songs I never heard before arriving there. He's worked with the band for a few recordings & tours and had been ingrained with this album since the very beginning; so our long hours and his good ear helped me get thru the new material smoothly.

"Dave was easy to work with and a hella awesome host. And it was a great learning experience to use a pick more than I ever had before. I kept that little yellow plectrum in a case as a remembrance that being versatile goes a long way for opening doors to opportunities..!

"The blonde BTB that I recorded 99% of the bass tracks with wasn't the only bass I brought. There is indeed fretless on a MEGADETH album..! Very small part...but can you find it?"

Back in April 2023, Steve told the "Into The Combine" podcast about how he approached his playing on "The Sick, The Dying... And The Dead!": "Riff-wise, you know the riff style, so it wasn't an over-the-top, brutal, technical death metal band that doesn't ever repeat any line. The riff information was in my wheelhouse, obviously, but what I realized is… From my background and my road that took me there, I wasn't equipped all the way to be in an arena that big. The pressure was huge. And maybe a lot of that was self-imposed, but that kept me on my best behavior. And I put my nose to the grindstone, and I wanted to leave a good mark. I wanted Dave [Mustaine, MEGADETH leader] to be proud of his decision. He picked me, and he told me on the phone he didn't really have a list [of other bass players that he could reach out to]. He's, like, 'If you can't, I don't have the two and three written down.' He goes, 'I've gotta kind of start over.' And so I when I got off the phone, [I went], 'Holy shit. That's huge. I'm it.' So I tried to stop saying 'Why me?' and say, 'Okay. It's me. Let's go. Let's do this the right way.'"

Steve continued: "It was brutal. But the cool thing was [Dave] treated me awesomely. He gave me absolutely all the room to learn the stuff. I can't say I didn't hear the songs before I got [to the studio], because he did send me a folder and I could listen to the songs. Even just asking me to do it, they were already at that point, so it wasn't, like, 'Yeah, four months later we'll…' No. It was, like, 'As soon as you say 'Yeah', get here.' So I didn't have any time to sit down and work out anything. And I didn't really want to anyway. I mean, it's MEGADETH, so you weren't gonna get [DEATH's] 'Individual Thought Patterns' [-style playing] on that album. I'm not that naïve. I'm, like, 'I'm going in to do MEGADETH. I know more or less what he wants. He wants MEGADETH bass.' But he did choose me. So I'm, like, 'Let's see what he wants. So let me just go into this completely unprepared and see what he wants.' And he was fucking great.

"A lot of people — and I've heard it, and you probably have heard it; Dave [Mustaine] stories are out there and everything," DiGiorgio added. "My experience, I can't validate any of that, because I was in the studio for, like, 13 days and gone. And for every single day I was there, he was an awesome human being. We got along great. We played great. He pushed me and he pulled me, but when it was done, he let me know it was done. It was a big high five and a hug, and we had a celebratory meal. I wanted to cook for him, but when you're there doing bass, it's, like, you've gotta do bass. So one night I managed to… they were working on something else and I cooked something, so we had a nice DiGiorgio feast.

"But it went very well," Steve reiterated. "[Dave] was very generous, very gracious. He gave me space to do stuff. And I told him flat out: 'Look, I want to use a pick. I know I need to use a pick.' I said, 'But I'm not super proficient with it. It's not my strong point.' I'm not a predominantly pick player. I break one out on a TESTAMENT song here and there. It's more like a novelty. Well… there's a sonic benefit to it. There's a [TESTAMENT] song called 'Electric Crown'; it's just got this steady rock kind of thing. I [use a] pick on that one, and there's a couple of others here and there. So one percent of the time I use a pick. I use a pick for one song for just the effect of it, but very little. And I told [Dave] that. I said, 'Hopefully we don't have this big hole in the road or whatever.' And he said, 'However it comes out of you, that's what we need.' And so I did a little mixture. A lot of the speed stuff, I could get that thing going and then nail it down, and that was the majority of it… And he didn't stare at me or nothing, so sometimes I'd put the pick down and I'd play it, and I'd see that nod, like, 'Okay, that sounds good.' So there's a few parts on there where I got to do my thing like that. But that's how he was, like, 'Whatever works for you.' And so that whole, 'Was he a tyrant in the studio? Did he force you…? Did he make you…?' No, he was fucking great to work with. So it turned out to be cool. It was a fucking amazing experience. I had to pinch myself when I drove away from that studio, like, 'Holy crap. I did it. I made it out alive.' But that was self-imposed. I don't mean 'I made it out alive…' They made sure I stayed alive. They took great care of me. The management team, Dave, his engineer Chris and his assistant Brian there, everyone was awesome. And I've got nothing but good [things] to say about that session. It was, like I said, two weeks — in and out. But it went great."

When Mustaine first confirmed that DiGiorgio laid down the bass tracks on "The Sick, The Dying... And The Dead!" in March 2022, he told SiriusXM Liquid Metal: "We obviously had that weird little… Well, it wasn't little, but we had something happen that we needed to make a decision on, and it kind of set us back a little bit timing-wise, because we needed to recalibrate and find someone to perform the bass parts. And we found someone that I thought was the perfect fit for us while I was trying to decide what to do."

He continued: "It was a good choice. I didn't think about anybody else at the time. I was thinking about 'who's the hottest guy out there that can play these new songs?' Because [Mustaine's son] Justis told me one of the fastest songs we've ever written is on this record. And I don't care what anybody says — bass may be less strings than a guitar, but it's difficult to play. If you're like me, I have a real hard time playing the bass. I can play it, and I wrote the riff for 'Peace Sells… But Who's Buying?', for Pete's sake, but, you know, having to jam some of those parts that fast, it just kills your fingers.

"It took a little bit of some getting to know each other," Mustaine added. "We hung out and had some meals. And he and Dirk [Verbeuren, MEGADETH drummer] and Kiko [Loureiro, then-MEGADETH guitarist] and [engineer] Chris Rakestraw got along really well. We had talked about what he was doing with TESTAMENT and stuff like that, and we just all kind of realized that it was perfect the way that it was, and now's time for me to find someone who's gonna join MEGADETH, and I'm not gonna hurt another band in the process."

There had been speculation about DiGiorgio's involvement in the new MEGADETH LP since July 2021, based on a Cameo video Mustaine recorded in which he offered the first glimpse of the bassist that re-recorded David Ellefson's bass tracks on the much-anticipated MEGADETH effort. In the clip, the MEGADETH guitarist/vocalist could be seen walking around a studio where he showed Rakestraw sitting behind the studio console as well as the mystery bassist "hiding behind the chair on the floor." Although it was impossible to tell who the bassist was based on the video, the musician appeared to be using the same brand of Ibanez bass played by DiGiorgio.

DiGiorgio is widely renowned as a pioneer on the fretless bass in heavy metal music, having played with TESTAMENT, DEATH and SADUS, among others. Within his genre, Steve is respected for his playing skills, versatility and incredible technique. He has more than 40 studio album recordings and over 20 years of touring the world.

Ellefson laid down his bass tracks on MEGADETH's sixteenth LP in May 2020 at a studio in Nashville, Tennessee. A short time later, he raved about his performance on the record, telling the 96.7 KCAL-FM radio program "Wired In The Empire" that his musical chemistry with Verbeuren was comparable to the interplay between Geddy Lee and Neil Peart on classic RUSH albums. "I feel like on the new MEGADETH record, me and Dirk have those same moments," he said. "It's MEGADETH — it's not RUSH, obviously — but in the field of what we do, there were these moments that I was just going, 'Oh, my God.' This is me as a kid going, 'This is my Geddy/Neil moment right here.'"

In June 2021, Mustaine announced during an episode of his Gimme Radio program "The Dave Mustaine Show" that Ellefson's bass tracks would not be used on the new MEGADETH LP.

Ellefson was in MEGADETH from the band's inception in 1983 to 2002, and again from 2010 until his latest departure.

In September 2022, TESTAMENT's Chuck Billy said that he didn't think DiGiorgio "would have lasted" very long as a member of MEGADETH had he been asked to join the band. Billy discussed DiGiorgio's involvement with the latest MEGADETH album during an appearance on SiriusXM's "Trunk Nation With Eddie Trunk". Asked if he was concerned that TESTAMENT might lose its bass player to MEGADETH, Chuck said: "Well, of course. We're definitely always concerned that… We've had so many lineup changes, it wouldn't faze us. But Steve's an important part of the band; he was a great addition when he came back. And we went through a lot together personally. So, of course, when you get the opportunity to play on it, and I'm sure they were courting him to join the band. I'm glad he made the decision to stay with us."

Billy continued: "I think his intentions always were just, 'I'll go record the record,' 'cause that's what Steve does — he plays on a lot of people's albums. So we kind of took it as that at first. And I thought, 'That's what he does.' 'Go for it, Steve. Just don't leave.' [Laughs] And I'm sure they asked him to join the band. And he decided, 'You know, I've been with my bros here for a long time. I'm gonna stick with my bros.'"

According to Chuck, Verbeuren "had a lot of influence getting Steve" the MEGADETH recording gig because Dirk is "really good friends with Steve and they've done a lot of projects together." However, Billy added that he doesn't "personally think Steve would have lasted in the band. I know Steve very well, and I know Dave [Mustaine] very well, and I'm sure the two worlds would have collided," Chuck said with a laugh.

In August 2022, Mustaine discussed his decision to hire DiGiorgio to lay down the bass tracks on "The Sick, The Dying… And The Dead!" during an appearance on Full Metal Jackie's nationally syndicated radio show. Asked what he appreciates most about DiGiorgio and LoMenzo musically and as people, Mustaine said: "I think that both of them are really fun people to be around. Although I didn't know Steve DiGiorgio as much as I know James LoMenzo, I found him to be just as enjoyable to be around as James was."

Referencing the fact that Ellefson was fired from the band in May 2021, just days after sexually tinged messages and explicit video footage involving the bassist were posted on Twitter, Mustaine said: "I think the band and everybody that's associated with us, that period that we went through was a little touchy. So we wanted to do the right thing. And trying to find the replacement for anybody, I think, wasn't the right thing to do at the time because nobody really knew all the facts and I certainly didn't want to poach anybody. Not from TESTAMENT — they're my friends — and I don't think from anybody."

Mustaine, who was a member of METALLICA for 11 months before being fired in 1983, continued: "As great as Steve is, I remember what it felt like when we [METALLICA] went up and poached Cliff [Burton] from TRAUMA. I mean, granted, the band TRAUMA wasn't that good, but there are still guys in the band and their lives were changed when that happened.

"I tend to believe that… You've gotta ask yourself, 'Did he jump or was he pushed?' And I like to make sure, if I was gonna hire somebody, that I wasn't stealing him from anybody."

On the 2 year anniversary of the album release, and the 3 year completion of my bass recording... I wanted to introduce...

Posted by Steve Di Giorgio on Tuesday, September 3, 2024

As Wardruna prepares for their October 3 performance at the iconic Red Rocks Amphitheatre, main composer and songwriter Einar Selvik and the evening’s special guest, Chelsea Wolfe, discuss the special outing, their shared admiration for each other’s music and how they approach songwriting in a newly released, in-depth interview.


“I’m a sucker for melody, for visual music,” Selvik explains in the interview which was conducted by Frank Godla (Metal Injection), and filmed over the Summer in Oslo. “The first time I experienced Chelsea’s music was live, at Hellfest. I could hear elements of things that I do in my music, or how I like to paint the picture. It has this Nordic feel to it actually. I like artists who aren’t afraid to follow the path they are on.”


“Even though our music is very different, and comes from different worlds, there is some crossover,” Wolfe says of her relationship to Wardruna’. “Both of us bring a sense of theater and spirituality to our live show. I love the idea of bringing history into the modern world in a totally fresh way like Wardruna does.”







Tickets for the Red Rock Amphitheatre performance, which serves as Wardruna’s sole North American performance ahead of a planned 2025 album release, are on-sale now,

32 years is a long time in anyone's book. Way too long, according to SODOM fans worldwide. But if you ask SODOM bassist/vocalist Thomas "Angelripper" Such and Andy Brings, those 32 years since the original release of SODOM's sixth album "Tapping The Vein" went by in the blink of an eye. With prices for the original vinyl LP skyrocketing in the collectors' world and heated online fan discussions whether the re-release will ever see the light of day, the time has finally come to breathe new life into what appears to be everybody's favorite album by SODOM, alongside "Agent Orange" and "Persecution Mania".

"At the time it was just another album for us," says Angelripper, "but the Sodomaniacs all over the world made it a cult classic. It's just sad that Chris Witchhunter is not here anymore to celebrate with us." Guitar player Andy Brings, who was 20 years old and still in school when the joined the band in 1991, who wrote and recorded his first-ever album with SODOM, adds: "Bands don't determine what becomes a cult, the fans do. It just happened, and we are very proud of it. 18-year-olds come up to me these days and tell me how much they love that album."

Not only was "Tapping The Vein" the last album with original drummer Chris Witchhunter hitting the skins more fiercely than ever before, but it was also a brutal statement from one of the originators of thrash metal, in a time when many bands strayed from their original paths, became too sanitized or caved in to newer trends. SODOM went in the opposite direction and put out what many fans call "SODOM's death metal album", although no one in the band actually listened to death metal at the time.

Angelripper says: "We just did what we did, not paying attention to what was happening around us. Andy joined the band and we just hammered out these killer songs in no time. It all happened very fast. There were no distractions, just the music."

Brings adds: "'Tapping The Vein' is the result of pure inspiration. I was young, hungry and full of energy and had ideas and that resonated perfectly with Tom and Chris, wanting to show everybody who's really in charge of thrash metal, in an era where not many bands stayed true to their original vision."

So here it is. SODOM's "blue album" revisited (like any true classic, it can be referred to by only mentioning the color of the artwork, just ask METALLICA, WEEZER and THE BEATLES),and the package could not be more complete. With the original album remastered, it also features a complete remixed version done by Andy Brings with some additional alternative takes of three album tracks, plus three live concerts: Tokyo 1992, Düsseldorf 1992 and Cologne 1992 (Chris Witchhunter's last show with SODOM) in the super deluxe edition.

Andy says: "We fought and worked very hard for this re-release, I can only hope that it was worth the wait, but I'm pretty sure it will fill every Sodomaniac's heart with joy."

Tom adds: "The fans mean everything to us, and this is really just for them. Working on 'Tapping The Vein' again brought back so many memories, both good and bad, but this is who we were 32 years ago. An amazing trip."

"Tapping The Vein" is the story of youth, life, death, friendship and loyalty. It's also testament to a time in your life, when everything was new and exciting, and bands and their music was all you had. When metal was pure, raw and wild. You thought that time would never come back. Until now.

SODOM's deluxe, expanded reissue of "Tapping The Vein" is available in these formats:

* Super deluxe "blood-filled vinyl" edition. Triple LP, double CD deluxe 24-page bookpack (limited to 100 copies via the Noise Records store only)
* Deluxe triple LP red-and-black swirl vinyl and double CD deluxe 24-page bookpack.
* Double, gatefold transparent red vinyl.
* Triple CD digisleeve with 24-page booklet

Pre-orders of the deluxe bookpack edition will come with a limited-edition reproduction 1992 gig poster signed by Tom Angelripper and Andy Brings from the SODOM and Noise Records stores, while stocks last.

Photo credit: Babse Thoben

Nita Strauss is celebrating the ninth anniversary of her getting sober.

The 37-year-old Alice Cooper guitarist credited the 12-Step program with helping her live her life without alcohol.

Earlier today (Thursday, September 5),she shared an image revealing she has been sober for nine years, 108 months, 3,289 days or 78,916 hours.

During a December 2021 appearance on "Guitar Autopsy", the video podcast hosted by Rusty Cooley, Strauss spoke about how she managed to lose 50 pounds and get sober while on tour back in 2015.

"My whole approach to sobriety and health and fitness is to educate but not ever force," she said. "I wouldn't ever want it to be, like, 'You have to stop drinking. You have to do cardio every day,' or whatever. All I can share is really what worked for me, and that was alcohol was extremely, extremely detrimental in my personal life.

"I got sober in 2015 and I basically just decided to make the most of it and said, 'If I'm gonna do this, I'm gonna do it right,'" she continued. "And I switched from going to the bar after the show to going to the Barbell in the morning, for lack of a better term. [Laughs] I hooked up with great bodybuilding coaches that [helped] me [with] my diet and my workout while I'm on the road. I use the right supplements, I eat the right food. I have dieticians at RP Strength, I have a workout coach, I take all the right supplements, I drink my green drinks, I take all my vitamins and I stay on track. And the more I did it, people in our community — the rock and metal community — were starting to ask how I did it. And I was writing these long captions on my phone: 'First things first, you drink a lot of water…' da da da. And so I thought why not inspire people to do more. So I created 'Body Shred'. And 'Body Shred' is the first fitness challenge that I know of that is aimed at the music community."

In 2020, Strauss credited her now-husband and manager Josh Villalta with helping her live her life without alcohol. At the time, she wrote: "I thought I needed a drink for just about everything. To be confident on stage. To be social after shows. To celebrate. To mourn. To take the edge off frustration or the sting out of a bad day. To relax and laugh at lunch with girlfriends, or watch football with the guys on Sundays. I was terrified that my life was going to change, that without alcohol I wouldn't be ME anymore, that I would lose my circle of friends, and my onstage charisma, and become someone else. ALL those things happened... but not in the way I thought they would.

"Change came first in my relationship, in the form of less fighting and drama, and more productivity, peace and love. Thank you @thejoshv for being the catalyst to the best thing I ever did for myself. I love you.

"The ME that I was before would have stayed up until 6 am at the bar or in the bus front lounge. The ME that I became would rather get up at 6 and get to the gym before starting the day.

"My busy circle of friends was almost immediately reduced to a core 3. I've learned that when it comes to friendships, quality is ALWAYS better than quantity. If your friends have no interest in spending time with you after you make a change for the better, they weren't your real friends.

"My first show without alcohol was in front of 15,000 people. I felt like a scarecrow someone had propped up on stage to scare birds. Nothing felt natural. I was going through the motions, with this absurd idea running through my head 'everyone is looking at me. Everyone knows.'

"I went out by the bus to talk to fans afterward, and do you know what they said? 'Wow you were so great! Where do you get all that energy? You add so much to Alice's band!'

"ALL of that insecurity, ALL the fears, ALL the doubt was in my head. Those are your demons that make you think you need them.

"I'm content to sit at the bar, order a soda water with lime and watch the game now. I wouldn't trade back to my old life for anything."

Back in 2018, Nita spoke openly about how she got finally sober in September 2015, saying that Josh has always been "a tough-love type" in the way she approached her sobriety. "He's, like, 'Look, you're on this path, and I support you, but I'm not changing the way I do things at all," she explained in an interview with "Chasing Glory With Lilian Garcia". "And I'm kind of glad, in retrospect, that he did that, because it threw me into the fire and showed me, like, 'Hey, you can be [around people who are drinking] and not drink.' He has continued to drink throughout [this entire period], but he didn't want me to drink, because when I would drink, I would start fights and I would get emotional and I would overreact to stupid things, like you do when you drink — it's part of drinking; it heightens all your emotions and everything." Nita also revealed that she has never participated in Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) to help her stay sober.

Strauss has been playing with Alice Cooper since 2014 when she replaced Australian musician and former Michael Jackson player Orianthi. She joined Alice in time for a mammoth MÖTLEY CRÜE tour. She was recommended to Cooper by the legendary rocker's former bass player and WINGER frontman Kip Winger.
9 🤍 pic.twitter.com/KzJNAlfbfA

— Nita Strauss Villalta (@hurricanenita) September 5, 2024

Guitarist, singer, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Richie Kotzen will release his brand new solo studio album, titled "Nomad", on September 27 via BMG. The effort will be available digitally, on CD and standard black vinyl.

Richie has premiered the official video for "Insomnia", the third single from "Nomad". The track is described in a press release as "a moodier, melancholy affair. While it still contains his hard rock sensibilities, Kotzen's deep Philly musical roots shine through with a funkier bridge and chorus. The verses simmer with a sleepless anxiety until the sunburst of its earthy chorus line pushes through."

Fittingly, the main melody for "Insomnia" came to Richie while he was sleeping and as inspiration struck, he immediately woke up, fired up his studio and, not wanting to lose the creative momentum, worked through the night and what would become "Insomnia" emerged.

"I was woken up with that chorus melody and in that moment had no idea the title would be 'Insomnia'," explains Kotzen. "Although the song was written around the chorus melody, the actual end recording relies heavily on the bass guitar and how it is treated. I've got more than one bass track playing at the same time in order to get that sound you are hearing. It's interesting that I'm known as a guitarist but the bass guitar plays such an integral role in my music and in my songwriting. So much of what I create comes out of the bass guitar lines that I write."

Written, recorded and produced by Kotzen, "Nomad" features eight new tracks showcasing Kotzen's multi-faceted musical styles with Kotzen playing almost every instrument on the album. On "Nomad", Kotzen expresses his diverse techniques and influences, from hard rock to '70s-infused soul and funk, jazz fusion to R&B. It's all intertwined with his own unique playing and songwriting approach, while retaining his ever-evolving signature style.

"I came up exposed to soul, funk and R&B music extensively but at the same time I was a hard rock fan all the way," explains Kotzen. "So I've got this sort of interesting dynamic happening with my music where you hear elements of PARLIAMENT or Curtis Mayfield but then at the same time you've got the BAD COMPANY early Rod Stewart influence as well. Then when I started taking the guitar more seriously, I was drawn into fusion bands like THE DIXIE DREGS, RETURN TO FOREVER and Allan Holdsworth's work. It is a wacky mixture but that is the formula for Richie Kotzen."

Earlier this year, Kotzen released the first two tracks from the album, hard-driving single "Cheap Shots" and follow-up single, "On The Table", a heavy-hitting rocker that had been living on his hard drive, waiting for the perfect lyric to complete it. A subconscious memory of his Brazilian father-in-law's first English words "The book is on the table" sparked inspiration and perfectly tied it all together.

While "Nomad" has no shortage of heavy guitar rockers, the sheer diversity of the album as heard on tracks such as "Nihilist", "This Is A Test" and the title track "Nomad" showcases not only Kotzen's musical range and vocal prowess, but his fearless imagination as a producer/arranger. Already globally renowned as an extraordinary guitarist, with "Nomad" Kotzen stands tall as a truly remarkable all-round lyricist-producer/arranger and singer.

"Nomad" track listing:

01. Cheap Shots
02. These Doors**
03. Insomnia
04. Nomad*
05. Escape
06. On The Table
07. This Is A Test
08. Nihilist

* Dan Potruch plays drums on "Nomad"
** Kyle Hughes plays drums on "These Doors"

Michael Kachko, BMG senior vice president says: "After working with Richie on the successful SMITH/KOTZEN project, we knew what an incredible songwriter and artist he is so we were excited to hear what he was working on as a solo artist. When he played us the new material, we knew immediately we wanted to be involved."

Kotzen states: "I was very much elated with the news that BMG wanted to release this album as I envisioned it without artistic compromise. I love the fact that the BMG team put their creative trust in me and my vision without re-design. So many times the business side of things can really interfere with the creative progress of a writer and with a team like this the focus is on what can we do to help you beyond what you've already done as a recording artist. The attitude seems to be, 'you've done the work as a writer, producer [and] musician, now let us take the ball and run'. This feels like the beginning of an amazing journey for me and a bit of a re-set in an industry that is becoming more complex to navigate for a lone artist."

Photo credit: Vecc Schiafino

Melodic synth-metal masters DELAIN are set to break new ground with their upcoming EP, "Dance With The Devil", due on November 8 via Napalm Records. Following the success of their latest full-length opus, 2023's "Dark Waters", which debuted at No. 9 on both the U.S. Hard Music Albums chart and the official German album chart — this EP promises to showcase the best of DELAIN's discography while striding ahead into a future that promises to explore new, more synth-driven soundscapes than ever before.

Today, DELAIN introduces the first offering off the upcoming EP by releasing its title track, "Dance With The Devil", together with a visually captivating music video. With very personal lyrics, catchy electronic synths, and powerful contrasting growls, the five-piece underlies its melodic signature sound and presents a future fan favorite without a shadow of a doubt!

DELAIN keyboardist and main songwriter Martijn Westerholt states about the song: "We're really excited and eager to share this new DELAIN song with the world. It captures the recognizable and signature sound of DELAIN but with a fresh and modern touch."

Westerholt adds about the video: "This video was shot the day after we performed at Summer Breeze in Germany. We still had the adrenaline of that show in our system and were stoked to be able to carry that energy into the video. We had a blast! The video contains a dramatized depiction of the struggle between good and evil — the war we all wage both without and, often times, within our own selves."

As their second release with a revitalized lineup anchored by founding member and band mastermind Martijn Westerholt, "Dance With The Devil" features a thrilling collection of two brand new tracks, two newly presented favorites, nine electrifying live performances, and two instrumental bonus tracks, showcasing the best of their catchy, melodic signature sound with extensive electronic synth elements and fresh modern nuances.

The offering debuts with two gripping new tracks, "Dance With The Devil" and "The Reaping", serving as a whirlwind of emotions articulating feelings of anger and sorrow through catchy electronic synth melodies and modern heaviness. "The Reaping" delves into collective themes, expressing disillusionment with the current path of society toward imminent and inescapable consequences. Following these, the EP presents a brand-new version of "Sleepwalkers Dream", showcasing Diana Leah's voice and her breathtaking full vocal capacities. "Dance With The Devil" continues with nine live performances, featuring massively streamed hits from both the present and the past. These include "Burning Bridges", "The Quest And The Curse", "Moth To A Flame" and the massive hit "April Rain", which has been streamed over 10 million times, along with "Queen Of Shadow". In addition, the digipak edition features instrumental versions of "Dance With The Devil" and "The Reaping", as well as an alternate ending version of "Underland". DELAIN's new EP impressively underlines the unit's high-class standing in the scene and continues their voyage of setting fans' hearts ablaze!

Martijn Westerholt says: "We're thrilled to have brand new material ready to be released! In addition to the new songs, it was fantastic to have captured some magical live moments of our European tour earlier this year as live tracks for the EP. We're definitely very excited for this release and are really looking forward to bringing the new music to the stage!"

"Dance With The Devil" track listing:

01. Dance With The Devil
02. The Reaping
03. Sleepwalkers Dream (2024 version)
04. The Cold (live)
05. Burning Bridges (live)
06. The Quest And The Curse (live)
07. April Rain (live)
08. Invidia (live)
09. Queen Of Shadow (live featuring Paolo Ribaldini)
10. Your Body Is A Battleground (live featuring Paolo Ribaldini)
11. Moth To A Flame (live)
12. Control The Storm (live featuring Paolo Ribaldini)
13. Dance With The Devil (instrumental)
14. The Reaping (instrumental)
15. Underland (alternate ending version)

DELAIN is:

Martijn Westerholt - keyboards
Diana Leah - vocals
Ronald Landa - guitars and backing vocals
Ludovico Cioffi – bass and backing vocals
Sander Zoer - drums

Photo credit: Tim Tronckoe

During a September 3 appearance on SiriusXM's "Trunk Nation With Eddie Trunk", legendary Canadian rocker Bryan Adams spoke about the two songs he co-wrote in the 1980s with Jim Vallance and KISS's Gene Simmons. He said: "I was 21, and I released my album called 'You Want It, You Got It'. And I got a call from a guy called Michael James Jackson, who was a producer at the time, and he called me to say, 'Hey, I really like your record. And I'm actually working with this band KISS. Would you like to write a couple of songs with them or for them?' And I said, 'Yeah. What? Is this for real?' And he said, 'Yeah.' And so they flew me to Los Angeles and I met Gene Simmons and Paul Stanley and Eric Carr, who was the drummer at the time. I sort of sat down with each one of 'em individually and wrote songs with each one. I wrote a song with Paul and I wrote a song with Eric. And with Gene I didn't write anything, but Gene had a really good bassline that I sort of recorded on my cassette recorder. And I took it back to Vancouver, and I was telling my usual songwriting collaborator, Jim Vallance, that I'd done this thing, and 'Check out this bassline of Gene's.' And we listened to it, and within an hour or so, we'd written this song called 'War Machine' around it. So that's how 'War Machine' came about. And then just to drag Jim into it further, he had a song that he wrote by himself called 'Rock And Roll Hell'. I said, 'We should retool that song' — 'cause it didn't do anything — 'we should retool it for KISS.' And he said, 'Okay, let's give it a go.' So I came up with a verse idea and then the two of us sort of came up with a lyric idea and we finished the song and sent it down there. And that became the second KISS song. Gene wanted a third verse, so he wrote a third verse for it."

Last month, Adams released music videos for his versions of "War Machine" and "Rock And Roll Hell", both of originally appeared on KISS's 1982 album "Creatures Of The Night".

Adams released "War Machine" and "Rock And Roll Hell" as a limited-edition double A-side seven-inch single on August 30 via his new independent label, Bad Records.

When the "War Machine"/"Rock And Roll Hell" single was first announced, Bryan explained in a statement: "Here are two songs I co-wrote when I was a 22-year-old struggling songwriter. I got a call out of the blue from producer Michael James Jackson to see if I would like to write for KISS, which I was thrilled to do, and these are a couple of the songs that were the result, written with both Gene Simmons and Jim Vallance.

"While sitting with the band, Gene played me this fantastic bass riff, which ended up being the backbone of 'War Machine'. I was trying to think of a theme that could possibly match the riff and came up with the title. Seeing as the other song we'd written was about hell, War was the obvious theme to coincide with it.

"'Rock And Roll Hell' was actually Jim's song that had been released a few years earlier with BACHMAN TURNER OVERDRIVE, and I suggested that we re-write it for KISS. It's incredible to think these themes are unfortunately still playing out for real in the world today, but I'm very grateful to the KISS guys for giving me the chance back then."

Regarding the accompanying "War Machine" video, he added: "I aimed to create something monumental for the 'War Machine' video, and I'd been collaborating with CGI director Ben Ib on a peace-themed video entitled 'What If There Were No Sides At All'. To contrast the peace message of that video, I proposed to Ben that we develop the 'War Machine' video showcasing chaos and destruction. In the video, the tyrant that is leading the war ultimately faces consequences for his actions."

Adams previously stated about his collaboration with KISS: "I was thrilled to work with them back then. I was a broke songwriter, it came at the perfect time. While sitting with the band, Gene played me this fantastic bass riff, which ended up being the backbone of 'War Machine'. I was trying to think of a theme that could possibly match the riff and came up with the title, which was actually an homage to a comic book character."

Adams told Classic Rock magazine in 2014: "KISS's deal was they had to have their name on the songs if they were gonna record it. They put some bit in the song that would qualify for a credit, but they had nothing to do with writing the songs. At the time — this was around '81 — Jim and I were just young songwriters looking for a break. I guess we were grateful for that."

Adams's music has achieved No. 1 status in over 40 countries. He has garnered many awards and accolades, including three Academy Award nominations, five Golden Globe nominations, a Grammy Award and multiple Canadian awards such as Companion Of The Order Of Canada and 18 Juno Awards, among others. His recent songs have been the peace track "What If There Were No Sides At All" and two songs from the Comedy Central film "Office Race". Adams co-wrote all the music and lyrics for "Pretty Woman: The Musical" and released the Grammy-nominated "So Happy It Hurts" (Best Rock Performance) album in 2022.

Back in the golden era of the single of the 1970s and 1980s, MOTÖRHEAD would regularly assault the ears of Top 40 chart listeners on a Sunday afternoon with a string of smash hits.

The single as a format may have been less prominent from the 1990s onwards due to the dawn of the CD, but that didn't diminish the caliber of the singles and promos that MOTÖRHEAD continued to release. These mostly CD singles are now rare and highly collectable, so it only feels fitting for this era of the band's bullet belt full of hits to be reappraised and released on the format that singles were born for, seven-inch vinyl.

"We Take No Prisoners" is a collection of MOTÖRHEAD singles spanning 1995 to 2006, and available as a nine-seven-inch-single box set and expanded double CD and digital editions. From crowd pleasers like the pummeling "Sacrifice" through their unique cover of SEX PISTOLS' "God Save The Queen" to the semi-acoustic roots vibes of "Whorehouse Blues", no one could deny their songwriting prowess and sheer rock power was still second to none.

With a selection of rare live and radio edits thrown in for good measure and a long-lost promo interview with Ian "Lemmy" Kilmister and Mikkey Dee from 2004, this is a definitive collection of this era of the band and the songs that drove the success of the albums they were lifted from.

Lemmy died on December 28, 2015 at the age of 70 shortly after learning he had been diagnosed with cancer.

MOTÖRHEAD had to cancel a number of shows in 2015 because of Lemmy's poor health, although the band did manage to complete a European tour a couple of weeks before his death.

In June 2020, it was announced that Lemmy would get the biopic treatment. The upcoming film, "Lemmy", will be directed by Greg Olliver, who previously helmed the 2010 documentary of the same name, "Lemmy".

A custom-made urn containing Lemmy's ashes is on permanent display in a columbarium at Forest Lawn Cemetery in Hollywood, California.

Photo credit: Robert John

35 years after its release, MÖTLEY CRÜE's "Dr. Feelgood" stands as one of the last great rock records of the 1980s and one of the greatest rock records of all time. Recorded in Vancouver with producer Bob Rock and released in 1989, this iconic album took MÖTLEY CRÜE to No. 1 on the Billboard 200 and earned a six-times-platinum certification in the U.S. The album cemented the newly sober band's status as global superstars, hitting the Top 10 in Australia (platinum),Canada (three times platinum),Finland, Norway, New Zealand (platinum),Sweden, Switzerland (gold) and the U.K. (gold).

With five massive hit singles that kept radio and MTV request lines busy, the "Dr. Feelgood" world tour saw MÖTLEY CRÜE on the road and in the air on their own private jet for over two years. First single "Dr. Feelgood", with its instantly memorable opening, catchy chorus, and gritty music video set the tone by reaching the top 10 on the U.S. Hot 100 singles chart. Originally a Top 30 hit upon release, "Kickstart My Heart" went on to become MÖTLEY CRÜE's most popular landmark track. From the buzz saw intro to the cheating-death lyrics and music video shot in a rare return to a club show at the world-famous Whisky A Go Go in Hollywood, it has now logged well over 1.5 billion streams and can be heard nearly every day in movies, commercials, video games and sporting events around the world. The Hot 100 hits kept coming as "Without You" hit No. 8, "Don't Go Away Mad (Just Go Away)" reached No. 19, and final single "Same Ol' Situation (S.O.S.)" was accompanied by an music video capturing the fan excitement of a live CRÜE show.

The "Dr. Feelgood" world tour kicked off at the now-legendary Moscow Music Peace Festival in Russia and by the time the tour wrapped in late 1990, the band had played over 100 shows to over two million faithful fans. MÖTLEY CRÜE continues to fill arenas and stadiums around the world with many classics from "Dr. Feelgood" in their setlist to this day.

The centerpiece of this 35th-anniversary campaign will be a limited-edition box set available on LP and CD with the remastered version of the original album, as well as rare demos and live tracks. The box set also features a 24-page replica tour book with never-before-seen and never-before-published live and behind-the-scenes photos, a replica "Dr. Feelgood" tour itinerary, poster, patch, backstage pass, live show handbill, press kit, medical envelope and guitar pick.

In addition to the box set, there will be a deluxe streaming version and various different configurations for fans of vinyl: an independent retail exclusive color vinyl, an alternative exclusive color vinyl with 3D lenticular cover art, a picture disc vinyl as well as standard black vinyl. Last but not least, the anniversary edition will also be available as CD with 3D lenticular art, as well as a standard CD. All variants feature reimagined cover art showing 35 years of decay.

As the world gears up for the highly anticipated limited edition box set, the Crüeseum — MÖTLEY CRÜE's ultimate haven for die-hard fans — administers a head-to-toe examination of the chart-topping, legacy-making, six-times-platinum release "Dr. Feelgood". Don't miss your chance to be a part of the celebration.

35th-anniversary limited-edition LP box set includes (also available as limited-edition CD box set):

* Original Album Remastered on green/black vinyl
* The "Demos" EP on green/black vinyl
* "Live" EP on green/black vinyl
* 24-page book with never-before-seen and never-before-published live and behind-the-scenes photos
* 18"x24" reimagined album art poster
* Replica backstage pass
* Patch
* Replica live show handbill
* 16-Page "Dr. Feelgood" tour itinerary
* Press kit
- Folder
- Original press release from 1989
- Original 8" x 10" press photo
* Medical Envelope
* Guitar Pick

Album track listing:

01. T.N.T. (Terror 'N Tinseltown)
02. Dr. Feelgood
03. Slice Of Your Pie
04. Rattlesnake Shake
05. Kickstart My Heart
06. Without You
07. Same Ol' Situation (S.O.S.)
08. Sticky Sweet
09. She Goes Down
10. Don't Go Away Mad (Just Go Away)
11. Time For Change

"Demos" track listing:

01. Dr. Feelgood (Demo)
02. Get It For Free (Demo)
03. Kickstart My Heart (Demo)
04. Time For Change (Demo)
05. Without You (Demo)

"Live" track listing:

01. Dr. Feelgood (Live)
02. Don't Go Away Mad (Just Go Away) (Live)
03. Without You (Live)
04. Kickstart My Heart (Live)
05. Same Ol' Situation (S.O.S) (Live)

Photo credit: William Hames (1989 "Dr. Feelgood" era)

Members of GREEN DAY were abruptly rushed off stage during the band's concert in Detroit on Wednesday (September 4) after a drone was spotted flying overhead. The band was in the middle of a performance of "Longview" at around 8:50 p.m., about 20 minutes into the concert, when a stagehand emerged from the wings to usher the musicians to the back of the stage.

"There was an individual that flew a drone into Comerica Park, so GREEN DAY was taken off stage," Detroit Police Department spokesman Cpl. Dan Donakowski said in a statement. "Shortly after that, they went back on stage to perform. DPD located this individual outside of Comerica Park. He is being detained pending further investigation."

Stage video screens soon lit up with a message: "SHOW PAUSE: PLEASE, STANDBY FOR DETAILS."

The concert resumed 10 minutes later, with frontman Billie Joe Armstrong telling the 35,000 fans in attendance: "How you guys doing? Everybody okay?"

Armstrong later told the crowd. "There ain't no motherfucker that's gonna stop us, I'll tell you that."

After the closing song, "Good Riddance (Time of Your Life)", he once again addressed the incident, saying: "A night we're all gonna remember."

Following the concert, GREEN DAY shared a message on social media, writing: "Detroit! Sorry for the delay in the show tonight. Stadium security had us clear the stage while they dealt with a potential safety issue. DPD quickly resolved the situation, and we were able to continue. Thanks for understanding."

GREEN DAY's current "Saviors Tour" is celebrating the 30th anniversary of the band's 1994 breakthrough album "Dookie" and the 20th anniversary of 2004's "American Idiot". Support on the trek is coming from SMASHING PUMPKINS, RANCID and THE LINDA LINDAS.
Green Day just got forced offstage. Some guy ran onstage and said something and they all ran off pic.twitter.com/Nl9wsBbgfN

— brah, im an Alpha Dog (they hate this) (@dj_beav) September 5, 2024


Detroit! Sorry for the delay in the show tonight, Stadium security had us clear the stage while they dealt with a potential safety issue. DPD quickly resolved the situation, and we were able to continue. Thanks for understanding.💚#greendayDetroit

— Green Day (@GreenDay) September 5, 2024

In a new interview with Guy "Favazz" Favazza of the St. Louis, Missouri radio station KSHE 95, Sammy Hagar spoke about the fact that Jason Bonham was forced to leave Sammy's "The Best Of All Worlds" tour due to an unspecified family issue. The drummer was replaced at the last four shows of the tour by Kenny Aronoff, who had previously played with Hagar, bassist Michael Anthony and guitarist Joe Satriani in CHICKENFOOT.

Asked how he hooked up with Kenny, Hagar said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "Well, I've known Kenny for a long time. Kenny has been my backup drummer for about — not just me. You talk to Billy Gibbons, you talk to anybody, they're gonna tell you that he's their backup drummer because he's the only guy that you can hand a setlist of 24 songs and in 24 hours he can play 'em."

Sammy clarified that he didn't know ahead of time that Kenny was going to be stepping in for Jason. "Jason's [family emergency] was a sudden thing," he explained. "His mother had a stroke and went into a coma and it's serious. So [his] whole family went over there [to the United Kingdom]. And he held out for two or three days, and he says, 'I gotta go. I gotta go.' I said, 'You go. Go.' So we told Kenny. He had about 24-hour notice. And he came in the first night. He got there at six in the morning. We played that night in Cincinnati. And he did a 90-percent perfect show. I swear to you, I make more mistakes every night than he did. So that's big hats off to this guy."

According to Hagar, there is a chance that Aronoff will play more shows with with Hagar, Anthony and Satriani in the coming weeks.

"The [U.S.] tour is over now, but we're going to Japan," Sammy said. "And if Jason is still with his mom, he's gotta be there till she either comes through or… whatever. I shouldn't be talking about his personal business, but he's got a medical emergency with his mother. You don't ignore that. We got Kenny, thank God. And if we have to go to Japan with him, we'll go to Japan. I just love playing with him 'cause he's so enthusiastic. He's the most enthusiastic guy. 'Oh man, we're gonna kill it. Oh, don't worry about me.' He's, like, foaming at the mouth. He's crazy."

Aronoff replaced Chad Smith in CHICKENFOOT's touring lineup from 2011 to 2012. Smith was forced to step away from CHICKENFOOT's touring activities due to his commitments with the RED HOT CHILI PEPPERS.

CHICKENFOOT recorded two albums between 2009 and 2011 and toured across America but never performed any VAN HALEN material. More recently, Hagar and Anthony have played some of the VAN HALEN catalog with guitarist Vic Johnson and Bonham in SAMMY HAGAR AND THE CIRCLE.

Back in 2012, Aronoff told Ultimate Classic Rock about his stint with CHICKENFOOT: "The cool thing about this band is that the level of musicianship is so high. Everybody’s been in so many bands that we're starting at such a high experienced level… There's a lot of stuff that you don't have to discuss. It's like if you took a bunch of NFL players and put them together, they're already starting with a lot of experience, so it's just a matter of making it gel… it gels so well, personality-wise and musically. And I think maybe that's what Chad was thinking when he picked me. He picked me personally — he kept telling them, 'This is the guy you should get to replace me while I'm out with the CHILI PEPPERS.' And it's worked — he's right. It was just the right combination of people."

For "The Best Of All Worlds" tour, Hagar and his bandmates in THE CIRCLE — Anthony and Bonham — were joined by Satriani and multi-instrumentalist Rai Thistlethwayte.

"The Best Of All Worlds" setlist consisted largely of VAN HALEN material, including the opening track "Good Enough", from 1986's "5150" album, as well as two songs from 1991's "For Unlawful Carnal Knowledge", "Poundcake" and "Runaround", and a pair of David Lee Roth-era VAN HALEN classics, "Panama" and "Ain't Talkin' 'Bout Love", as well as a section of "Jump". The rest of the set included Satriani's "Satch Boogie", the rousing rock-swing guitar instrumental that put him on the map in 1987 and helped propel his second album, "Surfing With The Alien", to platinum status. and several of Hagar's solo classics, such as "There's Only One Way To Rock", "Eagles Fly", "Heavy Metal" and "I Can't Drive 55".

Produced by Live Nation, the 28-date "The Best Of All Worlds" tour concluded on August 31 in St. Louis, Missouri.

LINKIN PARK — Mike Shinoda, Brad Delson, Dave "Phoenix" Farrell, Joe Hahn, alongside new members Emily Armstrong (of critically acclaimed band DEAD SARA) as co-vocalist and Colin Brittain (songwriter/producer for G FLIP, ILLENIUM, ONE OK ROCK) as drummer — share their first brand new music in seven years.

The iconic band shared a deluge of treats for fans: a new single and video (premiering at 4 p.m. PT/7 p.m. ET),for "The Emptiness Machine", plus a global livestream performance, and the launch of six upcoming arena shows in Los Angeles, New York, Hamburg, London, Seoul, and Bogota as part of the "From Zero World Tour". LP Underground fan club exclusive pre-sales start September 6 and general on-sales September 7. Go to LinkinPark.com for more info.

These surprises herald the arrival of LINKIN PARK's first album since 2017, "From Zero", on November 15.

Tomorrow, Friday September 6, the band joins longtime friend and Apple Music host Zane Lowe for an in-depth candid conversation about the incredible legacy of LINKIN PARK, the seven-year long journey to new music and their excitement for the future. Fans can tune in at 6 a.m. PT to watch the full interview.

Without expectations, Shinoda, Delson, Farrell and Hahn quietly began meeting up again in recent years. Rather than "trying to restart the band," their instinct was to simply spend more time together, and reconnect with the creativity and camaraderie that has been at the core of their friendship since college. During this time, they invited various friends and cohorts to join them in the studio; among the guests, they found a special kinship with Armstong and Brittain. A natural chemistry drew these musicians back into its gravitational pull as they logged more and more hours in the studio. It was the sound of lifelong musicians rediscovering the uncontainable energy of a new beginning once again. Over this season, "From Zero" was born.

About the new era, Shinoda stated: "Before LINKIN PARK, our first band name was XERO. This album title refers to both this humble beginning and the journey we're currently undertaking. Sonically and emotionally, it is about past, present, and future — embracing our signature sound, but new and full of life. It was made with a deep appreciation for our new and longtime bandmates, our friends, our family, and our fans. We are proud of what LINKIN PARK has become over the years, and excited about the journey ahead.”

Right out of the gate, "The Emptiness Machine" channels the DNA of LINKIN PARK, harnessing the band's explosive energy and retaining the hallmarks of their instantly identifiable and inimitable sound. A chameleonic and catchy anthem, Shinoda's hypnotic melodies hand off to Armstrong's blistering chorus, over distorted riffs and head-nodding drums.

Shinoda elaborated: "The more we worked with Emily and Colin, the more we enjoyed their world-class talents, their company, and the things we created. We feel really empowered with this new lineup and the vibrant and energized new music we've made together. We're weaving together the sonic touchpoints we've been known for and still exploring new ones.”

Ultimately, with "From Zero", the band is looking to harness the purest energy of their past, present, and future. The new era has officially begun.

"From Zero World Tour" 2024

September 11 - Kia Forum - Los Angeles, CA
September 16 - Barclays Center - New York, NY
September 22 - Barclays Arena - Hamburg, Germany
September 24 - The O2 - London, UK
September 28 - INSPIRE Arena - Seoul, South Korea
November 11 - Coliseo Medplus - Bogota, Colombia

"From Zero" track listing

01. From Zero (Intro)
02. The Emptiness Machine
03. Cut The Bridge
04. Heavy Is The Crown
05. Over Each Other
06. Casualty
07. Overflow
08. Two Faced
09. Stained
10. IGYEIH
11. Good Things Go

This past May, Billboard reported that LINKIN PARK was considering a possible 2025 reunion tour with a female vocalist stepping in for late lead singer Chester Bennington.

LINKIN PARK's booking agency WME was reportedly taking offers for a potential tour along with headlining festival dates that would feature Mike Shinoda, Brad Delson and Dave Farrell, Billboard's sources said.

One of the sources told Billboard that LINKIN PARK was hoping to find a female vocalist to front the reunited band, a rumor which was first started in April by ORGY frontman Jay Gordon who mentioned during a radio interview that he had "heard" that LINKIN PARK was working with a "girl singer now". When pressed, Gordon continued by saying: "Don't quote me on that. I'm not sure who the singer is going to be, but I heard it was gonna be female. They might just try to move on like that. That ought to be interesting." Jay later seemingly walked back his comments, writing in a Facebook post that he knew "nothing about any of that" and accused "people" of taking his words "out of context.".

During an appearance on a recent episode of "The Metallica Report", the podcast offering weekly insider updates on all things METALLICA, METALLICA frontman James Hetfield spoke about his acting role in Tubi Films' upcoming dark western thriller "The Thicket". Based on Joe R. Lansdale's novel of the same name, "The Thicket" will be released in theaters on Friday, September 6.

Hetfield said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "Peter Dinklage contacted me through management, just saying, 'Hey, I got a part for you in something we're putting together. And I just thought of you, and that's it.' It's, like, 'Okay, cool.'

"I'm not into acting at all," James explained. "I mean, I act enough on the stage, like projecting. For us on stage, projecting big, it's almost more like Broadway. When you're in a movie, you do just a little thing and that's, 'Whoa,' that's enough. I like big projecting. So for me to be invited to be part of a film where I don't have to go and audition or something, 'cause that doesn't interest me, really. I've done that before, and it's not my bag, really. But he invited me along. There was a couple of other things that I had done before. [Director] Joe Berlinger asked me to do something similar in the Ted Bundy doc that he put together. It was, like, 'I got this part. You'd be perfect for it. Come on, let's do it.' And that's kind of similar to what, I guess, Peter Dinklage or the director had in mind. Like, 'Hey, this is a part. You don't have to do anything, you don't have to train, you don't have to do nothing. Just be you.' It's, like, 'All right, I can do that.'"

Hetfield went on to describe the tedious process of making movies and how it is so drastically different from performing on stage.

"While I'm sitting in a trailer, and it's probably minus 10 degrees out up in Canadia [sic], we're outside of Calgary and I'm sitting there in period clothing, 1800s turn of the century," he said. "I mean, the wool's great, but the shoes [are] not so great. I'm sitting there with [my assistant] Ray. It's, like, 'Hey, you're shooting today.' And then the end of the day, it's, like, 'Ah, we didn't get to you today.' And I told Ray, I said, 'Hey, next time I'm asked to do something like this, remind me to say no.' [Laughs] But that's how it was in the moment. When it's all done, the work you put into it, it's, like, 'Ah, yeah, that was nothing.' But just when you're sitting in it and waiting. Music is not about waiting. 'I got an idea. Hey take this down. Let's do this.' Practicing your line and waiting to say it five days later is, like, oh, driving me nuts."

James continued: "When I'm doing interviews or, like, 'Hey, say hi to this,' 'Congratulations on blah, blah, blah.' I just want it to be natural, one take, go. Let's do it. I don't know. Call it the Lou Reed method. 'Well, why should we do it again? We already did it.' That's what I like. And the movies is not that — not so much. But it was fun being out there, being, obviously, in a Western, getting to wear a hat, carry a gun, have a badge on. And I don't wanna give it all away, but period-correct clothing and riding horses and all that shit. It's in my DNA. I love it. It's just the other part, making a movie. But I'm grateful to be in it. I'm grateful I got asked to do it. I hope it comes out cool. That's another one of those things. I'm just another dude there playing a part for the greater good. When we're out here [on tour playing music], it's, like, 'Hey, this is all under our control,' and out there it's not. So, just trusting the process and having as much fun as I can with it."

Hetfield added: "It's certainly not a career choice for me. I love what I do and I wanna continue to do that till my last breath. But just something fun. I love that someone just asks you. They see you, they picture you in a part and then you go and you do it. I think that was very cool of Peter."

Peter Dinklage plays Shorty, a bounty hunter enlisted to find a woman who has been kidnapped by a violent killer. The movie, which is set at the turn of the 20th century, follows Shorty and his fellow trackers as they travel into a violent and chaotic place known as the Big Thicket.

"The Thicket" also stars Juliette Lewis ("Yellowjackets"),Esmé Creed-Miles ("Hanna"),Levon Hawke ("The Crowded Room"),Leslie Grace ("In The Heights"),Gbenga Akinnagbe ("The Old Man"),Macon Blair ("I Care A Lot"),Ned Dennehy ("Peaky Blinders"),Andrew Schulz ("Infamous") and Arliss Howard ("Mank").

Production on the film took place last year with "Blitz" director Elliott Lester behind the camera and Christopher Kelly penning the script.

Lester told Collider about adding Hetfield to the film: "The casting of James Hetfield in 'The Thicket' is a story that feels almost destined. It all began with a dream — one morning I woke up with a clear vision that James had to be in the movie. James Hetfield, a Rock God, embodies a raw poetry that fit perfectly with the character we envisioned. From that moment, Peter Dinklage and I were relentless in our pursuit. We tried every possible avenue: his manager, mutual friends, anyone who could help us reach him. Our breakthrough came when writer/director Sacha Gervasi ['Anvil! The Story Of Anvil'], who had a connection to James, stepped in. Despite our efforts, we were unsure if James would even consider the role. We sent him the script, along with a Hail Mary, and waited. To our delight, within days we heard that James was interested. The meeting that followed confirmed our hopes. James could not have been more humble. He revealed that he had always wanted to do a dark western, aligning perfectly with our film's vision. From that point on, James was incredible. He was hard-working, diligent, and fully embraced his role with a passion that brought a unique intensity to the film. The journey with James has been extraordinary, and his presence truly elevates 'The Thicket' to a new level."

Back in 2019, Hetfield had a part in the Netflix thriller "Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil And Vile". That film followed the relationship between notorious serial killer Ted Bundy, played by Zac Efron, and his longtime girlfriend, played by Lily Collins, who at the time had no knowledge of the crimes. Hetfield played officer Bob Hayward, a no-nonsense Utah highway patrol veteran who was the first law enforcement officer to arrest Bundy in 1975 after pulling the killer over and discovering burglary tools in his car but wisely suspecting much worse. While Hetfield had played himself in other films and television productions, this was his first dramatic role taking on a different character.

Five years ago, Efron praised the METALLICA guitarist/vocalist's acting chops during an appearance on "Jimmy Kimmel Live!", saying: "James Hetfield, to his credit, and absolutely nailed the part, he just crushed it. It's like he’s been acting his own life. He had no fear. He did a great job. I was ready to maybe give James Hetfield [an acting] tip, but he didn't ask for a single one. James Hetfield is the shit!"

first look at The Thicket - a Tubi film starring peter dinklage & juliette lewis

Posted by Tubi on Thursday, June 27, 2024

London label Transmission have announced a new edition of Porcupine Tree’s Grammy-nominated 2007 album, Fear Of A Blank Planet. With a 112-page hardback book, five CDs, and a Blu-ray disc, the new edition includes remasters of Fear Of A Blank Planet and the Nil Recurring mini-album, approximately 55 minutes of previously unreleased demos, an early live performance of a still work-in-progress version of the album, as well as BBC and instore session recordings - the most complete collection of the album and related material to date.


The set consists of:


- 112-Page Hardback Book: The centrepiece of this collection is a 112-page book, with an in-depth examination of the process of creating the album by Stephen Humphries with interviews, alongside rare photographs from photographers Lasse Hoile & Carl Glover.
- Disc 1 (CD): 2024 remaster of Fear Of A Blank Planet.
- Disc 2 (CD): 2024 remaster of Nil Recurring EP.
- Disc 3 (CD): Approx 55 minutes of previously unreleased demos by both band and Steven Wilson, offering a rare insight into the creative process for the album, including 2 tracks not recorded for the final album.
- Disc 4 (CD): A live recording of a work-in-progress version of the album made at The Garage, Saarbrucken on 23rd September 2006, while the band were still refining and developing the material.  This has been mixed from the multitrack tapes for the first time for this edition.
- Disc 5 (CD): A 5 track BBC radio session (Maida Vale Studios, 13th April 2007) plus an 8-song acoustic / unplugged in-store performance from Park Avenue, Orlando (4th October 2007).
- Disc 6 (Blu-ray): Includes remastered stereo and 5.1 surround sound mixes of Fear Of A Blank Planet and Nil Recurring, as well as a new 2024 documentary - 'The Making of Fear Of A Blank Planet'. Also features 3 music videos, 3 songs performed live on film at The Palladium, Koln (4th December 2007) and 2 live visual films (‘Sleep Together’ and ‘Anesthetize’).




Watch a video trailer below.





Originally released in 2007, Fear Of A Blank Planet is Porcupine Tree's ninth studio album and both band and fans alike consider it to be a high point in their catalogue. Their biggest selling album at the time, it was the band’s first album to break into the Billboard Top 100 in the USA as well as charting significantly across Europe, earning them a Grammy nomination in the process. The album includes guest appearances from Robert Fripp (King Crimson) & Rush guitarist Alex Lifeson and featured in Rolling Stone Magazine’s Greatest Prog Albums Of All Time as well as being named Classic Rock’s Album of the Year in 2007.


A concept album inspired by the Bret Easton Ellis novel Lunar Park, Fear Of A Blank Planet’s lyrics address how the adolescent protagonist battles his terminal boredom and attention-deficit disorders with a regimen of prescription drugs, TV, computer gaming, mindless violence, empty sex, and self-harm.


Following the release of Fear Of A Blank Planet in 2007, Porcupine Tree solidified their reputation as one of the rock’s most celebrated bands with their 2009 release The Incident garnering critical acclaim and earning the band another Grammy nomination. After a significant hiatus while members moved on to other projects, 2022’s highly anticipated return with Closure/Continuation demonstrated the band's unwavering commitment to pushing the boundaries of their sound.


The new edition of Fear Of A Blank Planet will be released on Transmission on October 25. Pre-order here.





Tracklisting:


Disc 1
"Fear Of A Blank Planet" (2024 Remaster) [07:28]
"My Ashes" (2024 Remaster) [05:09]
"Anesthetize" (2024 Remaster) [17:52]
"Sentimental" (2024 Remaster) [05:26]
"Way Out Of Here" (2024 Remaster) [07:37]
"Sleep Together" (2024 Remaster) [07:28]


Disc 2
"Nil Recurring" (2024 Remaster) [06:15]
"Normal" (2024 Remaster) [07:08]
"Cheating The Polygraph" (2024 Remaster) [07:10]
"What Happens Now?" (2024 Remaster) [08:24]
"Fear Of A Blank Planet" (Tour Live intro) [02:02]


Disc 3
"Fear Of A Blank Planet" (Demo) [07:01]
"My Ashes" (Demo) [05:09]
"Anesthetize" (Demo) [16:49]
"Sentimental" (Demo) [05:03]
"Cheating The Polygraph" (Demo) [07:07]
"Sleep Together" (Demo) [07:26]
"Always Recurring" (Demo) [03:49]
"Hey Sleeper" (Demo) [03:36]


Disc 4
"Fear Of A Blank Planet" (Live at Garage, Saarbrucken, 23 September 2006) [09:05]
"My Ashes" (Live at Garage, Saarbrucken, 23 September 2006) [05:44]
"Anesthetize" (Live at Garage, Saarbrucken, 23 September 2006) [17:12]
"Sentimental" (Live at Garage, Saarbrucken, 23 September 2006) [05:07]
"Cheating The Polygraph" (Live at Garage, Saarbrucken, 23 September 2006) [06:58]
"Sleep Together" (Live at Garage, Saarbrucken, 23 September 2006) [08:11]


Disc 5
"Blackest Eyes" (BBC Session, Maida Vale, 13 April 2007) [04:27]
"Fear Of A Blank Planet" (BBC Session, Maida Vale, 13 April 2007) [07:29]
"Sleep Together" (BBC Session, Maida Vale, 13 April 2007) [07:20]
"The Pills I'm Taking" (BBC Session, Maida Vale, 13 April 2007) [05:58]
"Halo" (BBC Session, Maida Vale, 13 April 2007) [05:42]
"The Sky Moves Sideways" (Live in-store performance, Park Avenue, Orlando, 4 October 2007) [04:02]
"Even Less" (Live in-store performance, Park Avenue, Orlando, 4 October 2007) [03:27]
"Stars Die" (Live in-store performance, Park Avenue, Orlando, 4 October 2007) [04:34]
"Waiting" (Live in-store performance, Park Avenue, Orlando, 4 October 2007) [03:52]
"Normal" (Live in-store performance, Park Avenue, Orlando, 4 October 2007) [04:52]
"Drown With Me" (Live in-store performance, Park Avenue, Orlando, 4 October 2007) [04:09]
"Lazarus" (Live in-store performance, Park Avenue, Orlando, 4 October 2007) [04:06]
"Trains" (Live in-store performance, Park Avenue, Orlando, 4 October 2007) [04:28]


Disc 6
"Fear Of A Blank Planet" (5.1) [07:28]
"My Ashes" (5.1) [05:09]
"Anesthetize" (5.1) [17:52]
"Sentimental" (5.1) [05:26]
"Way Out Of Here" (5.1) [07:37]
"Sleep Together" (5.1) [07:28]
"Nil Recurring" (5.1) [06:15]
"Normal" (5.1) [07:08]
"Cheating The Polygraph" (5.1) [07:10]
"What Happens Now?" (5.1) [08:24]
"Fear Of A Blank Planet" (Video) [04:19

US black metal pioneers, Nachtmystium, will release the new studio album, Blight Privilege, on November 1. Pre-order the new album here, and check out a visualizer for the second single, "A Slow Decay", below.


"'A Slow Decay' is about "the disintegration of society that is going on all around us", mastermind Blake Judd muses. "It does not even matter which side you are on. We are all being played."







Nachtmystium are back! And after all that was said and done, mastermind Blake Judd is still standing. Not only that, but Judd has also clawed himself back from the abyss of a most extreme life imaginable to a much more quiet, observant, and matured artist and person.


His return will not be met with universal applause – even from the black metal scene. For anybody following the tumultuous career of Blake Judd and his pioneering band that has pushed the borders of their genre into new territories, this comes hardly as a surprise.


With their ninth studio album Blight Privilege, Nachtmystium are once again presenting a masterpiece that can even compete with the trilogy of albums that many view as the peak of the earlier career of the American black metal (USBM) trailblazers: Instinct: Decay (2006), Assassins: Black Meddle Pt. I (2008), and Addicts: Black Meddle Pt. II (2010). Like an infernal sniper, every song on Blight Privilege hits straight on target. All the darkest elements, required and longed for, are there: harsh, rasping vocals, the fierce hum and whirr of guitars burning with an ice cold fire, moments of ecstatic and exalted beauty in hellish soundscapes. Yet there are also those fine details that the musically well-versed Judd has always cunningly hidden in the general sonic onslaught such as post-punk and wave elements, and now even a knife-tip of outlaw country.


Blight Privilege connects Nachtmystium to its glory-days – not as a nostalgic reminiscence but as a forward-looking continuation and next evolutionary step. If anything, this ninth album is marked by a maturity derived from experience and learning. Judd's often diabolically catchy tunes are sharper than ever and have lost none of their bite. This might be due to the fact that it is the first album of the USBM spearheads which Judd composed in a fully sober state.


With Blight Privilege, Nachtmystium demand the throne of USBM back. This album clearly has the musical force and lyrical daring to do give credit to this claim. Love it or hate it, Nachtmystium have set a tall milestone with Blight Privilege.





Tracklisting:


"Survivor's Remorse"
"Pre