Tristan Pratt conducted an interview with MEGADETH bassist David Ellefson and guitarist Kiko Loureiro at this year's Bloodstock Open Air festival, which was held August 9-12 at Catton Hall, Walton-On-Trent, West Midlands, United Kingdom. You can watch the chat below.

Asked about the overwhelmingly positive response to MEGADETH's latest album, 2016's "Dystopia", Ellefson said: "There's these albums of ours that get sort of always flushed out to the top — 'Peace Sells', 'Rust In Peace', 'Dystopia' — and these are albums, ironically, that were never born out of the high life and the good times; they were born out of, 'Oh, shit. We're completely screwed. The band's falling apart. You think this is even gonna work? If it doesn't work this time, we're done.' That back against the wall inside the band has produced our best records, or at least I would say the records the fans relate to the most."

He continued: "Heavy metal fans are people that have desires and dreams and yearning for other things, and oftentimes they feel like they can't achieve those dreams, either through the boss they work for or the family they're in, whatever it is, and I think that's the relational dynamic between heavy metal and bands that make this music. And I think when we are in that same position, we often make our songs that resonate the clearest to our fans."

MEGADETH recently completed a North American tour with MESHUGGAH and will play arenas later in the year as the support act for German hard rock veterans SCORPIONS.

MEGADETH is planning on returning to the studio at the end of the year to begin work on the follow-up to "Dystopia".

The band's upcoming effort will mark MEGADETH's first release to feature new drummer Dirk Verbeuren, who officially joined the group a year ago.

"Dystopia" was the first album to feature Loureiro, best known for his work with ANGRA.

For the first time in 40 years, Glenn Hughes is set to perform full concerts of classic Deep Purple material. Shows are scheduled this September and October in Australia and New Zealand.

Hughes recently called Rolling Stone Australia while on tour in Britain to talk through the concerts, his memories of writing a classic Purple tune, and the band’s Hall Of Fame induction in 2016. A couple of excerpts from the chat follow:

Rolling Stone: How are you feeling about this series of concerts in Australia?

Glenn Hughes: “I’m really excited. I don’t know if it’s the fact that the actual touring Deep Purple are coming to an end on the road, if you will, or David Coverdale has done his Purple album [re-recordings of classic Mark III and Mark IV-era Deep Purple tracks], but I’ve been getting so many requests from around the world to do the same sort of scenario, honouring the songs that I made with Deep Purple. There were two live albums and three studio albums.

“I believe in karma and aspects of karmic solutions and resolutions, and I just feel it’s the time for me to do it. Spiritually, mentally, bodily, I’m in great shape, and in a place to honour those songs. Of course we’ve lost Tommy Bolin [guitarist in the Mark IV line-up, who died in 1976], we’ve lost Jon Lord [keyboardist, who passed away in 2012 from pancreatic cancer], rest in peace, and it’s a good time for me to come back and honour the music to people that really want to hear and see these songs.”

RS: Ritchie Blackmore has said he’d be up for reuniting with Purple for one last show. If the offer came, would you join in?

Hughes: “David and I and Jon Lord, about two years before Jon was diagnosed, we tried to privately get a reunion together, but we couldn’t somehow, no one could get Ritchie on the phone. And after a while we just said, we gave it our best shot, and of course Jon was diagnosed and we had to let it go. I’m not resentful or have bad feelings towards that, the fact is these things happen in life, opportunities come, opportunities go. I’m a firm believer in karma, I’m a firm believer that everything happens the way it happens. The legacy of Deep Purple that David and I left is still intact. I’m really happy with the three albums: Burn, Stormbringer and Come Taste the Band. The current Deep Purple that is touring now is coming to what I would imagine is an end, cos they’re calling it their last; it’s their last goodbye and I only want to wish them all the very best in their final tour.”

Read the full interview at Rolling Stone Australia.

Hughes played his last concert with Deep Purple on March 15th, 1976, at Liverpool's Empire Theatre. On that night, the UK bassist and vocalist walked away from one of history's truly game-changing rock phenomena and never looked back… until now.

Witness one of rock's greatest singers front a mighty handpicked band performing some of Deep Purple's all-time greatest songs with epic rock concert production.

Says Hughes: “I’m incredibly excited to get out there and play tracks like “Burn”, “Mistreated”, “Stormbringer” and “Getting Tighter”, as well as some of those older songs that helped define the genre. With this band, I can assure you of a concert that’ll blow your mind."

Joining Hughes for the shows are Jeff Kollman (guitar), Lachy Doley (keyboards), and Pontus Engborg (drums).

With one of the heaviest repertoires known to rock, and sound and lighting production values befitting the legend, Glenn Hughes' Classic Deep Purple shows are destined to write a new page in rock history.

Tour dates:

September
20 - State Theatre - Sydney, Australia
24 - Perth Concert Hall - Perth, Australia
26 - Horncastle Arena - Christchurch, New Zealand
27 - Michael Fowler Centre - Wellington, New Zealand
29 - Hamer Hall - Melbourne, Australia

October
1 - Qpac Concert Hall - Brisbane, Australia
3 - ASB Theatre, Aotea Centre - Auckland, New Zealand

For more info and pre-sale tickets, visit classicdeeppurplelive.com/.

Footage from Glenn Hughes’ performance at Hungary’s Fezen 2017 festival can be seen below:

In a brand new interview with D&V Production, vocalist Freddy Cricien of New York hardcore veterans MADBALL was asked why he thinks famous rock stars — like Chris Cornell (SOUNDGARDEN) and Chester Bennington (LINKIN PARK) — commit suicide. "I wish I had an answer for you," he responded (see video below). "It's the thing that I've tried to figure out myself. I don't understand what goes on, but then I don't know these people's lives. I mean, at the end of the day, they're people — whether they're famous or rock stars, whatever you wanna call 'em. People are people, and people have problems, and sometimes people can't get around those problems. It's not the choice I would ever personally take. But it's hard — it's hard to get your head around it, 'cause you look at someone and you think they're probably doing okay financially, their bands are doing well, they have families. Why would they do something like that? And I've struggled with those thoughts myself. Why would you do that? As a band that's really grinding it out, who wouldn't want to reach a certain level of success or have certain financial comforts? But it just tells you that everything's not always about money and about certain things. There's some deep-, deep-rooted things with certain people. And there could be drugs involved. There's a lot of factors. So… Yeah, I really couldn't give you an answer."

After Cornell died in May, Bennington wrote a letter thanking him for inspiring him and hoping he would find peace in "the next life."

Chester died on July 20, which would have been Cornell's 53rd birthday.

The two singers bonded when they toured together nearly a decade ago.

As previously reported, MADBALL has teamed up with Fast Break Records for a forthcoming split seven-inch single. The "Family Biz" single sees the New York-based outfit joining forces with Pennsylvania's blue-collar-core heroes WISDOM IN CHAINS. To be released on September 25, the split will feature one new song from each group.

"Disgrace Yourself", a brand new song from Australia's thrash/grind maestros KING PARROT, can be streamed below. The track is taken from the band's third studio album, "Ugly Produce", which will be released on September 22 via Agonia Records in Europe, Housecore Records in North America and Rocket/EVP in Australia.

This latest installment from KING PARROT exceeds the wildest expectations for an acerbic and unapologetic slab of thrash metal. Fierce lyrics, spiked with grindcore intensity, and dusted with shades of hardcore-infested punk attitude, the album sets the bar higher than its predecessor, "Dead Set", from 2015.

"Ugly Produce" offers ten tracks of distinctively punishing and powerful anthems, veined deeply in the extreme underground sound. After recording the previous album in the U.S., 2017 saw the band head back home to where it all began — recording their third full-length album with BLOOD DUSTER's Jason PC at the enigmatic Goatsound Studios. The mastering was done by Brad Boatwright at Audiosiege Studio (SLEEP, HIGH ON FIRE, NAILS) in the U.S., while the cover artwork was created by Boyd Synnott and Simon Robins for GraphOrlock.

Commented by KING PARROT: "'Ugly Produce' reaches new heights in abrasive song-writing and serves up an odious pile of repulsive flavors you wouldn’t want to find on your local fruit and vegetable shelves. A repugnant harvest of gnarled and nasty grind, death metal, thrash, and punk rock and it's more caustic than ever".

"Ugly Produce" track listing:

01. Entrapment02. Piss Wreck03. Disgrace Yourself04. All Hail The Grub05. Ten Pounds Of Shit In A Five Pound Bag06. Scattered07. Now It Stokes Frenzy08. Numb Skull09. Die Before You Die10. Spookin' The Animals

The lyric video for the song "Medusa Child" from Swedish metallers AVATARIUM can be seen below. The track is taken from the band's third studio album, "Hurricanes And Halos", which was released on May 26 via Nuclear Blast. The artwork for the disc was once again created by Erik Rovanpera, who previously designed the cover art of the band's debut album, and shows a mystical creature inspired by "Medusa Child".

"Hurricanes And Halos" track listing:

01. Into The Fire / Into The Storm (4:14)02. The Starless Sleep (4:47)03. Road To Jerusalem (5:48)04. Medusa Child (9:00)05. The Sky At The Bottom Of The Sea (5:25)06. When Breath Turns To Air (4:46)07. A Kiss (From The End Of The World) (7:14)08. Hurricanes And Halos (3:32)

As was the case with the band's first two efforts, AVATARIUM relies on beauty and darkness, heavy guitars and fragile sounds, unique female vocals and the mystic vintage blues sound from the '60s, while still staying on modern ground and trusting into the haunting soul of doom rock. Six out of the eight new tracks were forged by CANDLEMASS wizard Leif Edling, but guitar master Marcus Jidell and Jennie-Ann Smith also contributed to the songwriting and formed a worthy successor to "The Girl With The Raven Mask" — an album that landed the band the "Up And Coming" award from Germany's Metal Hammer magazine.

"Hurricanes And Halos" was produced by Jidell himself, while David Castillo (KATATONIA, BLOODBATH, OPETH) recorded and mixed it in the famous Ghost Ward Studios and the mastering was done by Jens Bogren (SOILWORK, SEPULTURA). Together they created an organic and warm sound that sets "Hurricanes And Halos" apart from the overbred, electronically optimized mass.

"Recording 'Hurricanes And Halos' has truly been an emotional roller coaster for me and I do think that has contributed to a pure and vibrating energy on the album. I am deeply proud of what we have achieved together," stated Jennie-Ann Smith. Jidell added: "It feels like the two previous albums and the EPs lead us to this one. It's been a natural flow to where we are today, musical- and emotional-wise."

STEELHEART — the brainchild of Miljenko Matijevic, whose powerful voice and multi-octave range is the heart and soul of the band — will release its new album, "Through Worlds Of Stardust", on September 15 via Frontiers Music Srl. Another song from the disc, "Come Inside", can be streamed below.

Says Miljenko: "I cannot express how excited I am for you all to hear this new album. Our focus was to bring back the magic in the music with songs that have been lived, loved, laughed and struggled. I best describe this album as 'deep, sexy, loving, twisted, romantic, and hungry rock 'n' roll.' The record was recorded throughout parts of the world, including a live string section recorded in Stockholm, Sweden. I truly hope you enjoy this album as it was created from the heart and no corners were cut. Love you all; we look forward to seeing you on the road." Although they were lumped in with the glut of long-haired hard rock bands emerging in the early '90s, STEELHEART was always more forward thinking than their peers and the 2017 version of the band has a contemporary and edgy feel, while still retaining the patented powerful vocals of Miljenko. On "Through Worlds Of Stardust", Miljenko has fused his past, present, and future together, creating an undeniable piece of hard rock music. Certainly fans of the band's first three classic albums will be happy to hear those powerful pipes back in action, but fans of modern hard rock acts like HALESTORM, SHINEDOWN, ALTER BRIDGE and other melodic-minded rock heavyweights will find much here to love. STEELHEART released their self-titled debut album in 1990 and, based on the buzz around the hit single "I'll Never Let You Go", was a smashing success (for example, 33,000 albums were sold in one day in Japan) and quickly reached platinum sales. STEELHEART's sophomore album, "Tangled In Reins", was released in 1992 to critical acclaim and rave reviews, but moderate success in terms of sales in the U.S. (by early '90s standards) due to the well documented rise of grunge music; however, East Asia was a different story, where the band was widely embraced yet again. In the midst of promotion of the album, a serious accident happened on Halloween night in 1992, when an improperly secured lighting truss hit Matijevic on the back of the head, breaking his nose, cheekbone, jaw, and twisting his spine. Almost impossibly, Matijevic managed to walk off the stage of his own strength before being rushed to a hospital. STEELHEART, as it was known, ended that night. Four years later, Matijevic formed a new version of STEELHEART with Kenny Kanowski (guitars), Vincent Mele (bass), and Alex Makarovich (drums) to record and release his third album, "Wait". The album was very different musically from the previous two albums, but featured the song "We All Die Young" (millions of streams and counting on Spotify) which was later included as a re-recorded version in the movie "Rock Star", which saw Matijevic providing the singing voice for Mark Wahlberg's character. The movie soundtrack was performed by Matijevic (and Jeff Scott Soto) on vocals along with Zakk Wylde (Ozzy Osbourne's then-guitarist and frontman of BLACK LABEL SOCIETY), Jeff Pilson (DOKKEN, FOREIGNER), and Jason Bonham. "Through Worlds Of Stardust" track listing:

01. Stream Line Savings02. My Dirty Girl03. Come Inside04. My Word05. You Got Me Twisted06. Lips Of Rain07. With Love We Live Again08. Got Me Runnin'09. My Freedom10. I'm So In Love With You Lead Vocals, Acoustic Guitar, Guitars, Ebow Guitars: Miljenko Matijevic Musicians on the album:

Guitars: Uros RaskovskiBass: James "Rev" Jones, Sigve Sjursen, Jesse SternDrums: Mike Humbert, Randy CookePiano: Daniel Fouché, Ed RothGuest guitar solo and part rhythm on "My Dirty Girl" by Kennet KanowskiStrings composed and conducted by Glen GabrielOrchestrated by Anthony WeedenPerformed by Stockholm Strings

According to The Pulse Of Radio, RED HOT CHILI PEPPERS bassist Flea has landed a role in a new movie called "Boy Erased". The movie is a coming-of-age and coming-out drama from writer/director Joel Edgerton, who is also an actor best known for his roles in "Loving" and "Midnight Special". It tells the story of a 19-year-old man named Jared, the son of a Baptist pastor in a small American town, who is outed to his parents and must either attend a gay conversion therapy program or be permanently exiled and shunned by his family, friends, and faith.

Based on a true story, "Boy Erased" is adapted from "Boy Erased: A Memoir Of Identity, Faith, And Family" by Garrard Conley, who serves as a consultant on the film.

Flea's role in the film was not disclosed, but he joins a cast that includes Nicole Kidman and Russell Crowe as Jared's parents and Lucas Hedges as Jared, along with Cherry Jones, Xavier Dolan, YouTube personality Troye Sivan and Edgerton.

The movie will begin production this fall for a 2018 theatrical release.

The CHILI PEPPERS have been on the road behind their eleventh studio effort, "The Getaway", which came out in June 2016.

GUNS N' ROSES performed surprising cover versions of Glen Campbell's "Wichita Lineman" and James Brown's "I Feel Good" during Wednesday night's (August 30) show in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada.

Prior to launching into "Wichita Lineman", GN'R frontman Axl Rose told the audience: "We're going to play something we've never played before. It might not be your thing, but we're just trying to pay a tribute to someone. It's not what you think."

"For Glen," Rose said at the track's conclusion, referring to the country legend who died August 8.

Last night's performance of "I Feel Good" marked the first time the group has played the song in full, and the first time Rose performed the track with guitarist Slash and bassist Duff McKagan. A previous version of GUNS, with Axl as the only classic-era member, performed a snippet of the song at 2006's Rock In Rio festival.

GUNS kicked off its long-rumored and long-awaited reunion trek in April 2016 with a club show in Hollywood and appearances in Las Vegas and at California's Coachella festival.

The "Not In This Lifetime" tour features classic GUNS members Slash, McKagan and Rose, backed by drummer Frank Ferrer, guitarist Richard Fortus, keyboardist Dizzy Reed and second keyboardist Melissa Reese.

"Codex Omega", the tenth full-length album from Greek masters of symphonic death metal SEPTICFLESH, can be streamed in its enirety below. The disc, which was produced by Jens Bogren (OPETH, DIMMU BORGIR), will be released on September 1 via Prosthetic Records.

SEPTICFLESH bassist/vocalist Spiros "Seth" Antoniou (a.k.a. Seth Siro Anton) recently told WSOU 89.5 FM about "Codex Omega": "This time, every time that we are thinking [about] and we are writing and start pre-recording then composing a new [album] with SEPTICFLESH, it's a great challenge. I mean, after 'Communion', [2008] we wanted to create something different from the previous albums that we made in the past. Regarding 'Codex Omega', I think this album is much different than 'Titan' [2014] or even 'The Great Mass' [2011] or even 'Communion'. The basis is the same; for sure we have a formula that we really like and we'll still use it, but on 'Codex Omega', we have some new elements, some new elements that I could say we found the 'great spot' to combine the extreme sound with the orchestra and the guitars."

Regarding how the band's sound has evolved over the years, Spiros said: "SEPTICFLESH, it's a team production. It's a production of a team. It's not the music of one person only. So that means, the main composers of the band, which is me, Chris and Sotiris [Vayenas, guitar], we have our own home studios, so before a new album, we are composing our own tracks in our studio and later, we exchange ideas and we start to combine all the elements together. I would say me and Sotiris, we are most responsible for the 'metal' part of SEPTICFLESH, about the guitar riffs, about the extreme sound. Chris is exclusively working with the orchestra. Even sometimes with his tracks, he composes them with a piano or with some instruments of samples of the orchestra before going to the real orchestra. As you understand, SEPTICFLESH is working as a whole team and this is something that gives to the band, a multi-color of sound. I'm really happy about this cooperation."

On the topic of the lyrical direction behind "Codex Omega", Spiros said: "Sotiris is actually the guy behind the lyrics. He's the brain of SEPTICFLESH, but I made the artwork and the whole visual style of SEPTICFLESH, we work together a lot. This time, we wanted to create and to move in a different approach than our previous albums. Most of the lyrical concepts of SEPTICFLESH, we are always talking about ancient traditions of many cultures and many countries, from Sumerians, Egypt, even from Incas. Every tradition that has something really interesting. This time, it was an idea from Sotiris. He said, 'Why don't we write a new concept about a third testament? About a new book that talks about humans?'"

"Codex Omega" track listing:

CD 1:

01. Dante's Inferno02. 3rd Testament (Codex Omega)03. Portrait Of A Headless Man04. Martyr05. Enemy Of Truth06. Dark Art07. Our Church, Below The Sea08. Faceless Queen09. The Gospels Of Fear10. Trinity

Cd 2:

01. Martyr Of Truth02. Dark Testament03. Portrait Of A Headless Man (Orchestral Version)

Century Media Records will reissue the essential studio albums In Requiem (2007), Faith Divides Us - Death Unites Us (2009), and Tragic Idol (2012) by UK gothic metal pioneers Paradise Lost as high class vinyl editions in September. Furthermore, the band’s 25th anniversary show recorded in London on November 3rd, 2013 by Abbey Road Live is going to be released on vinyl as a one time only pressing.

Previously, Live At The Roundhouse was released as 2x CDR and digital album under the title Tragic Illusion Live At The Roundhouse, London offering a career spanning setlist and authentic, honest live sound due to being recorded and mixed on-the-fly. The vinyl’s front cover was created by Valnoir and is based on a shirt design originally offered at this unforgettable show back in 2013.

Live At The Roundhouse and all album reissues have been mastered for vinyl by Patrick W. Engel / Temple Of Disharmony (Iced Earth, Tiamat, Moonspell) and feature 180 gram vinyl and gatefold sleeves. 

See below for limitations and release dates:

Tragic Idol (Reissue 2017) - out September 8th
Gatefold black LP+CD - not limited
Gatefold lilac LP+CD - limited to 200 copies
Gatefold clear LP+CD - limited to 200 copies

Faith Divides Us - Death Unites Us (Reissue 2017) - out September 8th
Gatefold black LP+CD - not limited
Gatefold silver LP+CD - limited to 200 copies
Gatefold dark green LP+CD - limited to 200 copies

Live at the Roundhouse - out September 15th
Ltd. Gatefold black 2LP - limited to 1,300 copies
Ltd. Gatefold lilac 2LP - limited to 200 copies
Ltd. Gatefold transp. yellow 2LP - limited to 200 copies
Ltd. Gatefold golden 2LP - limited to 300 copies - available at this location

In Requiem (Re-issue 2017) - out September 15th
Gatefold transp. petrol green LP+CD - repress limited to 2,000 copies

The limited coloured vinyls can be ordered via CMDistro.de. Live At The Roundhouse vinyl plus t-shirt bundles are available via the band’s store, here.

The regular black vinyl and coloured “In Requiem” repress are distributed internationally by Sony Music (excluding North America, Canada, Mexico) and can be obtained at all usual outlets. Pre-order here.

Live At The Roundhouse tracklisting:

Side A
“Mortals Watch The Day”
“So Much Is Lost”
“Remembrance”
“Gothic”
 
Side B
“Enchantment”
“Faith Divides Us - Death Unites Us”
“Tragic Idol”
“Never For The Damned”
 
Side C
“Isolate”
“Say Just Words”
“Rotting Misery”
 
Side D
“One Second”
“True Belief”
“Over The Madness”

Paradise Lost will release their new studio album, Medusa, on September 1st via Nuclear Blast. The video below takes a look inside the limited mail-order edition:

The pre-order for Medusa is underway and you can purchase the full-length release in several formats:

- Standard jewelcase CD
- Digibook including 2 bonus tracks
- Various coloured 180g LP (black / clear / copper / grey+red bi-coloured / gold / NB anniversary green)
- Collector’s box including the digibook, gatefold picture disc, an exclusive 7'', a candle, poster, band photo card and poster flag.
- Mailorder edition Collector’s box including the digibook, gatefold picture disc, a 7'' featuring the tracks 'Shrines' and 'Symbolic Virtue', a candle, poster, band photo card, poster flag and exclusive cover artwork

Pre-order the physical editions of the new album, including special merchandise here, or get the digital versions here and receive “The Longest Winter” as instant grat, or in the band shop, here.

Tracklisting:

“Fearless Sky”
“Gods Of Ancient”
“From The Gallows”
“The Longest Winter”
“Medusa”
“No Passage For The Dead”
“Blood And Chaos”
“Until The Grave”

Bonus tracks:
“Frozen Illusion”
“Shrines”
“Symbolic Virtue”

“Blood And Chaos” video:

“The Longest Winter” lyric video:

Trailer #1:

Trailer #2:

Trailer #3:

Trailer #4:

Trailer #5:

On September 1st, Paradise Lost return to Stuttgart, Germany to present Medusa in its entirety. Check out a video trailer below, and get you tickets here.

Shortly after the release, Paradise Lost will embark on an extensive European tour and with label mates and US doomsters Pallbearer, as well as Sinistro from Portugal.

Tour dates:
 
September
1 - Stuttgart, Germany - LKA Longhorn (Album release show)
8 - Dubai, UAE - The Music Room (Majestic Hotel)

September (with Pallbearer, Sinistro)
27 - Esch-Sur-Alzette, Luxembourg - Kulturfabrik
28 - Herford, Germany - X
29 - Copenhagen, Denmark - Pumpehuset
30 - Gothenburg, Sweden - Sticky Fingers

October (with Pallbearer, Sinistro)
1 - Oslo, Norway - John Dee
3 - Helsinki, Finland - Nosturi
5 - Uppsala, Sweden - Katalin
6 - Karlstad, Sweden - Nöjesfabriken
7 - Aarhus, Denmark - Voxhall
9 - Krakow, Poland - Kwadrat
10 - Brno, Czech Republic - Fleda
11 - Bratislava, Slovakia - Randal
13 - Belgrade, Serbia - Dom Omladine
14 - Zagreb, Croatia - Boogaloo
15 - Budapest, Hungary - Dürer Kert
16 - Vienna, Austria - Simm City
18 - Nuremberg, Germany - Hirsch
19 - Frankfurt, Germany - Batschkapp
20 - Saarbrücken, Germany - Garage
21 - Geneva, Switzerland - L‘Usine
23 - Barcelona, Spain - Razzamatazz 2
24 - Madrid, Spain - But
25 - Bilbao, Spain - Santana 27
27 - Grenoble, France - La Belle Electrique
28 - Fontaneto D'Agogna, Italy - Phenomenon
29 - Munich, Germany - Theaterfabrik
30 - Pratteln, Switzerland - Z7
31 - Paris, France - Z7

November (with Pallbearer, Sinistro)
2 - Antwerp, Belgium - Trix
3 - London, UK - Electric Ballroom
4 - Leeds, UK - Damnation Festival
6 - Utrecht, Netherlands - Pandora
7 - Tilburg, Netherlands - 013
8 - Cologne, Germany - Live Music Hall
9 - Berlin, Germany - Columbia Theater
10 - Weissenhäuser Strand / Ostsee, Germany - Metal Hammer Paradise (Paradise Lost only)
12 - Tourcoing, France - Le Grand Mix

December
14 - Brisbane, Australia - The Triffid
15 - Sydney, Australia - The Metro Theatre
16 - Melbourne, Australia - Corner Hotel
17 - Adelaide, Australia - The Gov
18 - Perth, Australia - Capitol

Poland-based epic black/death metallers, Devilish Impressions, will release their new album, The I, on September 22nd via Lifeforce Records. The track “Ipse philosophvs, daemon, Devs et omnia”, featuring  special guests appearances by Mike Wead (King Diamond, Mercyful Fate) and Ares (Aeternus), is available for streaming below.

“Following on the notion that one can never reach full potential out in the open being a slave at heart it all comes down to - plain and simple - rising above and stepping over and beyond all force-fed limitations in order to accomplish honest satisfaction, fulfillment and unsuppressed growth as an individual.” - about the concept behind the lyrics comments Darky, a long-time friend of the band considered to be its spirit member who has also contributed to the lyrics.

“To accompany the fierce and powerful lyrical content of The I, we developed an equally strong-minded visual concept resembling the appearance of medieval scriptures. It refers to the intense religious critique omnipresent in each song and depicts the ancient spirit of rebellion at the same time. The cover illustration reflects the general notions of the album - centrality, elucidation and guidance. In the center of the image, the Devilish Impressions’ sigil represents the band’s everlasting propaganda of the aforementioned philosophy. The morning star on top of the sigil radiates enlightenment and wisdom upon and through the darkness of religion and blind belief. Each lyric is coupled with an old engraving modified in a certain way to create a stronger bond with the text. The carefully crafted typography and layout reinforce the antique and authentic look of the artwork.” - comments Infected Minds, the entity responsible for the album’s cover illustration, artwork and layout.

Recorded at various studios, including Dobra12 (drums) and Icaros Studio (guitars) the disc was mixed and mastered at Impressive Art Studio by Przemyslaw Nowak who also handled vocals recording sessions and guitars’ re-amping. The album’s artwork, design and layout were created by Infected Minds.

The album features special guest appearances by Mercyful Fate/King Diamond guitarist Mike Wead and by vocalist / guitarist Ares of Norway’s dark metal masters Aeternus. Other artists who also contributed to the record are shamanic ritual meditative experimental act Bon and Impressive Art Studio’s owner Przemyslaw Nowak, who came up with interludes, additional background tunes and effects.

“It’s been a really long way to be finally able to wrap it all up, countless nights spent on writing the music and lyrics first, then working on the album’s pre-production, followed by what seemed to be never-ending, proper recording sessions, and tones of work that had to be done for the band afterwards. We really wanted this new album to become something really special and therefore, to avoid any haphazard decisions, we let them come out of us smoothly, without putting ourselves under any external tension and stuff. Did it pay off? Well, we’ll see… We surely worked our asses off, pushed things back and forth to get the best out of it. As a result we’ve got something we are damn proud of, something that we believe surpasses on all possible levels everything we’ve done in the past. I simply believe we’d outdone ourselves and recorded something that will cause your hearts beat faster…,” comments Quazarre, the band’s composer, vocalist and guitarist.

The title chosen, The I, for the record is not only a phonetic acronym of the band’s name, but above all it reflects the manifesto they stand for since the Horde’s inception in the year 2000 - the notion of freedom of choice and will. A supremacy of an individual over any external factors being imposed on us by others, with special emphasis on religion and its convictions, dogmas and paradigms. The I is a rebellious manifesto targeted against all those who stand opposed to anything that drives us towards individual perfection.

The album will be available as CD digipak, limited vinyl LP and digital download.

CD digipak tracklisting:

“The I”
“The Dove And The Serpent”
“Eosphoros”
“Blood Imprinted Stigma”
“Ipse philosophvs, daemon, Devs et omnia”
“Czern i Biel”
“The Fatal Messiah”
 
Vinyl tracklisting:

“The I”
“The Dove And The Serpent”
“Blood Imprinted Stigma”
“Eosphoros”
“Ipse philosophvs, daemon, Devs et omnia”
“The Fatal Messiah”

“Ipse philosophvs, daemon, Devs et omnia”:

“The I” video:

Teaser #1:

Teaser #2:

Teaser #3:

German gothic metal band, Crematory, have released a new live video for the song “Everything“, taken from their new live CD+DVD, Live Insurrection. You can watch the video below.

For over 25 years now, Crematory have enthralled their countless fans at home and abroad. Since the band was founded in 1991, they have released twelve studio albums, in addition to a number of live recordings, singles, EPs and compilations.

The music is based on brute guitar riffs and hard-as-nails drum grooves, replete with sinister keyboard hooks and that mix of growls and clear vocals - some in English, some in German - that is so typical of this band.

Crematory will release a new CD+DVD, Live Insurrection, on September 8th. It's the whole show from the prestigious german Bang Your Head Festival 2016 in Germany, also including four videoclips on the DVD from their latest album, Monument.

Tracklisting:

CD
Intro
“Misunderstood”
“Fly”
“Greed”
“Tick Tack”
Instrumental
“Haus mit Garten”
“Ravens Calling”
“Pray”
“Everything”
Instrumental
“Shadowmaker”
“The Fallen”
“Höllenbrand”
“Die So Soon”
“Kommt näher”
“Tears Of Time”

DVD

Live:
Intro
“Misunderstood”
“Fly”
“Greed”
“Tick Tack”
Instrumental
“Haus mit Garten”
“Ravens Calling”
“Pray”
“Everything”
Instrumental
“Shadowmaker”
“The Fallen”
“Höllenbrand”
“Die So Soon”
“Kommt näher”
“Tears Of Time”

Monument videoclips:
“Misunderstood”
“Ravens Calling”
“Haus mit Garten”
“Everything”

“Everything” live video:

Crematory live:

September
9 - Deutzen, Germany - NCN Festival

"What a ride," proclaims The Dead Daisies. "The Dirty Dozen Tour has officially come to a close and we couldn’t be prouder to have made this amazing journey with such a magnificent crowd as yourselves!

From vintage cars and an epic open air show at Gas Monkey in Dallas to Hollywood glamour in Los Angeles – from California sunshine in San Diego to pure rock ‘n’ roll fury in Las Vegas, this last week of the Dirty Dozen Tour has been WILD!

To celebrate this amazing trip, we’ve put together a video featuring the coolest moments of the past week, check it out below.

Thank you all for coming out and thank you to our awesome touring buddies The Dives! You guys have been off the hook. And last but not least: Thank You for one hell of a ride, America! WE LOVE YOU!"

The Dead Daises have two shows remaining in 2017, they are:

September
1 - The Easyriders Rodeo - Chillicothe, OH
2 - The National H.O.G. Rally at the Harley-Davidson Museum - Milwaukee, WI

 

Crossover thrash act Agony Kings will release their self-titled debut album on October 6th, 2017. The high-energy, thirteen-track release is fueled on old-school punk, thrash and hardcore and will surely please fans of Anthrax, Suicidal Tendencies and D.R.I. The New York act features Mike Stack (False Gods) on vocals and took over ten years to create. 

Check out the track "Agony Kings", below.

Tracklisting:

“Futureburn”
“Born Out Of Time”
“The Grand Mess”
“Every Dog Has It’s Day”
“Pain”
“Hard Turn”
“Agony Kings”
“Drowning In The Blood Of My Enemies”
“Deadwalk”
“Slow Demise Of Character”
“Savage Land”
“Heathen”

“Agony Kings”:

To coincide with the label’s 30th anniversary, Nuclear Blast will release seven vinyl albums in a premium box and a CD/DVD box featuring classic cuts from Nightwish, Sabaton, Dimmu Borgir, Blind Guardian, Slayer, Accept, Kreator, Avantasia, In Flames, Anthrax, Blues Pills and many more.

You will find timeless anthems, current neck breakers and epic hymns in this journey through three decades of steel-capped history. Set to be released on October 27th on an exclusive Nuclear Blast green vinyl, the box will be limited to 1,000 copies and is available for pre-order via the following links:

- Vinyl
- DVD/CD

Tracklisting:

LP1

Side A
Dimmu Borgir - “Mourning Palace”
Hypocrisy - “Roswell 47”
Children Of Bodom - “Morrigan”
Behemoth - “Ov Fire And The Void”
Immortal - “Hordes To War”
Benediction - “The Grotesque”

Side B
Carcass - “Unfit For Human Consumption”
Kataklysm - “In Shadows & Dust”
Memoriam - “Memoriam”
Soilwork - “As We Speak”
Cradle Of Filth - “Blackest Magick In Practice”
Equilibrium - “Born To Be Epic”

LP2

Side A
Slayer - “Repentless”
Lamb Of God - “Still Echoes”
Testament - “More Than Meets The Eye”
Overkill - “Ironbound”
Exodus - “Salt The Wound”
Death Angel - “Sonic Beatdown”

Side B
Kreator - “Gods Of Violence”
Anthrax - “For All Kings”
Machine Head - “Killers & Kings”
Destruction - “Thrash Till Death”
Tankard - “A Girl Called Cerveza”
Die Apokalyptischen Reiter - “Unter Der Asche”

LP3

Side A
Accept - “Teutonic Terror”
Blind Guardian - “Fly”
Helloween - “Lost In America”
Primal Fear - “Seven Seals”
Threshold - “Staring At The Sun”
Rage - “The Devil Strikes Again”

Side B
Sabaton - “To Hell And Back”
Edguy - “Superheroes”
Battle Beast - “Over The Top”
Metal Church - “Killing Your Time”
Doro - “Raise Your Fist In The Air”
Black Star Riders - “Heavy Fire”
Hammerfall - “Hearts On Fire”

LP4

Side A
Nightwish - “Élan”
Avantasia - “Mystery Of A Blood Red Rose”
Amorphis - “Silver Bride”
Eluveitie - “Omnos”
Sonata Arctica - “The Wolves Die Young”
Luca Turilli’s Rhapsody - “Rosenkreuz”

Side B
Therion - “To Mega Therion”
Epica - “Never Enough”
Twilight Force - “Powerwind”
Symphony X -“Without You”
The Kovenant - “New World Order”

LP5

Side A
In Flames - “The End”
Fear Factory - “Dielectric”
Pain - “Call Me”
Devil You Know - “Shattered Silence”
Mantar - “Era Borealis”
Grand Magus - “Triumph And Power”

Side B
Meshuggah - “Future Breed Machine”
Hatebreed - “Honor Never Dies”
Sepultura - “I Am The Enemy”
Killer Be Killed - “Wings Of Feather And Wax”
Discharge - “Infected”
Agnostic Front - “The American Dream Died”
Soulfly - “We Sold Our Souls To Metal”
Madball - “Hardcore Lives”
Rise Of The Northstar - “Samurai Spirit”

LP6

Side A
Blues Pills - “Lady In Gold”
Kadavar - “Last Living Dinosaur”
Witchcraft - “It’s Not Because Of You”
Graveyard - “The Apple & The Tree”
Crobot - “Legend Of the Spaceborne Killer”
Orchid - “Wizard Of War”
Scorpion Child - “Polygon Of Eyes”

Side B
Opeth - “Sorceress”
Enslaved - “One Thousand Years Of Pain”
Avatarium - “Girl With The Raven Mask”
The Doomsday Kingdom - “The Never Machine”

LP7

Side A
Suicide Silence - “Doris”
The Charm The Fury - “Down On The Ropes”
Forever Still - “Miss Madness”
Fallujah - “The Void Alone”
Fleshgod Apocalypse - “In Aeternum”
Aversions Crown - “Ophiophagy”

Side B
Thy Art Is Murder - “Holy War”
Carnifex - “Drown Me In Blood”
Despised Icon - “Beast”
Rings Of Saturn - “Inadequate”
All Shall Perish - “There Is Nothing Left”
Bury Tomorrow - “Earthbound”

45 years after Pink Floyd’s David Gilmour filmed Live At Pompeii in the legendary Roman Amphitheatre there, he returned for two spectacular shows that took place on July 7th and 8th, 2016, part of his year-long tour in support of his #1 album, Rattle That Lock. The performances were the first-ever rock concerts for an audience in the stone Roman amphitheatre, and, for two nights only, the 2,600 strong crowd stood exactly where gladiators would have fought in the first century AD.

David Gilmour Live At Pompeii is an audio experience on its own, while the audio-visual spectacle features lasers, pyrotechnics and a huge circular screen on which specially-created films complement selected songs. Paramount, however, is the incredible music: the show includes songs from throughout David's career, as well as many Pink Floyd classics, including “One Of These Days”, the only song that was also performed at the band’s 1971 show.

Both concerts also saw very special performances of “The Great Gig In The Sky” from The Dark Side Of The Moon, which David rarely plays as a solo artist. The 2-disc concert CD was produced by David Gilmour, and mixed by Andy Jackson and David Gilmour. The 148-minute concert film includes highlights from both shows, filmed in 4k by director Gavin Elder. DVD and Blu-ray versions contain an extra 7-minute documentary by Gavin Elder ‘Pompeii Then And Now’, while the Deluxe Blu-ray 4-disc box contains the 2xCD version, the 1xBlu-ray version, and a full 207 minutes of extra footage: 11 live performances and 5 documentaries, plus bonus collectables. Vinyl lovers can enjoy a deluxe 4xLP version in gatefold sleeves and a hardback slipcase, plus a 24-page photo booklet.

David Gilmour Live At Pompeii shows an artist at the top of his artistic game, performing incredible material with his world-class band, in a unique setting on one very special occasion. The release is set for September 29th. An excerpt of “Time” / “Breathe (In The Air)” is available for streaming below.

Tracklisting:

“5 A.M.”
“Rattle That Lock”
“Faces Of Stone”
“What Do You Want From Me”
“The Blue”
“The Great Gig In The Sky”
“A Boat Lies Waiting”
“Wish You Were Here”
“Money”
“In Any Tongue”
“High Hopes”
“One Of These Days”
“Shine On You Crazy Diamond (Pts. 1 - 5)”
“Fat Old Sun”
“Coming Back To Life”
“On An Island”
“Today”
“Sorrow”
“Run Like Hell”
“Time” / “Breathe (In The Air)” (reprise)
“Comfortably Numb”

“Time” / “Breathe (In The Air)” excerpt:

“Today” excerpt:

“A Boat Lies Waiting” excerpt:

“One Of These Days” excerpt:

EPK Part 1:

EPK Part 2:

Deluxe Box Set unboxing video:

“Rattle That Lock”:

Live At Pompeii will be in cinemas worldwide for one night only, September 13th. Tickets/info at this location. A trailer can be found below.

Presented in 4K and Dolby Atmos where available.

On September 15th, Germany's Cripper will release their new album, Follow Me: Kill!, worldwide via Metal Blade Records. A video for “Into The Fire” is available for streaming below, and the record can be pre-ordered at Metal Blade in the following formats:

- Digipak CD (EU exclusive)
- CD
- 180g black vinyl (EU exclusive)
- Yellow orange vinyl (limited to 200 copies)
- Cool grey marbled vinyl (EU exclusive - limited to 100 copies)

* Exclusive bundles with a shirt, plus digital options are also available.

Follow Me: Kill! is Cripper's fifth album, and it adds fresh, exciting elements into their music. Still, the band never forgets where they come from and stay true to themselves within the frames of musical progression. The result is an effort that maintains the heaviness and groove the band is known for, while also containing atmospheric parts, capably realized and granting diversity.

Cripper comments: "Taking a different approach with the way of songwriting this time really paid off! The overall atmospheric curve was laid down for the whole album before we even started writing. It turned out to be a great idea - we were able to create a strong density throughout the album, while the songs are more diverse than ever. A heavy, intense piece of genre-stretching metal music!"

Tracklisting:

“Pressure”
“Into The Fire”
“World Coming Down” (limited digipak only)
“Mother”
“Shoot Or Get Shot”
“Bleeding Red”
“Comatose”
“Pretty Young Thing”
“Running High”
“Menetekel”

“Into The Fire” video:

“Pressure”:

Cripper live:

September

2 - Kleinwenkheim, Germany - Bonebreaker Festival
15 - Hannover, Germany - Subkultur (album release show)

October
20 - Greifswald, Germany - Jugendzentrum Klex
21 - Hannover, Germany - LUX
22 - Koln, Germany - MTC
27 - Markneukirchen, Germany - Music Hall
28 - Berlin, Germany - Cassiopeia

December
9 - Andernach, Germany - JUZ Andernach

Japan’s Vamps have released a lyric video for “Break Free”, a track of their new album, Underworld, released back in April. The clip can be found below.

Underworld tracklisting:

“Underworld”
“Calling”
“Break Free”
“Don't Hold Back”
“Bleed For Me”
“In This Hell”
“Inside Of Me”
“Rise Or Die”
“Sin In Justice”
“B.Y.O.B (Bring Your Own Blood)”
“Rise Up”

“Break Free” lyric video:

“Underworld” lyric video:

It has been 15 years since Frontiers first partnered up with Jeff Scott Soto on a release and in celebration of that anniversary, Frontiers Music Srl will release another new album from Jeff on November 10th. Co-written and produced together with JSS alumni Howie Simon, fans of the storied vocalist can expect a hard rockin’ melodic album in a style that they’ve come to know and love from Jeff Scott Soto over the years.

Jeff Scott Soto’s career spans over thirty years. He was first introduced to the public as the vocalist for guitar virtuoso Yngwie Malmsteen’s iconic first two solo albums before going on to front esteemed hard rock band Talisman. He is also one of the vocalists for the wildly popular Trans-Siberian Orchestra, the lead vocalist for super group W.E.T. (featuring JSS alongside members of Eclipse and Work Of Art), and creative visionary for the more metal leaning Soto, among many other musical activities he has been involved in. He also held a stint fronting Rock And Roll Hall Of Famers Journey and was one of the vocalists for the officially sanctioned Queen tribute, Queen Extravaganza. His incredible voice has led to many an artist inviting him to do guest lead vocals or background vocals on their albums, including, but not limited to, Stryper, Joel Hoekstra, Saigon Kick, Fergie Frederiksen, Lita Ford, Steelheart, and more.

In 1994, he released his first solo outing Love Parade, followed by the acclaimed Prism (2002), Lost In The Translation (2005), Beautiful Mess (2009), and Damage Control (2012). Retribution, due on November 10th, is his sixth proper solo studio album. The new song “Breakout” is available for streaming below.

Tracklisting:

“Retribution”
“Inside/Outside”
“Rage Of The Year”
“Reign Again”
“Feels Like Forever”
“Last Time”
“Bullet For My Baby”
“Song For Joey”
“Breakout”
“Dedicate To You”
“Autumn”

“Breakout”:

- Vocals and keyboards recorded & engineered by Jeff Scott Soto at The Man Canyon, Agoura Hills, CA
- Guitars and bass for “Reign Again” recorded and engineered by Andy Zuckerman at The Institute Of Noise, Los Angeles, CA
- Drums recorded by Edu Cominato at Daga Music Studios, Brasil

Mixed and mastered by Adriano Daga at Daga Music Studios, Brasil.

Band members:

Jeff Scott Soto - Vocals, Keyboards
Howie Simon - Guitar & Bass (except on “Reign Again” and “Song For Joey”)
Edu Cominato - Drums
August Zadra - Guitar on “Reign Again”
Stephen Sturm - Guitar on “Reign Again”
Carlos Costa - Bass on “Reign Again”
Paul Mendonca - Guitar, Keyboards & Bass on “Song For Joey”

Assembled in 2003 to infiltrate, build and destroy, Gatineau, Quebec’s Insurrection is an aural onslaught assaulting witnesses in both languages of French and English. Known for blending calculated technicality with a signature mixture of merciless death metal, the band has emerged to be one of the most prominent Eastern Canadian metal bands.

Annihilating the masses with their three previous full lengths Prototype (2013), Fracture (2010) and Prologue (2009), Insurrection is ready to once again push their metal to blasphemous levels with their next release, Extraction. A ten track aberration, ready to shock and blast fans to the next life. The album is produced by Pierre Rémillard at Wild Studio (Cryptopsy, Voivod, Krisiun, etc.) and features guest vocals from Bruno Bernier (Obliveon) on "Data Extracted ... End Transmission". Slated for release on October 6th via Galy Records, BraveWords is premiering the first single and video from the album, "System Failure":

In addition to the release of their fourth album, Insurrection will be spreading the notoriety of their live shows across areas of Quebec, Ontario and New Brunswick in promotion of Extraction (dates listed below).  

Vocalist Stef Jomphe comments: "I think I speak for the others guys in the band when I say all this news is more than exciting. This tour we're embarking on is all about meeting up with the fans who supported us in the past and present. We've been working on 'Extraction' for quite some time and we know ‎fans will have as much fun listening to it as we will playing it live for everyone!"

Tracklisting:

“System Failure”
“Onward To Extinction”
“Pull The Plug”
“Le Prix à Payer”
“The Eulogy of Hatred”
“Parasite”
“Le Pesant D'Or”
“Misère Noire”
“Assassins”
“Data Extracted ... End Transmission” featuring Bruno Bernier (Obliveon)

Tour dates:

September
1 - Lavaltrie, QC - Café  Chasse-Galerie
15 - Niagara Falls, ON - Geekery Pub*
16 - Guelph, ON - Van Gogh's Ear
29 -  Rimouski, QC - Le Cactus†
30 - Edmundston, NB - Café D’La Forge

October
7 - Repentigny, QC - Salle Laurent-Venne
13 - Mont-Laurier, QC - Pub 99†
14 - Rouyn, QC - Salle Evoluson†
15 - Sudbury, ON - The Asylum
27 - Cornwall, ON - La Taverne
28 - Gatineau, QC - Le Minotaure†
29 - Ste-Thérèse, QC - Monte-Cristo

November
3 - Sherbrooke, QC - Magog
4 - Trois-Rivières, QC - Thrashfest
25 - Lévis, QC - Le Corsaire†
26 - Drummondville, QC - TBA

† with Blinded By Faith
* with Accursed Spawn

CD lineup:

Stef Jomphe - Vocals
Vincent Laprade Séguin - Guitar
Antonin Perras-Foisy - Guitar
Francis Girard - Bass
Philipe Moreau-Latreille - Drums
Guest Vocals : Bruno Bernier (Obliveon) on track 10. “Data Extracted … End Transmission”

Touring lineup:

Stef Jomphe - Vocals
Vincent Laprade Séguin - Guitar
Antonin Perras-Foisy - Guitar
Martin Samson - Bass
Stéphane Desilets - Drums

(Photo - Nicolas Paquet)

Three members of the classic DEEP PURPLE lineup have shot down the possibility of a reunion with guitarist Ritchie Blackmore.

Blackmore is a co-founder of DEEP PURPLE and wrote many of their most memorable riffs, including "Smoke On The Water", but he has not played with the group since his 1993 departure.

Steve Morse effectively took over Blackmore's slot in 1994 and has since been in the group longer than Ritchie.

During yesterday's (Tuesday, August 29) SiriusXM Town Hall, DEEP PURPLE's Ian Gillan (vocals), Ian Paice (drums) and Roger Glover (bass) were asked point blank if they would be open to playing with Blackmore again.

"Me personally, no," Gillan said. "I mean, I get on great with Ritchie these days, but I don't think Ritchie's playing great these days. And for that reason mostly, I don't think it would work."

Gillan clarified that he is only in contact with Blackmore "through our offices, through our connections and everything else" and added that "we have invited each other to dinner a couple of times, but we haven't been able to make it because I'm in London, he's in Long Island." He then reiterated: "But, no, I'd be against [a reunion]."

Paice was equally resistant to the idea, explaining: "I enjoy going on stage every night knowing that I'm [there] with my four friends and they're all gonna play every night. That wasn't always the case [while Ritchie was in the band], and I wouldn't want to go back to that again. It's just the way the man is. He is a man of great emotions. He works it out in black and white; there's no gray areas to Ritchie: 'I will or I won't,' 'I like it or I don't like it.' Sometimes your bandmembers can't suffer from that. And I wanna go on stage and have fun. I don't wanna go on stage and come off feeling so down and miserable. I'm not prepared to go back on that route again, no."

Glover, for his part, revealed that he hasn't spoken to Ritchie in "twenty-odd years," but insisted that he would "be happy to talk to him." Attributing their lack of personal interaction to the fact that Ritchie has "made himself very private," Glover added that "I don't think he approves of me very much, because of the remixes and the remasters that I did of the older albums. That's what I've heard anyway."

As for the prospect of PURPLE performing with Blackmore again, Glover said: "You can never say never, but I would doubt it very much."

Blackmore was recently quoted saying he woud like to play one last show with DEEP PURPLE "for nostalgia reasons." He also previously suggested that the band's manager had blocked him from joining them onstage during the 2016 Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame induction ceremony, and he used that as an excuse for not attending the event.

Despite Blackmore being a no-show at last year's Rock Hall, he was given several shoutouts during the induction speeches of the DEEP PURPLE members in attendance. In addition, METALLICA drummer Lars Ulrich, who inducted DEEP PURPLE into the institution, praised "Ritchie fucking Blackmore" for one of the most memorable guitar riffs of all time on "Smoke On The Water".

Professionally filmed video footage of METALLICA performing the song "For Whom The Bell Tolls" on August 14 at BC Place in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada can be seen below.

The first European leg of METALLICA's "WorldWired" tour kicks off on September 2 in Copenhagen, Denmark and stretches through November. After a break, the trek will pick up again on February 1, 2018 in Lisbon, Portugal, and continue through May, finishing up in Helsinki, Finland.

The Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame band is touring in support of its tenth studio album, "Hardwired... To Self-Destruct", which came out last November.

METALLICA recently landed at position No. 1 on Billboard's "Hot Tours" list of top-grossing tours with $49.5 million in ticket sales from the first ten of the shows of the North American "WorldWired" tour that occurred during May and June.

464,988 tickets were sold during the first two months of the run, with Denver's NFL stadium, Sports Authority Field at Mile High, scoring the highest counts in both gross and attendance. A crowd of 51,955 fans attended the event that racked up $5.8 million in sales. Four other NFL stadiums during the first half of the summertime trek also topped the $5 million mark in sales for a single performance: Philadelphia's Lincoln Financial Field ($5.4 million) on May 12, MetLife Stadium ($5.1 million) in the New York City market on May 14, the Boston-area Gillette Stadium ($5.7 million) on May 19, and Chicago's Soldier Field ($5.3 million) on June 18.

Capital Chaos TV has uploaded video footage of DEAD CROSS's entire August 29 performance at Ace Of Spades in Sacramento, California. Check it out below.

DEAD CROSS is the Southern California outfit featuring drummer Dave Lombardo (ex-SLAYER, SUICIDAL TENDENCIES, MISFITS) and singer Mike Patton (FAITH NO MORE).

The self-titled debut album from DEAD CROSS, which is rounded out by bassist Justin Pearson (THE LOCUST, RETOX, HEAD WOUND CITY) and guitarist Michael Crain (RETOX, FESTIVAL OF DEAD DEER), was released on August 4 via Ipecac Recordings. The effort was helmed by producer Ross Robinson, who has previously worked with KORN, DEFTONES, SEPULTURA and LIMP BIZKIT, among others, and was mastered at Golden Mastering in Ventura, California.

Patton told Rolling Stone that he got involved with DEAD CROSS after reaching out to Lombardo to see if he could release the band's album on Ipecac. After getting a text from the drummer asking him to join the group, "my jaw dropped," the singer said. "I was like, 'Who, me? Hmm …' And I think it took like all of 30 seconds, but in a sarcastic way, I'm like, 'Yeah, of course. I can do this. Are you sure you want me?' So I kind of second-guessed him a little bit. And he said, 'Man, you'd be our dream vocalist.' And then it was just a matter of logistics. I decided to record it here in my basement, which is fitting. It shouldn't sound too polished."

Regarding DEAD CROSS's musical direction, Patton said: "To me, it is a traditional hardcore record. It is very pointed, direct and visceral. Like, I wasn't going to play keyboards, add samples or any kind of orchestration. It was like, 'Yo, just go for it.' In some ways, it reminded me of stuff that we had collectively all grown up with and loved when we were like teenagers — bands like the ACCÜSED, DEEP WOUND or SIEGE, stuff that was just brutal, uncompromising and right to the point. I was listening to all those bands again before this came to be, so it was already back infused in my blood. And now I got a chance to do a pencil-in-your-eye record."

"Under Your Skin", a new song from ROAD TO JERUSALEM, the Copenhagen, Denmark-based project featuring Per Møller Jensen (drums; THE HAUNTED, INVOCATOR, KONKHRA), Andreas Holma (bass; HYPOCRISY, SCAR SYMMETRY, SOILWORK), Michael Skovbakke (guitar; KONKHRA) and Josh Tyree (vocals), can be streamed below.

ROAD TO JERUSALEM recently recorded ten brand new tracks that will compose the band's debut album. Guitar leads and bass were laid down at Ark recording studio in Copenhagen with engineer Søren Henner and sent off for mixing, which is being handled by Tue Madsen.

According to a press release, ROAD TO JERUSALEM "is creating a peculiar sound: heavy music that swings and grooves, winking at emotional expression."

As for the band's name, it "expresses the idea of a long journey, that is not necessarily intended as an actual travel, but rather an emotional one.

"ROAD TO JERUSALEM is a path to one's own life towards the center of the struggles that each one of us encounters."

Tim Gaines has confirmed that he is no longer a member of STRYPER.

The musician's exit from the band has been rumored for months, ever since STRYPER guitarist Oz Fox revealed that Tim was going through a divorce, forcing the group to take a hiatus and possibly consider a future without the bassist. In a brand new interview with KNAC.COM, Gaines spoke about his current status with STRYPER for the first time, admitting that he was no longer involved with the openly Christian band that he played with for more than two decades.

"The STRYPER thing is a touchy subject right now," Gaines said. "I can't really elaborate on too much of it. You would probably be the first person that I would say to that I am officially no longer a member of the band. It's been out there for about a year now that things have been going sour. It hasn't been officially said by either myself or the band, but, yeah, I'm no longer working with them."

According to Tim, "all hell broke loose" after he "ended up getting a divorce, which is taboo as far as Christianity, I guess." He added: "Nobody bothered to look into why I got a divorce. It was twenty years of a bad marriage, but nobody bothers to look into the abuse and all the stuff that went along with it. They just see me getting a divorce and getting remarried and come to their conclusions. So whatever. People will be the way that they are. There's nothing I can do about it. I'm not the only guy in STRYPER to have gotten a divorce. Everybody in the band is married to divorced people. And I'm the bad guy, but everybody else has done it too, so? Whatever. Live in glass houses and everything will be exposed at some point or another."

Gaines is no longer listed as a member of STRYPER on the band's official web site.

A replacement bassist has not yet been announced.

STRYPER frontman Michael Sweet told the WSOU radio station at the end of last year that the band had "no plans of stopping," despite the latest setback. He explained: "I mean, we had considered it and thought, well, maybe we should, but then we realized, well, that's just fair to us, that's not fair to the fans. So we're gonna continue on for sure."

Sweet also said at the time that it was "probable" that STRYPER would carry on without Gaines, explaining that "if we were to disband or dissolve or stop, it really wouldn't be fair to the fans, it wouldn't be fair to the other guys, and it's important to keep that in mind as well."

The fact that STRYPER is continuing without Gaines flies in the face of Sweet's public proclamations in a June 2016 interview that "it's important that the four of us stay together, or it's not STRYPER." Asked how he reconciles his previous comments about original lineups remaining intact and STRYPER's possible plan to move forward without Tim, Sweet told WSOU: "I still feel that way. It is important [for original members to stay together]. But, sadly, sometimes things happen that keep that from happening. People make decisions and choices, and, unfortunately, it does affect other people many times, and then you have to re-evaluate things. But that is the ideal situation, for it to be the original lineup. But, you know, sometimes things get in the way of that, and that's sad."

STRYPER is scheduled to enter the studio this fall to begin work on in its new album for an early 2018 release. Sweet told Good Company about the band's planned follow-up to 2015's "Fallen": "We're gonna start recording a new album in October — we start pre-production — and we'll probably be done by before Christmastime, at the latest just after Christmas. It will come out — if I had to guess — probably around April."

Gaines is currently working with FAITHSEDGE singer-songwriter Giancarlo Floridia on the band's fourth album, tentatively due in the fall of 2018.

The official video for the song "Starstruck?" from British metallers SKYCLAD can be seen below. The track is taken from the band's latest album, "Forward Into The Past", which came out on April 28 in Europe on Listenable Records.

Vocalist Kevin Ridley comments: "As part of our continuing promotion for the new album, 'Forward Into The Past', SKYCLAD are pleased to announce the release of a new video for the track 'Starstruck?'. The video has again been produced by Fernando J. Martinez, but adopts a very different approach to that of the recent lyric video for 'Change Is Coming'."

Popular for their original influential sound mixing heavy metal and traditional folk, SKYCLAD's lyrics have generally been permeated by political, social and environmental matters and the new album is no exception, as as vocalist Kevin Ridley points out clearly: "The songs are about politics, the environment and the music business and so on. These are mixed with the standard SKYCLAD fayre of traditional bawdy/drinking type of songs and songs with blues and more 'ethnic' feels."

"Forward Into The Past" track listing:

01. A Storytellers' Moon (intro)02. State Of The Union Now03. Change Is Coming04. Starstruck?05. A Heavy Price To Pay06. Words Fail Me07. Forward Into The Past08. Unresolved (instrumental)09. The Queen Of The Moors10. Last Summer's Rain11. The Measure12. Borderline13. A Storytellers' Moon (outro)

The cover artwork for "Forward Into The Past" was painted by Duncan Storr, who has previously worked with EDGE OF SANITY, RAGE and HAWKING. The cover displays the mesmerizing face of a man made out of trees and branches. Ridley elaborates: "The 'green man' or 'storyteller' image used here is a traditional image (from Roman times at least in the U.K.) which is usually taken as 'showing the close interdependence between man and nature"

That natural feel is also largely expressed in the album production. "I think the new album sounds, warm, natural and 'real' (i.e. not processed or overproduced)," Ridley says.

Massachusetts metallers KILLSWITCH ENGAGE are writing material for their new album for a 2018 release.

The follow-up to 2016's "Incarnate" will mark the band's third full-length effort since the return of vocalist Jesse Leach, who rejoined the group in 2012.

KILLSWITCH ENGAGE offered an update on its current activities in an Instagram post. "Jam sessions starting up in October, demos are getting cranked out!" the band wrote. "2018 we will be dropping some music and getting back on the road once again! Who's ready for this?!!!"

KILLSWITCH ENGAGE bassist Mike D'Antonio told the "Mike James Rock Show" in a 2016 interview that "doing less touring and more albums might be the way to go for us."

KILLSWITCH ENGAGE's last release was the "Beyond The Flames: Home Video Part II" two-disc, Blu-ray and CD package. At the heart of this release was a seventy-five-minute documentary that chronicles the return of Leach, after nearly a decade of being apart, to the band he helped form back in 1999. The piece also takes a close look at the KILLSWITCH ENGAGE early years that eventually led to Leach's initial departure.

"Incarnate" debuted at No. 6 on The Billboard 200 with first-week sales of 35,000 equivalent album units. In terms of pure album sales, it opened with 33,000 copies.

"Fome", the new video from the Latin American metal group DE LA TIERRA, can be seen below. The song is taken from the band's second studio album, "II", which came out last November via Sony Music Latin.

DE LA TIERRA is comprised of some of Latin America's most talented metal musicians, including Brazilian guitarist Andreas Kisser (SEPULTURA), Argentine singer/guitarist Andres Gimenez (A.N.I.M.A.L.), Argentine bassist Sr. Flavio (LOS FABULOSOS CADILLACS) and Cuban/Mexican drummer Alex Gonzalez (MANÁ). "II" follows the band's 2014 self-titled debut which received rave reviews and support from critics and fans. DE LA TIERRA found massive success following the release of their debut album in 2014. The record allowed the band to tour and share the stage with bands like METALLICA and SLIPKNOT and perform at festivals such as Rock In Rio, Santiago Gets Louder and Vive Latino as well as gain a strong following of fans throughout North and South America. For their follow-up record, DE LA TIERRA worked with renowned producer Ross Robinson (SLIPKNOT, KORN, DEFTONES, THE CURE, SEPULTURA) who helped the band craft a furious set of songs for one of the year's most dynamic, heavy rock/metal albums. "Our first album was self-produced," says drummer Alex Gonzalez. "This second album we had the awesome opportunity, honor and privilege to work with Ross Robinson. He produced and really captured and brought out the best of all of us. It was very positive and challenging, but at the same time he made us work hard and give 100% all the time. He really helped us to find our sound and voice." "II" was recorded in Los Angeles, where DE LA TIERRA laid down the music live to analog tape machines. Each of the band's members has a unique, individual style that Robinson helped blend and balance with their influential roots for a rich music experience that transcends language barriers. "All four of us listen to so much music and different styles that all of that information brings a lot to the table once we start writing music," Gonzalez adds. "It's so awesome that a band like DE LA TIERRA, that is a heavy/metal band, can bring so many different styles and sounds of heavy metal to our music, but at the same time we include rhythms, melodies and lyrics from Latin America."

According to The Oklahoman, former HINDER lead singer Austin John Winkler has been sued by the current members of the band for allegedly unlawfully using the group trademark to promote his solo career after leaving HINDER in 2013.

The lawsuit filed Friday in federal court in Oklahoma City alleges Winkler's agreement with his former bandmates allows him to promote himself as "Austin Winkler, formerly of HINDER." The agreement also states if Winkler utilizes the HINDER name in promotional materials, the band name can't be larger or more prominent than his individual name.

The current HINDER members claim Winkler's promotional materials related to his 2016 and 2017 solo show the HINDER name in larger print than Winkler's name.

"In many of these promotional materials, the HINDER mark is featured several times in type and size larger than Winkler's own name, or is featured above or before Winkler's own name," the lawsuit alleges. "The materials also feature the HINDER logo, which Winkler is not authorized to use."

HINDER's attorney, Blake Johnson, told The Oklahoman that the musicians have "no ill will toward Mr. Winkler and would have much preferred to privately resolve this matter. Mr. Winkler, however, was apparently uninterested in such a solution. Though they've now been forced to seek legal redress, the band is less interested in a monetary reward and more interested in protecting HINDER's valuable intellectual property and its brand and reputation.

"The members of HINDER simply cannot abide another musician making reckless use of the name and trademark they've worked for over a decade to make meaningful and distinct."

Winkler departed HINDER in 2013 after suffering medical and emotional problems, according to the lawsuit. Upon leaving the band, Winkler and the remaining HINDER members executed a Leaving Member Agreement, "acknowledging that he has no rights in the (trademark), or to promotional use of the name HINDER, and accepting a very limited license for use of the mark under certain express restrictions," according to the lawsuit. Winkler is violating the agreement and infringing on the trademark "by falsely suggesting Winkler's continued affiliation with or endorsement by HINDER in ways likely to cause consumer confusion," the lawsuit alleges.

HINDER has reportedly sold nearly four million albums and more than seven and a half million singles, garnered north of a hundred and thirty million video views, and racked in fifty million spins on Spotify.

The band's debut album, 2005's "Extreme Behavior", climbed to No. 1 on Billboard's Top Heatseekers chart and made its way to No. 6 on The Billboard 200 chart. The album featured one of the biggest songs of the year, "Lips Of An Angel" — a Top 5 hit across eight Billboard singles charts (including No. 1 on Top 40).

HINDER's sophomore effort, "Take It To The Limit", surpassed their debut, peaking at No. 4 on The Billboard 200.