Australian true metal brigade Road Warrior will release their debut full-length album, Power, on October 12th via Gates Of Hell Records. Featuring eight tracks of "diverse, fist-clenching, manly and classic metal," Power was recorded at Against The Grain Studios in Adelaide, South Australia with Andy Kite at the helm.

Comments bassist/vocalist Denimal Blake: "It is a statement of our intent: To inject 'Power' back into a heavy metal scene that has been somewhat bereft of it. Whether if it truly is an objective case or not, that is our summary and the crux of the band. When heavy metal first gained a foothold it was the personification of musical power, a very special time that is finally coming back to strength, regardless of trends, due to its dominance."

Road Warrior (who are rounded out by guitarist Overdryve and drummer Villon) are said to have recorded Power with "gusto, the gnashing teeth and thrusting of loins," meaning, the album's cuts are leaning heavily on the band's '80s influences as well as the proto-metal scene from the latter part of the '70s.

Says Blake: "Our influences are in a blender this time, laced with the flavor of Road Warrior, Metal Church, Blackout, early Iron Maiden, Savatage, Judas Priest, Loudness, Riot, Twisted Sister and Hexx."

Accordingly, Blake says the album's lyrical themes are quite varied: "Sex, sex and more sex, along with a bit of historical conspiracy, power, pre-diluvial civilization and hotter sex." Tongue-and-cheek aside, Blake and his Road Warrior bandmates remain steadfast in their conviction to true heavy metal.

"We have an acute awareness of the NWOTHM [New Wave Of Traditional Heavy Metal] and know that we stand out in many ways, whether it's due to influence, locality or pedigree. Either way, I cannot speak for the ears of others, but we are supremely confident the album will live up to the album cover and title and help usher in a new age of classic rock and metal as the trends dissolve."

Tracklisting:

"Don't Fight Fate"
"On Iron Wing"
"Devils In Waiting"
"I Am The Hunger"
"Tease n' Torture"
"Sweating Out The Poison"
"Back Alley Tokyo Woman"
"The Future Is Passed"

Seattle, Washington's death harsh metal trio Hissing has signed with Profound Lore Records for the release of their impending debut full-length release, Permanent Destitution. The LP is slated for release on October 26th, the label this week issuing pre-orders for the record as well as the lead single, "Eulogy In Squalor".

Hissing engages in dark, dissonant, cacophonous, inverted death metal drenched in noise, and with Permanent Destitution the band has created a nihilistic vision of deranged otherworldly auditory pandemonium. A soundscape of pure enveloping darkness and unrelenting chaos, Permanent Destitution deconstructs and builds itself through the walls and layers of pummelling audial turmoil and disarray generated through twisted angular guitar work and fretboard annihilation, surgically cold yet constructed and calculated death march drum ornamentations, and monolithic bass pulsations that become interspersed with an overall dark overbearing ambience. With already being at the mercy of Hissing's punishing sound fabric, that added touch of droning noise segments, also crucial to the band's sound, mixed with the doomy industrial components become that final element to make Permanent Destitution a towering monument of primal avant-deathnoise.

Experience the first audio from Hissing's Permanent Destitution and stream "Eulogy In Squalor" below.

Profound Lore will release Permanent Destitution on LP, CD, and digital platforms on October 26th; watch for pre-orders and more audio samples to be released shortly.

Tracklisting:

"Backwards Descent"
"Pablum Abundance"
"Eulogy In Squalor"
"It Without More"
"Cascading Failures"
"Perdurance"

"Eulogy In Squalor":

Formed in 2014, Hissing has already made quite the reputation as a force to be reckoned with on the West Coast through various live appearances (which included a major US tour with Sunn O))) and Big|Brave, impressions made with their 2015 demo, and most notably with their 2016 self-titled 7" EP released by Southern Lord along with last year's massive split with Sutekh Hexen through The Flenser.

Lineup:

Zach Wise - bass/vocals
Joe O'Malley - guitars
Sam Pickel - drums

(Photo - Toby Hockenbury)

One year after each releasing two of 2017's heaviest albums, Denver's Primitive Man (pictured above) and New York City's Unearthly Trance unite for an exercise in complete and total suffering with a split LP out now via Relapse Records. Across seven apocalyptic tracks, both bands tap into some of the most uncomfortable, vile realms of blackened doom and dissonant, harsh noise put to tape in the new millennium.

Available on CD/LP/Digital via Relapse.com, physical packages, digital downloads, and streaming services are available here.

Split w/ Unearthly Trance by Primitive Man

(Photo - Alvino Salcedo)

"We at Napalm Records just received a message from Odin," states the label. "Yes, Odin himself! His few words were mysterious, but the message was clear: Four kings of war were knocking on valhallas door to spend eternity in the realms of the gods. While waiting for admission, they told each other about the heroic deeds they survived in their lifetimes. Secretly listening to their stories, Odin decided that all living human beings on the Earth should know about these true stories of war and heroism. So he is about to sent them back with the mission to spread the stories of their battles upon mankind. The Warkings were born and pure and unadulterated heavy metal became their religion.

"Odin chose Napalm Records as the perfect platform for the Warkings to spread their stories. We were told to receive new information about these warriors every Wednesday from now on. To follow his order to spread their message, we‘ll launch the Warkings-Wednesday. From this week on, we will provide all of Odins informations to the world, before the four kings of war will be unleashed in mid September. We are as excited as one can be and waiting for big stories to tell on Warkings-Wednesday!"

The first statement from the kings of war is short and not very concisely: “Ready your breakfast and eat hearty...because we‘re coming for you at the Warkings-Wednesday."

Stay tuned for updates.

Check out this electrifying performance from Deep Purple at the Alpine Valley Music Theatre in East Troy, WI in August 1985. The Mark 2 lineup had reformed and were the biggest band in the world at that time. "Strange Kind Of Woman" featuring Ian Gillan on vocals and Ritchie Blackmore on guitar. There is even a great little jam from Jesus Christ Superstar.

Time To Kill is a new publication from Wymer Publishing that focuses on the final tumultuous year for the classic Deep Purple MKII lineup. Written by Purple biographer Jerry Bloom, who has already written several books on the band, this is an in-depth look at the the appropriately named The Battle Rages On... album and the tour that followed its release during this much over-looked period in the band's career.

Deep Purple MKII will always be revered as the classic Deep Purple lineup. Original members Ritchie Blackmore, Jon Lord and Ian Paice, along with Ian Gillan and Roger Glover, established Purple as one of the biggest bands in the world during their original tenure between 1969-73.

When the lineup reformed in 1984, it proved once again that this was the definitive Deep Purple and their 1985 US tour was the second biggest grossing that year. Sadly by 1989 the friction between Blackmore and Gillan that had led to the spilt first time around did so again and Gillan was fired.

With all eyes on the 25th anniversary of the band's 1968 inception, there was huge pressure both from within and outside the band for Gillan to return to the fold so that the occasion could be celebrated in style. The critics said it wouldn't work - it did. And they said it wouldn't last... well they were certainly right about that!

Upon Gillan's return in late 1992 they produced the album and then planned to embark on a world tour. However, the American shows were all cancelled, which left just Europe and Japan. Whilst the tensions within the band were greater than ever, Jon Lord went on to say, “the shows were done at an energy level and ability level I’ve rarely seen attained before. I think we played as well as we’ve ever played.”

Indeed, for those fortunate to witness the tour most fans shared Lord's opinion. Yet, the divisions between Blackmore and Gillan grew as the tour progressed with Blackmore calling a halt to proceedings before the Japanese leg could begin. In all there would be just thirty-seven shows - the last hurrah of the ultimate Deep Purple lineup. Author Jerry Bloom wrote Black Knight the unauthorised Ritchie Blackmore biography; several other books on Purple as well as contributing sleeve notes to various officially released Deep Purple albums including Live in Europe 1993 - a 4 CD box set that he also initiated. Bloom caught ten of the thirty-seven shows and was privy to some of the shenanigans that went on, making him the ideal person to document the last MKII tour in detail.

Along with the comprehensive narrative, this beautifully designed book is crammed full of never before seen photos from the tour. It includes many shots of the band both on stage as well as back stage, in hotels, on aeroplanes and relaxing as the tour wound its way across Europe culminating in Blackmore's last show with the band in Finland on 17th November 1993.

As part of the commemoration, the book will be fittingly published on 17th November this year, 25 years to the day that MKII played it's last ever concert together. The definitive word on the last days of the definitive Deep Purple lineup.

Time To Kill is due out on November 17th and can be ordered here.

UK rockers Johnny Wore Black featuring Megadeth's David Ellefson on bass guitar, have released their third full length album Ultra Violent Light via EMP Label Group. Johnny Wore Black have just posted a new music video for the song "Gun True Love", which can be viewed below.

The album was produced by David Bottrill (Tool, Stone Sour, Dream Theater) and Gez Walton (Earthtone9), mastered by Joao Carvalho and Bryan Lowe. Album artwork was designed by Andy Pilkington (Soil, Flotsam And Jetsam, Fury, Kissin’ Dynamite).

Tracklisting:

"Gun True Love"
"One Sexy Scar"
"Plastic Ocean"
"Honey Club"
"RIP Mr Man"
"Boy Soldier"
"Southern Storm"
"Broken"
"Ultra Violent Light"
"Ultimate Fighter"

"Gun True Love" video:

Johnny Wore Black was formed in 2012 with a view to writing and creating the music deep in the heart of Jay, the founder of the project. Having written songs since his teens, there was plenty of past material, a selection of which needed exorcising before new works could develop. The first album was an exploration into older songs with a few new ones and ended up being split into two parts, released in March and November of 2014 entitled Walking Underwater Parts 1 & 2.

During the writing time, Jay also dialled into his film making heritage and created various music videos to accompany the Johnny Wore Black tunes. It took more than three years to finally release album number 3, Ultra Violent Light and the collaboration with talents David Ellefson, David Bottrill, Simon Hutchby & Gez Walton, served to create the latest instalment of the Johnny Wore Black saga.

Diversely, Jay is also known for his stunt career with screen credits including: Game Of Thrones, Ready Player One, Spectre, Hitman's Bodyguard, Rogue One, Spiderman-Far From Home to name a few.

Johnny Wore Black is:

Jay Coen - Vocals
Simon Hutchby - Drums
Gez Walton - Guitars
David Ellefson - Bass
Cameron Daniel William Hill - Keyboards
Kate Shortt - Cello
Adam Sedgewick - Vocals
George Donahue - Vocals/Bass

AEROSMITH teamed up with Post Malone to close out the MTV Video Music Awards Monday night (August 20) at Radio City Music Hall in New York City.

The 23-year-old rapper performed his hit "Rockstar", flanked by recent tourmate 21 Savage, before introducing AEROSMITH. Malone picked up a guitar and played along as AEROSMITH launched into its classic song "Dream On", then broke into "Toys In The Attic".

AEROSMITH's VMA performance served as promotion for the band's upcoming "Deuces Are Wild" Las Vegas residency, which kicks off April 6, 2019 at Park MGM's Park Theatre.

The residency, promoted by Live Nation and MGM Resorts International, features "never-seen-before visuals and audio from AEROSMITH recording sessions" via producer Giles Martin, who crafted the sound for THE BEATLES' "Love" Cirque Du Soleil show in Vegas. The band has also teamed with THX and L-Acoustics, who will deliver "the world’s first THX Certified live performance presented in L-ISA Immersive Hyperreal Sound."

The band's 18 Vegas shows will run between April 6 and July 9. General tickets, starting at $75, go on sale on Friday, August 24 at 10 a.m.

SIX FEET UNDER vocalist Chris Barnes claims that the band's October 27 concert in Moscow, Russia "will mark the longest performance in the history of death metal." The veteran group will play a 25-song set with an expected running time of "over an hour and 30 minutes," according to the singer.

"So very happy and honored to have been invited to Moscow," he added. "This marks SIX FEET UNDER's first appearance in Russia, and we are gonna give all our fans who have been waiting to see us the best damn death metal show of their lives! See you soon, friends!"

Last month, SIX FEET UNDER issued a compilation album, titled "Unburied", in digital format through Metal Blade Records. The disc was produced by Barnes, and mixed and mastered by Chaz Najjar at Badlands Recording in Denver, Colorado. The LP consists of nine songs recorded during sessions for the albums "Undead" (2012), "Unborn" (2013) and "Torment" (2017). Music for the tracks was written by the following guitarists: WHITECHAPEL's Ben Savage, TORTURE KILLER's Jari Laine, current THE HAUNTED and former SIX FEET UNDER member Ola Englund, and ex-CHIMAIRA and SIX FEET UNDER member Rob Arnold. In addition, bassist Jeff Hughell wrote the music for the song "As The Dying Scream".

A public memorial for HUNTRESS singer Jill Janus will be held this Friday, August 24 at the Rainbow Bar & Grill in West Hollywood, California starting at 9:00 p.m. The celebration of Jill's "life, art and magic" will be open to "all friends, fans and walks of life," according to a poster advertising the event.

"Since Jill's departure, the amount of outreach and support from friends, fans and family has been absolutely incredible," says Jill's longtime boyfriend and HUNTRESS bandmate Blake Meahl. "It has been beyond heavy to see so many reminders of how she could be so talented and loved, yet could feel so much pain and loneliness. Let's get together and celebrate her life and the importance that we still have each other. Expect a lot of whiskey and grown men crying."

Janus died on August 14 at the age of 42. She had long struggled with mental Illness, and killed herself outside Portland, Oregon, her relatives and bandmates confirmed in a statement.

In addition to fronting HUNTRESS, Jill was the vocalist for female metal/hard rock cover bands THE STARBREAKERS and CHELSEA GIRLS and was the co-composer and creator of an upcoming rock opera with TRANS-SIBERIAN ORCHESTRA's Angus Clark. She also had a decade-long career as New York City DJ Penelope Tuesdae. Her musical career began in childhood.

Janus has been open over the years about her battles with not only mental illness, in the form of bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, dissociative identity disorder and alcoholism, but also physical illness in the form of cancer.

Janus was diagnosed with uterine cancer in 2015 while HUNTRESS was working on its third album, "Static". She was eventually declared cancer-free after undergoing a hysterectomy.

"Static" was released in 2015 via Napalm Records.

Matt Mills of Antihero Magazine conducted an interview with frontman Kobi Farhi of Israeli progressive folk metallers ORPHANED LAND prior to the band's appearance at Bloodstock Open Air, which was held August 10-12 in Catton Park, Derbyshire, United Kingdom. You can watch the entire chat below. A few excerpts follow (transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET).

On the writing process for their new "Unsung Prophets & Dead Messiahs" studio album:

Kobi: "It takes a long time. If you take our career, it's been for 27 years now and we've only done six studio albums. It takes us a lot of time and it takes me a lot of time to find the concept. Once we do that, we have a lot of layers and ways that we want to tell the story. It takes us ages and ages to do that, but once we get that album, you can feel the richness of that album. You can still find new things on the 20th time that you're listening to the album. Probably that's the way we're doing albums. We don't do them very often, but once we do them, it's very long, it's very layered and full of richness and stuff like that. So, it takes us a lot of time. It's a nightmare to make an ORPHANED LAND album, but in the end, I hope it's worth it."

On the response to "Unsung Prophets & Dead Messiahs":

Kobi: "It was a great response both from the fans and the media. We have received album of the month in many magazines and a lot of our fans really connected with this album, they felt like it's a combination of the latest album, 'All Is One', together with the concept albums we did in the past like 'Mabool [The Story Of The Three Sons Of Seven]' and ['The Never Ending Way Of] ORwarriOR'. We felt like we touched a point where we reached a new level with our music and the response was and still is amazing, so I'm very happy about it. I think it's our best album, if you ask me."

On what kind of concepts ORPHANED LAND would like to explore with future albums:

Kobi: "It's very hard to tell. I mean, if I would have those concepts in my drawer, I would do many more albums, more frequently. It's always very hard to find a concept and the angle for which we want to do it. Maybe that's one of the reasons we've only done six studio albums in 27 years. The guys are composing all the time, but in order to put it into a concept and build it like a puzzle, you need the concepts, you need the themes, where it begins, how does it develop, where is it ending? So, yeah, it's hard and I'm the one to blame, sorry. [Laughs]"

On Israel's heavy metal scene:

Kobi: "The heavy metal scene in Israel is amazing. You have a whole lot of bands from all styles, bands with female vocals, like SCARDUST and black metal bands like ARALLU and WINTERHORDE, death metal bands or core bands like SHREDDED. There are many bands from all styles. The scene is very rich; bands are coming to play Israel, MEGADETH, METALLICA, we just played with OZZY OSBOURNE in Israel. The scene is very rich; people are flying all the way for Wacken, Bloodstock, Hellfest. Yeah, it's a very intense area, so I think metal music is very popular probably, for us as well."

On the censoring of certain words on "Unsung Prophets & Dead Messiahs":

Kobi: "We did it as part of the concept. It wasn't anything done by the label or by the censors. We did it as a conceptual joke because sometimes you bleep the word 'dick,' but then, look at the television. Frank Zappa said 'There are no bad words.' If the word 'dick' is being used, it's the perfect way to describe what you wanted to say. You cannot bleep words, you cannot bleep censor words, it's useless. Look what's going on in our world. What are you trying to censor? Kids from hearing the word 'dick'? Look at their cellphone: they can go to YouPorn at any second. It was something we did as a criticism and a joke of how ridiculous it is. It's part of the music; it's a sound. It's part of the music. When I do it onstage, the word 'dick' comes in, I'm growling 'dick'. It's no problem."

"Unsung Prophets & Dead Messiahs" was released on January 26 via Century Media. The band recently completed a North American tour alongside TÝR, GHOST SHIP OCTAVIUS and AETERNAM.

Headbangers Lifestyle conducted an interview with VENOM INC. frontman Tony "The Demolition Man" Dolan at this year's Alcatraz Hard Rock & Metal Festival, which was held earlier this month in Kortrijk, Belgium. You can watch the entire chat below. A few excerpts follow (transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET).

On the health of guitarist Jeff "Mantas" Dunn, who recently suffered a heart attack and rejoined his bandmates on stage in Finland:

Tony: "It was great. We had to cancel a few things, of course because he had the heart attack, but it was a genetic thing. We were doing a lot of work. We've done an Asian tour, Australia, New Zealand, then came straight back and started the European tour. At the end of it, we thought maybe it was the workload because we were quite tired, jetlagged and everything, but it was a hereditary thing, so it could have happened at any point. He had signs of it, so go to the doctor's if you don't feel well and he didn't go! We Skyped one morning. He said, 'I've got to go to the chemist. I think I've got indigestion.' A half hour later he actually died and they had to save his life. It was quite a big thing. Physically, you recover, but mentally, it's a bit more difficult. You need to talk to people. You can say, 'It's great, don't worry. It's all fixed.' But, mentally, unless you've died, how do you say it to someone? I think for him, he had a great fear for this. Finland was important on many levels, but also for him to do it again. How did he feel? Could he recover? It was great. It was so important and it meant so much and to turn around to see him there because he's my brother. It was wonderful. At one point during the set, I went across to him, he's playing a solo, he's smiling and I said, 'You're not dead? This is amazing! Look, he's a zombie!' He laughs at himself, but it was very difficult. When we've lost so many artists, MANILLA ROAD [Mark Shelton], just happened, so many of our friends and peers are dying of all kind of things, you always see it, but you don't think it's going to be us, then it happened and you're like, 'Oh, my god!' I think we appreciate more what we do, the privilege of what we do, being onstage with the fans and how they drive us and feed us. That's a truly incredible thing. He even appreciates it even more than he did."

On whether he thought VENOM INC. would return to the stage after Dunn's heart attack:

Tony: "We had lots of things booked. The agents, the promoters and everybody promoting things were then going, 'Tony, what's going to happen?' I said, 'Until we do something, we don't know.' He may have walked onstage and came off and said, 'I can't do it anymore.' He may have said, 'Yep. It's great.' He wanted to. He's a very hard-working person, so he's very inspirational and music is everything to him, so the idea he may have lost that, I think, drove him. To play the first show we did, it was only ten weeks since he actually died. People were, like, 'Oh my god!' But that's his drive. It's not easy. It's probably going to take a little bit longer to be perfect again, but, there's something about music that I've always said, when we go to China or Venezuela, or a million places where I don't speak the language, they are trying to communicate, but when we play music, it doesn't matter where you are, everyone sings 'Countess Bathory', everybody sings 'Black Metal', it's like you realize that it transcends everything and you have that emotional attachment. I think that's what he needed. He needed to have that support when he went onstage and all of those people were giving him that adoration and that love and happiness that he was there, I think that made him stronger. That's what's good about it."

On whether he appreciates this incarnation of VENOM INC. more than before:

Tony: "Yeah, because everyone knows the mess that was VENOM and the ins and outs, but at the end of the day, we come from a small place in England and we all grew up with each other, so it's kind of like friends and old girlfriends are all having a go with each other, but fundamentally, when this happened to Jeff, everybody came together for him. We all came together. Even [current and former VENOM members] Cronos [Conrad Lant] and Antton [Anthony Lant], everybody all came together. That's where you see the reality of things. I think for now, what is important for me is to put this together, even Cronos was there doing what he was doing, all of the people were important and the legacy of the music of was what was important. I was looking at this and thinking there's a whole breed of new fans that I want them to connect all of the dots. A young girl, 22, did an interview with me, a French girl, she said, 'It's so great to do an interview because all of this history, I only read in a book because I wasn't there.' I said, 'This is living. You are here.' At the time we spoke, Lemmy [Kilmister] was still alive, so you have MOTÖRHEAD, JUDAS PRIEST, BLACK SABBATH, SLAYER, METALLICA and every other band, all the genres around, I said, 'You're living this right now.' That's what I wanted to do. I want to show the young kids that this is where we all began, but it's continuing. If we can go onstage with someone who's had a heart attack and died and inspire a 16-year-old dude who said 'I can do that too.' That's what it's about. The music inspires us and that's what we're here to do."

VENOM INC. released a three-song 10-inch single, "War", on August 10 through Nuclear Blast. The single's artwork was created by Marcelo Vasco (SLAYER, HATEBREED, MACHINE HEAD, BORKNAGAR).

VENOM INC.'s debut album, "Avé", was released in August 2017 via Nuclear Blast.

Headbangers Lifestyle conducted an interview with BEHEMOTH frontman Adam "Nergal" Darski at this year's Alcatraz Hard Rock & Metal Festival, which was held earlier this month in Kortrijk, Belgium. You can watch the chat below.

Asked about "God = Dog", the controversial first single and video from BEHEMOTH's upcoming album, "I Loved You At Your Darkest", Nergal said: "Well, it's a very complex process, because it started with us making this photo session that was very religious-inspired — like religious topics, classic paintings from Caravaggio, Memling and others. We are actors in this… Basically, the whole booklet looks like that — it's all paintings, but they are reinterpreted by us. [It's] pretty literal, so if I'm a crucified Jesus, I'm a crucified Jesus; I'm not Jesus with a dick out. It's not obnoxious in any way — it's very literal, it's very direct. And I think it's beautiful; it's aesthetically really stunning. Then we brought elements of that to that video, and we made it what it is."

He continued: "'God = Dog' is… There's some controversy about the title, but what can I say? From simple… Just inverse 'god' and it gives you 'dog,' and that's the simplest way to explain the title, but, obviously, it goes deeper than this. It refers to Aleister Crowley's philosophy, and there's a quote from 'The Book Of The Law' which goes like that: 'Is a God to live in a dog? No! But the highest are of us.' And that's a part of it — it's a section of the song. And then again, go into the lyrics, make up your mind and build your own world there, because I don't wanna fucking spoil it."

"I Loved You At Your Darkest" will be released on October 5 via Nuclear Blast. Nergal and his bandmates — Orion (bass) and Inferno (drums) — have channeled that passion into the disc, which revels in the kind of religious provocation that BEHEMOTH do best.

Unlike "The Satanist", which was primarily recorded in one studio, "I Loved You At Your Darkest" saw its production spread across Poland and the United States. It was produced by the bandmembers themselves, with drum co-production by Daniel Bergstrand (MESHUGGAH, IN FLAMES), mixing by Matt Hyde (SLAYER, CHILDREN OF BODOM) and mastering by Tom Baker (NINE INCH NAILS, MARILYN MANSON). Which is to say nothing of the 17-piece Polish orchestra arranged by Jan Stoklosa and engineered by Tomasz Budkiewicz.

In a brand new interview with KNAC.com, MR. BIG singer Eric Martin spoke about the band's future, six months after the passing of founding drummer Pat Torpey. "Well, as you know, I do a lot of solo shows, I play solo acoustic shows, anywhere from Moscow to Hood River, baby!" he laughed. "Billy [Sheehan, bass] has SONS OF APOLLO and THE WINERY DOGS — great bands — and, as you know, also has a solo career and he's working on a new album now.

"We are doing some touring this summer; we just got back from Australia, Thailand and China," he continued. "We did some shows with EXTREME and it went over wonderfully. I don't know why we didn't think of that earlier. We're heading to Europe to do the European festivals, which should be fun. I've been home for about a week, but it hasn't been till the past two days that I've been reflecting on MR. BIG.

"I've been working with my partner André Pessis, who I've worked with throughout MR. BIG's existence. We're trying to get a jump on writing material for a 'possible' MR. BIG album for 2019. That could very well be our last. We're booked to do some touring in June of 2019."

Martin added: "I'll be honest, without Pat Torpey, the wind has been taken right out of me.

"Billy would miss it just as much as I do, but he's got enough stuff to keep him busy. Paul [Gilbert, guitar] would probably love to get off the road, stay home and make solo records.

"We've been in this band for 30 years now, but without Pat Torpey, there's a huge emptiness. I don't think we could find an equivalent to Pat. It's impossible. I suppose there's a chance that Billy can talk me out of it, but right now, I just don't know."

Torpey passed away on February 7 at the age of 64 from complications of Parkinson's disease.

MR. BIG released its ninth original studio album, "Defying Gravity", in July 2017.

The band, formed in 1988, produced numerous hit songs that ranged across a wide array of rock genres — be it ballads, heavy metal, or blues rock. Their hits included "Alive And Kicking", "Just Take My Heart" and the chart-topping ballad "To Be With You".

Gene Simmons paid tribute to Aretha Franklin, the "Queen of Soul," who died Thursday after it was reported earlier this week that she was "gravely ill" in Detroit. Her family said that the cause of death was advanced pancreatic cancer of the neuroendocrine type.

During an appearance on HLN's Franklin tribute show on Thursday, the KISS bassist/vocalist was asked what Aretha meant to him. He responded (see video below): "I'm an odd choice to be on here. I know it may strike people as sort of bizarre, but I loved Aretha, like tens of millions of people. [Clears throat] Sorry, I'm getting a little choked up.

"My first image of Aretha was when I was a little kid. I came to America from Israel and I turned on a television set and there was a New York disc jockey named Murray The K, and he said, 'All right. Here she is: Aretha Franklin.' And this young, sort of with her back straight up came up and looked at the TV set and started singing, 'R-E-S-P-E-C-T, I just want a little respect.' And I wasn't just stunned by the lyrics… I never heard women talk like that. I go, 'What?' 'Give me some respect. R-E-S-P-E-C-T.' And then the voice, I'd never heard anybody like that. I'd never heard church music, Baptist music; I was just being introduced to rock and roll. And I was flabbergasted. And I kept listening. And the depth of her songs. Think '(You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Woman' and so on and so forth.

"In the early '80s, when I was going out with Diana Ross, I suggested to Diana, 'Why don't you do a duet with Aretha?'" he continued. "And we were in her apartment in New York City, and instead of going through managers and all that, I just picked up the phone and was expecting to get brushed off by managers and the rest. Aretha got on the phone right away and I said — you know, that sort of stuttering thing, 'cause you're in the presence of greatness — 'How about… How about a duet with Diana Ross?' She [said], 'Sure. That would be a great idea.' I was stunned by her graciousness, the lack of ego, 'full-of-it' kind of thing, her kindness… Along the way, I learned more and more about how Aretha… of course, her father was a Baptist minister, she came out of Detroit. And when Diana took me back to Detroit to visit Motown and all that, we went through the neighborhoods, and I never knew this world; I didn't understand it. But Aretha didn't just stay in Detroit; she went down to the South and recorded with the classic Muscle Shoals rhythm section and Jerry Wexler and she started listening to all kinds of different music. THE [ROLLING] STONES loved her, for God's sake. She did 'Jumpin' Jack Flash' by them and killed it. She did 'Eleanor Rigby' by THE BEATLES.

"Here is a lesson for all of us. First of all, it's the saddest day. I love Aretha and always will. But all those little girls out who are watching 'America's Got Talent' and stuff like [that], shut up, get over yourself, sit down and listen to this music, because the new pop princesses have to understand that greatness once existed and her name was Aretha Franklin."

Franklin was 76 years old at the time of her death.

In 1987, Franklin became the first woman to be inducted into the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame, and was later named the "Greatest Singer of All Time" by Rolling Stone.

Glenn Hughes paid tribute to Aretha Franklin, the "Queen of Soul," who died Thursday after it was reported last week that she was "gravely ill" in Detroit. Her family said that the cause of death was advanced pancreatic cancer of the neuroendocrine type.

During an interview with the "Talking Metal" podcast, the former DEEP PURPLE bassist/vocalist and current BLACK COUNTRY COMMUNION frontman said (hear audio below): "My first girlfriend's brother was three or four years older than I. I was 14 years old; he must have been 18. He ran a discotheque in the West Midlands, in the Black Country, where I was raised, and I was just a preteen kid, and he would have me fetching music like a DJ and he'd be playing me Detroit songs and gospel songs. As you know, I've got a bit of an R&B education.

"So what I'm getting to here, Aretha was the first woman — white, black or whatever color; it doesn't make any difference to me — she was the first woman that raised the hair on the back of my neck when she sang," he continued. "And as you know, I'm deeply into all kinds of singers — I'm a big fan of other people's work. [Hearing her sing for the first time] did a number on me, 'cause of the tone of her voice and the deep well of emotion she brought to every song noun or verb or word she sang, this did a number on this 14-year-old little boy. And I kind of followed her all these years, and knowing she was sick a couple of weeks ago, but not realizing she was going to pass… I think her death is going to really, really [affect] a lot of people. It's a really difficult thing to think that she's no longer with us."

Franklin was 76 years old at the time of her death.

In 1987, Franklin became the first woman to be inducted into the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame, and was later named the "Greatest Singer of All Time" by Rolling Stone.

Hughes will launch the next U.S. leg of the "Classic Deep Purple Live" tour on August 25 in Westbury, New York. The 18-city trek, which follows the recently completed South American and European festival tour, travels around the Northeastern U.S. before wrapping up in Tarrytown, New York on September 22. Glenn will be performing various hits and deep cuts from the DEEP PURPLE catalog, including "Burn", "Stormbringer", "Sail Away" and "Smoke On The Water", among others. Hughes will focus on arrangements from the live albums — not studio recordings — for these songs, "giving fans even more insight as to what it was like seeing a DEEP PURPLE show during the 1970s," according to a press release for the tour.

Two-time-Grammy-nominated blues-rock titan Joe Bonamassa has released the music video for his track "Evil Mama", taken from his upcoming studio album, "Redemption", which is due on September 21 via his own record label J&R Adventures.

"Redemption", Bonamassa's 13th solo studio album and third in a row of all-original material, sees him at his most ambitious yet as he continues to redefine and push the barriers of blues-rock. It features a staggering collection of 12 songs that weave effortlessly through an assortment of genres and reflect the artistic rebirth that he is currently experiencing.

"I'm going through some other stuff in my life I didn't expect to be going through," he explains. "It's a rising, it's contrition, it's acceptance, it's everything. It's painful, but knowing that there's a rising coming."


The album reunites Bonamassa with some of Nashville's finest music minds such as Tom Hambridge, James House, Gary Nicholson as well as Richard Page and American rock and roll legend Dion DiMucci (THE WANDERER, RUN-AROUND SUE) who adds his songwriting expertise to the title track. Joe also continues his long creative relationship with Kevin Shirley and together create an album bigger than ever before. "From a producer's perspective, this is far and away the most challenging and diverse album that Joe has ever made, " says Shirley.


The album was recorded at various locations, including Blackbird Studios in Nashville, The Cave Australia in Sydney, Studio At The Palms in Las Vegas, Criteria Hit Factory in Miami and Addiction Sound Studios in Nashville. It was once again recorded with a remarkable collection of musicians, including drummer Anton Fig (DAVID LETTERMAN BAND), bassist Michael Rhodes, keyboardist Reese Wynans, horn players Lee Thornburg and Paulie Cerra, harmony vocalist Gary Pinto, background singers Mahalia Barnes, Jade McRae, Juanita Tippins, and Kevin Shirley introduced two additional guitar players, Kenny Greenberg and Doug Lancio. "It was interesting, because having two extra guitar players involved, allowed me to play a certain way," Bonamassa adds.

The album opens with a tip of the hat to LED ZEPPELIN on "Evil Mama" that burrows into a deep groove before ripping into the rockabilly-tinged boogie blues of "King Bee Shakedown". Next, Bonamassa dips into his BLACK COUNTRY COMMUNION influence to tell a tragic tale with timeless hard rock riffs for "Molly-O" and "Deep In The Blues Again" changes the course yet again with a driving rhythm meant for the car stereo.


"Self-Inflicted Wounds" is most telling of Bonamassa's progression as a true singer-songwriter, and Joe claims it as his best songwriting yet. "Pick Up The Pieces" channels Tom Waits for a late night after hours while "The Ghost of Macon Jones" sees Joe trade vocals with Nashville country singer Jamey Johnson as they recount a cautionary tale of a rural renegade. "Just Cos You Can Don't Mean You Should" channels Gary Moore for an upbeat taste of blues-rock euphoria before Bonamassa makes light of his trials and tribulations on "I've Got Some Mind Over What Matters".


Then Joe strips it down to only acoustic guitar and vocals on the heart-breaking tale of "Stronger Now In Broken Places", which promises that things will be better over time and features MIDNIGHT OIL's Jim Moginie providing soundscapes and Kate Stone on the hand pan. After this intense musical journey, Joe wraps it all up with a traditional blues rock tune with "Love is A Gamble".


There is a resounding theme of redemption and salvation on the album, but also very much a sense of strength and empowerment. "We all need to be redeemed at some point in our lives. It's this yearning to redeem yourself after just this tremendous loss and this tremendous feeling of pain," explains Bonamassa.

Bonamassa is at his ultimate creative peak with "Redemption", which follows the recent release of his last live masterpiece, "British Blues Explosion Live", that debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard Blues chart and marked his 20th No. 1 album. Bonamassa's fire is unstoppable both in the studio and live on the road.

Devoting his career to fronting such hit bands as RIOT, MESSIAH'S KISS and HOLY MOTHER, Mike Tirelli has been hailed as one of the most acclaimed metal singers of his time. But now, the highly versatile vocalist is debuting an EP with his new band RISING FIVE, which he formed with fellow MESSIAH'S KISS bassist Wayne Banks, that he says "represents a whole new direction" for him musically.

"No Death Reborn" will be released August 24 and, according to Tirelli, it's a slight departure from the signature sound he's become known for. Describing the EP as a "modern hard rock/metal mash up of power and melody with a message behind every song," the singer explains that he took many more creative liberties with this album that he has in the past.

"RISING FIVE represents a whole new direction in its great production and sound," said Tirelli. "The dynamics of the music are different and the lyrics represent a total different message. For this album, I was really able to express what I was feeling and what really meant a lot to me."

One of the messages woven throughout the record is about the youth today and their struggles and tribulations with opioid abuse and recovery. Evident in the lyrics of the title track, "No Death Reborn", Tirelli said it was important to him and the band to get the sense of urgency across.

To enhance the music's intensity and bring the production to the next level, Tirelli brought in award-winning producer Kane Churko (OZZY OSBOURNE, DISTURBED, FIVE FINGER DEATH PUNCH) to co-produce, mix and engineer the entire EP. The band recorded in Germany, England and New York and sent the files to Churko after completion.

"Working with Kane Churko was extremely amazing. He co-produced mixed/mastered everything," said Tirelli. "Walking into his and Kevin Churko's studio, at first, was a shocking and over whelming experience. Witnessing all the success these guys have had and seeing all the gold and platinum records from all the artists like, DISTURBED, FIVE FINGER, PAPA ROACH, BAD WOLVES, IN THIS MOMENT, Ozzy, Shania Twain, and more was insane. He was great to work with and I am so proud of our album."

The track listing for "No Death Reborn" is as follows:

01. No Death Reborn

02. Today

03. Superstar (remake of the CARPENTERS hit)

04. Light The Fuse

05. Why Do You Hate Me

For more information, visit www.risingfivewithmiketirelli.com.

Steve "Zetro" Souza has revealed that EXODUS will mark the band's 40th anniversary next year with several special performances in its hometown. "I think that we're gonna do something in San Francisco next year; we're gonna do a residency there, back at home, for 40 years," he told Hungary's Impact metal channel (see video below). "We're talking about it right now. Maybe three or four nights at a certain place. We played there last year two nights, called The Chapel. Probably bring old members up — that sort of thing — and see what happens. It's in the talks; [it's] definitely in the works right now."

The original lineup of EXODUS consisted of guitarists Kirk Hammett and Tim Agnello, drummer/vocalist Tom Hunting, and vocalist Keith Stewart. Guitarist Gary Holt joined the band in 1981, while Kirk left in 1983 to join METALLICA, two years before EXODUS's debut album, "Bonded By Blood", saw the light of day.

In 2014, Hammett made an appearance on the latest EXODUS album, "Blood In Blood Out", delivering the solo in the song "Salt the Wound".

Souza is now on his third stint with EXODUS, having previously fronted the band from 1986 to 1993 and 2002 to 2004. A decade following his second departure, Souza returned to the fold in 2014, just in time to appear on "Blood In Blood Out".

Rob Dukes, who fronted EXODUS for nine years before Souza's most recent comeback, rejoined EXODUS on stage during the group's July 2017 concert in San Francisco. He sang several songs with the band on the second of EXODUS's two-night stint at The Chapel in what marked the group's first headlining Bay Area club shows since late 2013.

Souza has said in recent interviews that EXODUS will wait for Holt to complete his touring activities with SLAYER before they officially begin work on the follow-up to "Blood In Blood Out".

The official music video for the song "Goddamn Marathon" from Croatia's ANIMAL DRIVE can be seen below. The track is taken from the band's debut album, "Bite!", which was released on February 23 via Frontiers Music Srl.

ANIMAL DRIVE is a young and driven hard rock act founded in Zagreb, Croatia in 2012 by singer Dino Jelusic, who is the primary writer and driving force behind the band's sound. Dino was chosen by the late, great Paul O'Neill to be a featured vocalist on TRANS-SIBERIAN ORCHESTRA's 2016 U.S. tour. ANIMAL DRIVE's lineup is completed by Ivan Keller on guitar, Roko Rokindja Nikolic on bass and Adrian Boric on drums.

Influenced by legendary bands such as WHITESNAKE and SKID ROW with progressive rock and metal elements from DREAM THEATER thrown in the mix, ANIMAL DRIVE takes the listeners on a wild ride of hard rock bombast.

Dino says: "I am more than delighted and excited to present our debut album. I hope the fans can approach our music with curiosity and interest and we hope to come soon in a town near you to rock your asses off!"

"Bite!" track listing:

01. Goddamn Marathon

02. Tower Of Lies (I Walk Alone)

03. Had Enough

04. Hands Of Time

05. Lights Of The Damned

06. Time Machine

07. Father

08. Fade Away

09. Carry On

10. Devil Took My Beer Again

11. Deliver Me

AUAB (Artists United Against Bullying), the new project featuring former IN FLAMES bassist Peter Iwers, has released a video for the song "Hero". The track features Iwers alongside singer Jeff Scott Soto (YNGWIE MALMSTEEN, SONS OF APOLLO, JOURNEY), Swedish guitarist Paulo Mendonça as well as drummer Anton Roos from SAFFIRE and guitarist Fredrik Stenberg from ROAD RATT.

According to a press release, AUAB was launched by Mendonça and Iwers as a way to raise awareness about the "destructive consequences of bullying."

"People in all ages being treated unfair and disrespectful for different reasons," AUAB says. "It is something that we see in the schoolyards, in the locker rooms, at the offices, on the Internet and the social media platforms. And even in bands.

"Bullying is not always something that is easy to detect but if we can give attention to the problem, the awareness increases. By talking and telling each other's stories, we can make people aware and through that make a change together.

"So why do we do this?

"We want to put a spotlight on the problem and make people aware of the problem and consequences that come through bullying.

"So what do we have in common? We are two guys who share the view of human equality and the love for music. We want to make people aware through the music that we make.

"Our goal is to create a forum for people who want to share their stories and to create awareness all over.

"If we could contribute to a place where people can get support from each other, that would be something worth working for.

"You don't have to be a hero, just a friend to wash away the pain. A small compliment or just letting someone know that they're not alone can make the big difference.

"Join us, we can make that difference."

Iwers left IN FLAMES in November 2016 and has since been replaced by American bassist Bryce Paul.

"Héros", a new song from French metal veterans VULCAIN, can be streamed below. The track is taken from the band's upcoming album, "Vinyle", which will be released on September 28 via Season Of Mist.


VULCAIN comments: "We were born in the age of vinyl, and luckily the format is still here after almost losing it forever. By choosing 'Vinyle' as the title for the album, we want to pay tribute to the format that made us headbang, feel alive and dream. In this era of streaming and digital downloads, VULCAIN wants to show respect to the real rock fans put there!"

"Vinyle" track listing:

01. Vinyle (2:43)

02. Héros (3:15)

03. Backline Music (3:46)

04. L'Arnaque (3:48)

05. Darling (3:41)

06. Décibels (4:46)

07. Dans Les Livres (2:39)

08. L'Oseille (3:13)

09. Borderline (3:31)

10. Contrôle (3:19)

11. Motör (3:42)

Total playing time: 38:23


VULCAIN is one of the longest-running and most revered names on the French heavy metal and hard rock scene. The band was formed in 1981 by vocalist and guitar player Daniel Puzio and his brother Vincent Puzio (bass). The first demo, "Privat", was released in 1982 and was quickly followed by debut album "Rock 'N' Roll Secours" in 1984. Drummer Marc Varez joined the group shortly after, and from that moment on, they were quite rightly dubbed the "French MOTÖRHEAD" — a nickname that still applies to this day, even though VULCAIN's music encompasses many more influences.


After several lineup changes, VULCAIN continued its journey as a trio and released multiple full-lengths, EPs, and live albums. "Stoppe La Machine" (1998) marked VULCAIN's last release for more than a decade, as the band called it quits right after its release.


At the end of 2009, the band felt their hard rock roots still itching inside, and the power trio got back together. After touring the globe, performing at several European festivals like Hellfest, Headbangers Open Air and even supporting MOTÖRHEAD on a number of shows back in 2010, VULCAIN entered the studio once again. In 2013, by popular demand and some 15 years after the band's previous studio release, new album "V8" hit the stores.


After 30 years of rock n' roll and 13 albums so far, VULCAIN is feeling more energetic than ever.

VULCAIN is:

Daniel Puzio: guitar, vocals

Vincent Puzio: bass, backing vocals

Marc Varez: drums, backing vocals

Brazilian metallers EMINENCE have released a music video for the song "Obey". The clip was filmed in Dumbo, a neighborhood in the New York City borough of Brooklyn.

"Obey" is taken from EMINENCE's upcoming EP, "Minds Apart", which will be released on August 27 via all digital plataforms (Deezer, Spotify, Apple Music, iTunes). The band's first release since the 2013 album "The Stalker", the EP was produced by EMINENCE guitarist Alan Wallace and Tue Madsen (MESHUGGAH, HEAVEN SHALL BURN, SICK OF IT ALL)

"Minds Apart" EP track listing:

01. Obey

02. Minds Apart

03. Face It

04. Digi-Illusion

The EP artwork was created by Greek artist Viktor Koen and can be seen below.

Wallace is also involved with THE UNABOMBER FILES, the Brazilian extreme metal project featuring SEPULTURA bassist Paul Xisto Pinto Jr. alongside THE MIST singer Vladimir Korg and EMINENCE drummer André Márcio.