Prior to MEGADETH's June 10 performance in Copenhagen, Denmark, vocalist/guitarist Dave Mustaine was interviewed by Heavymetal.dk. The full conversation can be seen below. A few excerpts follow (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET).

On his early guitar inspirations:

Dave: "My inspirations were more along the guidelines of the New Wave Of British Heavy Metal and the British Invasion. There's a lot of great bands that are out right now [that] fans look to, a lot of young bands that are really great. For me, I always wanted to know, 'What were their influences?' Like with VAN HALEN — everybody thinks that David Lee Roth was such a great frontman, but what was his influence? It was Jim Dandy of BLACK OAK ARKANSAS. It's like David Lee Roth is a clone of him, except for his voice of course — the black leather pants, real low hip-huggers, big, giant belt buckle, no shirt, tan, muscles... the same thing. For me, when I look at my influences, I try and go back in time. Jimmy Page was a huge influence guitar-wise. Angus [Young] was a big guitar influence; so was his brother, Malcolm. Believe it or not, I was probably more influenced by Malcolm than I was by Angus. I liked Angus's solos a lot, but the rhythm of AC/DC was what did it for me, because there was a hook to it. A very simplistic hook. I think that's what's suffering with music nowadays — people are trying to be so fucking cerebral with their music, and a guy that played music with us at one point came up to me and goes, Hey, 'I've got a new riff,' and I was listening to it and it was awful. I said, 'What is it?' He said, 'Well, it's MEGADETH in Morse code. I was like, [puts head in hands]...

"How do I go back one more than Eddie Van Halen? What influenced Edward Van Halen? Classical. He was a classically trained guitar player growing up as a kid. I looked at some of the really great players — Vivaldi, Paganini, Chopin, Bach, Wagner, although not all of their movements or their pieces are stuff that I like. Vivaldi has 'The Four Seasons' — two of them, I like; the other two, they're a bit long for me, and while I can totally appreciate the songs, I've grown up in a kind of pop-radio mentality, so a four-minute song [is] paydirt. Where's the hook? When you have a song that's a little bit longer than four minutes for me, I tend to kind of lose the plot."

On MEGADETH's combination of groove and technical proficiency:

Dave: "I don't know that I would ever admit to wanting to be groovy, although that's a cool word. I think that a lot of people when they set out to be in a band, they're really flexible. For me, I only had one thing — I wanted revenge after changing bands. That's all I wanted. I just wanted everybody knew that all the lies that was being spread around that I couldn't play guitar... Just to think how absolutely bone-headed you have to be that I cannot play guitar. I definitely can play. Am I good? That's up to the listener. But just some of those things that people were saying is just crazy."

On the notion that the metal genre benefited from him leaving METALLICA and subsequently creating MEGADETH:

Dave: "It's about what was said. We're all friends now, so yeah, there's two great bands now. It was difficult, though, and it was totally unnecessary. But the beautiful thing about is, with the 'Big Four' as it is, it's no longer how it was, and the smoke is starting to clear and the dust is settling. SLAYER's going to retire; I don't know what's up with ANTHRAX; I don't know what's up with METALLICA; but I know we're ready to make another record, and we're still not going to take shit from anybody."

On whether he envisions MEGADETH lasting long enough to celebrate a 50th anniversary:

Dave: "I don't know. It's 35 for us right now, but to me, I think we'll know when the time is right. I don't think that if you put an age on a band... I think that's when you start to put unnecessary indicators on your career, like, 'Okay, what did he accomplish in 35 years?' Well, not as much as the fucking BEATLES did in six, okay, so let's stop with the comparisons. No one can keep up with those guys. Come on — 100 million-plus records in six years? That's just incomprehensible, and it makes you love THE BEATLES any more. That's part of why I say go back to your influences' influences. For me, loving THE BEATLES as much as I did, anybody who's been influenced by THE BEATLES, but one of my favorite 'easy-listening' bands is a band called CROWDED HOUSE. CROWDED HOUSE sounds so heavily influenced by THE BEATLES. I can only think if it was me and somebody was saying, 'You sound like you're influenced by one of the greatest pop bands in the world ever ever ever,' I would say, 'Thank you.' But we're not pop. When I picture myself growing up as a kid doing air guitar, I wasn't going [growls]. It's funny when you see people that play a musical style and somebody else doesn't understand it, how they try and make that style seem worse and their particular style seem better. I don't think there's any right or wrong way to make music."

On MEGADETH's global fan base, and the responsibilities of being a public figure:

Dave: "We went to China recently. MEGADETH has broken so many barriers for thrash metal bands, playing in China and Dubai and Israel and Turkey and Russia and Venezuela — all these places where you don't play. And we go there, and they love us, because we sing about what's in their heart. It's not necessarily what's on the minds of people, because minds can be infected. They can be changed, and you can very easily be dissuaded and believe some really bad shit in music. There's a lot of bands that sing and say stuff that I think is not cool as a parent, but for me as a parent too, I've got to remember that if you really love your kids, love them through the really difficult decisions too, not just the easy ones. I think that's why kids dig MEGADETH and me as much as they do, because I try to be a really good big brother, a really good uncle kind of thing. When anybody talks to me on our social feeds [or] my Gimme Radio station, I try and really be open about what it's like, what's my job like, what would I do as a parent. There's a lot of stuff that I would probably do that our fans' parents would do, but because it's their parents, they figure, 'Fuck you — you're my dad and my mom; I'm not going to listen to you.' But if I said, 'Hey, you know what — it's kind of a cool thing to open the door for older people when they walk in, that's kind of cool stuff,' or if you have somebody that you know could really benefit from saying, 'I forgive you'... there's an old Irish saying that if you carry a grudge, you have to dig two graves, because while you're planning somebody else's death, you're killing yourself. For me, I've kind of looked at it in a totally different way the last, maybe, 10 years. I've started to change my outlook on life, towards people. I'm a little bit more focused on the music and not so focused on what people are saying about me or about MEGADETH or anything like that. It's more about the music, and being there to help the fans and doing the right shit when the fans need stuff, not saying, 'Oh, hey, you know what — I'll be back later.' I've stood out in the snow with wet hair signing autographs, and I do that because it's the right thing to do."

On whether he foresees additional shows by the so-called "Big Four" of 1980s thrash metal — METALLICA, SLAYER, MEGADETH and ANTHRAX:

Dave: "I strongly doubt it. I would do it; I think the other two bands [apparently referring to SLAYER and ANTHRAX] would do it; but there's one person that's holding it up for everybody. So you've gotta ask the right person. I have nothing to fear; I have nothing to lose. We're all supposed to be friends now, so I think that if the fans are first and foremost, then you know what? Let's go. Let's go."

In 2018, MEGADETH is celebrating its 35th anniversary all year long, with special releases, exclusive merchandise items, and one-of-a-kind events and opportunities for fans worldwide.

The band is tentatively scheduled to enter the studio before the end of the year to begin recording its new album for a 2019 release.

The 2018 deluxe reissue of MEGADETH's classic debut album, "Killing Is My Business... And Business Is Good!" was released on June 8 via Century Media and Legacy Recordings.

iRock Radio conducted an interview with GODSMACK guitarist Tony Rombola and drummer Shannon Larkin at this year's Rock On The Range festival, which took place last month in Columbus, Ohio. You can now watch the chat below.

Speaking about GODSMACK's initial plans to celebrate the 20th-anniversary of the release of the band's debut album in 2018, Shannon said: "That was an initial thought; Sully [Erna, GODSMACK frontman] had said it a couple of times in the press or whatever. But then when we started working on the new album, we realized that… we thought that we really need to focus on this. And if we put a new record out and play all of the first record, then we wouldn't really be pushing this new record, which we feel is like a new sound for the band, a rebirth. We're all over 50 now, and we don't wanna be a bunch of old dudes trying to pretend like we're young and angry anymore. So with that said, we hope maybe next year, after we get done with the cycle for 'When Legends Rise', to maybe do a tour. And by then it'll be 'Awake''s 20-year anniversary. So we could do maybe a tour where we play just songs from those first two records."

Erna was asked by Kenosha, Wisconsin radio station 95 WIIL Rock about the response from fans to GODSMACK's new LP, "When Legends Rise". Erna replied: "We're getting some really positive reactions so far. It's reacting exactly the way we hoped for it to… The record is so deep, it's so packed with newer kind of sounds, more melodic kind of hooks, but it also has a lot of the core integrity that GODSMACK has built our fanbase off of."

Erna told The Pulse Of Radio that the change in the band's sound reflect changes in his personal life as well. "I'm just not that young, angry guy anymore that I was when I wrote the first two records," he said. "And I know a lot of the fans were, like, 'Oh my god, why won't you come out with this PANTERA-sounding record?' I'm like, 'Dude, I'm 50 years old, I have a daughter, you know; my life is in a much different place. And for me, the way I write is I write about things that affect me on an emotional level."

GODSMACK and SHINEDOWN recently unveiled a second North American leg to their upcoming co-headlining tour, adding a string of fall dates to the two bands' itineraries after initially hitting the road together in July. The new dates begin on September 21 in Greenville, South Carolina, ending for now on October 11 in Portland, Oregon. ASKING ALEXANDRIA will take over in the opening slot for LIKE A STORM and RED SUN RISING, who are splitting the summer concerts.

Erna told The Pulse Of Radio that both SHINEDOWN and his band intend to deliver a big show this time out. "You know, us and SHINEDOWN have worked very hard on putting out a big rock show," he said. "Each band wants to be able to deliver a big show and big production and I'm starting to feel, if I may say boldly, that I think it could be the best rock tour of 2018. It's just gonna be a really big package. We're bringing a big show, and so I don't think anyone's gonna be disappointed, that's for sure."

German thrash titans KREATOR and Norwegian symphonic black metal giants DIMMU BORGIR will team up for a big European co-headline run in late fall. Support on the trek will come from U.S. hardcore institution HATEBREED and death metal supergroup BLOODBATH.

Commented KREATOR frontman Mille Petrozza: "I am more than excited to team up with three of the strongest and most unique bands in today's metal world for this killer package. For this run, we have prepared the biggest production in the history of the band to bring the ultimate KREATOR experience to a venue near you. 'The European Apocalypse' will be THE tour of 2018, and I can't wait to see all of you in December. Hail to the Hordes!"

Added DIMMU BORGIR guitarist Silenoz: "It feels great to announce that we're finally touring Europe again! It's been a while, but we can't wait to share the Eonian energy with our fans. See you all in November and December!"

Stated HATEBREED singer Jamey Jasta: "We're honored and excited to share the stage with such influential and important bands. In a world where everyone seems so divided, it's important for heavy music to unify and inspire. This tour has something for everyone! Death, black, thrash, and crossover. Prepare to rage. See you in the pit!"

BLOODBATH guitarist Anders Nyström comments: "It's an honor that we're chosen to represent the death metal department in a versatile bill of thrash metal, black metal and hardcore!"

Tickets and bundles will be available starting on June 13 at 10:00 a.m. U.K. time at www.europeanapocalypsetour.com.

Tour dates:

Nov. 30 - NL - Tilburg, 013

Dec. 01 - DE - Hamburg, Sporthalle

Dec. 02 - DE - Frankfurt, Jahrhunderthalle

Dec. 03 - FR - Paris, L'Olympia

Dec. 04 - BE - Brussels, AB

Dec. 06 - IT - Milano, Alcatraz

Dec. 07 - DE - Munich, Zenith

Dec. 08 - DE - Ludwigsburg, MHP Arena

Dec. 09 - CZ - Prague, Forum Karlin

Dec. 10 - CH - Zurich, Halle 622

Dec. 12 - AT - Vienna, Gasometer

Dec. 13 - PL - Warsaw, Kolo Hall

Dec. 14 - DE - Leipzig, Haus Auensee

Dec. 15 - DE - Dusseldorf, Mitsubishi Electric Halle

Dec. 16 - UK - London, Roundhouse

VIXEN and MADAM X drummer Roxy Petrucci was recently interviewed by Bay Ragni of Totally Driven Radio. The full conversation can be streamed below. A few excerpts follow (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET).

On performing with both VIXEN and MADAM X at this year's Sweden Rock Festival:

Roxy: "We play Friday, and I'm playing [at] noon with VIXEN and then [at] 2:45 with MADAM X the same day. I've got 90 minutes between shows, but I'll be ready for it. I'm just really excited about it. How cool is that — just to play Sweden Rock, and then, I'm playing twice. How cool is that?"

On VIXEN's new live album, "Live Fire":

Roxy: "That has two bonus tracks on it — two studio tracks. One of them is 'Edge Of A Broken Heart' acoustic, and it's really stripped-down and bare and heavenly. The vocals are just incredible. It's just incredible, the vocals that Janet [Gardner did] and the backgrounds. Then the other studio track is 'You Ought To Know By Now', which is a song that we played back in the day with [late guitarist] Jan [Kuehnemund], and we resurrected that and just brought it a little bit up to date. I don't know why we ever didn't record that because it's a great song — very VIXEN, very classic VIXEN with the big harmonies. It's killing. We're going to throw that in our live set. When I first joined VIXEN, we were playing that song, and then once we recorded the album, we didn't play it anymore. I don't know why — I guess because we had so many other songs to play, but it's a real standout track. I don't know why we didn't do that, but we're doing it now. We're really excited about that."

On Gardner's condition following brain surgery:

Roxy: "Luckily, she is going to be fine. She got her last CT scan, and she is 100 percent. She's all healed. She was rocking with her solo project just last week in Europe; she's back now and getting ready to hit the road with VIXEN. She is back to Janet. Thank god, because that was scary."

On VIXEN's set during this year's Monsters Of Rock cruise, which featured a number of guest vocalists filling in for Gardner:

Roxy: "They all pulled together for us, which was really, really cool. The rock n' roll community came together to help us out, and to help Janet out too. All these guys, like Terry [Ilous] from GREAT WHITE and Danny Vaughn from TYKETTO, Chad [Stewart] and Taime [Downe] from FASTER PUSSYCAT, Bret [Kaiser] from MADAM X... they all just knocked it out of the park. It was fantastic. We had a great time, too. We weren't sure we'd be able to pull it off, because a lot of these songs, Janet sings high — she sings in the heavens — so to have them be able to sing these songs and do a fantastic job, it was just very, very cool. We couldn't thank them enough for coming through for us. The show must go on — we wanted to play, and we wanted Janet to rest. She needed to be home. We were surprised it came together so well with no rehearsals. And Todd La Torre from QUEENSRŸCHE — the way he sang 'Edge Of A Broken Heart' [see video below], it was like, 'Wow!' It was very cool. It was just so much fun, and you could feel the love in that room."

On whether the group plans to record a new studio album:

Roxy: "That's next. We want to do that next. Now that we have the live record under our belt, I think it's time. I think we're going to be ready to release something in 2019. We'll take this year to start writing it. This is pretty much like, 'We're back.' Before we were even thinking about releasing something, we had so many fans writing, saying, 'It's time — come on. Can you release one song? Something.' They wanted something from VIXEN, so we thought, 'Let's give them an album, but let's give them the live stuff, a reminder of all the songs, and then having the two studio tracks, so that's just a little taste of what's to come. It's all about timing, and we're going to make sure and release something we're very proud of and that the fans will dig — a classic VIXEN record."

"Live Fire" will be released July 6 via Rat Pak Records. Mixed by Michael Wagener, the disc features 12 live tracks and was recorded at Chicago's legendary Arcada Theater during the group's successful 2017 tour. In addition to the classic VIXEN songs, the effort also includes a newly recorded studio version of "You Ought to Know By Now", an all-new studio acoustic version of the hit song "Edge Of A Broken Heart" and a live version of a previously unreleased track called "Big Brother".

DEF LEPPARD guitarist Phil Collen has confirmed to NorthJersey.com that the band plans to soon begin the process of writing its first album since 2015's self-titled effort.

"It will be done when it's ready," he said. "You see what works and does not work and what clicks. The great thing is we continue to get better as songwriters."

"Def Leppard" was the band's first studio effort since "Songs From the Sparkle Lounge" in 2008.

Last November, Collen told Classic Rock Revisited that DEF LEPPARD had "three songs on the go" for its next album. "Rick Savage [bass] has one, a verse that he sent me," he said. "I was messing around with some melodies for that too, and Joe [Elliott, vocals] has this amazing idea and I have this one that's kind of finished. I have melodies, a chorus and all the guitar parts. So we've started, officially, without even knowing it, the next DEF LEPPARD album."

According to Collen, DEF LEPPARD has "already started recording" material for its next release. "That takes a lot of the pressure off it," he explained. "I never get writer's block because I always stay busy. The great thing about music now is you can do it anytime with your computer. It's going to be awesome."

Collen added that the new DEF LEPPARD music will "come out in drips and drabs. It'll probably be a traditional album, but you never know," he said. "If someone says we need a new DEF LEPPARD song, we'll put it out. It's great to have every option available."

"Def Leppard" entered The Billboard 200 chart at position No. 10 with first-week sales of just over 30,000 units — nearly all from pure album sales.

LINKIN PARK vocalist Mike Shinoda spoke about the band's future during an appearance on the first episode of "Inside The Studio", a brand new podcast series on iHeartRadio.

Asked if LINKIN PARK will continue, nearly one full year since the death of singer Chester Bennington, Mike said (hear audio below): "I don't know. That's the million-dollar question, right? And, unfortunately, I've said it before, but, unfortunately, there aren't any answers to that at this point. It would be awesome if there were. That would be really easy. I wish we were in a Brian Johnson/Bon Scott situation where it's, like, no, the guy, our best friend, who sang for the band who passed away, he literally said, 'This is the guy,' and we listened to the guy and the guy's definitely the guy, and we all love hanging out with him, and we want to play with him. That's not a normal... That didn't happen to anybody else, really. That hasn't happened to us."

Mike went on to give more insight into how he and his bandmates are feeling about carrying on without Chester, explaining: "If somebody comes and says, 'Hey, LINKIN PARK, do you want to play a show in Germany?' then you have to have a discussion with all the guys, and you have one guy who's, like, 'I definitely don't want to do it,' and you have one guy who says, 'I don't know. Maybe. Maybe we shouldn't do it,' and two guys who say, 'We definitely need to do it,' and then there's concerns. All that noise, that is not something I can deal with right now, and it's not a knock on anybody else. Any one of us could be the outlier opinion, the minority voice on something, but I definitely need some more simplicity in terms of decision making."

Bennington was found dead last July after committing suicide at his home in Palo Verdes Estates, California.

LINKIN PARK paid tribute to Bennington in October with an emotional three-hour show that featured numerous guests joining the band onstage in Los Angeles.

LINKIN PARK released a concert album titled "One More Light Live" in December.

Shinoda's solo album "Post Traumatic", is due on June 15.

According to Billboard, METALLICA has donated its monetary award from the Polar Music Prize to three charities. 50 percent of the one-million-Swedish-Kroner prize (just over $130,000) went to the Stockholm City Mission, which supports the homeless; 25 percent to the World Childhood Foundation, founded by Sweden's Queen Silvia; and 25 percent to the Afghanistan National Institute Of Music, also a recipient of this year's Polar Music Prize.

"Many of the Polar Music Prize laureates over the years have donated their prize money to charity," Marie Ledin, managing director of the Prize, told Billboard. "It's not something we ask of them, but we appreciate their generosity. I know my father, Stig Anderson, would be very happy and proud to know of our laureates' great charitable donations."

Sweden's biggest music award, the Polar Music Prize was founded in 1989 by Stig "Stikkan" Anderson, the manager and music publisher of ABBA. A well-known lyricist, he also was the co-writer on many of their early hits. The prize was first presented in 1992.

Previous winners of the Polar Music Prize include Elton John, Sting, Ray Charles, Bob Dylan, LED ZEPPELIN, PINK FLOYD, Peter Gabriel, Stevie Wonder, Paul Simon, Joni Mitchell, B.B. King, Quincy Jones, Paul McCartney, Max Martin and Bruce Springsteen.

The Polar Music Prize honors two laureates every year to "celebrate music in all its various forms" and "to break down musical boundaries by bringing together people from all the different worlds of music."

METALLICA was awarded the Polar Music Prize on Thursday night (June 14) at a ceremony in Stockholm, where drummer Lars Ulrich and bassist Robert Trujillo watched GHOST frontman Tobias Forge, along with members of Swedish metal act CANDLEMASS and the duo VARGAS & LAGOLA, honor the band with a performance of the METALLICA classic "Enter Sandman".

Swedish singer Loney Dear performed "Wherever I May Roam" and "No Leaf Clover", while REFUSED frontman Dennis Lyxzen and ex-MOTÖRHEAD drummer Mikkey Dee covered the song "Whiplash". Reading the citation for METALLICA were DEEP PURPLE's Ian Paice and Roger Glover.

Ulrich and Trujillo accepted the prize from His Majesty King Carl XVI Gustaf of Sweden. In his acceptance speech, Ulrich said: "Who would have thought, when METALLICA started this musical journey 37 years ago, that one day we would be standing in front of both musical royalty and actual royalty, accepting one of the most prestigious prizes that can be bestowed upon musicians."

OBITUARY drummer Donald Tardy has told James Willard of the "Mosh Mag" podcast that the band is in no rush to return to the studio to begin work on the follow-up to last year's self-titled effort. "We are super happy with what's going on right now," he said (hear audio below). "We're supporting this new album. It's probably the best album we've ever written. We know 'Slowly We Rot', 'Cause Of Death' and 'The End Complete' are the albums that people will always remember OBITUARY [by], and we're cool with that; we're very proud of those albums. But 30 years into it, to still write an album that's still that relevant, we're super proud of the songs; the production fits it perfectly. So we're gonna support this album. We're gonna see every corner of the planet, 'cause fans wanna see OBITUARY, and we're gonna stay busy and do what we do."

He continued: "We're always thinking about new songs and writing riffs and this and that. But at this time of our lives and this time of the music industry… This new album has only been out for just over a year now, so we're in no hurry to try and push another album out of us as quick as we can; there's no sense.

"I'm a believer in when an album is a favorite album of a fan, they're gonna listen to that thing again and again and really worship it," he added. "I mean, [DIO's] 'Holy Diver' album is how old? It's 20-something years old, and I still listen to 'Holy Diver' almost every day of my life, so it's not, like, 'Oh, after two years, you need a new album.' I think metal fans understand that. And OBITUARY's catered to a live show. It's fun doing albums, and you get proud for making songs and making albums, but there's nothing more awesome than live shows and seeing the fans come out and giving them what they want, which is just a kick-ass show and having a good time."

After parting ways with Roadrunner following the release of 2005's "Frozen In Time", OBITUARY released two albums via Candlelight Records — 2007's "Xecutioner's Return" and 2009's "Darkest Day" — before signing with Relapse Records in 2014.

OBITUARY's second Relapse release — the aforementioned self-titled tenth studio album — came out in March 2017.

OBITUARY has just completed a North American headline tour with support from PALLBEARER, SKELETONWITCH and DUST BOLT.

The classic lineup of California metallers AS I LAY DYING — Tim Lambesis on lead vocals, Jordan Mancino on drums, Phil Sgrosso on rhythm guitar and backing vocals, Nick Hipa on lead guitar and backing vocals, and Josh Gilbert on bass and clean vocals — played its first first comeback show last night (Saturday, June 16) at Soma Sidestage in San Diego, California. Fan-filmed video footage of the concert can be seen below.

The $10 tickets to AS I LAY DYING's first live appearance since 2013 at the 300-capacity Soma Sidestage reportedly sold out in four minutes. It was said to be the band's decision to play on a smaller stage rather than the 2,000-capacity mainstage.

Earlier in the month, AS I LAY DYING released a new song called "My Own Grave", which marked the first fresh music from the band since it issued its sixth album, "Awakened", back in September 2012.

In May 2014, Lambesis was sentenced to six years in jail after pleading guilty to paying a San Diego police officer posing as a hitman $1,000 to kill his wife. Approximately two and a half years later — on December 17, 2016 — he was discharged from a California detention facility and was transferred to the Division of Adult Parole Operations.

Last December, Lambesis released a statement in which he apologized to his former wife and children for his "appalling actions." He also accepted responsibility for being "the sole offender and the only one to blame for everything that happened."

The return of AS I LAY DYING raised some questions, particularly since Hipa categorically denounced the band's disgraced frontman as a "sociopathic narcissist in definite need of rehabilitation" in a social-media post back in 2014.

Lambesis was arrested in May 2013 after handing a "hitman" — really an undercover police officer — $1,000 in cash, along with his wife's address and gate security codes.

Prior to the murder plot, his wife had asked a San Diego Superior Court to dissolve their marriage.

Last night, the five members of AS I LAY DYING released a half-hour video in which they discussed the return of their classic lineup, including how they reconnected and repaired their personal relationships following Lambesis's release from prison.

In the video below, Mark Tremonti and Eric Friedman of Tremonti crush Metallica's "Welcome Home (Sanitarium)" on a Hello Kitty guitar and ukulele.

Tremonti, the band comprised of Mark Tremonti on vocals/guitars, Eric Friedman on guitars/backing vocals, and Garrett Whitlock on drums, will release their fourth full-length album, A Dying Machine, worldwide via Napalm Records on June 8th. Enjoy the official track premiere for "As The Silence Becomes Me" below. “As The Silence Becomes Me” is now available on all streaming services.

The album, A Dying Machine, is available for pre-order here in various physical configurations as well as digitally. Fans that pre-order the album digitally will receive an instant download of “Bringer Of War”, “Take You With Me” and “A Dying Machine” as well as the brand new track "As The Silence Becomes Me".

“Bringer of War”, “Take You With Me”, “A Dying Machine” and today's released track "As The Silence Becomes Me" are also available on all streaming services including Apple Music and Spotify.

A Dying Machine is the first concept album of Tremonti’s career. The music is inspired by a story that came to Mark while on the last Alter Bridge tour. During that time, the epic title track “A Dying Machine” was born. The story, which is being turned into a full-length work of fiction authored by Mark Tremonti and John Shirley, takes place at the turn of the next century where humans and fabricated beings called “vessels” are trying to co-exist. Tremonti and Shirley are working on finishing the novel to release alongside the record.

A Dying Machine tracklisting:

"Bringer Of War"
"From The Sky"
"A Dying Machine"
"Trust"
"Throw Them To The Lions"
"Make It Hurt"
"Traipse"
"The First The Last"
"A Lot Like Sin"
"The Day When Legions Burned"
"As The Silence Becomes Me"
"Take You With Me"
"Desolation"
"Found"

"Bringer Of War" lyric video:

"Take You With Me" video:

"A Dying Machine" lyric video:

Teaser:

Tremonti will be hitting the road in support of A Dying Machine. The band heads to Europe mid-June for seven weeks of touring that includes dates as direct support for Iron Maiden alongside headline shows and European festivals. Full tour info and ticket links can be found here.

Ripple Music has announced the signing of LIGHTNING BORN to a worldwide deal. The band's new album will be released in late 2018.

A true supergroup, featuring some of the best musicians in the Maryland/East Coast doom scene, LIGHTNING BORN began when Doza Hawes, longtime drummer of metal act MEGA COLOSSUS, caught Brenna Leath performing with her band, THE HELL NO. "I really dug her vocals, and wanted to see what she could do in a more traditional, classic rock and blues-inspired kind of framework," said Hawes. As the two brainstormed potential guitarists, "I immediately thought of Erik Sugg from DEMON EYE," said Hawes. "He writes great riffs, but also crafts excellent songs. I thought his darker, doom influence would be a perfect fit for Brenna. "The trio clicked on Erik's riff ideas. Meanwhile, Brenna was finishing up a HELL NO album, produced by CORROSION OF CONFORMITY's Mike Dean. She invited Dean to join the group on bass, and the chemistry was apparent.

"It's not every day that you get to pick your dream line up of musicians to start a band. This is the easiest songwriting process, us all together, that I've ever had. The songs just pop out almost instantly," said Hawes.

LIGHTNING BORN debuted in 2016, rocking its debut show with CONAN and SERIAL HAWK in their hometown of Raleigh, North Carolina. Since then, the band has from strength to strength, sharing the stage with THE SWORD, EARTHLESS, MOUNTAIN, THE OBSESSED, KARMA TO BURN, RUBY THE HATCHET and many others. They performed at the Maryland Doom Fest in 2017 and were invited to return in 2018.

LIGHTNING BORN's eponymous debut album, recorded and produced by Dean, is due in November.

LIGHTNING BORN is:

* Mike Dean (CORROSION OF CONFORMITY) - Bass

* Erik Sugg (DEMON EYE) - Guitar

* Doza Hawes (MEGA-COLOSSUS, BLOODY HAMMERS, HOUR OF THIRTEEN) - Drums

* Brenna Leath (THE HELL NO) - Vocals

SLASH FT. MYLES KENNEDY & THE CONSPIRATORS will release their third album, "Living The Dream", on September 21.

The band will support the disc by embarking on tour of the U.S. and Canada in early September.

The artist pre-sale starts tomorrow at 10 a.m. local time on each stop. Use the password "SLASH18" to fet your tickets at SlashOnline.com.

Tour dates:

Sep. 13 - Whisky A Go Go @ Los Angeles, CA

Sep. 15 - The Van Buren @ Phoenix, AZ

Sep. 16 - Kaaboo Del Mar @ Del Mar, CA

Sep. 18 - The Depot @ Salt Lake City, CA

Sep. 19 - Fillmore @ Denver, CO

Sep. 21 - Paradise Cove Margaritaville @ Tulsa, OK

Sep. 22 - Winstar @ Thackerville, OK

Sep. 24 - Stubbs @ Austin, TX

Sep. 26 - House of Blues @ Houston, TX

Sep. 28 - Louder Than Life @ Louisville, KY

Sep. 29 - Four Winds Casino Resort @ New Buffalo, MI

Oct. 01 - Wellmont Theatre @ Montclair, NJ

Oct. 02 - Fillmore @ Silver Spring, MD

Oct. 04 - Casino Rama @ Rama, Canada

Oct. 05 - Pier 17 at South Street Seaport @ New York, NY

Oct. 06 - Mohegan Sun @ Uncasville, CT

Oct. 09 - Paramount @ Huntington, NY

Oct. 10 - Electric Factory @ Philadelphia, PA

Oct. 11 - House Of Blues @ Boston, MA

Oct. 14 - Aftershock @ Sacramento, CA

The follow-up to 2014's "World On Fire", "Living The Dream" was once again tracked with producer Michael "Elvis" Baskette, who has previously worked with ALTER BRIDGE, IGGY POP and INCUBUS, among many others.

In addition to singer Myles Kennendy and Slash, SLASH FT. MYLES KENNEDY & THE CONSPIRATORS features Brent Fitz (drums), Todd Kerns (bass, vocals) and Frank Sidoris (guitar, vocals).

Back in March, Slash said that he was "excited" about the material that was written for the upcoming SLASH FT. MYLES KENNEDY & THE CONSPIRATORS album. "It's got some cool songs and it's got a great live feel," he said.

"I've been working with Myles, Brent and Todd for about eight years now. It's been an amazing ride so far; as a band we continue to get better which is great. With the addition of Frank since the 'World On Fire' tour, I feel we have hit a great, creative stride which I definitely think shows on this next record."

After Slash and the CONSPIRATORS toured "World On Fire", rumors about the long-awaited GUNS N' ROSES reunion tour began to circulate and were confirmed in early 2016.

The current GUNS trek — which features Slash and fellow original members Axl Rose and Duff McKagan — launched in April 2016 and has since grossed more than $400 million, with more dates coming this summer and this fall.

Despite the success of the "Not In This Lifetime" reunion tour, there has been no indication that GUNS intends to record a new album anytime soon. The last GUNS studio album, "Chinese Democracy", came out in 2008 and featured only Axl Rose from the band's classic lineup. The last album on which Rose, McKagan and Slash appeared together was 1993's covers set "The Spaghetti Incident?"

Kennedy's debut solo album, "Year Of The Tiger", was released on March 9 via Napalm Records.

DESTRUCTION frontman Schmier has exited PÄNZER, the heavy metal "supergroup" featuring Pontus Norgren (HAMMERFALL) and V.O. Pulver (G.U.R.D., POLTERGEIST) on guitar and Stefan Schwarzmann (ACCEPT, ex-RUNNING WILD) on drums.

Schmier said in a statement: "I had some great fun with PÄNZER the last years, but now it is time for me to move on! Yes, I need to let go.

"I wanna focus a 100% on DESTRUCTION and the upcoming challenges. A new drummer and a new record...

"I wanna thank all the PÄNZER boys and hope they will go on without me, I was never a great heavy metal singer but I had fun doing it!

"Goodbyes are never easy but I need to do this for the sake of my lifetime project, my privacy and my future!

"Thanks to those who supported my PÄNZER years — united we stand! See you hopefully soon on the stages of the world…"

PÄNZER released its second album, "Fatal Command", last October via Nuclear Blast. The follow-up to 2014's "Send Them All To Hell" marked PÄNZER's first release since the departure of guitarist Herman Frank (ACCEPT, VICTORY), who left the group to focus on his solo project.

In an interview with Metal Master Kingdom, Schmier said about PÄNZER: "Lineup changes are always a little difficult, but, basically, the backbone of the band didn't change at all; we kept everything rolling. And it's great fun. To me, it's a great alternative to play heavy metal — just straight metal and maybe very German also. And there's no limits; we just do what we want. There's no high expectations that we have to sound like this or that; we just praise the good old fucking metal."

Swedish death metallers GRAVE have announced the addition of drummer Tomas Lagrén to the group's ranks.

The band states: "We have a new drummer. He has been with us for the past year and done a great job behind the drums. A hard-hitting son of a bitch and the brother of Mika."

GRAVE 2018 is:

Ola Lindgren - Guitar/Vocals

Tobias Cristiansson - Bass

Mika Lagrén - Guitar

Tomas Lagrén - Drums

GRAVE parted ways with drummer Ronnie Bergerstål at the end of 2016.

The band's latest album, "Out Of Respect For The Dead", was released in October 2015 via Century Media. The CD's eerie artwork was again created by Costin Chioreanu, who was responsible for the band's previous three albums as well as the "Morbid Ascent" EP. Chioreanu is also known for his collaborations with such acts as AT THE GATES, PARADISE LOST and ARCH ENEMY.

The five members of AS I LAY DYING have released a half-hour video in which they discuss the return of their classic lineup — Tim Lambesis on lead vocals, Jordan Mancino on drums, Phil Sgrosso on rhythm guitar and backing vocals, Nick Hipa on lead guitar and backing vocals, and Josh Gilbert on bass and clean vocals.

Earlier in the month, AS I LAY DYING released a new song called "My Own Grave" and announced its first comeback show, which took place Saturday night (June 16) at Soma Sidestage in San Diego, California.

Prior to the arrival of the new song, AS I LAY DYING hadn't released any new music since it issued its sixth album, "Awakened", back in September 2012.

In May 2014, Lambesis was sentenced to six years in jail after pleading guilty to paying a San Diego police officer posing as a hitman $1,000 to kill his wife. Approximately two and a half years later — on December 17, 2016 — he was discharged from a California detention facility and was transferred to the Division of Adult Parole Operations.

Last December, Lambesis released a statement in which he apologized to his former wife and children for his "appalling actions." He also accepted responsibility for being "the sole offender and the only one to blame for everything that happened."

The return of AS I LAY DYING has raised some questions, particularly since Hipa categorically denounced the band's disgraced frontman as a "sociopathic narcissist in definite need of rehabilitation" in a social-media post back in 2014.

In the just-released video, Lambesis spoke about the steps that he took to reconnect with his bandmates after his release from prison, explaining that he "first reached out to Jordan and Josh" because "that seemed the most natural place" for him. "And I reached out to them in an e-mail a long time ago, and the first individual conversations we had were mainly me listening so that I could better express my apology."

He added: "There's the obvious wrongdoings that I made and then there's the little ways that they sort of spread out beyond that and hurt people in so many ways that I really wasn't entirely aware of until I got home. And those conversations kicked off, and I was able to sort of better understand what they'd been through and I think more sincerely apologize because of that."

Lambesis was arrested in May 2013 after handing a "hitman" — really an undercover police officer — $1,000 in cash, along with his wife's address and gate security codes.

Prior to the murder plot, his wife had asked a San Diego Superior Court to dissolve their marriage.

Lambesis admitted that he went into survival mode after his arrest, explaining that he hired people to defend him and speak on his behalf. As a result, he said, he "definitely bought into that and that influenced the person" he was while he awaited his sentencing. "Then my sentencing happened, and that moment in the courtroom [when I expressed my remorse] was true and genuine, but I didn't have any ability to follow up with it in any way… And then there was such an unbelievable sense of relief after my sentencing of, like, defense is no longer in my vocabulary. I don't defend what I did, because there's no defense for it. I'm not gonna try to defend what I did, because it's ridiculous. All I can do is make amends where possible, express my remorse and just put my energy into something positive."

The $10 tickets to AS I LAY DYING's first show since 2013 at the 300-capacity Soma Sidestage reportedly sold out in four minutes. It was said to be the band's decision to play on a smaller stage rather than the 2,000-capacity mainstage.

Fan-filmed video footage of QUEENSRŸCHE's May 27 performance at HerrinFesta Italiana, a celebration of all things Italian and Herrin, which was held in Herrin, Illinois, can be seen below.

The band's setlist was as follows:

01. Anarchy-X

02. Revolution Calling

03. Damaged

04. Walk In The Shadows

05. The Whisper

06. The Mission

07. Breaking The Silence

08. I Don't Believe In Love

09. Silent Lucidity

10. Guardian

11. The Lady Wore Black

12. Empire

13. Queen Of The Reich

14. Jet City Woman

15. Take Hold Of The Flame

Encore:

16. Best I Can

17. Screaming In Digital

18. Eyes Of A Stranger

For the past 14 months, QUEENSRŸCHE's founding drummer Scott Rockenfield has been taking time off from the band's touring activities to spend time with his young son, who was born in February 2017. Filling in for him is former KAMELOT drummer Casey Grillo.

Earlier this year, QUEENSRŸCHE entered the studio with producer Chris "Zeuss" Harris to begin recording the follow-up to 2015's "Condition Hüman" LP, but has not indicated if Rockenfield was involved with the making of the disc. However, the band did confirm that Grillo did not play on the record, which will mark QUEENSRŸCHE's third full-length release with La Torre, following the departure of Geoff Tate in 2012.

Back in December, La Torre spoke to KNAC.COM about where he is getting his lyrical inspirations from for the new QUEENSRŸCHE material. "A lot of the stuff on this, I think, just has to do with, again, the political spectrum and just what's going on in the world," he said. "And QUEENSRŸCHE always injected those kinds of topics in their content. And so a lot of it has to do with just what's going on socially and politically, and globally and these subjects are timeless. So, if you listen to songs from the '60s that have to do with social discourse and stuff like that, it still applies today."

Wargaming — the company behind free-to-play titles World Of Tanks (2010), World Of Warplanes (2013) and World Of Warships (2015) — has announced that IRON MAIDEN frontman Bruce Dickinson will host 10 online educational warplanes diaries. Launching today, this free-to-view series is set to be released weekly on the World Of Warplanes official portal and YouTube channel across June, July and August, alongside an exclusive World Of Warplanes video tribute to the classic IRON MAIDEN song "Aces High".

As an avid enthusiast of military aviation, pilot, and supporter of World Of Warplanes' dedication to historical accuracy, Bruce has recorded "The Bruce Dickinson Warplanes Diaries" about the classic WW2 fighter and bomber aircraft such as the Spitfire, Hawker Hurricane and Messerschmitt Bf 109. As an extra treat for MAIDEN and Warplanes fans, World Of Warplanes have created, with many of the graphics from their in-game engine and some classic archive footage, a tribute video clip to the epic "Aces High" music video. Featuring many of the Battle Of Britain planes that Bruce profiles in the series, viewers can see the machines really brought to life.

"We are all delighted that Bruce has brought his enthusiasm and expertise to World Of Warplanes with these informative videos which he has delivered in his own inimitable style," commented Wargaming's global marketing director, Al King. "As well as the diaries and the 'Aces High' tribute, we are also introducing a renovated hangar subtly branded with iconic IRON MAIDEN imagery. It's unlike anything the game’s ever had before and we hope MAIDEN fans will have fun spotting the various Easter eggs hidden throughout!"

Dickinson's first video sees him talking about the Hawker Hurricane, a classic aircraft that is often overshadowed by the Spitfire but was actually the main workhorse of the RAF during the Battle Of Britain.

With their melodic black/death metal, The Spirit have already made waves in the European underground scene and with their self-released debut album Sounds From The Vortex being strictly limited and nearly sold out on their homepage, the band is now reissuing their icy black / death metal chimera through Nuclear Blast on August 10th.

The seven virtuosic tracks of the quartet hailing from Saarbrücken, Germany, freshly revive the past of the genre and immediately induce nostalgia with their clashing melodies and authentically rough sound.

Today, the band is presenting a lyric video for their first single "The Clouds Of Damnation", a 7-minute burst of unfiltered emotions. Watch the clip below:

Sounds From The Vortex is now available for pre-order as CD, LP (black and clear) and download. Get the version of your choice here.

At this year's Party.San Open Air, the band will play a release show for Sounds From The Vortex, and you can also witness the band's sinister live atmosphere and live skills at Summer Breeze and Metal Invaders. Later this year, in October and November, the quartet will join their label mates Kataklysm and Hypocrisy on their extensive Death... Is Just The Beginning European Tour.

Dates:

August
9-11 - Schlotheim, Germany - Party.San Open Air
15-18 - Dinkelsbühl, Germany - Summer Breeze

September
22 - Schwerin, Germany - Metal Invaders Vol. 2

October (with Kataklysm, Hypocrisy)
18 - Wiesbaden, Germany - Schlachthof
19 - Stuttgart, Germany - LKA Longhorn
20 - Munich, Germany - Backstage
23 - Budapest, Hungary - Barba Negra
24 - Vienna, Austria - Arena
25 - Wrocław, Poland - Zaklęte Rewiry
26 - Geiselwind, Germany - MusicHall
27 - Milan, Italy - Live Music Club
28 - Pratteln, Switzerland - Z7
29 - Lyon, France - Ninkasi Kao
31 - Madrid, Spain - Sala Mon

November (with Kataklysm, Hypocrisy)
1 - Barcelona, Spain - Razzmatazz 2
2 - Limoges, France - CC John Lennon
3 - Paris, France - La Machine du Moulin Rouge
4 - Antwerp, Belgium - Trix
5 - Hamburg, Germany - Docks
6 - Gothenburg, Sweden - Trädgår'n
7 - Stockholm, Sweden - Fryshuset
9 - Helsinki, Finland - The Circus
10 - Tampere, Finland - Pakkahuone
12 - Copenhagen, Denmark - Pumpehuset
13 - Leeuwarden, Netherlands - Neushoorn
14 - Berlin, Germany - Kesselhaus
15 - Dresden, Germany - Eventwerk
16 - Oberhausen, Germany - Turbinenhalle 2
17 - Leipzig, Germany - Hellraiser

December
8 - Münster, Germany - Wintermelodei

(Photo - Natalia Kempin)

BULLET FOR MY VALENTINE drummer Jason Bowld told Altpress.com that he had been approached to join GHOST in 2016. Bowld would have played in the group as one of its masked, anonymous Nameless Ghoul. He recalled: "At the end of 2016, I got asked to join another band, which I didn’t want to do — a band called GHOST. It just didn't feel right."

Bowld instead joined BULLET FOR MY VALENTINE officially in 2017 after touring with them the previous year. He remarked: "BULLET came along that same week. I started playing with the band in 2010 as a session drummer, filled in and didn't think anything else after that. Then Matt [Tuck, BULLET FOR MY VALENTINE frontman] called me at the end of 2015. A week turned into a month, a month turned into three months and here I am."

Bowld makes his recording debut with BULLET FOR MY VALENTINE on its upcoming album, "Gravity", due out June 29.

He replaced drummer Michael "Moose" Thomas, who took a temporary leave of absence from BULLET FOR MY VALENTINE in 2016 to spend time with his wife, as they awaited the birth of his first child.

"Gravity" will be released through BULLET FOR MY VALENTINE's new label home, Search And Destroy, the imprint launched in 2014 by Spinefarm and international artist management company Raw Power Management.

BULLET FOR MY VALENTINE recently completed an extensive American tour with AVENGED SEVENFOLD and BREAKING BENJAMIN.

During an interview with SiriusXM DJ Eddie Trunk that aired yesterday (Thursday, June 14), guitarist George Lynch (DOKKEN, LYNCH MOB, KXM) revealed that he recently received an offer to play with RATT.

Asked whether the rumors are true that he was asked to join the current touring lineup of RATT — presumably alongside singer Stephen Pearcy and bassist Juan Croucier for their upcoming shows without Warren DeMartini — George responded: "Mmm-hmm. We just couldn't come to an agreement on it. They haven't called me back. I've been staring at the phone. My wife's like, 'Honey, want to go to bed or eat something?' I'm like, 'I'm waiting for the RATT phone to ring.' I'm good with it."

Interestingly, DeMartini — who is apparently no longer a member of RATT — had a short stint with DOKKEN in the early 1990s when Lynch was out of the band. He returned to RATT in 1996.

RATT recently announced plans to move forward with Pearcy and Croucier and as as-yet-unrevealed lineup of other musicians. The group's first show featuring its new lineup will take place in Mulvane, Kansas on July 7.

Back in March, it was reported by the Metal Sludge web site that DeMartini was fired by Pearcy and Croucier, with undisclosed sources telling the site that "serious issues" existed between the three members of RATT's classic lineup. Fellow RATT guitarist Carlos Cavazo apparently confirmed the report a few days later, telling the site that he couldn't see himself continuing with the band without DeMartini. "I can't picture anyone else being there other than Warren," Cavazo was quoted as saying.

RATT — featuring DeMartini, Pearcy and Croucier — played a number of shows last year after reforming in 2016 in the midst of a highly publicized legal battle with drummer Bobby Blotzer over the rights to the RATT name. They were joined at the gigs by Cavazo and drummer Jimmy DeGrasso, who previously played with Y&T, WHITE LION and MEGADETH, among others.

Dead End Finland have released a new single, "Closer To Extinction", taken from their upcoming fourth album due to be released in 2019 via Inverse Records. Watch the official lyric video below.

The band comments: "Whereas our first single, 'Lifelong Tragedy', introduced the band's grandiose and calm style, this one presents a heavier, multi-dimensional side"
 

Line-up:
Mikko Virtanen - vocals
Santtu Rosén - guitars, bass
Miska Rajasuo - drums
Jarno Hänninen - keys

For information and updates on the band, check out their official Facebook page here.

Unleashing their new Downfall EP last month, whiplash tyrants Fallen Legion have premiered their new music video for the track "Way Out", which can be viewed below.

Downfall features six energetic, unorthodox, progressive, spirited and memorable tracks plus guest vocals and keyboard from Cradle Of Filth's Lindsay Schoolcraft on "New Skin". The EP follows Fallen Legion's two well-received demo EPs Screams From The Dungeon (2012) and Infinite Archive (2015). Consisting of Nick Sauter on guitars, Jon Kal on bass, Josh Masterson on vocals and Dylan Waybrant on drums, the band presents an eclectic metal brigade of influences from Gojira, Korn, Iron Maiden, Dethlok and Antonio Vivaldi.

The band comments: “This EP is about dealing with stress- mortal blows, drugs, thoughts of suicide, the inner struggle, and the wrath of it all. The EP represents the outcome of painful experiences. Songs like ‘Escapegoat’ deal with not being able to handle the consequences of one’s actions and pushing them onto those weaker than yourself, and ‘Monster Reborn’-about letting the guilt build up inside, trapping one within their own mental anguish.”

The band is not shy when it comes to hitting the road having performed with bands like Soilwork, Havok, Unearth, Battlecross and 36 Crazy Fists. They are currently wrapping up their Southern Ontario shows in support of Downfall on The Weekend Warriors Tour with one remaining concert on June 16th in Sudbury, ON at The Asylum.

UK melodic rockers Vega have released a lyric video for "Let's Have Fun Tonight", the lead track of their fifth studio album, Only Human. Watch below.

The band self-produced the record but teamed up with legendary Canadian musician and producer Harry Hess (Harem Scarem) for the mixing and mastering to bring their fans another gem of a release.

If you're very lucky, there may be occasions in your life when you find a band and you realize you’ve discovered something a bit special. We've all heard groups who release 'great' albums, but Vega certainly make the hairs on the back of your neck stand up and provide butterflies in the stomach excitement when all fans of modern melodic rock listen to their new records for the first time. The 12 songs that comprise Only Human truly see Vega take their songwriting and musicianship to the next level.

Tracklisting:

"Let’s Have Fun Tonight"
"Worth Dying For"
"Last Man Standing"
"Come Back Again"
"All Over Now"
"Mess You Made"
"Only Human"
"Standing Still"
"Gravity"
"Turning Pages"
"Fade Away"
"Go To War"

"Let’s Have Fun Tonight" lyric video:

"All Over Now":

"Worth Dying For" video:

"Last Man Standing":

"We wear our love of 80's rock music on our sleeves, but we also have injected our love of modern rock music to it. We aren't trying to rehash anything: the sound we have achieved is 100% Vega. We didn't want to try and guess what people expect and get it wrong," says singer Nick Workman.

Lineup:

Nick Workman: lead vocals, backing vocals, acoustic guitar
Tom Martin: bass guitar
Marcus Thurston: lead guitar
James Martin: keyboards
Mikey Kew: guitar, backing vocals
Martin ‘Hutch' Hutchinson: drums

Fan-filmed video footage of JOURNEY's June 15 performance at Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey can be seen below.

JOURNEY's 58-city co-headlining tour with DEF LEPPARD kicked off in Hartford, Connecticut on May 21 and will wrap in Los Angeles, California on October 6.

It is the second time the two bands have toured together. JOURNEY and DEF LEPPARD first teamed up in 2006.

Asked if he ever expected JOURNEY to once again play stadiums, guitarist Neal Schon told the St. Louis, Missouri classic rock radio station KSHE 95: "Good music is great music, and I think it's timeless. Things come around, they go around. It's sort of like, every ten years, it feels to me, like it takes a full circle. The timing just seems right again. We've been out there for two decades kicking it pretty hard, and keeping our fans happy.

"I never gave up hope," he continued. "We kind of defied death a few times [laughs], and it's perseverance. You push forward, and try not to pay attention to the negative aspects that people like to throw around. People like to create controversy. They like to create drama — 'How are you going to do it without this? How are you going to without that?' I prefer just to not listen to any of that and stay within my convictions of where I want to go and what I want to accomplish. If you do that, you always succeed eventually."

JOURNEY keyboardist Jonathan Cain spoke about the band's touring life during an interview with Tigman of the Albany, New York radio station Q103. He said: "It's pretty much an honor to go out there. They set the stage — you've got 75 guys out there busting their hump for you. It's all laid out; all we have to do is show up. We have a great crew; we have great guys. They do all the grunt work, so it makes our job really easy. Now, the technology is so great — the P.A.s are better; the in-ear monitors are a blessing; the halls sound good; we stay at nice hotels; we have a plane. It's okay. You're away from home; you've got to pick up anchor; but we've done it so many times, we're good at putting the anchor down when we get somewhere. I think that's what I told Arnel [Pineda, vocals] when he joined the band — 'You've got to learn to pick up your anchor, and learn to drop it when it's time to drop it. Get grounded somewhere, even if it's a couple days.' The great way to tour these days is you hub, and you're able to hub in one city, so we get to sleep in the same bed for three, four days. Much better than rolling around in a bus. We're blessed."

JOURNEY has sold 48 million albums and was inducted into the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame in 2017.

Canadian metal trio Cauldron have announced a set of U.S. shows with support act Barrow Wight to celebrate their long-awaited new album entitled New Gods out September 7th through The End Records (North America) and Dissonance Productions (Europe).

Dates:

September
6 – Boston, MA – The Middle East
7 – Philadelphia, PA – Boot & Saddle
8 – Brooklyn, NY – The Kingsland

The band also has a headline release show planned in their hometown of Toronto set for September 15th at Junction City Music Hall. 

For the follow up to their critically-acclaimed 2016 album In Ruin, Jason Decay (lead vocals/bass), Ian Chains (guitar) and Myles Deck (drums) together with producer Chris Stringer (Timber Timbre, Wooden Sky) honed and recorded the songs at Union Sound in Toronto for what would become New Gods. 

New Gods, the group’s fifth full-length studio record, once again promises a strong emphasis on songwriting and melody, complete with high-end organic production to match. “We have always prioritized songwriting above anything else. For me personally, I have always felt more confident writing than as a "musician" and for the first time I think we have found the production that best suits our songs,” says Decay. 

"I am very proud of the songwriting, performances and production on this one, and it is definitely the most confident I have been in a finished album of ours.  It is dark, it’s heavy and it has a very melodic sense of AOR. Most importantly, it still sounds very Cauldron. I’m pretty sure people who were into In Ruin will like this one just as much if not more!”

Tracklisting:

“Prisoner Of The Past”
“Letting Go”
“No Longer”
“Save The Truth / Syracuse”
“Never Be Found”
“Drown”
“Together As One”
“Isolation”
“Last Request”

Helion Prime and their mascot - the mighty Saibot - return with their sophomore effort Terror Of The Cybernetic Space Monster. The album consists of nine brand new tracks - with the seventeen minute monster title song marking a stunning finale. The Sacramento, California-based power metal band’s new piece of work was mixed and mastered at LSD studio by Lasse Lammert (known for his work with bands like Alestorm and Gloryhammer). Helion Prime continues their theme of blending science fiction with science fact.

Founder Jason Ashcraft comments: "I wasn't sure where I was going when writing this album. As fans who follow us closely know, it's been a bumping two years for us since the release of our debut. We are back and fully inspired. This album focuses more on human nature and our battle with the good and evil within ourselves. I did not plan this when starting the album but that is where it naturally evolved. I am very pleased with the result and hope you are all as equally excited.”

This album will mark the first time the full band lineup is joined together on a release. This also marks the debut of Sozos Michael on vocals.

Sozos remarks on the subject: "Working on this album has been an incredibly rewarding experience. While Jason had a clear vision as to what this album would shape up to be as the principal songwriter, he was always open to my ideas on vocal lines and lyrics. Our collaboration went very smoothly and it definitely shows on the final product."

Jason also comments on the audition of Sozos: "He is the kind of singer I have always dreamed of working with. Not only are his vocal skills top notch but he understands and knows what the music needs. Writing together for this album was a breeze and I hardly had to ask for any rewrites. Often he would send me ideas that was exactly what I was thinking. I am thrilled to work with someone like that and can't wait to see what we accomplish together."

The cover art was once again done by Marc Whisnant, who was already responsible for the artwork of the band’s self-titled debut album, which was released via Divebomb Records in early 2016 before AFM Records signed the band to a worldwide deal and re-issued Helion Prime almost exactly a year after its initial release. Press hailed the album as a breath of fresh air in the power metal scene and called it one of the most innovative power metal records in a long time.

Britain's original grindfather, Shane Embury, has today launched his own Extrinsic Recordings label by confirming details of his first release. Set up with the purpose of providing an outlet for his creative endeavours outside of his Napalm Death "day job", Extrinsic Recordings' first release will be Born To Murder The World. Pre-order here.

The album is titled The Infinite Mirror Of Millennial Narcissism, and it will be released digitally on August 24th. The first track, "Brutal Alchemist", is available for streaming below.

With the weight of two stalwarts of extreme metal behind it, Born To Murder The World was always going to be heavy. With the blueprint for the band hashed out on drunken night’s out in their Birmingham home town, Shane Embury (Napalm Death, Venomous Concept, Brujeria, Lock Up, etc.) and Mick Kenney (Anaal Nathrakh, Mistress) swore to join forces.

Having known each other for the best part of 20 years, and being avid fans of each others’ creative output, distance was no barrier for the pair once Kenney relocated to California. As the album began to take shape, they recruited Duncan Wilkins aka Drunk (Fukpig, Mistress) to give a voice to tracks such as "The Virus Is Within Us All", and "Brutality Alchemist".

Describing their unholy union as a "brutal amalgamation of Napalm Death and Anaal Nathrakh”, Born To Murder The World is very much the sum of its parts, and then some. With songwriting jointly handled by Embury and Kenney, recording, mixing and mastering was also taken care of by the latter at his own studio, The Barracks.

As he enters his 34th year of making music, Extrinsic Recordings is a new outlet for all of Embury’s forthcoming projects and collaborations.

Tracklisting:

"When The Heart Is Violated"
"Brutality Alchemist"
"Genesis Misconception"
"The Virus Within Us All"
"As He Creates So He Destroys"
"Penetrate The Descent"
"The Death of Dreams"
"Poisoning Purity"
"Negative Plague"
"Corruption Feeds Deception"
"Tiyanak"
"How Barren Is Life Without Sin"

"Brutality Alchemist":

The Infinite Mirror Of Millennial Narcissism by Born to Murder the World

Born To Murder The World lineup:

Drunk - Vocals
Mick Kenney - Guitars/ Bass/ Programming
Shane Embury - Guitars/ Bass

Legendary Greek black metallers Varathron have released a video for "Remnants Of The Dark Testament, taken from their new studio album Patriarchs Of Evil, out now via Agonia Records. Watch below, and order the album at Agonia Records.

Co-founded in 1988 by Stefan Necroabyssious, the band's vocalist and sole original member, Varathron has been on a steady release schedule since 2004's Crowreign. The latter album introduced Haris (drums) and Achilleas C. (guitars) to the band, who were later joined by Sotiris (guitars) and Stratos (bass), and who together established a new, well-bonded line-up of an already established Hellenic black metal act, considered as one of the forefathers of the genre, next to Rotting Christ and Necromantia.  

Having previously described Patriarchs Of Evil as "heavy, dark and full of melodies that will revive past memories", Varathron elaborates on the successor to Untrodden Corridors Of Hades (2014), now that the recordings have come to an end:

"The time has come to deliver our new opus Patriarchs of Evil. A sinful sip of this unholy communion will lure you into an astral journey of absurd dimensions - with an awakening smell of the old era. This album is one of the finest pieces Varathron has ever unleashed. We promise a true heavy, blasphemous and unique masterpiece with Necroabyssious delivering his best performance ever. With glorious riffs, profound melodies and a solid rhythm section, this dark testament is to delve into. The time of the rejuvenation has come!! WE ARE FOREVER IMMORTAL!!

"Varathron are proudly spreading the Mediterranean plague since 1988! 30 years have passed and we continue to worship darkness and preach the unholy word! Patriarchs of Evil is not just a new album, it is a celebration and one of our greatest creations. Behold the 8 hymns!".

Patriarchs Of Evil was recorded, mixed and mastered over the course of 2017 by Achilleas Kalantzis  (aka Achilleas C.) at Crown Audio Conspiracies, except for drums which were recorded at Infinite Loop Music Studio. Both studios are based in Varathron's hometown of Ioannina, Greece. The album's artwork and layout were designed by Juanjo Castellano. New band photos were taken by Evi Savva.

Album formats:

- Digipack CD with slipcase and 16 pages booklet.
- Black gatefold LP.
- Picture disc gatefold LP (with insert, patch and poster) limited to 200 hand-numbered copies.
- Yellow with black splatter gatefold LP (with insert, patch and poster) limited to 125 handnumbered copies.
- "30 years" zipper hoodie.
- T-shirt.

Tracklisting:

“Tenebrous”
“Into The Absurd”
“Luciferian Mystical Awakening”
“Saturnian Sect”
“Remnants Of The Dark Testament”
“Hellwitch (Witches Gathering)”
“Orgasmic Nightmares Of The Arch Desecrator”
“Ourobors Dweller (The Dweller Of Barathrum)”

“Remnants Of The Dark Testament” video:

“Into The Absurd” video:

Album stream: