Philadelphia's Dark Waters End are streaming the new single, “Up The Dose”, featured on their new album, Submersion. The album will see the light of day on October 7th. The track is available for streaming below.

Dark Waters End takes progressive death metal to a level that makes you think twice about nodding your head in standard timing. This eclectic group of musicians teeter on the boundary of what many in the Philadelphia area describe as technical metal, but without the need for a scientific calculator. Their music consists of an all-embracing range of metal, from a variety of influences to create a very dynamic and progressive sound.

Dark Waters End has a sound that can range from beautifully-haunting to terrifying in a matter of minutes. Influences from bands such as Converge, The Dillinger Escape Plan, and The Faceless inspire the band to approach metal from all angles and can be aggressive, peaceful, and brutal all within a single song. Additionally, influences from bands such as The Contortionist and Between the Buried and Me have paved the way for the band to incorporate atypical melodies and provide a robust blend of progressive metal.

Tracklisting:

“Immortal Consciousness”
“Empty Skies”
“Mass Grave”
“Congenital Vice”
“Unquenchable”
“The Great Dirge”
“Rat King”
“Hell Can't Be Worse”
“Velocirapture”
“Bucket Of Flesh”
“Up The Dose”

“Up The Dose”:

“Congenital Vice” lyric video:

Album Credits:

Recording & Mixing: John Boyce & Sylar Sound Studio
More Recording & Editing: AJ Viana, Jay Esbensen
Mastering: Mark Lewis of West West Side
Artwork: Georgi Georgiev of Moon ring Design
Management: Rob Wharton of Cognitive
Band Photos: Al Rende
Practice Home: Surreal Sound Studio in Philadelphia

Management: Rob Wharton of Fresh2Deaf Management

Band lineup:

John William - Vocals
Elijah Masiko - Guitar
Ian Wright - Guitar
Chris Williams - Bass
Ian McGarry - Drums

Prosthetic Records welcomes Chicago-based four-piece instrumental group, Zaius, to their ever-expanding roster. Formed in 2010, the band explores a lighter, more melodic side of the members' musical tastes without abandoning the metal tendencies that come natural to them.

Guitarist Dann Dolce comments on the signing: "We are insanely proud of these eight songs and can't wait to share our first full length with the world. A proper release is what this album deserves, and Prosthetic Records really has our backs on this. The four of us couldn't be happier."

Of Adoration, the band's debut LP, will be released via Prosthetic Records on October 6th. The opus was tracked at the start of 2017 with Jeff Edwards before being sent off to be mixed and mastered by Chris Common (Pelican, Mouth Of The Architect, Minus the Bear). The record features eight tracks that peaks and valleys its way through over 40 minutes of music.

"We try not to conform to any specific sub-genre and pull influence from as many places as possible," reflects Dolce. "Our goal is to keep our songs moving and dynamic, heavy yet engaging, not letting parts drag on longer than they have to."

Illustrations for the album were created by Marald Van Haasteren (Baroness, Kylesa) whose style is as colorful and alive as these tracks were meant to be.

Of Adoration tracklisting:

“Phaneron”
“Echelon”
“Reformer”
“Sheepdog”
“Magnolia”
“Seirenes”
“Anicca”
“Colin”

Zaius is:

Jeremy Bellen - Bass
Dann Dolce - Guitar
Mike Imbordino - Drums
Ian McConnell - Guitar

(Photo - Andy Delgado)

Los Angeles rock band MÖTLEY CRÜE will celebrate the thirtieth anniversary of its fourth studio and four-times-platinum album, "Girls, Girls, Girls", with special album reissue bundles that will be available on August 25 via Pledge Music. Various bundles include colored vinyl, cassette tape, commemorative poster/lithograph, vintage t-shirt, vinyl test pressings, a limited-edition, numbered drum head, a flexi single of "Wild Side", "Girls, Girls, Girls" patch, and more.

MÖTLEY CRÜE bassist Nikki Sixx told Billboard about the decision to reissue the album: "You know, it's interesting. You build up a body of work and it's like, 'Well, I want to get people who may not be album buyers turned onto the band.' And then they might go and discover the albums the way the fans of the band do. And so you release greatest hits, you do remasters, you create new packaging, you see if you can find any extra tracks that maybe weren't on the record, you bring out demo versions, you try to come up with ways to make it unique and special. And that's what we did here. I think it's a cool thing for fans. I'm a rock fan myself and I love that. And thirty years is a significant amount of time, and 'Girls, Girls, Girls' was an important album for us in a lot of ways. It was also a frustrating album for us in a lot of ways."

"Girls, Girls, Girls" reached No. 2 on Billboard 200 in its third week — MÖTLEY CRÜE's highest charting album at the time. But it was held out of the top spot by Whitney Houston's "Whitney", which debuted at No. 1.

"Well, back then, you know, there was no SoundScan," Nikki explained. "Retail would report in with their top-selling bands, and then Billboard would accumulate the results from all these different chains — Licorice Pizza, Tower Records, all these places. And I remember I was on a conference call with [then-MÖTLEY CRÜE managers] Doc McGhee and Doug Thaler, and they said, 'Hey man, you guys are outselling everybody two to one. You're gonna have a No. 1 record.' And I said, 'That's great.' I don't really think that having a No. 1 record mattered to us that much, but we were like, 'That's fucking cool!' But then Whitney Houston came out and she was No 1. And I remember that lit a fucking flame to the fucking bomb man. That lit the fuse. Because we were like 'What the fuck happened?'"

"Girls, Girls, Girls" included three smash hits, "Wild Side", "You're All I Need" and the title track, which became a global success, despite the original uncensored video being banned from MTV at the time.

MÖTLEY CRÜE's last studio album was 2008's "Saints Of Los Angeles", which was followed by a 2009 "Greatest Hits" compilation.

A tour film about MÖTLEY CRÜE's final shows, "The End", came out last fall, and a film adaptation of the band's 2001 autobiography "The Dirt" is still said to be in the works.

BUTCHER BABIES will release their third album in the fall. The follow-up to 2015's "Take It Like A Man" was produced by Steve Evetts (THE DILLINGER ESCAPE PLAN, SEPULTURA, SUICIDE SILENCE) and marks the band's recording debut with new drummer, Chase Brickenden, who replaced Chris Warner last year.

Carla Harvey, one of the BUTCHER BABIES' two dynamic frontwomen, told Meltdown Of Detroit's WRIF radio station that the music on the group's upcoming disc "runs the gamut" from "great thrash metal" to "a little bit of '90s influence." She said: "We're singing, we're screaming and it's just a great, great album. I couldn't be prouder of it. I think there's four songs where we do predominantly singing on it. And normally that would scare even me, 'cause I'm, like, 'I'm a metal girl! I don't wanna be singing.' But it's so beautiful — it really is. So it's kind of ballady, but not too ballady. It's very dark, sensual — the lyrics are very sensual on this album."

She continued: "I think we're bringing a little bit of the sexy back on this album that we kind of steered away from for a while. When we were building up our career, we wanted to be taken so seriously as metal chicks, so I think we kind of let those hindrances go a little bit and said, 'Let's just be us in all aspects of us' — from the metal to the sexy to everything else."

Although there is a lot of variety on BUTCHER BABIES' upcoming effort, Carla is quick to point out that "I couldn't do an album with no thrash on it, 'cause that's my passion. I think my favorite song on the album is a completely ridiculous thrash metal song that you'll hear," she said. "It's just amazing. In fact, one line in the song is about my Corvette that is always broken down. I have a '75 Corvette, 'cause I'm a real Detroit girl with a real American car. The song has completely ridiculous lyrics, but it's so cool — total thrash."

Carla said that BUTCHER BABIES next album will contain eleven songs, with an extra track for Japan. The disc's first single will arrive in a "few weeks," and it's "got a super-sexy rhythm to it," according to Harvey. "But everything is still… When you hear the album, you say, 'That's definitely BUTCHER BABIES.'"

Regarding BUTCHER BABIES' collaboration with Evetts, Carla said: "He doesn't do any Auto-Tuning or any pitching or anything like that, so every note on this album is a hundred percent authentic. And it's really cool to be able to say that about an album nowadays, I think, because people are so used to hearing everything Auto-Tuned and touched up and fixed up. This album is exactly what we've always wanted to do — it's something passionate and raw — and we're all just over the moon for it."

She added: "That's the one thing that we've always wanted to capture, because I think that we're a great live band, and when you're a good live band, you wanna capture that energy, and we finally found a producer that can help harness that live energy, actually, into the album."

According to Carla, Chase's addition to BUTCHER BABIES contributed to the upcoming album being "just on another level." She explained: "He's just a great, great, great drummer with all kinds of new ideas, and we blend really well together. And we actually toured with Chase on our very first tour with OTEP years and years ago, so we're all old friends already and he just fit in seamlessly."

"Take It Like A Man" was produced by Logan Mader, who has previously worked with FIVE FINGER DEATH PUNCH, DEVILDRIVER, CAVALERA CONSPIRACY and GOJIRA.

BUTCHER BABIES will support HOLLYWOOD UNDEAD on a U.S. tour which will kick off on October 1 in Atlanta, Georgia.

Los Angeles rockers BLACK VEIL BRIDES are planning to release their fifth album in early 2018 to coincide with the launch of a major tour. The follow-up to BLACK VEIL BRIDES' 2014 self-titled effort, which was originally expected to arrive in September, was produced by John Feldmann at his Southern California studio.

During a brand new interview with the Rock Sound Podcast, BLACK VEIL BRIDES frontman Andy Biersack explained the delay in getting the new disc released. He said (hear audio below): "First of all, we took fifteen months to make the record, and so in that way, we really wanted everything to be as perfect as possible. And the original deadline that we gave ourselves while the record was completed and the mixing was completed, we weren't able to get the artwork and assets and all the stuff together exactly how we wanted it. And while listening to it, there were also elements and stuff I wanted to change.

"People don't necessarily understand that when you're on a major label that they determine when stuff is released," he continued. "And so they gave us the initial deadline that they would have preferred we released the record on the first time, and they were just unable to get the assets together, and also on our end, we just weren't quite done at the original time. So we had a discussion with the label and they were in agreement with us that it seemed like we should try to line it up with something big tour-wise. And we've put together something for the winter that we'll also come to England with. It's gonna be a really big tour and I think something that people have been wanting to see for a very long time."

Biersack delved deeper into BLACK VEIL BRIDES' reasons for wanting to take a bit longer to make an album they were all really happy with, explaining: "We've been doing this for a very long time, and it seemed like if we were gonna take time to make a record, it seemed like the right time to really try to sink our teeth into doing something that we really spent time cultivating. Before, it's not to say that we didn't spend time with it, but we were on deadlines and we were also a very young band that people were saying, 'We've gotta get this record out. We've gotta get you on tour.' And we've never really been afforded the opportunity to take our time with something.

"We wound up doing it in three different locations with Feldmann, because he wound up moving studios in the middle of the record," he added. "So it was kind of fun record in the sense that I sang the vocals for it in so many different places and I saw so many different rooms and the writing process took place in so many different places while I was on tour, and we were at Jake's [Pitts, guitar] personal home studio for a while. And it was a really fun and interesting way of doing the album over the course of over a year."

Asked about the overall sound of the new BLACK VEIL BRIDES album, Andy said: "We made 'Wretched And Divine [The Story Of The Wild Ones]' with John in 2013, and that was, at least commercially, our most successful record to date. A song like 'In The End' is probably our most successful song. And so a lot of times, people point to that record as the sound of the band. But what I think is interesting is that we have evolved significantly, I think, from record to record — from the first record to the fifth record. The previous record that we made with [producer] Bob Rock was a much more straight-ahead, hard rock, heavy metal record. I think that this album — and everybody says this, of course, because you want it to be true — but at least for me, I believe that it's a nice combination of many different eras of the band. I think that it represents all the different places that we've been while retaining that Feldmann thing, that thing about Feldy that I don't think anybody else can even touch or come close to; he just knows how to make things huge. And writing with Feldy is one of my favorite things, so to be able to come back into the world of doing heavy, darker rock music after doing a pop record together [with ANDY BLACK].

"We've been in a band together — Jake and Jinxx [guitar] and Ashley [Purdy, bass] and C.C. [Christian Coma, drums] and I — have been a band together for a decade, we know each other pretty well and the writing process is pretty simple in that way. So I think, all in all, it's a record that's very representative of where we are as a band at this point in our career. I'm not gonna tell you, 'Well, it's our heaviest and most melodic,' or, 'This is the best…' I think that it's just a record that we're really, really proud of and I think it's a great album and I think the fans are gonna like it, and it's a long time coming. At this point, it'll be four years since the last BLACK VEIL record, by the time it's out. So I think it's a long time coming, and I think people are gonna really enjoy it."

Biersack also promised something very special for the upcoming tour in support of BLACK VEIL BRIDES' new album. "I can't tell you too much more," he explained. "If I could, I would say more to you. But I will say this: it's a tour that, in terms of what the fans have wanted for a very long time, it's something that we have been hearing for years and something that people have been asking for us to do, and we were finally able to get it together, and I think it's gonna be really something special. And that's all I can tell you. I think that people in the world that like what we do musically, and kind of exist in the scene that we exist in, I think people are gonna be excited to come out to these shows. At least I hope so, 'cause I think it's gonna be… It's the kind of tour that I think you'd wanna see."

A new BLACK VEIL BRIDES song called "The Outsider" was released last December and can be streamed below.

BLACK VEIL BRIDES released its first-ever concert DVD and Blu-ray, "Alive And Burning", in July 2015.

Vertigo-inducing death metal overlords Incantation have released their 10th full-length album, Profane Nexus, via Relapse Records. A full album stream can be found below.

Additionally, guitarist Sonny Lombardozzi is the featured shredder on the latest installment of Gear Gods: Rigged. In this episode, watch Sonny as he sh(r)eds light on the gear he uses to conjure the sorcery and magic of the suffocating and crushing Incantation guitar sound.

Incantation have just revealed all the juicy, liquid-y details of their collaboration with Brimming Horn Meadery to bring the official Incantation edition Mead, entitled Goat’s Blood.

Brimming with excitement, the guys had this to say: “Our friends at Brimming Horn Meadery and us in Incantation are proud to announce the unveiling of this limited contribution to you devoted fiends. A first-ever mead and metal collaboration! It's a libation of grapes, honey and cherries whose dark crimson color inspired it's name. Goat's Blood! A testament to the near 30yrs of the bands existence and to the amazing talents of those award winning folks at Brimming Horn. In rare hand numbered bottles you too can join us in raising a mighty hail to metal and the brotherhood that we share with all of you!"

Head here for more information, which includes order details.

Recorded at the band's own Incantation Studios in Johnstown, PA and mixed/mastered by Dan Swanö (Bloodbath, Asphyx, Dark Funeral), Profane Nexus can be ordered on CD/LP/Digital via Relapse Records at this location.

Cover art, titled Draping The Tar Monster, by Eliran Kantor.

Tracklisting:

“Muse”
“Rites Of The Locust”
“Visceral Hexahedron”
“The Horns Of Gefrin”
“Incorporeal Despair”
“Xipe Totec”
“Lus Sepulcri”
“Stormgate Convulsions From The Thunderous Shores Of Infernal Realms Beyond The Grace Of God”
“Messiah Nostrum”
“Omens To The Altar Of Onyx”
“Ancients Arise”

Album stream:

"Lus Sepulcri" lyric video:

“Rites Of The Locust” guitar playthrough video:

“Rites Of The Locust” video:

The scheduling for Incantation’s upcoming tour with Swedish black metallers Marduk has been announced. See the full listing of dates and venues below.

Tour dates:

August
18 - Los Angeles, CA - Union
20 - San Diego, CA - Brick by Brick
22 - SanAntonio, TX - Korova
23 - Dallas, TX - Gas Monkey
24 - Kansas City, MO - The Riot Room
25 - Joliet, IL - The Forge
26 - Detroit, MI - Harpo's
27 - Reading, PA - Reverb
28 - Frederick, MD - Café 611
29 - New York, NY - Gramercy Theatre
30 - Boston, MA - Brighton Music Hall
31 - Quebec City, QC - Salle Multi

September
1 - Ottawa, ON - Maverick's
2 - Toronto, ON - The Garrison
3 - Rouyn-Noranda, QC - Petit Théätre

(Band photo - Scott Kinkade)

Toronto-based blackened/extreme metallers, Astaroth Incarnate, have summoned forth a hymn of hellish proportions, entitled “Unfleshed”. The song is pulled from their forthcoming album, Omnipotence - The Infinite Darkness, set to drop September 8th via CDN Records. Listen to “Unfleshed” below.

Pre-order the new album via the following links:

- Canada
- US/International

Regarding the band, frontman Astaroth states: ”The vision of bestowing the ideologies of Astaroth to our hell spawns through our interpretations and relating them to our world and society of today. Our goal is to create extreme metal which feels limitless in its creative form while staying true to our roots and influences in metal.

“With each member coming from a different musical background, it allows us to craft each song with a different mindset, in an effort to intrigue the listener and entice their mind to dissect the lyrics which are encrusted with multi-layered meanings. All of our songs, music and lyrics combined, are built around personal exploration for each spawn to experience in their own way."

Combining a cornucopia of the extreme, Astaroth Incarnate are not easily categorized, though their approach is one that coalesces black metal with elements of death, thrash, melodic, doom, and groove. To sum up, Astaroth Incarnate is a mix of sub-genre fluctuations, which includes a wide spectrum of vocals, progressive drumming, and technical yet groovy bass lines all driven by memorable riffing and solos.

Tracklisting:

“Obscurity”
“Curse Of The Black Plague”
“Unfleshed”
“Sanctum Of Torment”
“Re-Creation”

“Unfleshed”:

Credits:

Recorded at Monolithic Productions by Tyler Williams
Mixed and mastered by Tyler Williams
Artwork by Dee Gozali / Dee Artwork
Photos by Jordanna Clarke

Lineup:

Astaroth (Sam) - Vocals/Lyrics
Pablo Sagastume - Guitars
Ric Galvez - Guitars
Sergio Moyano - Bass
Émile Giordan - Drums

HEADCAT paid tribute to late MOTÖRHEAD frontman Lemmy Kilmister by performing the song "Born To Lose, Live To Win" at last weekend's Wacken Open Air festival in Wacken, Germany. Check out fan-filmed video footage below.

In 1999, Lemmy, Slim Jim Phantom (THE STRAY CATS) and rockabilly guitar-slinger Danny B. Harvey (ROCKATS) teamed up to create a high-energy, take-no-prisoners combo to remind the world how rock 'n' roll was supposed to sound. For over sixteen years, HEADCAT (formerly THE HEAD CAT) continued doing just that to the accolades of fans worldwide.

Since Lemmy's untimely passing in 2015, Slim Jim and Danny B. have put HEADCAT on hold out of respect for their fallen bandmate and have waited until the appropriate time to start performing, and recording again.

Which brings us to the spring of 2017. Along with new HEADCAT bassist and vocalist — former MORBID ANGEL frontman David Vincent — HEADCAT recently recorded a heartfelt and rockin' tribute to their late friend Lemmy Kilmister, appropriately titled "Born To Lose, Live To Win".

The song was released digitally worldwide on June 23 and was made available on a very limited-edition seven-inch single (only 300 copies pressed!). The seven-inch vinyl singles were available at the band's European shows this August, including at Wacken Open Air — where the band performed two sets throughout the weekend.

"Lemmy was my true pal for 35 years," said Slim Jim Phantom. "The HEADCAT 'Born To Lose, Live To Win' track is a tribute to his spirit, image and love of original rock and roll. With his gang, MOTÖRHEAD, he made an everlasting impact on their fans, and like his famed Rickenbacker/Marshall spine tingling feedback, their legacy will continue to resonate for a long time." Danny B. Harvey continued: "This single is both dedicated to, and a tribute to our dear friend and fallen leader. As just about every Lemmy fan knows 'Born To Lose, Live to Win' was not only tattooed on Lemmy's arm but also the credo he lived his life by. Rest in peace, my friend."

Track listing:

A Side: "Born To Lose, Live To Win"B Side: "(This Train Is Going) Straight To Hell"

* Digital-only additional track: "T For Texas"

Century Media Records has announced the worldwide signing of The Offering.

Hailing from Boston, Massachusetts, the five players behind The Offering first came together in Tampa, Florida to invent their signature version of progressive, furious, and technical power metal with a strong death and thrash approach. The wild mixture of elements from many metal genres puts The Offering in a class of its own: Deep musical compositions, extreme, adept vocal performances, a powerful modern sound, and profound song arrangement separate The Offering from the metal pack.

This is modern heavy metal for open-minded listeners who can imagine a hybrid of Nevermore, Death, At The Gates, Psychotic Waltz, Control Denied and Iced Earth.

The Offering’s self-titled debut EP was produced by guitarist Nishad George with engineering help from Grammy-award-winning engineer Mark Fuller, and mixed and mastered by Andre Alvinzi and Jens Bogren at the renowned Fascination Street Studios (Arch Enemy, At The Gates, Opeth and other genre-defining artists). This fine 5-track record is set for a November 10th release as digital download/stream as well as limited 12” vinyl.

Check out the EP’s opening track “Rat King” below:

The Offering’s first studio album is scheduled to drop in summer/autumn 2018.

Lineup:

Alex Richichi - Vocals  
Nishad George - Guitars  
Daniel Martinez Del Campo - Guitars  
Yoav Ruiz-Feingold - Bass
Steve Finn - Drums

On August 4, eleven songs spaning LINKIN PARK's entire catalog received new platinum certifications from the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA).

"One Step Closer", "Waiting For The End" and "Leave Out All The Rest" earned their first platinum records, while "What I've Done", "Bleed It Out", "Shadow Of The Day", "New Divide", "In The End", "Numb", "Burn It Down" and the Jay-Z collaboration "Numb/Encore" added multi-platinum certifications. Notably, "What I've Done", which was the first single from LINKIN PARK's third studio album, 2007's "Minutes To Midnight", got a five-times-platinum nod, making it the band's most commercially successful — though not necessarily most well-known — song.

After singer Chester Bennington's death on July 20, LINKIN PARK album and single sales have been dramatically on the rise, with twenty-three of the group's songs making it to Billboard's Hot Rock Songs chart. Furthermore, four LINKIN PARK albums returned to the Billboard 200 chart, including "Meteora", which landed at number 11.

By July 27, LINKIN PARK's album sales had already rocketed by 125%, while song sales had risen by 191%. On streaming platforms, song listens rose by a whopping 288%, going from 23.5 million to 91.1 million.

Bennington's private funeral service took place on July 29 near his home in Palos Verdes, California. It was attended by five hundred guests, including members of all three bands Chester sang in: LINKIN PARK, STONE TEMPLE PILOTS and DEAD BY SUNRISE.

Limp Bizkit guitarist Wes Borland has confirmed that he’s in the studio working on his new solo album.

The follow-up to 2016’s Crystal Machete, which was written as an experimental instrumental soundtrack to an imaginary 80s film, will be titled The Astral Hand and will link both albums together.

He announced the news via Instagram, with a quote which reads: “I climbed the mountaintop to the cave of Dagoth and swam under the statue of Ith, through the hidden river and beyond the portals that dare travellers off the path, knowingly or unknowingly.

“I cheated a thousand deaths there and stood firmly in the halls of the ancients. I drank of the waters beyond Ith and knew what it was to be burdened with the wisdom of the universe.

“I thought in many tongues as I crept towards the alter and kneeled beyond that bloodied throne that so many mortals have coveted.”

The quote continues: “I knelt at that alter and felt The Astral Hand of Raybienecsh pierce the dimensional divide and as it came to rest on my humble shoulder mine eyes travelled towards the heavens.

“There upon the alter appeared that talisman of dread, that weapon of might. The Crystal Machete was there in my sight.”

Further album details will be revealed in due course.

Last year, Borland reported that Limp Bizkit’s long-awaited next album was delayed because frontman Fred Durst wasn’t happy with the material.

IQ have checked in to give fans an update on how their new album is progressing.

They’ve been working on the follow-up to 2014’s The Road Of Bones and are currently putting the pieces in place for the as-yet-untitled new album.

Vocalist Peter Nicholls says: “That was an important and very successful album for us, both musically and in terms of the reception it received.

“For this next album there’s no shortage of new ideas for us to sift through and develop over the coming months. At present, there’s around 100 minutes of music in various stages of development. Not all of it will make it on to the album – in fact with IQ, the hardest decision is often which material to leave out.

“The current plan is for us to begin recording in the first half of next year.”

He continues: “We aim to road test some of the new works in progress at the Christmas gigs in London and Zoetermeer.

“Playing these new pieces, albeit in an unfinished state, is always a valuable exercise for us – it helps give us a sense of what’s working and what isn’t and I think it’s fun for the audience to get some idea of where we’re heading with the new songs.”

IQ have also announced that at those two shows, they’ll give out a free Christmas-themed Archive Collection CD. Prior to the December dates, IQ have two shows scheduled for Sweden and Norway. Find a list of their live dates below.

Quarto Valley Records has set a September 29 release date for "Hard To Kill", the fourth studio album from Los Angeles-based hard rockers HEAVEN & EARTH.

Founded by British-born, blues-rock guitar virtuoso Stuart Smith, HEAVEN & EARTH specializes in melodic, hard rock in the vein of DEEP PURPLE, RAINBOW and BAD COMPANY. HEAVEN & EARTH's recording lineup includes Joe Retta (lead vocals, guitar, harmonica), Stuart Smith (guitars), Lynn Sorenson (bass and vocals), drummer Kenny Aronoff (John Mellencamp, THE ROLLING STONES, Lady Gaga, Bruno Mars) and keyboardist Ty Baillie (Katy Perry, Robbie Robertson). On tour, HEAVEN & EARTH features musicians Mike Mangan (Hammond organ and keyboard) and Steven Wilson (drums, percussion, vocals).

Taking "Hard To Kill" as a whole, the eleven original songs ring true and the melodies unfold like you have known them your whole life. The title track serves as the band's anthem, a testament to perseverance and the power of rock. "L.A. Blues" exposes the pitfalls of living in the City of Angels, while "The Game Has Changed" dramatically contrasts the past with the present. Meanwhile, "Til It's Over" will earn the admiration of longtime rock listeners, just as the attitude in "Bleed Me Dry" and "Walk Away" will speak to any modern music fan.

The album is available to pre-order via HEAVEN & EARTH's PledgeMusic campaign. In addition to pre-ordering "Hard To Kill", fans can purchase a range of exclusive merchandise and special offerings from the band.

Fan-filmed video footage of SACRED REICH's August 8 performance at Dynamo in Eindhoven, Netherlands can be seen below,

Formed in 1986, SACRED REICH is part of the second wave of thrash, along with TESTAMENT, DEATH ANGEL, DESTRUCTION and DARK ANGEL. Over the years, SACRED REICH has produced a catalog of politically charged aggressive songs that have stood the test of time.

SACRED REICH's last studio album, "Heal", came out in 1996. The band broke up in 2000 and remained inactive until 2006 when they received offers to play European festivals.

Since coming out of retirement more than a decade ago, SACRED REICH has almost exclusively played the European festival circuit every summer. But that will change this year as SACRED REICH is celebrating the thirtieth anniversary of its classic album "Ignorance". To commemorate this milestone, the band is bringing its "30 Years Of Ignorance" tour around the world, which kicks off in Europe on July 26. Following the European run, the trek will make its way to the USA in September, featuring BYZANTINE as support.

During an appearance on a recent episode of "The Official Danko Jones Podcast", SACRED REICH bassist/vocalist Phil Rind confirmed that the band has reconsidered its previous stance on recording new material.

"We're not opposed to maybe doing some new stuff, which is, for us, kind of a change of plan," Rind said. "We've always been adamant that we weren't gonna do any new music, and our attitudes have changed, so we'll see what's on the horizon."

But Rind admitted that the desire to create fresh material may come with its own set of challenges.

"Thinking about doing new music isn't just doing new music, it's making a commitment to do new music and support it," he said. "Wiley [Arnett], our guitar player, just opened a second restaurant, so it's pointless to try to do something if you really can't get behind it, so we need to talk about, if we do do something, is there an opportunity to support it properly, what are people available for, and all that kind of stuff.'

According to Phil, his motivation to get creative is not influenced by the potential demand that may — or may not — exist for new SACRED REICH music.

"Do people wanna hear [something new from SACRED REICH]? I don't know," he said. "I'm to the point where I don't care. I've always been more or less to the point that I don't care, because people go, 'Oh, there's a big audience.' I'm, like, 'Well, how do you know there's a big audience? How do any of us know?' We don't. We can make an assumption that there's an audience. But my point is, look, when we made our first record, there was no audience, no one knew who the fuck we were, and we did it anyhow, 'cause we didn't care, 'cause we knew we had to do it. So you just have to do it with the right attitude. You have to do it 'cause you want to, you think the time is right, you have something to say, and then you go from there. So there's all that crap."

Adding that his "voice has actually gotten better" over the years and describing himself as a "more confident" singer than he was in the past, Rind said that he is not entirely sure what musical direction a new SACRED REICH album would take.

"I'm super guilty of overthinking things, generally speaking, so I can obviously overthink, like, 'What does SACRED REICH even sound in 2017? Should I kowtow to whatever expectation that our fanbase may have of what we sound like?'" he said. "So there's all those things, like twenty years of not making new music. What do we sound like? And I finally just came to the realization we sound like whatever it is that we put out, and that'll be fine. Which is pretty obvious, I think, to probably most people, but to me, I had to work through the process and get to that thing. So we'll see."

During the "Danko Jones" chat, Rind also laid out the SACRED REICH timetable for the rest of 2017. He said: "We've got four weeks of touring in Europe, which is like a long time for us, 'cause we really… basically, we have been doing [short runs] of maybe about two weeks. And then we have our first U.S. and North American shows in, like, twenty years — we're doing three weeks in the States and a couple of dates in Canada. And we're gonna do a thirtieth-anniversary edition of 'Ignorance' coming out, I think, end of July in Europe and then a few weeks later in the States and North America. And right now we're kind of in negotiation to get our whole catalog back, 'cause there's been an issue, contractually, with different record companies, so the records haven't been available 'cause we haven't had the rights to 'em. So I think we're on the verge of getting everything back. So that's really cool. And then we'll go from there."

Fan-filmed video footage of former MEGADETH guitarist Marty Friedman's August 4 performance at Highline Ballroom in New York City can be seen below.

Friedman's new solo album, "Wall Of Sound", was released on August 4 via Prosthetic Records. Produced by Friedman, engineered by Paul Fig (GHOST, RUSH, ALICE IN CHAINS) and mixed by Jens Bogren (KREATOR, OPETH, SEPULTURA), the isc "expands and destroys any conventional notions of instrumental music," according to a press release. Legendary QUEEN producer Mack came on board to handle the mixing on two tracks, "Streetlight" and "For A Friend", which Friedman proclaimed was "an honor for me, for sure."

Friedman said last year about the musical direction of the follow-up to his 2014 album "Inferno": "This time it's even more ambitious than that album was, a bit more dense, and, with any luck, more exciting for those of you who will hear it."

He added: "There will be elevent or twelve songs in total. Sometimes a song you really love doesn't make it to the album because it doesn't fit nicely in the sequencing. Either way, we're pushing sixty minutes, so it won't be a short album."

Marty's new CD was recorded in part at Dave Grohl's Studio 606 in California with engineer Paul Fig (ALICE IN CHAINS, RUSH, DEFTONES) and was previously described by Friedman as "a way more intense version" of its predecessor: "deeper, sadder, happier and more aggressive."

Like "Inferno", Friedman's new album features several guests, including prog-thrashers MUTOID MAN, Jørgen Munkeby of the Norwegian avant-garde jazz-metal outfit SHINING and Jinxx of Los Angeles theatrical rockers BLACK VEIL BRIDES.

Regarding how the collaboration with Jinxx came about, Friedman told Guitar World: "I'm a big fan of Jinxx and BLACK VEIL BRIDES. He came to my show in L.A. in 2015. Right after that, I was told that he plays violin. I didn't even know that! Then light bulbs went off. I thought now's the chance to really turn some heads by doing something that's a little bit, well, a lot, unexpected to my fans and his fans."

Norwegian progressive black avantgardists ENSLAVED will release their new album, "E", on October 13 via Nuclear Blast. The follow-up to 2015's "In Times" was recorded at Duper & Solslottet Studios in Bergen and was once again mixed and mastered by Jens Bogren at Fascination Street Studios in Örebro, Sweden.

To provide a first taste of what's to come, the band now unveils their debut music video for the ten-minute-long single "Storm Son", which blends mesmerizing prog with jarring extreme metal and a folky atmosphere. The music video was designed by Josh Graham, who previously worked with SOUNDGARDEN and NEUROSIS, among others, and delivered a truly spectacular piece of animated art that you can watch below.

"'Storm Son' deals with the duality of man and nature, how important and basic that relationship is," explains ENSLAVED songwriter and guitarist Ivar Bjørnson. "Everything we do and create are imitations of nature; as we evolved from nature, that is how it must be — yet modern man thinks he and she is independent of nature, that we somehow are so superior that we do not have to take nature into consideration other than as a backdrop for shitty movies. Or festivals. Losing touch with nature is basically to lose touch with being human."

A press release states: "This fourteenth full-length masterpiece sets the musical mind-twisters free from genre boundaries and offers an unprecedented mix of prog, extreme metal and shoegaze on eight tracks with a play time of more than an hour.

"The album was once again written by the unholy alliance of Bjørnson and singer and bassist Grutle Kjellson and marks the introduction of their new keyboard master and clean vocalist Håkon Vinje.

"'E' heralds a new era for ENSLAVED. Its cover artwork was once again hand-painted by the Norwegian artist Truls Espedal.

"As support for their brave sound journey, the quintet brought several guest musicians on board for the songs 'Hiindsiight' and 'Feathers Of Eolh', including WARDRUNA's Einar Kvitrafn Selvik, flutist Daniel Mage and jazz saxophonist Kjetil Møster."

Ivar explains the "E" title: "The concept of the album lies in both its meaning as a letter in the latin alphabet and its runic reference: the rune 'Ehwaz', that is depicted as an 'M' when drawn as rune (just to make sure it gets really confusing) — the runes are drawn to look like what they literally mean. Ehwaz (pronounced and used as what's known as E, but drawn as an 'M') looks like and means 'horse.' Which is closely linked to its esoteric meaning; which is 'trust' and 'co-operation.' One of mankind's oldest and deepest pairings/collaborations with any 'outside' entities is with the horse. When they were first tamed and utilized, there must have arisen the notion of some esoteric link between the two; now we could move swiftly, escape faster and even eat and drink from the animal (both horse milk and horse blood), and of course show off and brag before our enemies and peers with the most spectacular horses.

"So, no, it is not about horses! It is about the symbioses that surrounds us; which are vital to our existence, to our development — on all scales: man and vessel (for instance horse, yes), a person and its significant other, child and parent, musician and instrument, chaos and order, subconscious and conscious, Oden and Sleipnir — wisdom and communication. There are many levels and variations of this concept on the album; the duality of man and nature, present and past personalities within one self, the conscious fear and the subconscious drive. And other symbiosis."

"E" is now available for pre-order through Nuclear Blast's online store in a variety of packages, including green and brown vinyl.

"E" track listing

01. Storm Son02. The River's Mouth03. Sacred Horse04. Axis Of The Worlds05. Feathers Of Eolh06. Hiindsiight07. Djupet (bonus track)08. What Else Is There? (RÖYKSOPP cover; bonus track)

"I'm always psyched and proud when we have finished an album recording, and this is no exception!" states Kjellson. "It was a really exciting process this time, with the lineup change and everything, so although it wasn't a dramatic change, the band dynamics were suddenly different. But, it was like a little re-boot, a fresh start so to speak. The studio sessions were great, and we all feel that we have done something truly amazing. We hope you'll enjoy it. Ugh!"

Bjørnson recently stated about ENSLAVED's new album: "I have never worked this hard to put together music for an album before. We are a tighter unit than ever before, which is obvious sonically. The concept conjured by myself and old war-brother Grutle is the strongest we have worked with. Finally, I am proud that we have taken more risks than ever before, and one in particular — and it is yielding awesome results. What does that mean? Stay tuned to find out!"

FAITH NO MORE's Mike Patton made his live debut as the singer of DEAD CROSS last night (Thursday, August 10) at The Observatory in Santa Ana, California. Video footage of the concert can be seen below.

The self-titled debut album from DEAD CROSS, which is rounded out by drummer Dave Lombardo (ex-SLAYER, SUICIDAL TENDENCIES, MISFITS), 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.

"Dead Cross" features a glow-in-the-dark cover (CD/LP) created by Eric Livingston, with vinyl available in a limited-edition gold and a clear/red/black swirl.

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."

Lombardo concurred, telling Rolling Stone: "The album is only 28 minutes long. And the funny thing is [SLAYER's] 'Reign In Blood' was 29 minutes. This album carries so much anger and frustration. You hear it in my drumming. It was the perfect birth of a hardcore album. It's one of the most brutal albums I've ever done."

Joining DEAD CROSS on the bulk of their North American tour is SECRET CHIEFS 3. The San Francisco-based outfit, who describe themselves as "an ever-unfolding musical vision," features Patton's former MR. BUNGLE bandmate Trey Spruance. "I have no idea what kind of chaos it will conjure on stage or in the audience," said Lombardo of the five-week outing, continuing, "but I know it's going to be a hell of a good time."

DEAD CROSS last year parted ways with singer Gabe Serbian.

German metal queen Doro Pesch has revealed to Metal Jacket Magazine in a new interview that she is planning on releasing her long-awaited follow-up to 2012's "Raise Your Fist" album next summer. She said (see video below): "We're gonna put out a new record next year. So it will be out… We wanna try to time it, like, first week in August — punctual for the Wacken [Open Air] festival [in Germany] — and then we're gonna do a big tour."

Doro's last release was the "Love's Gone To Hell" single, which came out in April 2016 through Nuclear Blast. In addition to three versions of the title track, the six-track maxi single also contained two live tracks: "Rock Till Death", featuring Hansi Kürsch (BLIND GUARDIAN) and "Save My Soul".

Pesch told EMP Live TV in a 2015 interview that she had some "heavy" and "really fast songs" in the works for her next studio album.

"Raise Your Fist" boasted guest appearances by MOTÖRHEAD's Lemmy Kilmister and OZZY OSBOURNE/FIREWIND guitarist Gus G., and artwork by British artist and longtime Doro collaborator Geoffrey Gillespie.