Ozzy Osbourne says that he doesn't particularly enjoy collaborating with Tony Iommi even though he appreciates the BLACK SABBATH guitarist on a personal level. "Do I like working with him? Not really. Do I like him as a person? Yeah, I love him as a person," Osbourne told The Times in a new intervew. "But if people was to say to me, 'Was there a leader of BLACK SABBATH?' I'd have to say it was Tony Iommi, because without his guitar riffs, we'd be still sitting in fucking rehearsal with our thumbs up our arses going, 'What do we do now?'"

Osbourne also claimed that he has "moved on" from the band, and compared his relationship to the rest of SABBATH on their recent tour to reconnecting with a former girlfriend after several decades.

"I'll tell you what it was like. It's like when you're younger and you met a girl, Susie, and you break up and you don't see her for 30 years," he said. "Then she's in town and you go, 'Oh, I'll give Susie a call,' because your memory only remembers the good parts and you can narrow it then to a week and you go, 'I remember that week and it was lovely.' But then you go back and you go, 'I forgot the fucking four and three-quarter years I was fucking miserable.'"

Osbourne, who is currently on the road on his own farewell tour as a solo artist, described his current trek as "great fun." He explained: "I'm in control and it's so much better. I get more pleasure out of doing the gigs now."

b>Ozzy has said in some of his recent interviews that his last tour with BLACK SABBATH — the band's farewell trek which ended in February 2017 — was not a pleasant experience for him. "It's not allowed to have fucking fun with SABBATH," he told Rolling Stone. "It's too serious. Tony was trying to have a go at me, saying, 'Don't fucking talk over my solos.' I go, 'Okay, are you sure? 'Cause most of the fucking song is solos. The intro to the song is fuckin' five minutes and then I sing for about two seconds and then it's another one.' With my own thing, I'm looking to have fun, and that's what music's about for me. I'm not a serious fucking singer. I'm just a frontman who's trying to get the crowd going in front."

This past September, Ozzy told Philadelphia Inquirer that he "didn't have a great time" on SABBATH's final tour. He explained: "I spent nine or 10 years in SABBATH, but I'd been away from them for over 30 years. With them, I'm just a singer. With me, I get to do what I want to do. I was getting bad vibes from them for being Ozzy. I don't know — what the fuck else can I be?"

A couple of weeks after Ozzy's Philadelphia Inquirer interview was published, Iommi was asked by The List if he had a response to the singer's comments. Iommi said: "I saw that, but I don't know what he meant. I had a great time on the last tour playing with the guys, and Ozzy never mentioned anything to me. He seemed to enjoy it and we had a laugh, so I don't know. So I think possibly that quote was taken out of context."

Last month, Ozzy postponed the final four shows on his North American "No More Tours 2" after undergoing surgery for multiple infections in his right hand.

GUNS N' ROSES lead singer Axl Rose recently gave a rare interview to Atlas By Etihad in which he discussed the band's appearance in the United Arab Emirates, his favorite city to perform in and his love for Formula One racing, among other topics.

Asked which singer, in his opinion, is the greatest frontman of all time, Rose responded: "For me, it's easy — QUEEN is the greatest band and Freddie [Mercury] is the greatest frontman of all time. The band are the greatest because they embraced so many different styles."

Regarding how he and his bandmates keep performing with so much energy night after night, Axl said: "We all want to do the best we can for the fans — they come wanting a big performance and that is what we want to give them. We all push each other to go further in terms of our performance and commitment. It doesn't matter how many performances you do, every crowd is different and you feed off that."

Rose also talked about his interest in composing music for film. He said: "Listening to movie soundtracks is a big thing for me. When you listen to stuff like 'Pirates Of The Caribbean' and you get that blend of orchestra and modern instrumentation, it's very clever. I have a lot of respect for the guys who do that. It is something that I would like to do at some point in the future."

As previously reported, GUNS N' ROSES played an abbreviated in the United Arab Emirates Sunday night (November 25) after Axl became "severely ill."

Rose and his bandmates performed almost 20 songs in Abu Dhabi before cutting the show short.

The Abu Dhabi Grand Prix special closed the Asian leg of GUNS N' ROSES' "Not In This Lifetime" tour that has now lasted almost three years. According to The National, the gig was the 157th night of a 31-month jaunt, which went around the world twice, played to five million people and is on track to be the second highest-grossing tour of all time — overtaking even THE ROLLING STONES. Only U2 has grossed more from a single tour than GN'R's projected earnings of $600 million.

Three-fifths of the classic GUNS lineup reunited in 2016 after last performing together more than two decades earlier.

Photo credit: Katarina Benzova

METAL CHURCH singer Mike Howe has told Myglobalmind that meeting Rob Halford and being on the road with the JUDAS PRIEST singer was "a huge highlight" of his career. "I can recall one time leaving the dressing room to go the stage and him telling me that he just got done listening to 'The Human Factor' and how it got him pumped up to go on stage," Howe said. "I was, like, 'Wow!'

"My favorite story that I like to tell about Rob is when I went back to my hometown of Detroit to play an outdoor area, my whole family came out to see the show," he continued. "My mother, knowing Rob was a big influence [on me], asked if she could meet him. I told her, 'After the show, at the meet-and-greet, I'll introduce you to him.' After our set, I came back out to the tent where my family had a big table. I saw Rob and asked if he would take a photo with my mom. He said, 'Let me tell you something, Mike. Your Mom is just like my mom, and she already came over and got her photo with me.' [Laughs] I thanked Rob and went over to the table and saw my mom with her head down looking like a little girl who got her hand caught in the cookie jar. It was so awesome."

METAL CHURCH supported JUDAS PRIEST on the "Operation Rock & Roll" tour in 1991. Also appearing on the bill were ALICE COOPER, MOTÖRHEAD and DANGEROUS TOYS. The trek, which was assembled in honor of the troops fighting in "Operation Desert Storm" in the Middle East, was PRIEST's final tour with Halford before his exit from the band in July 1991 and return 12 years later.

METAL CHURCH's 12th full-length studio album, "Damned If You Do", will be released on December 7 via Rat Pak Records. The effort will also be available in Europe via Nuclear Blast and Japan via King Records. The latest release is the follow-up to 2016's "XI", which saw the return of Howe.

The death of missionary John Chau has been a hot topic this past week. He was killed by the Sentinelese tribe when he tried to visit their island in an effort to teach them about Christianity. They are considered the last pre-Neolithic tribe in existence as they have shut themselves off from the outside world.

Nergal commented on the matter saying, ““Not that I’m happy when people die but hey… this IDIOT has asked for that, no? And now bunch of other idiots follow…Is STUPIDITY naturally inbred in ALL monotheistic religions? I guess so… There’s a saying: ‘play stupid games, win stupid prizes’ …”

Behemoth recently unleashed their new album, I Loved You At Your Darkest, via Metal Blade Records (North America) / Nuclear Blast (Europe).

A crushing salvo of black metal majesty replete with hellish riffs, thundering drum cannonades and soaring liturgical choirs reminiscent of classic horror cinema, I Loved You At Your Darkest is the group's most dynamic record yet: extreme and radical on one hand, but also more rock-oriented than any other Behemoth release.

Produced by the band themselves, with drum co-production by Daniel Bergstrand (Meshuggah, In Flames), mixing by Matt Hyde (Slayer, Children Of Bodom) mastering by Tom Baker (Nine Inch Nails, Marilyn Manson), and a 17-piece Polish orchestra arranged by Jan Stoklosa, I Loved You At Your Darkest can be ordered here.

I Loved You At Your Darkest tracklisting:

"Solve"
"Wolves ov Siberia"
"God = Dog"
"Ecclesia Diabolica Catholica"
"Bartzabel"
"If Crucifixion Was Not Enough..."
"Angelvs XIII"
"Sabbath Mater"
"Havohej Pantocrator"
"Rom 5:8"
"We Are the Next 1000 Years"
"Coagvla"

"Bartzabel" video:

"Wolves ov Siberia" video:

"God = Dog" video:

Find the band's complete tour itinerary here.

Behemoth lineup:

Nergal - vocals & guitars
Orion - bass & vocals
Inferno - drums & percussion

Hagen, Germany-based death grind shredders, Stillbirth, have released a video for "Torn Apart", a track from their new album, Annihilation Of Mankind, out now via Unique Leader.

Says the band: ""What's the best thing to do on a 'day off' on tour? Yes, shooting a music video. That's what we did on the Gutted At Birth South Asia Tour 2018 at the beautiful Seseh Beach/ Bali (Indonesia Brooo!). In case you wonder why it's just 4 of 5 band members in the video, wait until the end of the video..."

The Annihilation Of Mankind album shows Stillbirth at their most sickeningly extreme. Get the release here, and find a full album stream below.

Annihilation Of Mankind tracklisting:

"Fictional Entertainment"
"Enemy Of The Enemy"
"Hypnotized By Lies"
"Psychological Manipulation"
"Firststrike"
"Highest Of Malice"
"Torturized"
"Plague Of Warfare"
"Torn Apart"
"Nuclear Stench"
"The Sky Turns Black"
"Annihilation Of Mankind"

Album stream:

"Highest Of Malice" lyric video:

"Psychological Manipulation" lyric video:

Astronoid, the Boston-based outfit who cemented themselves as one of heavy music’s most promising new bands with the 2016 album Air, release their sophomore full-length, Astronoid, on February 1st via Blood Music.

The band is giving fans an early preview of the new album with a video for “I Dream In Lines”. Watch below.

“After the completion of our sophomore album, we feel we have ventured further out of our comfort zone and created something special,” explains singer/guitar player Brett Boland. “The album encapsulates all the changes in our lives over the past couple of years. Astronoid is a testament to who we are as people, the music that consumes us, and the love in our lives. These songs hold a special place in our hearts and we hope that others can find the same solace in them that we have.”

Astronoid pre-orders, which include an instant download of “I Dream In Lines” as well as multiple colored vinyl packages, are available now via districtlines.com/Astronoid, and blood-music.com/store.

Astronoid tracklisting:

"A New Color"
"I Dream In Lines"
"Lost"
"Fault"
"Breathe"
"Water"
"I Wish I Was There While The Sun Set"
"Beyond The Scope"
"Ideal World"

"I Dream In Lines" video:

Astronoid is Brett Boland (vocals/guitar), Daniel Schwartz (bass), Casey Aylward (guitar) and Matt St. Jean (drums). The band was formed in 2012, releasing two EPs over the next year: Stargazer and November. Air, the band’s debut full-length album, arrived in June of 2016.

(Photo - Karen Jerzyk)

SLIPKNOT percussionist M. Shawn "Clown" Crahan has shared some insights about the concept behind the band's upcoming album in a new interview with Billboard.

He stated that the concept of the record "breaks down to… good vs. evil, or in this sense, evil vs. good. It's about being a human being and experiencing what you have in correlating it to this world. This world is ugly and it's supposed to be, and it has to be in order for art to lead to grandness and beauty."

Though a title and release date have yet to be announced for now, Crahan did seem to hint that the album will arrive sometime around the band's late spring/early summer touring in 2019. The band has been working on the material for the LP since early 2016 and has a "plethora of songs" that are being recorded with co-producer Greg Fidelman, who previously worked on 2014's ".5: The Gray Chapter".

"Nothing is in stone," Crahan said. "There are songs that are considered the album, but everything can change. We would never go do (concert) dates without an album, but... we're not following any rules this time, not that we ever did. We're on an outline, and I think everybody's going to be pleasantly surprised."

arlier this month SLIPKNOT released a brand new song called "All Out Life", accompanied by an official music video directed by Crahan.

In an interview with "Zane Lowe's World Record", singer Corey Taylor said the new album was "one of the darkest chapters in SLIPKNOT's history — it's that good. It's complicated, it's dark, it's heavy, it's melodic, it's fierce, it's angry and it's real, it's raw as hell and it's gonna be talking about a lot of things that people are going to need in their life right now."

".5: The Gray Chapter" was released following a six-year hiatus during which founding SLIPKNOT bassist Paul Gray died and drummer Joey Jordison was dismissed.

".5: The Gray Chapter" sold around 132,000 copies in the United States in its first week of release to land at position No. 1 on The Billboard 200 chart. The CD arrived in stores in October 2014 via Roadrunner.

Gray died in 2010 from a drug overdose, while Jordison was let go in December 2013, just before SLIPKNOT began recording the last album.

Employed To Serve - the fast-rising UK collective who've staked their claim in heavy music's future through consistent ferocious live shows, acclaimed studio recordings plus the desire to give a voice to a disillusioned generation - have signed a worldwide deal with Spinefarm Records, a Universal Music Group label.

Formed in 2012, this young five-piece already have two full-length outings to their name, along with a series of EPs and singles. 2015 saw the release of the Greyer Than You Remember album, with the award-winning The Warmth Of A Dying Sun following two years later. The band appeared at a number of European festivals (Download, Graspop, Boomtown, With Full Force, Lowlands, and more) and toured with the likes of Stick To Your Guns, Counterparts, Stray From The Path, Milk Teeth, Rolo Tomassi, and Black Peaks.

Both live and on record, ETS make the point that no-compromise sonics and well-crafted songs can readily occupy the same heavy space, and their forthcoming studio album - set for release next spring and the first under the new Spinefarm deal - will venture even further down this path: an anthemically heavy statement of intent underpinned by positive, self-belief themes, and the struggle to break away from the mediocre and the mundane.

Palace, the brainchild of Swedish musician Michael Palace, will release the new album, Binary Music, on December 7th via Frontiers Music Srl. Order the album here.

In this new "Meet The Artist" video, Michael Palace reveals his favourite albums:

Palace is a Swedish melodic rock band founded by lead singer and multi-instrumentalist Michael Palace. Heavily influenced by 80’s imagery and sounds, Palace delivers a massive melodic rock/AOR sound unlike you’ve ever heard before. With layers of keyboards, Palace deliver a heavier sound than most in the genre, with guitars a dominating feature. Swirling keyboards, layers of guitars, and fast moving 80’s themed melodic hard rock is what is on offer on Binary Music. After the very warm reception of the debut album, Master Of The Universe, Michael was very excited to get to work on the follow up and face the challenges that came with it.

”I wanted to make an album that will give the fans even more of what they enjoyed the last time around, all the while staying creative and not shying away from new musical ideas,” he says.

Michael Palace began working with Frontiers as a songwriter and guitar player for First Signal (featuring Harry Hess of Harem Scarem fame), Cry Of Dawn (with Goran Edman), Kryptonite (featuring Jakob Samuel of The Poodles), and Toby Hitchcock. The successful collaborations led to a worldwide record deal with Frontiers for his own musical output. Then the subsequent success of Master Of The Universe opened up even more opportunities for Michael to grow as a musician outside of Palace, appearing on many releases as a guitar player, songwriter, and at times, producer.

Despite his young age, Michael Palace has accumulated a wealth of experience playing live and recording in the studio with several different acts in addition to the aforementioned acts and including Code Red, Jim Jidhed, Erika, Hank Erix, Find Me (Featuring Robbie LeBlanc) and Big Time to name a few.

”Since the release of the first album, I’ve had the chance to be involved in a lot of cool musical projects and made more music in two years than I’ve made in my whole life. It has been a fantastic learning experience and I’ve brought a lot of that new gained knowledge into the making of Binary Music. I produced the new album with the guidance from my good friend and mentor Daniel Flores (Find Me, First Signal, The Murder Of My Sweet), and I can’t wait to produce more albums in the future,” Michael explains.

Tracklisting:

"Binary Music"
"Tears Of Gaia"
"Nothing Personal"
"Promised Land"
"Love Songs"
"Dangerous Grounds"
"Queen Of The Prom"
"Who's Counting Time"
"Julia"
"To Have And To Hold"

"Binary Music" video:

"To Have And To Hold”:

Lineup:

Michael Palace - vocals, backing vocals, guitars, bass guitar, keyboards, harmonica and alto saxophone.
Daniel Flores - drums and percussions
Oscar Bromvall - guitar solo on "Julia"

Agonia Records welcomes Italy's Hour Of Penance to its roster. The technical, brutal death metal band has signed a record deal with the Polish-based label after parting ways with Prosthetic Records, via whom the band released three of their last albums, including 2017's Cast The First Stone. Currently Hour Of Penance is on the final lap of writing songs for the album's as yet untitled successor, set for a 2019 release.

Hour Of Penance commented: "We’re really excited to announce that Hour Of Penance signed a new deal with Agonia Records. The first fruit of our cooperation, a new album, is coming in 2019. It’s great to be part of a label that has always been focused on quality extreme metal and it’s the right place to spread our music and brutalize the ears of extreme metal fans all over the world with the new songs we’ve composed. We’re working very hard to bring you our finest and best sounding album so far and we cannot wait to start recording. More details will be revealed in the upcoming months, so keep your eyes open."

Hour Of Penance has steadily been making a name for themselves as one of the most intense, talented and impressive death metal bands around, both in the studio and on stage. Pouring heart into death metal and releasing emotions into what they do, they can easily be described as a beast of a perfomer; they even have a philosophy around it.

"Death metal is more than just music", states the band. "It transcends such a limited mortal state of mind. Death metal is the aural expression of humanity’s darkest side, of devastation, sorrow and the harbinger of mankind’s own inhumanity and ultimately its destruction. Death metal is not a trend, a fashion parade or a mean to an end. It is much more than that. It is a way of life. A life in death".

What might sound as a litany, is actually related to one of the Holy Capitals, Vatican City, near which Hour Of Penance was brought to life in 1999. Since its formation, the band released seven studio albums, and performed shows in Europe and North America, with the likes of Behemoth, Cannibal Corpse, The Black Dahlia Murder, Devildriver, Misery Index, Nile and Krisiun. They also went through several lineup changes, that would surely have discouraged less dedicated bands. The present lineup consists of guitarist and longest serving member Giulio Moschini, singer and guitarist Paolo Pieri, bassist Marco Mastrobuono and drummer Davide Billia (Beheaded).

Hamburg, Germany-based sludge and stoner metal band High Fighter have checked in with the following update:

"Friends, it's finally time to unveil some first details about our next and upcoming album. While we are currently putting together the final songwriting touches, we have changed our label and signed a worldwide deal with Argonauta Records!

We will soon record in Berlin at Hidden Planet Studio with our dear friend Jan Oberg (Earth Ship), and unleash our second full-length baby with Argonauta Records next spring.

Stay tuned for many more great news coming soon, as well as some big live announcement to follow later this week."

Says Argonauta's CEO Gero Lucisano:

"Today I'm beyond stoked to welcome High Fighter in the Argonauta family. I remember how their album Scars & Crosses has been on heavy rotation here in our head-quarters for many months, and still is an 'evergreen' listening these days. Moreover, thanks to the fact they are an hard working band always on tour, I got the chance to see them on stage, where I saw a captivating band with an uncontrollable energy, top professional attitude and awareness of their own means. Speaking with the band, I immediately got we are both moved by the same type of enthusiasm and it'd be such a lack of synergy to not join forces for their new album, which I can already grant it will be totally massive!"

High Fighter vocalist Mona Miluski:

"We have met Gero a few years ago at a show in Italy, and we immediatly felt his passion and love for the underground heavy music scene. Over the past few months, I also got the chance to work closely with Gero due to my daytime job in the music industry, and I have probably not met many people like him before in this very tough business. His passionate but also very professional hard work for versatile, heavy bands not only impressed me but the entire band, when Gero made us an offer we could not refuse. We have and always will be very grateful for what Svart Records did for us and our first album, but musically we feel a step to sunny Italy with a label that represents the direction we currently go with our new album has been a great choice and move."

Alter Bridge has revealed their initial plans for next year. The band stated, "We will be making a new album in 2019, and we go into the studio in April."

The as yet untitled new Alter Bridge album will be the band's sixth full-length studio recording, serving as the follow-up to The Last Hero. Released in 2016, The Last Hero peaked at #8 on The Billboard 200.  

Prior to commencing work on new Alter Bridge music, guitarist Mark Tremonti will be taking his solo band, Tremonti, on the road as direct support to Sevendust. Confirmed shows are as listed:

February
1 - Houston, TX - Scout Bar
2 - New Orleans, LA - Southport Music Hall
4 - Ft. Lauderdale, FL - Revolution
5 - St. Petersburg, FL - Jannus Live
6 - Greenville, SC - The Firmament
8 - Greensboro, NC - Blind Tiger
9 - Norfolk, VA - The NorVa
10 - Baltimore, MD - Rams Head Live
13 - Huntington, NY - The Paramount
14 - Boston, MA - House Of Blues
15 - Providence, RI - The Strand
16 - Sayreville, NJ - Starland Ballroom
18 - New Haven, CT - Toad’s Place
19 - Poughkeepsie, NY - The Chance
20 - Buffalo, NY - Rapids
22 - Flint, MI - Machine Shop
25 - Columbus, OH - Newport Music Hall
26 - Chicago, IL - House Of Blues
27 - Columbia, MO - The Blue Note

March
1 - Wichita, KS - The Cotillion
2 - Oklahoma City, OK - Diamond Ballroom
3 - San Antonio, TX - Vibes Event Center

Alter Bridge vocalist Myles Kennedy will also be hitting the road with Slash Featuring Myles Kennedy And The Conspirators. Confirmed shows are as listed:

February
7 - Stadthalle - Offenbach, Germany
9 - O2 Arena - Prague, Czech Republic
10 - Gasometer - Vienna, Austria - SOLD OUT
12 - Atlas Arena - Lodz, Poland
16 - O2 Apollo - Manchester, United Kingdom - SOLD OUT
17 - SEC Hall 3 - Glasgow, United Kingdom
19 - The Dome - Doncaster, United Kingdom - SOLD OUT
20 - Eventim Apollo - London, United Kingdom - SOLD OUT
22 - Zenith - Paris, France
23 - Cirque Royal - Brussels, Belgium - SOLD OUT
24 - AFAS Live - Amsterdam, Netherlands - SOLD OUT
27 - Sentrum Scene - Oslo, Norway - SOLD OUT
28 - Annexet - Stockholm, Sweden

March
3 - Sporthalle - Hamburg, Germany
4 - Verti Music Hall - Berlin, Germany
7 - Samsung Hall - Zurich, Switzerland
8 - Fabrique - Milan, Italy - SOLD OUT
10 - Zenith - Toulouse, France
12 - St. Jordi Club - Barcelona, Spain
13 - Wizink Centre - Madrid, Spain
15 - Campo Pequeno - Lisbon, Portugal

 

California doom metallers, Castle, have released a music video for "Red Phantom". The song comes by way of the band’s recently issued Deal Thy Fate full-length.

Directed by long-time collaborator Jaan Silmberg of Pistoltrixx - who also worked with the band on previous videos, "Blacklands" and "Hammer And The Cross", "Red Phantom" was recently shot in Toronto between tours of Canada and Europe.

Elaborates guitarist Mat Davis,"The lyrics for 'Red Phantom' are based on Zodiac as seen through the lens of his adopted persona from Poe's Masque Of The Red Death. For the video we projected visuals from the 1907 film version Le Spectre Rouge in reference to one of the main Zodiac suspects, Rick Marshall - who was a film projectionist in the Bay Area and had an obsession with the movie."

Castle is currently on a US West Coast tour. The trek, which kicked off November 23rd, continues through to next month, wrapping up in Ventura on December 7th. Expect a full US tour to be announced early in the new year.

Tour dates:

November
26 - Salem,OR - The Space
27 - Seattle, WA - Highline
28 - Eugene, OR - Old Nick's
29 - Oakland, CA - Elbo Room Jack London
30 - Sacramento, CA - Blue Lamp

December
1 - San Jose, CA - Caravan
4 - Phoenix, AZ - Yucca Tap
5 - Los Angeles, CA - Resident
6 - San Diego, CA - Tower Bar
7 - Ventura, CA - The Garage

Recorded at Hallowed Halls Studio in Portland, OR by longtime producer Billy Anderson (Sleep, Neurosis), Deal Thy Fate is Castle's fifth album and follows 2016's Welcome To The Graveyard.

Tracklisting:

"Can't Escape The Evil"
"Skull In The Woods"
"Prelude"
"Hexenring"
"Wait For Dark"
"Deal Thy Fate"
"Haunted"
"Red Phantom"
"Firewind"

"Can't Escape The Evil":

"Wait For Dark" lyric video:

The official lyric video for "In Styx Embrace" from Nordic epic metal masters SIRENIA can be seen below. The song is taken from the band's latest album, "Arcane Astral Aeons", which was released on October 26 via Napalm Records. The follow-up to 2016's "Dim Days Of Dolor" marks the band's second LP to feature French vocalist Emmanuelle Zoldan, who replaced Spanish singer Ailyn Giménez García two years ago.


"Arcane Astral Aeons" track listing:

01. In Styx Embrace

02. Into THE Night

03. Love Like Cyanide

04. Desire

05. Asphyxia

06. Queen OF Lies

07. Nos Heures Sombres

08. The Voyage

09. Aerodyne

10. The Twilight Hour

11. Glowing Embers

12. Love Like Cyanide (edit; bonus track)

SIRENIA leader Morten Veland stated about "Arcane Astral Aeons": "The album was recorded in Audio Avenue Studios (Norway) and Sound Suite Studios (France), while the mixing and mastering took place in Hansen Studios (Denmark) with mixing engineer Jacob Hansen.

This album is something unique to us as it is the first one we have made together with our fans; everyone who have supported our pledge campaign has directly contributed to the funding of the album and to make it what it has turned out to be.

"We are very proud of what we have achieved together and we're very eager to share it with you, hoping that you all will find it as special as we do."

Prior to the recording of "Dim Days Of Dolor", SIRENIA collaborated with Zoldan on choir vocals on all its albums except its 2002 debut, "At Sixes And Sevens". She also did some lead vocals on SIRENIA's cover version of Leonard Cohen's "First We Take Manhattan" on the 2004 EP "Sirenian Shores".

Veland told Overdrive about Zoldan: "[In] 2003, she was in the studio to record as part of the choir, and we recorded also a cover version of 'First We Take Manhattan' by Leonard Cohen. Emmanuelle sang lead vocals on it. It's been 15 years now and we've become really good friends over the years. Two years back, when we needed a new singer for the band, it came very natural for us to ask Emmanuelle. It was a very smooth transition — not like getting somebody new into the band or something like that. We've known her and worked with her for so long, it felt really really natural having her as part of the band."

Regarding his songwriting process, Veland said: "I always do the compositions first, then the lyrics. I found that, for me, it works best. When I start writing the lyrics, all compositions are more or less finished. I like to reflect the feelings and emotions already there in the compositions musically. It's one of those things that is getting more and more challenging with every album. At this point, I've written so many songs that it takes a lot of creative thinking to stay inspired. Most of the time, I write more indirect lyrics, use a lot of metaphors to make people think and write lyrics that are really open to interpretation.Those are the kind of lyrics I always really liked — indirect stuff that you have to give it a lot of thought try to figure out what it's all about. I love that people can get very different meanings out of it."

Photo credit: Béranger Bazin

Professionally filmed video footage of PHILIP H. ANSELMO & THE ILLEGALS performing the song "The Ignorant Point" live on September 6 at Santos in New Orleans, Louisiana can be seen below (courtesy of Mike Holderbeast). The audio was recorded and mastered by Steven W. Richardson.

PHILIP H. ANSELMO & THE ILLEGALS' sophomore album, "Choosing Mental Illness As A Virtue", was released in January via Anselmo's Housecore Records in the U.S. and Season Of Mist in other parts of the world. The disc is the follow-up to PHILIP H. ANSELMO & THE ILLEGALS' debut, "Walk Through Exits Only", which came out in 2013 to mostly positive reviews.

Asked how his approach on "Choosing Mental Illness As A Virtue" was different to that on its predecessor, Anselmo told AXS: "Everything down from production on — even the musical direction — is, as it should be, very different. On [the first] record, I wanted to have a herky-jerky, thrash record — to a degree. [Laughs] That's what was on my mind. I think there might have been just brief glimpses of what was to come. But I also want to call attention to the fact that we also recorded a split with WARBEAST, and also we did a 'Housecore Horror' EP that not many people know about, and all of those releases sound different. And romantically, I prefer the sound of this band like an old '80s thrash metal demo more than some polished, produced thing."

PHILIP H. ANSELMO & THE ILLEGALS recently toured the U.S. with Housecore labelmates KING PARROT.

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Former WHITE LION frontman Mike Tramp will release a new album, "Stray From The Flock", on March 1, 2019 via Mighty Music. A single titled "Dead End Ride" will precede the full-length effort on January 25, 2019.

Tramp's debut album as a solo artist, "Capricorn", was reissued on November 2 for its 20th anniversary. The effort was remastered at Medley Studios in Copenhagen and the artwork was carefully restored and refreshed.

Last year, Tramp said that he had no interest in reuniting with guitarist Vito Bratta.

The Danish-born singer hasn't played with his former songwriting partner and bandmate since WHITE LION performed its last concert in Boston in September 1991.

n the 27 years since WHITE LION broke up, Bratta's public profile has been virtually nonexistent, while Tramp has remained active, recording and touring as a solo artist and with the bands FREAK OF NATURE, THE ROCK 'N' ROLL CIRCUZ and, more recently, BAND OF BROTHERS. Tramp also attempted to revive WHITE LION with the 2008 album "Return Of The Pride", featuring new members. Two years later, Tramp ceded ownership of the name WHITE LION to Bratta in an out-of-court settlement.

GUNS N' ROSES played an abbreviated in the United Arab Emirates Sunday night (November 25) after frontman Axl Rose became "severely ill."

Rose and his bandmates performed almost 20 songs in Abu Dhabi before cutting the show short.

The singer addressed his medical condition at one point during the concert, telling the crowd (see video below): "They've got me on IVs and a bunch of injections, 'cause I got sick today, I've been throwing up for about the last five hours. So, instead of canceling, I'm gonna do the best show we can for you."

Bassist Duff McKagan later tweeted: "Thank you Abu Dhabi! @axlrose pulled a damn miracle…the man was beyond ill, and pulled off something I've never seen in my 40 yrs of playing. You all pulled him thru. Til next time!"

uitarist Slash wrote on his Twitter account: "Abu Dhabi, you guys were fucking great tonight! Axl was severely ill. But you all were hugely supportive. Thanks for that. We'll see again next time! Cheers!"

Not everybody was satisfied with Axl's explanation, with one fan responding to McKagan's tweet: "Shame you only played about 10 songs, disgrace."

Another fan wrote: "Shouldve stayed in his sick bed! How many hits!? and 1 1/2 hours to play Sweet Child & then Eric Clapton!! Glad I didn't pay otherwise I'd be asking for a refund!! @gunsnroses."

A third fan said: "So that's how you end a tour @Slash @DuffMcKagan @axlrose @gunsnroses ? No patience, night train or paradise city? Disappointed! And you played so well!"

The Abu Dhabi Grand Prix special closed the Asian leg of GUNS N' ROSES' "Not In This Lifetime" tour that has now lasted almost three years. According to The National, the gig was the 157th night of a 31-month jaunt, which went around the world twice, played to five million people and is on track to be the second highest-grossing tour of all time — overtaking even THE ROLLING STONES. Only U2 has grossed more from a single tour than GN'R's projected earnings of $600 million.

Three-fifths of the classic GUNS lineup reunited in 2016 after last performing together more than two decades earlier.

Joining singer Rose, Slash and McKagan on the "Not In This Lifetime" trek are drummer Frank Ferrer, keyboardist Dizzy Reed, guitarist Richard Fortus and second keyboardist Melissa Reese.

GHOST leader Tobias Forge has admitted in a new interview that he likes to rule his group with total power. "I'm a band dictator," he told Ultimate Guitar. "I wasn't letting people in with the music writing process, and for a long time, I thought I was hard to work with. But I noticed when I worked with [Swedish producer] Klas Åhlund [on 2015's 'Meliora' album] and others later than that that I can work with people perfectly fine just as long as I get to decide if I wanna work with someone or not. But what usually happens in a band is people impose their ideas and try to crowbar themselves into the process and that's not a good idea. When you have a fruitful relationship with someone, and you've both chosen to work together, then it can spawn really good things.

Forge also confirmed that he has begun composing material for a new GHOST release, which he hopes to record in 2020. "I bulk up a lot of ideas — little segments and some stuff are real songs from start to finish and some are just parts and this is the verse and this is the chorus," he said. "Then by the time we're done touring, that's when I like to go with the producer and start going through it all and make sure we have an album's worth of material… That's the thing that takes time. The actual tracking of the record might be two months, maybe, but the writing and the rewriting and the pondering, that's what takes two to three months. That's when you write, write, write, write, rewrite, rewrite, kill that song, re-record it again in a different tempo. Change that. Take the chorus from that song and move it over there."

According to Forge, GHOST has "never been a jamming band. We've never written anything with a band ever," he said. "So that's instead of going with a band somewhere and jam and rehearse. You're in a smaller studio somewhere, and once you're done with the writing, you move into the bigger studio and start tracking and re-recording everything. As far as plans go, up until the last note of the vocals are set, I'm pretty much changing all the time."

Four former members of GHOST sued Forge in April 2017, accusing the singer of cheating them out of their rightful share of the profits from the band's album releases and world tours. The case was dismissed last month, with the four musicians — who have reportedly spent around $320,000 in legal fees — ordered to pay Forge's legal costs as well. They have since announced plans to appeal the ruling.

b>GHOST recently kicked off a massive North American fall tour, which will wrap on December 15 in Brooklyn, New York.

GHOST's latest album, "Prequelle", debuted at No. 3 on the Billboard 200 and features the chart-topping rock single "Rats".

In a brand new interview with NI Rocks, former OZZY OSBOURNE and BADLANDS guitarist Jake E. Lee was asked if he would ever consider collaborating with other artists on various projects, the way that his Frontiers Music Srl labelmates George Lynch and Michael Sweet have done in recent years. He responded: "Hmmm, not really. I'm not that kind of a guy. I live here in [las] Vegas, and Vegas has a whole influx of musicians from my era who have moved to Vegas for whatever reason. It's kind of an old-musicans graveyard now. So I'm constantly being asked — 'cause I know the people; I know the clubs and I go there — if I wanna jam or how about if I do this and get this kind of a band going to make money. I would do something like that if I thought it was musically... if something special would blossom out of it. I would never do it [just] for money. I just feel like doing shit for money is a very ignoble pursuit, and I've always felt that way."

He continued: "George Lynch played here in town recently — well, not recently; it was a couple of years ago. I went to see him, and he said, 'Would you come up and jam with me on stage?' And I said, 'No'. And he said, 'Why not?' And I said, 'Because I don't do that; it makes me uncomfortable. No. I just don't wanna do it.' He said, 'What if I gave you money?' I said, 'That doesn't make any difference.' And I established this for myself a long time ago — either I want to do something, or I don't want to do something, and money will never enter into it if I don't wanna do it. It makes choices a lot easier for me. For example, that night with George, he said, 'I will give you a thousand dollars if you come up and jam one song with me.' And I said, 'No.' He goes, 'It's a thousand dollars! You don't even have to play anything; you just be up there with a guitar.' I said, 'I don't care. I don't wanna do it, and so it doesn't matter what amount.' He said, 'Okay, ten thousand. I'll go to the bank and I'll drag out ten thousand dollars and I will give it to you.' And I said, 'No.' He said, 'What are you, crazy?' I said, 'I'm not crazy. It's just I don't ever base my decisions on how much money is involved.' And I don't. And a lot of people don't believe that. My friends know it's true. But it makes life so much simpler. I don't have to sit there and wonder where the line is. Will I do something if they give me this much money? I think it makes life easier and better — more honest. If I wanna do something, then we can negotiate a price. [Laughs] But if I don't, then I don't care how much money you offer me; I'm not gonna do it. "

Jake added: "It's like people that I know, friends that I know, or people that I've met where... and there's nothing wrong with this; this isn't anti-gay or anything. But where a straight guy said, 'Well, I'm not gay, but for a million dollars, fuck, I'll suck a dick.' They'll say that, and then look at me and say, 'You wouldn't?' And I say, 'No!' I mean, to be honest, I'm not into that. There's nothing wrong with that, and if I was gonna do it, it wouldn't be because of the money; it'd be because I want to. I either wanna do something or I don't. Sucking a dick is not something, today, that I particularly feel like doing. So, it doesn't matter if someone gave me a million dollars, I'm not gonna do it… It's being a whore, basically — if you're doing something [just] for the money. Unless you enjoy it. If you enjoy it and it's something you wanna do and you're making money off it, that's great. If you're doing something only because of the money, then it's whorish, and I try to live my live unwhorishly."

Lee, who was tapped by Ozzy to replace the late Randy Rhoads in Osbourne's band, played on two Ozzy records: "Bark At The Moon" and 1986's "The Ultimate Sin".

b>Jake and his band RED DRAGON CARTEL released a new album titled "Patina" on November 9.

Interview (audio):

CYHRA vocalist Jake E has confirmed to the Dhaka Tribune that the band has finished recording its as-yet-untitled second album for an early 2019 release via Spinefarm Records. The follow-up to 2017's "Letters To Myself" was laid down at Hansen studios in Ribe, Denmark and will be mixed and mastered by Jacob Hansen (VOLBEAT, AMARANTHE).

Regarding the songwriting process for CYHRA's upcoming album, Jake said: "I am the main lyricist, but on this album all the others have contributed with ideas as well. Euge [Valovirta, guitar; ex-SHINING] and Jesper [Strömblad, guitar; ex-IN FLAMES] are the ones between the solos but it's [the three of us] that usually write most of the songs. Euge has been doing a great job on songs on this album and Euge and I actually sat down and wrote three songs together for this album."

CYHRA's current lineup is completed by drummer Alex Landenburg (LUCA TURILLI'S RHAPSODY).

In a recent interview with Metal Casino, Jake stated about how CYHRA approached the making of its second LP: "When we wrote the first songs [for the debut album], we were just sitting, jamming around, and we had no plans — we had no expectations from fans or labels or anything like that — and now we have. We've been touring a lot — we've been playing a lot of shows — and now we realize that, 'Oh, the new songs, we might have to think a little bit more about how are these songs gonna work out live.' So we continue the same road with this album as the last one — it's a natural progression, music-wise — but we've been putting a little bit more effort into having the songs work out in the live set."

According to Jake, one of the biggest differences between CYHRA's next disc and "Letters To Myself" is the fact that the band no longer has a bass player, having split with former IN FLAMES member Peter Iwers earlier in the year. "We actually have more or less decided — we don't know for the future — but right now, the bass is gonna be handled by Mr. ASUS, as we call him; that's our computer," Jake said.

"Letters To Myself" was recorded at Top Floor Studios in Gothenburg, Sweden.

CYHRA made its live debut in October 2017 at Nosturi in Helsinki, Finland.

This past spring, CYHRA completed a successful North American tour opening for SABATON and KREATOR.

California rockers THE OFFSPRING are continuing work on their long-awaited tenth album for a tentative 2019 release. Guitarist Kevin "Noodles" Wasserman told Junkee in a new interview: "We've been spending a bit of time in the studio with [producer] Bob Rock, who worked on our last two albums as well. He's great, man — we get along with him really well. We've got a bunch of new songs that we're preparing to go in and record right now."

He added: "I think there's a record's worth in there, but we're thinking that maybe the songs are just a little too different. We know there's a song or two on every record that comes out of left field for us, but it's more than just a couple this time. Right now, we're entertaining the idea of doing two records — one where we can put all of these, and another of straight-up OFFSPRING songs."

This past summer, Noodles told Australia's Music Feeds that THE OFFSPRING was contemplating releasing all of its new music on two separate albums.

"We've been working with Bob on and off on this record for five years, really," he said. "But we had a real productive string this year, in the earlier part of the year. We had probably five or six songs that we did just right then and it started to feel like maybe this is the direction we should be going with this record. A little bit more straight-forward OFFSPRING stuff.

I think we're looking at making two records out of it — you know, like, splitting 'em up and coming out with a pretty straightforward punk and rock record that sounds like us, and then maybe saving some of the crazier stuff for another record."

As for what THE OFFSPRING's "crazier stuff" sounds like, Noodles said: "Well there's always a song that we do [on each album] — because it's just fun for us to experiment in the studio where we take different sounds — so sometimes we'll try some piano or keyboard kind of sound… We have a song that has a lot of horns in it, like a full-on horn section in it, and we've been working on that song for a long time. I think that one might be the the one kind of wacky one that we keep on this record; well, at least I hope it is. We love this song; it's such a fun song. It's a risk to put it out there, but at some point you've just gotta say, 'Screw it, man,' and just go with what you're feeling and let the chips fall where they may. So I think we're gonna do that."

Noodles also confirmed that THE OFFSPRING is without a record label at the moment and is looking into various options about how to make its new music available to the masses. "We've been talking with a bunch of different labels and distributors, but so far nothing's really stuck," he said. "So we're not sure how we're gonna do this. I mean at this point, the way things are distributed, we're thinking we could even maybe do it ourselves."

THE OFFSPRING debuted a new song called "It Won't Get Better" live in concert this past June and has been performing it ever since. Noodles described the track as "kind of like a straight-forward OFFSPRING song."

THE OFFSPRING's last single, "Coming For You", dropped in 2015.

Photo credit: Sam Jones / MSO PR

Thanks: Dying Scene

IRON MAIDEN singer Bruce Dickinson has defended his decision to vote for Brexit, saying that the United Kingdom's plan to leave the European Union (EU) will enable the country "to be more flexible."

A public vote — called a referendum — was held in June 2016 when voters were asked just one question: whether the U.K. should leave or remain in the EU, a group of 28 countries which trade with each other and allow anyone to easily move between the countries to live and work. The "Leave" side won (by nearly 52% to 48%) but the exit didn't happen straight away — it is slated to take place in March 2019.

The Brexit vote has thrown the U.K. into a period of uncertainty, with some economists warning that it may lead to a downturn in the British economy while other people have claimed that it will help the U.K. negotiate better terms with the EU. A poll showed that many voters opted for Brexit because they "wanted the U.K. to regain control over EU immigration."

Admitting that he was one of the people who voted for Brexit, Dickinson told the French news magazine L'Obs that he is "quite relaxed about the idea" of the United Kingdom separating from the European Union.

If musicians were running Europe, Europe would run a lot better because we'd all get on with each other and say, 'Yeah,'" the vocalist said (see video below).

"IRON MAIDEN music is global music; we have fans everywhere. I don't see any problem with touring Australia; that's not part of the EU. There's no problem with touring in Japan; that's not part of the EU. I don't see any problem with touring America; oh, let me see — that's not part of the EU. Now, do those musicians have problems coming to Europe? No."

British Prime Minister Theresa May has flatly refused to hold a second referendum although many who voted to leave in the first vote were misled by propaganda claiming Brexit would be painless and scare tactics stirring fear of migrants.

"There's a lot of nonsense and scare stories being made up by… both sides, actually, which I think is pretty immature," Dickinson noted. But the singer believes that Brexit will ultimately "enable us to be more flexible, and I think that people in Europe will get an advantage from that.

"What you have at the moment is effectively the European Union obviously not doing a very good job satisfying the democracies of Europe," he explained. "A lot of people — not just Brexit, but all kinds of other people, whether it's the Italians or the Greeks or the Hungarians or the Catalans, or whoever it is — are all having big populist movements. It's because their needs — their democractic needs — are not being addressed by Brussels. The right people to address the needs is the democratically elected leaders."

Referring to the fact that the EU has been accused by some politicians of attempting to humiliate Britain over Brexit, Dickinson said: "It's absurd to think that the fifth biggest economy in the world is going to be somehow punished for democratic decisions made by its people.

"The EU has always been seen us as basically just a market — a common market — and that has some advantages; it makes sense," he said. "But there's no desire for most people in England — even people who voted to remain in the EU — there's no desire to become part of a federal system. And I think that's a big mistake.

"Britain has always been a trading nation with the rest of the world," he continued. "Only since the 1960s has Britain started to look only at Europe as being a source of trade, and I think ultimately that's ended up being a big mistake.

"Brexit actually opens our borders; Brexit opens the United Kingdom to the whole of the world," Dickinson insisted.

The singer went on to say that he is optimistic that the U.K. will be able to build a new positive future relationship with the EU once Brexit takes effect.

"Whatever deal is going to be done on Brexit will not change the status of the U.K. by very much, but I think it will enhance our economic capabilities," he said. "And that's good for us, and it's actually, in the long run, good for Europe as well. 'Cause as the fifth largest economy in the world, Europe would like access to our market. And rapidly after that, people will forget about all this nonsense about Brexit and just say, 'There is a new relationship with the U.K. That's it. End of story.' And we can all get on with doing what we should be doing, which is getting on with each other, trading with each other, making music, making love and making sure that Vladimir Putin doesn't come and end up ruling our country."

Ireland's Independent is reporting that Ozzy Osbourne has come clean on his undertanding - or lack thereof - of the UK's controversial Brexit movement, a plan to leave the European Union planned for March 2019. Brexit was given the go-ahead in a vote in favour 52% to 48%.

Ozzy: "People keep going on at me about that – is it a big deal over there? I don’t read the newspapers and I don’t really talk politics because I don’t really know. I don’t really understand Brexit."

Speaking with France-based L'Obs, Iron Maiden frontman Bruce Dickinson recently opened up on his decision to support Brexit.

Dickinson: "There's a lot of nonsense and scare stories being made up by… both sides, actually, which I think is pretty immature. I believe it will ultimately enable us to be more flexible, and I think that people in Europe will get an advantage from that. What you have at the moment is effectively the European Union obviously not doing a very good job satisfying the democracies of Europe. A lot of people - not just Brexit, but all kinds of other people, whether it's the Italians or the Greeks or the Hungarians or the Catalans, or whoever it is - are all having big populist movements. It's because their needs, their democractic needs, are not being addressed by Brussels. The right people to address the needs is the democratically elected leaders."

Available for streaming below is Stone Sour's live performance of "Cold Reader", filmed by Zippo Encore.

Stone Sour's self-titled debut album, remastered and released with a bonus CD of music recorded live at The House Of Bricks in 2002, is available now, strictly limited to 2500 copies. Info here.

Side A
"Get Inside" (Explicit Remastered Version)
"Orchids" (Remastered Version)
"Cold Reader" (Explicit Remastered Version)
"Blotter" (Remastered Version)
"Choose" (Explicit Remastered Version)
"Monolith" (Remastered Version)
 
Side B
"Inhale" (Remastered Version)
"Bother" (Explicit Remastered Version)
"Blue Study" (Explicit Remastered Version)
"Take A Number" (Remastered Version)
"Idle Hands" (Explicit Remastered Version)
"Tumult" (Remastered Version)
"Omega" (Explicit Remastered Version)

Bonus CD - Live 2002
"Intro (Superego)"
"Get Inside"
"Orchids"
"The Wicked"
"Idle Hands"
"Choose"
"Rules Of Evidence"
"Inhale"
"Blue Study"
"Cold Reader"
"Blotter"
"Monolith"

HELLHAMMER existed for a mere two years, from May 1982 to May 1984. During this time, the band wrote material for three demos, one 12-inch EP, and the legendary "Death Metal" compilation album, along with a number of unrecorded songs. In light of HELLHAMMER's now mythically iconic status in the global metal scene, it is almost inconceivable that most of this music has never been performed life.

HELLHAMMER's successor group, CELTIC FROST, formed by ex-HELLHAMMER members Tom Gabriel Warrior and Martin Eric Ain, initially played two of HELLHAMMER's songs but soon abandoned this habit due to the band rapidly developing its own material. Tom Gabriel Warrior's TRIPTYKON, founded in 2008, have played one or the other rare HELLHAMMER song during special occasions. The vast body of HELLHAMMER's work remains unperformed, however.

Until now.

The resurrection of the music of HELLHAMMER has been an idea Tom Gabriel Warrior and Martin Eric Ain have discussed for many years, sparked not least by their renewed collaboration in the reformed CELTIC FROST in the 2000s and by the years of work on Warrior's second book "Only Death Is Real" (2009), which details the history of HELLHAMMER and early CELTIC FROST.

ays Tom Gabriel Warrior: "HELLHAMMER will never return and will never be reformed. It is absolutely impossible to reform a band so closely linked to a very specific and unique period in time. I never considered it, no matter how substantial the offers that were pitched to me over the years. But HELLHAMMER's music exists, and it is an extremely important part of my life's path. And I would like to play it onstage before my demise."

The first steps towards the realization of TRIUMPH OF DEATH, named after HELLHAMMER's most infamous song and intended to be a very respectful and authentic tribute to HELLHAMMER, were taken years ago. TRIUMPH OF DEATH consists of some of Warrior's closest friends; individuals who not only love this music but truly understand it. The lineup emulates HELLHAMMER's final incarnation of April-May 1984, when the group had added an additional guitarist.

TRIUMPH OF DEATH will commence playing HELLHAMMER's music onstage in 2019. It is a project with an open end. Apart from wage considerations to perhaps release an occasional live EP, TRIUMPH OF DEATH will not record any new music but is solely dedicated to performing both well-know and obscure HELLHAMMER songs. The project is based in Zurich, Switzerland.

TRIUMPH OF DEATH will perform live at the Hellfest festival on June 21, 2019 in Clisson, France.

TRIUMPH OF DEATH is:

* Tom Gabriel Warrior (HELLHAMMER, CELTIC FROST, TRIPTYKON) - Voice/Guitars

* Mia Wallace (NIRYTH, THE TRUE ENDLESS, KIRLIAN CAMERA) - Bass

* Michael Zech (SECRETS OF THE MOON, ODEM ARCARUM) - Guitar/Vocals

* Alessandro Commerio (FORGOTTEN TOMB, HIEMS) - Drums

According to Express & Star, a unique portrait of legendary Led Zeppelin frontman Robert Plant has been stolen from a pub in Birmingham city centre.

The painting had been on display as part of a Core Collective exhibition at the Brown Lion public house, in Hall Street, in Birmingham’s Jewellery Quarter. But artist Chris Davies’ said his painting of West Bromwich-born Plant was stolen on November 18th. Mr Davies posted an appeal on Twitter to help recover his painting and has since been inundated with support and admiration for his work.

Davies: "The painting was put last Friday in the Brown Lion as part of a joint expo with Birmingham-based art group, the Core Collective. Unfortunately, the group’s founder Paula Gabb had work stolen on the night, while my painting went walkies on Sunday afternoon. We are all shocked, upset and keen to get our work back. I painted Robert Plant to celebrate the rich, but often overlooked musical heritage in the West Midlands, but I guess it attracted the wrong audience.”

 

Can you help, #Birmingham peeps? My #painting of Robert Plant has been stolen from @BrownLion_JQ & I want it back! Please RT...it'll only take a sec 🤞Do your thing, Twitter! pic.twitter.com/WYGSOSjrB2
— Chris Davies Art (@christoff3000) 23. November 2018

 

Swedish riff lords, Grand Magus, performed at Germany's Wacken Open Air festival in summer 2017. Professionally filmed footage of the band's full set can be seen below.

Setlist:

"I, The Jury"
"Varangian"
"On Hooves Of Gold"
"Steel Vs. Steel"
"Forged In Iron"
"Iron Will"
"Like The Oar Strikes The Water"
"Hammer Of The North"

Legendary progressive metal vocalist, Lance King (Pyramaze, Balance Of Power, Gemini, Avian), recently had an epiphany so powerful that it compelled him to create a new album titled ReProgram, due for release on February 15th. The first single, “Limitless”, debuts today.

“I remember it vividly,” said King. “The entire ReProgram album and all it was meant to be came to me in a flash, almost all at once, One minute I was watching the news, reading Facebook posts, exploring YouTube and thinking about how people are always at each other’s throats… and the next minute saying to myself, ‘It doesn’t have to be this way.’ In that split second, ReProgram was born. I quickly called some friends with the idea. They said they were in.”

The first single off ReProgram, “Limitless”, is the opening salvo in King’s newly declared war against succumbing to the fear, doubt, drama, despair, depression, and dearth of creativity that seems to have become the world around us. Written by Lance King and Markus Sigfridsson, “Limitless” paves the way for his listeners to find a better, more productive way ahead:

“I’ve gone rogue my focus better than ever
I can see clearly the goal in my mind…
Everyday I attack it relentlessly
from every angle I can foresee
Never fearing what it brings
Always focused on my dreams …”

Watch a lyric video for "Limitless" below:

Of course, given Lance King’s pedigree, and his famous musician friends, the song also features powerful, uplifting, and catchy music - only this time King has given the music born from this unique convergence of talent and inspiration a new name: celestial metal.

“I chose the phrase ‘celestial metal’ because I see my solo material different from anything I’ve done before,” King said. “This time, I believe the music came to us from outside of ourselves. From the heavens, the universe and the energies of intent being projected from everyone around us. I believe ReProgram is for everyone who wants to rise above, to be the best version of themselves, to truly live life.

What’s bigger than celestial? And what’s more powerful than metal?

King adds, "I set out to write happy metal songs thinking the world needs more happy music, especially 'heavy' happy music! But that isn't came out of us. The lyrics are moody and deal with the common struggle of being stuck in an unhappy life by our conditioning... but this programming can be changed!   Reprogram is my story, but I believe it can become your story, too. I invite you to take this Celestial Metal journey with me…"

Musicians featured on ReProgram include:

Kim Olesen - (Anubis Gate)
Markus Sigfridsson - (Darkwater/Harmony)
Matt Hodsdon - (Chaos Frame)
Rich Hinks - (Annihilator/Aeon Zen)
Morten Gade Sørensen (Pyramaze/Anubis Gate)
Fred Columbo (Spheric Universe Experience)
Mattias IA Eklundh (Freak Kitchen)
Jakob Riis (L Wood Joy)

Pre-order exclusive limited bundles and get access to all updates on PledgeMusic here. You can get a free song downloads here.

Progressive power metallers, Blind Guardian, recently announced the re-release of three more classic titles from their back catalogue. The remixed and remastered versions of Imaginations From The Other Side, Nightfall In Middle-Earth and A Night At The Opera will be released on November 30th on 2CD digipack and 2LP gatefold vinyl format, in a variety of limited edition colours.

Singer Hansi Kürsch comments: "So great that Imaginations From The Other Side, Nightfall In Middle-Earth and A Night At The Opera will finally be re-released on vinyl and as limited-edition CDs. I really love the bonus material for each album. Always great to re-visit these albums. Have fun."

Today, they release a new trailer that reveals some more details about Imaginations From The Other Side. Watch below.

"The Hans Christian Andersens of metal are back on track. Find out everything about Danish pastries, Smörebrod and who the king of table soccer is. But, who will finally appear to be the Little Mermaid?" says Hansi Kürsch.

Pre-order the reissues here.

Imaginations From The Other Side (1995), remixed 2011/2012,  remastered 2012

- 2 CD-DIGI (remixed/remastered CD+original CD)
- LP in gatefold

Tracklisting:

"Imaginations From The Other Side"
"I’m Alive"
"A Past And Future Secret"
"The Script For My Requiem"
"Mordred’s Song"
"Born In A Mourning Hall"
"Bright Eyes"
"Another Holy War"
"And The Story Ends"

Bonus:
"The Wizard"
"System’s Failing"

Nightfall In Middle-Earth (1998), remixed 2011/2012,  remastered 2012

- 2 CD-DIGI (remixed/remastered CD + original CD)
- LP in gatefold

Tracklisting:

"War Of Wrath"
"Into The Storm"
"Lammoth"
"Nightfall"
"The Minstrel"
"The Curse Of Feanor"
"Captured"
"Blood Tears"
"Mirror Mirror"
"Face The Truth"
"Noldor (Dead Winter Reigns)"
"Battle Of Sudden Flames"
"Time Stands Still (At The Iron Hill)"
"The Dark Elf"
"Thorn"
"The Eldar"
"Nom The Wise"
"When Sorrow Sang"
"Out On The Water"
"The Steadfast"
"A Dark Passage"
"Final Chapter (Thus Ends…)"

Bonus:
"Doom"
"The Tides Of War"

A Night At The Opera (2002), remixed 2011/2012,  remastered 2012

- 2CD-DIGI (remixed/remastered CD+original CD)
- LP in gatefold

Tracklisting:

"Precious Jerusalem"
"Battlefield"
"Under The Ice"
"Sadly Sings Destiny"
"The Maiden And The Minstrel Knight"
"Wait For An Answer"
"The Soulforged"
"Age Of False Innocence"
"Punishment Divine"
"And Then There Was Silence"

Bonus:
"Age Of False Innocence" (demo)
"Under The Ice" (demo)