BLACKFINGER, the band led by former TROUBLE singer Eric Wagner, will release its new album, "When Colors Fade Away", on September 15 via M-Theory Audio.

Renowned and still cherished for the classic material he recorded with Chicago's TROUBLE for over two decades, Wagner has in recent years been focusing on a couple other promising new bands in a similar vein, including BLACKFINGER. Now relocated to Pittsburgh, Eric is joined in the new BLACKFINGER lineup by another respected name in doom metal circles, guitarist Terry Weston of DREAM DEATH/PENANCE.

Featuring photos from Matt Bluejay and graphic design by Al Oaks, "When Colors Fade Away" is a striking and artistic package with a full color twelve-page CD booklet and a four-page vinyl insert. Vinyl limited to 400 copies of blue/black marble.

Pre-order now at www.m-theoryaudio.com/store. "Colors were a common theme throughout the first record… I think it was a reference for life, or maybe it was hope," explains Eric Wagner. "What happens when colors start to fade or you feel like all hope is lost?

"I think there comes a time in everyone's life when you need to confront your dark side in order to get to the light.

"When I saw the photographs of the old abandoned funeral home by Matt Bluejay, I thought it would make the perfect album cover for 'When Colors Fade Away', and the start of the journey to feel good about oneself again." M-Theory Audio is the new label recently launched by Marco Barbieri, the former president of Century Media Records, whose previous experience includes Nuclear Blast and Metal Blade. Joining Marco in this adventure are colleagues whose past experience includes work for labels like Century Media, Prosthetic, Victory and Epitaph. The label's roster includes Bay Area thrash outfit CULTURAL WARFARE, Las Vegas prog/power metal band SICOCIS, Sacramento headbangers BLESSED CURSE, Southern California's pagan death metallers HELSOTT, nomadic folk metal band TENGGER CAVALRY, female-fronted symphonic metal band GRAVESHADOW and Nor Cal's death/metalcore band APOTHESARY. "Eric Wagner is a true artist, talent and storyteller," says Barbieri. "I've spent the last 34 years listening to classic tales weaved by this man; and he is truly one of my favorite vocalists. Along the way I've had the pleasure of working with Eric and TROUBLE while at Century Media during their 'Plastic Green Head' album cycle and even had his other band, THE SKULL, headline one of the Doom In June festivals. Now our co-operation and friendship continues and I am fortunate to release the new and phenomenal BLACKFINGER album."

BLOODCLOT, the project featuring John Joseph of the CRO-MAGS, plus former members of QUEENS OF THE STONE AGE (Joey Castillo, drums; Nick Oliveri, bass), and DANZIG (Todd Youth, guitar), will release its new album, "Up In Arms", on July 14 via Metal Blade Records. The cover artwork for the disc can be seen below.

The song "Manic", taken from "Up In Arms", can be streamed using the SoundCloud widget below.

BLOODCLOT has confirmed a near-three-week U.S. tour with NEGATIVE APPROACH. ] In addition to being the leader of one of the most influential hardcore bands of all time — the CRO-MAGS — Joseph is an author, an outspoken advocate of plant-based nutrition, and a competitive Ironman tri-athlete. Youth — who played in AGNOSTIC FRONT at the age of 12 — has played guitar with a myriad of artists, including DANZIG, Glen Campbell, MOTÖRHEAD, Ace Frehley, and many more. Additionally, Nick Oliveri has played bass in QUEENS OF THE STONE AGE, alongside one of the most sought-after drummers in the scene, Joey Castillo — who has also sat behind the kit for DANZIG and EAGLES OF DEATH METAL.

These four renowned musicians came together when CRO-MAGS guitarist AJ Novello was unable to play a show, and John Joseph called Todd Youth to fill in for him. The two rekindled their friendship and enjoyed playing together so much that a decision was made to reform BLOODCLOT (whose origins date back to a 1981 BAD BRAINS tour). Todd began the songwriting process, and soon after, Joey Castillo and Nick Oliveri were recruited to join the band. With the new lineup in place, and songs to record, Metal Blade Records CEO Brian Slagel offered BLOODCLOT a worldwide deal.

BLOODCLOT is:

John Joseph (CRO-MAGS) - Vocals Todd Youth (ex-DANZIG) - GuitarsNick Oliveri (ex-QUEENS OF THE STONE AGE) - BassJoey Castillo (ex-QUEENS OF THE STONE AGE, ex-DANZIG) - Drums

Photo credit: Wass Photography, Dustin Jack Photography, Lloyd Nickell, Tony Virgadamo

Just a week after announcing their resurrection, Swedish melodic metal masters Nocturnal Rites already come up with a brand new single: the lyric video for “Before We Waste Away” is available now! It marks the first new recorded NOCTURNAL RITES music since the release of 2007’s “The 8th Sin”.

“This track has a classic Nocturnal Rites vibe to it – a melodic and catchy mid-tempo tune that still incorporates some edge and heaviness. On a whole, though, the album is really diverse. It has a few tracks with some obvious “Afterlife” aggression to them and some that are more orchestral and epic, which is somewhat new to us. We are thrilled to release this first song and can’t wait to get the entire record out! More to come", commented the band.

The band’s new album „Phoenix” will be released on September 29th, available as CD, Digipak, clear/blue/black marbled Vinyl (limited to 250 units) and clear orange Vinyl (limited to 250 units).

Pre-order "Phoenix" here: http://bit.ly/2sYz5Kw

Tracklisting:
1. A Heart As Black As Coal
2. Before We Waste Away
3. The Poisonous Seed
4. Repent My Sins
5. What’s Killing Me
6. A Song For You
7. The Ghost Inside Me
8. Nothing Can Break Me
9. Flames
10. Used To Be God *
11. Welcome To The End

* bonus track on ltd. Digipak and Vinyl (Digipak also comes with a Nocturnal Rites patch)

Bonfire​ sign with AFM Records. After BONFIRE's latest studio records "Glörious" (2015) and "Byte The Bullet" (2017) both made it to the Top 50 of the German album chart and more than 160 live shows played in the last two years, AFM Records and BONFIRE decided to strike a new path together!

During the more than 30 year-long history of the band, there were of course several different label partners releasing BONFIRE's 16 studio records and some were not available at times. So in Autumn of 2017, big parts of BONFIRE's back catalogue will be made available again before the new album will be released in Spring 2018.
Besides being in the studio to record their next record, BONFIRE will be on tour for the rest of the year!

Find all tour dates below and on www.bonfire.de

BONFIRE are:
Hans Ziller (Git & Back-Voc., founder of BONFIRE)
Alexx Stahl (Lead-Voc)
Ronnie Parkes (Bass & Back-Voc)
Tim Breideband (Drums)
Frank Pané (Git & Back-Voc)

Tour dates:

2017:
08.07. (GER) - Ingolstadt - Bürgerfest-Rathausplatz
15.07. (GER) - Jamboree-Open Air
23.07. (GER) - Regensburg - Piazza Open Air
03.08. (GER) - Günzburg Open Air
12.08. (CH) - Gossau Rock On Open Air
19.08. (GER) - Rhön Rock Open Air
02.09. (PL) - Zgierz - City of Power-Open Air
16.09. (PT) - Lissabon - RCA Club
23.09. (PT) - Coimbra - Festival
30.09. (GER) - Alzey - Oberhaus
02.10. (GER) - Teltow Open Air
07.10. (GER) - Braunschweig - Lokpark
19.10. (GER) - Hamburg - Logo
20.10. (GER) - Mannheim - MS Connexion
21.10. (GER) - Memmingen Kaminwerk
11.11. (GER) - Renchen - COME INN -Charity
16.12. (GER) - Obermachtal - Kreuz
19.12. (GER) - Nürnberg - Hirsch
20.12. (GER) - Oberhausen - Zentrum Altenberg
21.12. (GER) - Augsburg - Spectrum
22.12. (GER) - Ingolstadt - Eventhalle
23.12. (GER) - Burglengenfeld - VAZ

2018:
03.05. (GER) - Würzburg - Posthalle
04.05. (GER) - Neuss - Partytur-Halle
05.05. (CH) - Aarburg - Musigburg
06.05. (GER) - Ludwigsburg - Rockfabrik .- Grosser Saal
Juni (AT) Wien Bike & Music-Open Air
20.07. (GER) Burg Greifenstein Open Air
17.11. (GER) Markneukirchen- Framus & Warwick MusicHall

German power metal force ORDEN OGAN will release their highly anticipated new studio album “Gunmen” on July 7th. The upcoming album’s third single is “Come With Me To The Other Side”, which features former Leaves’ Eyes/Theatre Of Tragedy as guest vocalist. A lyric video for the song is available now.

"When whe had just finished the intro for "Come With Me To The Other Side", we immediately felt that it needed a fragile, angelic, female voice to bring it to full bloom and capture the song’s atmosphere in a perfect way. Of course Liv was our first choice and were happy that she confirmed right away. When she came to my studio and sang her parts, she even exceeded our expectations”, vocalist /guitarist Seeb says. “Funny note: in a very early stage, we even considered making “Come With Me To The Other Side” a pure ballad – well, for just about 3 seconds”, he grins.

In a brand new interview with Germany's Bild, Ian Gillan spoke about his relationship with Ritchie Blackmore nearly twenty-years after the former DEEP PURPLE guitarist famously told the Swedish TV program "Metal Magazinet" that he would one day attack Gillan in the back alley while they were both on tour with the band.

"I don't think Ritchie's ever grown up, really," Gillan said (see video below). I mean, I grew out of all that stuff when I was forty years old. I should have done it when I was twenty. But you're cushioned from life in this job; you're not brutalized by it quite so much as you are in other ways of life.

"It's a fine line between self-assuredness and arrogance," he continued. "It's a fine line between all of those things. And it depends on the perspective of where you're standing, 'cause other people see things differently to you."

Gillan and Blackmore were two of the DEEP PURPLE members who were inducted into the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame in 2016 — despite being eligible for induction since 1993. The band had long been overlooked, though they had been considered in 2013 and 2014 before ultimately getting voted in last year.

Gillan told Bild: "Yes, [Ritchie and I have] made our peace. I think pretty much… We're in communicaton now. We've solved a lot of difficulties that were nothing to do with the direct relationship — old management problems that were dividing us and things like that; boring stuff, but important nonetheless within the group. So that's all been solved now. So there are message going back and forth, and I can sense goodwill much more than in the past.

"I don't think anyone has ever said anything disrespectful about Ritchie's ability to play," he continued. "He was a fantastic, wonderful showman and a great, articulate guitar player — very lyrical and expressive. And so we were fortunate to have him in the group. I mean, to have him and Jon Lord and Ian Paice and Roger Glover in a band that is primarily an instrumental band… No matter what I do, I've always recognized that DEEP PURPLE is primarily an instrumental band. That's where all the music comes from in rehearsals — it all stems from the music.

"So, yeah, I wish Ritchie good luck — always have done, really. And we'll see. It's coming to an end now anyway."

When asked if he could ever imagine himself working with Blackmore again, either as part of DEEP PURPLE or another project, Gillan said: "I have got a good imagination. [Laughs] But, you know, when you get divorced, it's hard to go back. You must always respect and enjoy the memories and the nostalgia, but would you do it again? Probably not. No. Just enjoy what happened, because it could so easily be damaged by something like that. And I think if I'm gonna be part of DEEP PURPLE coming to an end, then I've got a lot of other things to do. I would quite happily sit with a couple of beers and do my writing and maybe do some solo stuff with other musicians. But [with Ritchie]… no. No."

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.

Blackmore was absent from DEEP PURPLE's induction into the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame last year. He later posted a statement on his Facebook page in which he said: "I have my reason for not attending the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame induction ceremony, although I appreciate the award."

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".

Metal Wani's Laura Vezer recently conducted an interview with former SLAYER and current SUICIDAL TENDENCIES and DEAD CROSS drummer Dave Lombardo. You can now listen to the second part of the chat below. A couple of excerpts follow.

You been playing with SUICIDAL TENDENCIES for more than a year now and you played on the latest record, "World Gone Mad". Fans are loving every bit of SUICIDAL on road as well as the record. How has it been so far with Mike [Muir] and the other guys?

Lombardo: "It's been amazing working with Mike Muir and the rest of the band. I've been a fan of SUICIDAL TENDENCIES since probably '82 when I first saw them play in Orange County, a neighboring city. And working with them now, listening to the music and the style just brings back a lot of memories — really good memories — of the SLAYER/SUICIDAL years, when we used to tour together and just enjoy SUICIDAL's music, let's say. In the van, when SLAYER would travel across the country in a van, we'd listen to SUICIDAL, and other punk bands as well, but I remember in particular [Jeff] Hanneman [late SLAYER guitarist] and I trading off lyrics, singing along to SUICIDAL records. Very, vert good memories. And even on stage right now performing with them, it's just a lot of fun. It's just a great band, a great organization. And I love the 'World Gone Mad' album. It taps into a different style that I'm able to play — a little more groovier, funkier, but still [with] the punk edge. So it's just another perfect album to add to my list of albums I've recorded." Mike recently said "World Gone Mad" is probably the last SUICIDAL album although you keep asking [him to] write new music. Do you think there will be another SUICIDAL album in the future?

Lombardo: "I hope. I really hope. I feel like that guy has a lot more creativity in him and a lot more energy than to throw in the towel. I feel Mike is on top of his game, and he's got a great band and great history with this band and I think that we should keep going, and I hope he does. And I'm not gonna stop asking him to record. I'm going to make sure that I keep bugging him: 'Man, we've gotta record. Let's do some recording. C'mon, let's record another album. Why not?' I try to motivate the musicians I'm with because there's no reason to stop. You've gotta keep recording, you've gotta keep creating. It's what we do for a living."

In a recent interview with The Salt Lake Tribune, Mike Muir called the 2016 addition of Lombardo to SUICIDAL TENDENCIES' lineup "literally… just a power kick in the butt." The vocalist said: "Dave's a little different than me. I think every show might be the last one, not in a defeatist type of way, but I take that approach; I learned a long time ago there's no five-year plans… But we take it tour by tour, and I think that's a good approach. Dave's kinda like, 'I'm gonna be playing drums 'till I'm 85.' That's how he lives his life," Muir added. "And it's different, but it's a similar kind of approach. I think that every show is very important. And his whole thing, as a truly legendary drummer, people are gonna see him play, and he wants to be there and blow people away. We've kinda intersected at a great point, where we're here to blow people away rather than be nostalgic."

"World Gone Mad" was released last September.

Alex Stojanovic of Metal Master Kingdom conducted an interview with guitarist/vocalist Matt Tuck of Welsh metallers BULLET FOR MY VALENTINE on June 22 at The Phoenix Concert Theatre in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. You can now watch the chat below.

When asked about the status of the songwriting sessions for BULLET FOR MY VALENTINE's upcoming follow-up to 2015's "Venom" album, Tuck said: "it's very early days. I wouldn't really like to say any more about what it sounds like, 'cause it's just instrumental stuff at the minute and we're still finding our feet. We've only got six instrumentals; two of them we've kind of demoed vocals on. So it's very early days, but early signs are good. We're very excited. And, yeah, I don't know. I can't say any more about it because there isn't anything yet. We're just working our asses off trying to [come up] with something special, as we always do."

Tuck also addressed the absence from the road of longtime BULLET FOR MY VALENTINE drummer Michael "Moose" Thomas, who has not played with the group since early last year when he stepped away to spend time with his wife as they awaited the birth of his first child. He has since been replaced on tour by Jason Bowld (PITCHSHIFTER, AXEWOUND).

Regarding what it's like playing with Bowld, who previously backed Tuck in the AXEWOUND project, Matt said: "It's amazing. He's up there with the best of the world. So to have someone of that caliber behind you, I can't tell you how it feels. It's weird. It's a band thing. He's just an animal."

On the subject of how Moose is doing nowadays, Matt said: "He's doing good, I think. I haven't spoken to him for a while, but I think he's doing good."

When asked if he expects Moose to return to BULLET FOR MY VALENTINE anytime soon, Matt answered simply: "That's a Moose question."

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

The band's latest song, "Don't Need You", was released as a standalone single last November.

"Venom" came out in August 2015. The CD marked BULLET FOR MY VALENTINE's first release since the departure of longtime bassist Jason James and addition of Jamie Mathias (formerly of REVOKER).

Chris Cornell's wife of 13 years has blamed addiction for her husband's death, saying that he was "not a depressed man."

On May 18, the SOUNGARDEN and AUDIOSLAVE frontman was found dead in a Detroit hotel room after performing one final concert with the former group. The corner ruled his cause of death to be suicide by hanging, but his wife thinks there's more to the story.

"My Chris was happy, loving, caring and warm," Vicky Cornell told People magazine. "This was not a depressed man — it wasn't like I missed that. What I missed were the signs of addiction."

Cornell previously struggled with addiction issues but had been sober for years, according to his wife. Shortly after his death, it was revealed that Cornell had prescription drugs and an anti-anxiety medication in his system. But assistant medical examiner Theodore Brown wrote in his post mortem report that Cornell died from hanging and that "drugs did not contribute to the cause of death."

Vicky told People that she believes the drugs in his system significantly altered his state of mind.

"He didn't want to die," she said. "If he was of sound mind, I know he wouldn't have done this."

Addiction psychiatrist Dr. Benjamin Nordstrom told the magazine that it's "hard to overstate how unpredictable the effects of mixing various mind-altering substances can be. Some of these combinations, especially those that involve sedative drugs, can lead to levels of impairment that are far out of proportion to what would have happened if the drugs were taken separately."

In previous interviews, Vicky had said Chris seemed a bit short, confused and irritated during their final phone conversation on the night of his death. Normally, according to her, Chris was "humble, sweet, kind and good, with the patience of a saint."

Even after Cornell received a prescription for the anti-anxiety drug Ativan last year — also used as a sleep aid in some cases — Vicky said he still seemed tired. "That was a sign something was off," she told People. "Addiction is a disease. That disease can take over you and has full power."

Chris was laid to rest on May 26 at the Hollywood Forever Cemetery in Los Angeles.

Fan-filmed video footage of MEGADETH's June 27 performance at The Fillmore in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania can be seen below.

MEGADETH is planning on returning to the studio at the end of the year to begin work on the follow-up to 2016's "Dystopia" album.

The Dave Mustaine-fronted band is currently touring North America with MESHUGGAH and will play arenas later in the year as the support act for German hard rock veterans SCORPIONS.

Speaking to KATT Rock 100.5 FM's "No Brown M&Ms", Mustaine stated about MEGADETH's next disc: "We plan on going back in the studio. We're probably gonna go back in and start throwing some ideas around at the end of the year. We were thinking about November or December, and actually spoke about it last night."

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

"As good as [Chris] Adler [the LAMB OF GOD drummer, who played on 'Dystopia'] was, Dirk's feet are more advanced," Mustaine said. "And I didn't think that was possible, because Chris is such a great drummer. But there's a reason why Chris recommended Dirk, and I love him for that. I think that he's a really solid friend for making that recommendation, 'cause a lot of guys wouldn't do that, but he's a true friend, and I was stoked having him in the studio."

He added: "[Dirk] is one of the most pleasant, easy-to-get-along-with guys I've ever met in my life. I'll walk up to him and he'll smile and lean forward and pat me on the back. He goes [adopts thin accent], 'How's it going, buddy?' I could say, 'Oh, man…'… anything. 'Oh, okay, buddy.' [He] smiles and pats me, 'cause he's just a happy guy. I've never, ever, ever seen him not smile."

MEGADETH was honored with in the "Best Metal Performance" category in the pre-telecast ceremony at the 59th annual Grammy Awards, which was held on February 12 at the Staples Center in Los Angeles. MEGADETH was nominated for "Dystopia", the title track of its 2016 album.

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

"I Don't Know Anything", a brand new song from RIVERDOGS, the band featuring DEF LEPPARD and LAST IN LINE guitarist Vivian Campbell, can be streamed below. The track is taken from RIVERDOGS' comeback album, "California", which will be released on July 7 via Frontiers Music Srl.

Featuring original members Campbell, Rob Lamothe (vocals, guitars) and Nick Brophy (bass, vocals), along with drummer Marc Danzeisen, the band's fifth album is RIVERDOGS' first new music since the eight-song mini album, "World Gone Mad", came out in October 2011.

Mixing the soulful vocals of Lamothe with the edgy guitarwork of Campbell and solid rhythmic lines from Brophy and Danzeisen, the album marks a definitive return to the sound of their critically acclaimed 1990 self-titled debut album. On the making of the album, Campbell says: "When my friends at Frontiers suggested a RIVERDOGS album in the spirit of the original debut record, I jumped at the chance to make it. In my opinion, 'Riverdogs' was a highlight of my career with some of my best guitar playing and definitely a record that flew under the radar. Having a clear direction of exactly what kind of record to make really helped the four of us create the music and there was an intense collective focus throughout the entire process that never wavered. I really think that we hit the target in creating a record that has all the hallmarks, the integrity and the emotional strength of the original debut. The fact that we've all remained such close friends throughout all the years only added to the joyous experience that was the making of this record."

Adds Lamothe: "Going into this project, my goal was to enjoy the opportunity of making music with some of my best friends, to share this incredible experience with my family... and to create something that RIVERDOGS fans will probably think is pretty bloody awesome. Big guitars! Beautiful melodies! Words about crazy, complicated, real stuff! I feel like Nick, Viv, Marc and I all brought our 'A' games to the writing and recording sessions. That's way more important than money and awards and fame to me" Brophy sums up the writing process for the album: "In summer of 2016, I found myself in Los Angeles, reunited with three of my closest friends, about to begin a new RIVERDOGS album. Marc had arranged a rehearsal environment at a friend's house, which was to provide the creative atmosphere for writing new material. I stood there with bass in hand thinking, 'Okay, now what?' Little did I know that a few days later we would have six new RIVERDOGS songs and the album 'California' was born. The remaining six songs came, surprisingly, just as easily, a testament to the amazing talents of Vivian, Rob, Marc and the effortless way in which we work as a group. Our clear goal for this album was to remain true to the original RIVERDOGS sound and provide fans with a new set of songs which carry on the legacy of a truly remarkable band." RIVERDOGS formed in Los Angeles at the end of the '80s when flashy, glitzy hard rock ruled the day, but they were determined to avoid clichés and adopted an original sounding blues-rock style. Campbell of SWEET SAVAGE, DIO and WHITESNAKE fame at the time (soon to join and become a long-standing member of DEF LEPPARD and later, founding member of LAST IN LINE as well) was initially brought on board to produce the band's first demo, but was so impressed with the band that he actually became a member and played on the debut album. Soon after the release, Marc Danzeisen joined Rob, Nick and Vivian to complete the lineup. Though fans and critics gave the album a warm reception and high regard, the unfortunate and age old story of change of personnel at their record label came about and eventually led the band members to go their own ways, with Campbell settling into the DEF LEPPARD lineup and Nick Brophy becoming a respected engineer and producer. RIVERDOGS, with a revamped lineup, released two more records in 1993, "Bone" and "Absolutely Live", before going on an extended hiatus. They reconvened, with the original lineup, in 2003 to record new material and play a few reunion shows. Those new songs were recorded as demos, but only completed in the studio in 2011 when their last album, "World Gone Mad", was released.

Now, six years after their last studio album, RIVERDOGS have crafted "California", a record that truly recreates the magical sounds of their early days and that will surely be welcomed with open arms by fans both old and new. "California" track listing:

01. American Dream02. The Revolution Starts Tonight03. Something Inside04. Golden Glow05. You're Too Rock And Roll06. The Heart Is A Mindless Bird07. Searching For A Signal08. Welcome To The New Disaster09. Ten Thousand Reasons10. Catalina11. I Don't Know Anything

The official trailer for "Anticult", the seventh album from Polish metal extremists DECAPITATED, can be seen below. The disc will be released on July 7 via Nuclear Blast.

"Anticult" track listing:

01. Impulse02. Deathvaluation03. Kill The Cult04. One-Eyed Nation05. Anger Line06. Earth Scar07. Never08. Amen

The official music video for the song "Earth Scar" can be seen below.

"We're really excited to release the second song from our upcoming new record 'Anticult' — 'Earth Scar'!" said DECAPITATED guitarist and founding member Waclaw "Vogg" Kieltyka. "I have always drawn influence from all spectrums of metal and this song and our new record really reflect those influences.

"Much like 'Never', this song has been designed to crush on a stage and we can't wait to add it to our set. [Vocalist] Rasta [a.k.a. Rafał Piotrowski] wrote the lyrics with a lot of metaphorical content dealing with touring. The opposing lifestyles from the 'normal,' day-to-day of being at home vs. being on the road and seeing our 'tribe' interacting with the music and the almost restorative qualities of that. We hope you all enjoy it and we can't wait to see you all very soon!"

DECAPITATED's sixth album, "Blood Mantra", was released in September 2014 via Nuclear Blast. The follow-up to 2011's "Carnival Is Forever" was recorded at Hertz Studio in Bialystok, Poland with producers Wojtek and Slawek Wiesawski.

Norway's melodic extreme metallers SUSPERIA comprising former members of DIMMU BORGIR and SATYRICON, have inked a record deal with Agonia Records. The band's long-awaited new album, "The Lyricist", is tentatively due later in the year. The follow-up to 2009's "Attitude" will mark SUSPERIA's first studio album to showcase new vocalist Bernt Fjellestad (a.k.a. Dagon), whose official stage debut with the band was made at last year's 70000 Tons Of Metal festival at sea.

The band commented on the signing and upcoming material: "SUSPERIA is proud to announce the signing with Agonia Records for our upcoming album, 'The Lyricist'. It's going to be a harder and more grim album, going back to SUSPERIA's black roots!"

SUSPERIA may have their roots in the Norwegian black metal scene, but it is merely a starting point for a band that describes their music as "extreme metal with melodic twists". A simple philosophy of "no boundaries" demonstrates that the band has no hesitation in embracing and exploring a variety of musical avenues with ease.

The origins of the Oslo-based group can be traced back to 1998 when Tjodalv, then occupying the drum seat with DIMMU BORGIR, and longtime friend Cyrus (ex-SATYRICON, OLD MAN'S CHILD) got together to share ideas and write songs. A chance meeting between vocalist Athera and Tjodalv at 1999's Wacken Open Air festival in Germany would lead to the completion of the SUSPERIA lineup, as Athera brought in also two other members — bass guitarist Memnock and guitarist Elvorn.

SUSPERIA's lineup can easily be described as a long-lasting one, with all original members in place since its inception, and the exception of Dagon filling in Athera's boots, after the latter's departure in 2015. But even Dagon isn't new to SUSPERIA. He performed with it on several occasions as a live mussician, at times Athera had other engagements. Primarily a heavy metal signer, Dagon has mastered also other vocal techincs, performing with the band. Nowadays, there's new found confidence and determination running through the SUSPERIA camp.

With five studo albums under the belt and an etiquette of a powerful live act, SUSPERIA has consistently remained focused on the live area. The band's numerous high profile shows include supports to W.A.S.P., IN FLAMES, DESTRUCTION and DIMMU BORGIR, as well as headline and festival appearances. One of the group's most cherished experiences thus far, remains the invitation to be the main support to the then-newly reformed TESTAMENT, in late 2005.

SUSPERIA is:

Dagon - vocalsTjodalv - drumsMemnock - bassCyrus - guitarElvorn - guitar

In a brand new interview with Las Vegas Weekly, IRON MAIDEN guitarist Adrian Smith spoke about the band's latest album, "The Book Of Souls", which marked the group's fifth release in a row to be produced by Kevin Shirley. Asked what Shirley brings to the recording process that MAIDEN really likes, Adrian said: "He's old school. He likes to record live. We always did record live, really. We recorded everyone playing together, and then we used to overdub, redo the guitars and the vocals. But now, it's pretty much live. We fix a few things up and do a few overdubs and that's it.

"When you've been doing it as long as we have, you kind of know what you're doing, and you just try and get it down on tape," he continued. "But you're still playing to four walls when you're in that studio, and that's always a problem. You're trying to give stuff life and energy, and you've got no audience to play [to], because the band obviously thrives in front of an audience. Hopefully we hit the mark sometimes."

Adrian also talked about how IRON MAIDEN has changed since he first hooked up with the group three and a half decades ago. "When I first joined, I couldn't believe the energy and how fast they used to play the songs," he said. "It was just pure adrenaline, energy, testosterone. We went onstage and just went for it. I think now it's a bit more measured. We like to give a little bit more space in the music so everyone can express themselves within the framework of the song. There's a little bit more respect for other people. When you get older, you give people space, you give them a bit more respect, you consider the way they're feeling. I think that comes across. But when we hit that stage, some of that old feel takes over sometimes and we still hurdle through some songs. I like to say it's controlled power now. That's my motto for a gig: Keep it powerful but controlled."

MAIDEN's "The Book Of Souls" world tour has been going on since early 2016 and has just returned to North America. The band's Mayan-themed set sees Eddie, MAIDEN's omnipresent mascot, having his heart torn out of his chest by singer Bruce Dickinson, who throws the heart into the crowd.

"The Book Of Souls" is MAIDEN's first ever double studio album and their most successful chart-wise to date, debuting at the No. 1 spot in over 40 countries around the world and No. 4 in the U.S.A.

SLIPKNOT and STONE SOUR frontman Corey Taylor was among the first people Rolling Stone consulted when the magazine began work on its recently published list of the "100 Greatest Metal Albums Of All Time."

Prior to unveiling Taylor's picks, Rolling Stone had posted "favorite metal albums" by METALLICA's Lars Ulrich, JUDAS PRIEST's Rob Halford and BLACK SABBATH's Ozzy Osbourne.

Taylor's list, which is sorted in alphabetical order, includes MAIDEN's "Somewhere In Time" album, featuring the song "Wasted Years", which he called "my fucking soundtrack for years, and I think it's probably one of the most perfect heavy metal songs ever written — just from a song standpoint, not riffage or anything like that. It's just so fucking catchy," he said. "And you can still put it on, to this day, for people who don't like heavy metal, and they'll dig it. It's just got a cool vibe to it."

Another classic LP on Corey's list is JUDAS PRIEST's "Screaming For Vengeance", which he said was "the perfect fucking power-metal album, outside of the stuff that IRON MAIDEN was doing, to my ears. 'Screaming For Vengeance' was just so fucking dope, dude. Whether it was the opening with 'The Hellion' right into 'Electric Eye', or going into 'You've Got Another Thing Coming', the whole fucking album is amazing. And the title track is ridiculous. Just hearing those fucking [screams], that crazy shit coming out of your fucking speakers. I was like, 'What? Should I be listening to this, man?' But it was such a great album and it really showed their evolution, just how fucking amazing that band is."

Unsurprisingly, Taylor selected METALLICA's "Master Of Puppets" as one of his favorites, saying that the 1986 album is "heavy and yet it's so fucking melodic. It is badass and yet it has moments of pure fucking contemplative cool flow stuff. It is sludgy and yet will rip your fucking head off. And it has the best METALLICA song ever written, 'Disposable Heroes', on it. That fucking song is a clinic, not only in alternate picking, but also down picking. I can't play it, and I can play almost anything. That's how good it is." [The LP has] got some of James [Hetfield's] best performances, and the whole band is amazing on it. And it's got some of his best lyrics on it. You listen to it and you're like, "This is criminal, how fucking good this album is."

Taylor also picked two albums that arguably directly shaped SLIPKNOT's sound prior to the recording of the band's self-titled 1999 debut: KORN's first effort and SEPULTURA's "Roots". "To me, I would put 'Korn' on the same level as [GUNS N' ROSES'] 'Appetite [For Destruction]' and [NIRVANA's] 'Nevermind' as far as albums that shifted things culturally," Taylor said. "It's just one of those 'Where the fuck did this band come from?' kind of moments."

As for "Roots", Corey said: "That album… Jesus Christ. I mean, besides [SLIPKNOT's] 'Iowa', that album is probably one of the thickest-sounding, heaviest-sounding albums that I've ever heard, from a production standpoint. It's so gross and yet so fucking awesome. You can almost hear the hair on it. [Laughs]."

Corey Taylor's 10 Favorite Metal Albums:

* ANTHRAX - "Worship Music" (2011)* IRON MAIDEN - "Somewhere In Time" (1986)* JUDAS PRIEST - "Screaming For Vengeance" (1982)* KORN - "Korn" (1994)* MEGADETH - "Peace Sells… But Who's Buying?" (1986)* METAL CHURCH - "The Dark" (1986)* METALLICA - "Master Of Puppets" (1986)* PANTERA - "Far Beyond Driven" (1994)* SEPULTURA - "Roots" (1996)* WHITE ZOMBIE - "Astro-Creep: 2000 - Songs Of Love, Destruction And Other Synthetic Delusions Of The Electric Head" (1995)

MEGADETH is planning on returning to the studio at the end of the year to begin work on the follow-up to 2016's "Dystopia" album.

The Dave Mustaine-fronted band is currently touring North America with MESHUGGAH and will play arenas later in the year as the support act for German hard rock veterans SCORPIONS.

Speaking to KATT Rock 100.5 FM's "No Brown M&Ms", Mustaine stated about MEGADETH's next disc: "We plan on going back in the studio. We're probably gonna go back in and start throwing some ideas around at the end of the year. We were thinking about November or December, and actually spoke about it last night."

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

"As good as [Chris] Adler [the LAMB OF GOD drummer, who played on 'Dystopia'] was, Dirk's feet are more advanced," Mustaine said. "And I didn't think that was possible, because Chris is such a great drummer. But there's a reason why Chris recommended Dirk, and I love him for that. I think that he's a really solid friend for making that recommendation, 'cause a lot of guys wouldn't do that, but he's a true friend, and I was stoked having him in the studio."

He added: "[Dirk] is one of the most pleasant, easy-to-get-along-with guys I've ever met in my life. I'll walk up to him and he'll smile and lean forward and pat me on the back. He goes [adopts thin accent], 'How's it going, buddy?' I could say, 'Oh, man…'… anything. 'Oh, okay, buddy.' [He] smiles and pats me, 'cause he's just a happy guy. I've never, ever, ever seen him not smile."

MEGADETH was honored with in the "Best Metal Performance" category in the pre-telecast ceremony at the 59th annual Grammy Awards, which was held on February 12 at the Staples Center in Los Angeles. MEGADETH was nominated for "Dystopia", the title track of its 2016 album.

"Dystopia" was the first album to featire Brazilian guitarist Kiko Loureiro, best known for his work with ANGRA.

Zakk Wylde says that he is open to making another studio album with Ozzy Osbourne, less than two months after it was announced that the guitarist would be rejoining Ozzy's backing group for all the singer's upcoming 2017 solo show dates.

Wylde will reunite with the iconic BLACK SABBATH frontman for a summer tour that marks the thirtieth anniversary of when the two first collaborated together. Osbourne's touring lineup will also include Rob "Blasko" Nicholson on bass, Tommy Clufetos on drums and Adam Wakeman on keyboards.

Wylde's return to Ozzy's band marks the end of Osbourne's collaboration with Greek guitar virtuoso Gus G., who joined the singer's solo group just under a decade ago.

Speaking to the Chicago Tribune about the possibility of collaborating with Ozzy on a new studio album, Zakk said: "My relationship with Ozzy and Mrs. O [Ozzy's wife and manager, Sharon Osbourne] is if they call me up and say, 'Bring eggs and milk over and clean the dog run,' I do it. If Oz wants to do another record, then we knock it out. We haven't spoken yet about a record. Basically, right now it's about the shows."

Wylde originally joined Osbourne's band three decades ago and backed the legendary frontman from 1987 to 1995, then again in 1998, from 2001 to 2004 and also from 2006 to 2009. His guitar playing can be heard on Osbourne's studio albums "No Rest For The Wicked", "No More Tears", "Ozzmosis", "Down To Earth", "Under Cover" and "Black Rain". The first album with Wylde went double platinum and "No More Tears" remains Ozzy's most successful album, going four times platinum in the United States with four Top 10 songs on the U.S. Billboard chart. Wylde also appeared with Ozzy on three live albums.

Photo credit: Mark Weiss Photography

Veteran British metallers TANK have recruited PINK CREAM 69 vocalist David Readman to replace the recently departed ZP Theart, who is now a full-time member of U.S. rockers SKID ROW. Stated TANK guitarist Cliff Evans: "We're really pleased for ZP and hope that everything works out for him. He's always been a massive fan of SKID ROW, so it must be so cool for him to be able to front those guys on stage and sing the songs he's grown up with. We'll miss touring and recording with ZP but we wish him all the very best for the future." Added fellow TANK guitarist Mick Tucker: "We recorded one of our best albums with ZP ('Valley Of Tears') and shared the stage for many great shows around the world during the three years that we worked together. He will be missed, but, as usual, we thrive on a challenge and are constantly looking to up our game and push the boundaries that little bit further. We've always been an admirer of Readman's particular vocal style and range but never thought the opportunity would arise where it would be possible for us to work together." Said Readman: "It feels great to make music with a British band with a vast musical history. It's been over 20 years since I played in a British band, this is a sort of homecoming for me. Mick also lives in the Netherlands, so many connections. I couldn't miss this one." In recent years, TANK has been fronted by some of the best rock vocalists around, including former RAINBOW frontman Doogie White, who recorded the "War Machine" and "War Nation" albums plus Theart, who's featured on the aforementioned "Valley Of Tears". The addition of Readman means that TANK can once again move forward into unchartered territory and take its trademark style of British rock to a whole new level. Readman's first live appearances with TANK will take place at Pussy Galore in Hamburg, Germany on July 7 and the Rockharz festival in Ballenstadt, Germany on July 8. The first taste of the David Readman-fronted TANK is available in the YouTube clip below.

TANK's new lineup:

David Readman (vocals)Mick Tucker (guitars)Cliff Evans (guitars)Randy Van Der Elsen (bass)Bobby Schottkowski (drums)

Video of "I Want Out" and "Future World" from Helloween founding member Kai Hansen’s show at last year’s Wacken Open Air festival, is available for streaming below. Both songs are featured on Hansen & Friends - Thank You Waken Live, released on June 23rd, on the following formats: Digital, CD+DVD, LP, and Blu-Ray+CD.

Filmed and recorded on a muddy vibrant summer evening at last year’s Wacken Open Air Festival, Thank You Wacken is a unique snapshot in time as this was the first and only performance of Kai Hansen’s band, with whom he recorded and co-wrote his 2016 solo debut XXX – Three Decades In Metal.

He was joined on stage by Alex Dietz on bass (Heaven Shall Burn), Eike Freese on guitar (Dark Age), Michael Ehré (Gamma Ray) on drums, Corvin Bahn on keys (Crystal Breed), Clémentine Delauney (Visions Of Atlantis) and Frank Beck (Gamma Ray) on backing vocals.

A special treat was the performance of Michael Kiske (Helloween, Unisonic) who joined Kai on stage to perform Helloween classics that for a few minutes set Wacken on fire.

Tracklisting:

“Born Free”
“Ride The Sky” (Hellowen cover)
“Contract Song”
“Victim Of Fate” (Hellowen cover)
“Enemies Of Fun”
“Fire & Ice”
“Burning Bridges”
“Follow The Sun”
“I Want Out” (Hellowen cover)
“Future World” (Hellowen cover)
“All Or Nothing”
“Save Us” (Hellowen cover)

"I Want Out"

"Future World"

“Save Us”:

“Born Free”:

“Fire & Ice”:

SMASHING PUMPKINS drummer Jimmy Chamberlin has hinted at a 2018 reunion of the band's original lineup.

Founding member and main songwriter Billy Corgan has been touring under the SMASHING PUMPKINS name for several years with a newer lineup of musicians, although Chamberlin rejoined the band two years ago.

More significantly, Corgan confirmed last summer that he had repaired his friendship with original bassist D'Arcy Wretzky, after not speaking for nearly two decades. With Chamberlin back in the band already and guitarist James Iha joining them onstage for the first time in sixteen years in early 2016, a reunion of the group's original lineup appears to be imminent.

Chamberlin seemingly confirmed the PUMPKINS reunion rumors during a brand new interview with Justin Kaufmann, host of "The Download", which airs on WGN Radio in Chicago.

"We were talking about playing next year with the band and somebody asked me, you know, 'What's it like trying to coordinate that?'" the drummer said (hear audio below). "I said it's like 'Grumpy Old Men 3', only there's four grumpy old men and one's a woman.' [Laughs] So… that's how it's gotten to be."

Chamberlin also opened up about his complex relationship with Corgan, who once publicly called the drummer "a fucking liar."

"The two hours that we spend playing music together is the greatest thing in the world," Jimmy said. "It's the other twenty-two hours of the day that him and I are… He's got opinions, I've got opinions; we're both grown men, right?"

He continued: "D'Arcy, I think, summed it up the best when she said… When they asked her just an insanely rude and misogynistic question… They said, 'What's it like being a girl in the SMASHING PUMPKINS?' And she said, 'It's like being married to three guys you wouldn't even date.' [Laughs] So I think that's the best answer."

Chamberlin added: "Musically, we've never been at odds. I mean, I can honestly say that since 1988, I don't think Billy and I have ever argued about music one time. I can't think of one time where I played something and he was, like, 'What?' Or he played something and I was, like, 'Oh, don't…' Our musical relationship is that intact, which is… Even when I came back to do the [MARILYN] MANSON tour in [2015], we hadn't played since 2007. I mean, you're talking about going out and [playing in front of] eighteen thousand people. We rehearsed for five days — that was it. And after two days, we were ready to rock. I mean, it's just in your DNA."

Corgan told Chicago radio station WLUP earlier in the year that a reunion of SMASHING PUMPKINS' original lineup seemed more and more likely. Corgan revealed: "I just talked to guitarist James Iha the other day, things look good for us getting together to play. We're talking about it, we'll see."

But Corgan added: "The reunion thing is always a bit weird, because then people come in with their expectations. So my whole thing is if we're going to do it, I think we do it to make people happy, and not go against the tide of what people would want to hear and that type of stuff, but my interest in it is sort of limited. I'm not going to do it for fourteen years of my life."

Corgan went on to say: "We're not rushing to something. We have to repair some things between us and see what's out there for us, if those opportunities are even there."

The original SMASHING PUMPKINS lineup last played together on April 24, 1999 in Los Angeles.

Photo credit: Reverb.com

Interview (audio):

"Running Out Of Time", the new video from NIGHT RANGER, can be seen below. The song is taken from the band's latest studio album, "Don't Let Up", which was released on March 24 via Frontiers Music Srl. The disc was made available in both a standard edition and a deluxe edition (featuring bonus track and bonus DVD — physical format only).

NIGHT RANGER truly epitomizes the sound of the '80s, while at the same time transcending it. Since their reunion in 1996, they have brought their guitar heavy, melodic brand of hard rock into the 21st century with their unparalleled talent, energy, and creativity.

"Don't Let Up" was produced by the band.

"The 'Don't Let Up' album is the result of five musicians living and breathing rock 'n roll 24 hours a day. 35 years on and NIGHT RANGER is once again ready to let the fans know 'it's only rock and roll, but I like it,'" says NIGHT RANGER bassist and vocalist Jack Blades of the new album.

NIGHT RANGER drummer and vocalist Kelly Keagy adds: "Working on the material for the new album "Don't Let Up" was a great experience once again. I always look forward to creating music with Brad, Eric, Keri, and Jack. I'm really looking forward to playing some of this material for the fans. It rocks!"

States NIGHT RANGER guitarist Brad Gillis: "It's always a pleasure releasing new material to keep the bands creative flow. As typical for NIGHT RANGER, we have all the elements that made us popular in the first place, including twin-lead-vocal tradeoffs with Jack and Kelly and dual guitar harmonies and solos with my new partner in crime, Keri Kelli. We've stacked the deck again with uptempo driving rock songs, midtempo tunes and a few acoustic ballad tracks. We're hoping this new album will be added to your existing NIGHT RANGER catalog!!!"

With more than 17 million albums sold worldwide, over 3000 live shows performed, and more than 1 billion in radio audience, NIGHT RANGER has both epitomized and transcended the arena rock sound and style of that era and beyond. With songs that have significantly impacted popular culture and continue to expand their ever-growing fan-base, NIGHT RANGER is proof that powerful songs, plus accomplished musicians is the perfect formula for continued success.

NIGHT RANGER has earned widespread acclaim, multi-platinum and gold album status while leaving their indelible mark on the music charts with a string of best-selling albums ("Dawn Patrol", "Midnight Madness", "7 Wishes", "Big Life" and "Man In Motion"), its popularity fueled by an impressive string of instantly recognizable hit singles and signature album tracks.

NIGHT RANGER is Jack Blades (bass, vocals), Kelly Keagy (drums, vocals), Brad Gillis (lead and rhythm guitars), Eric Levy (keyboards), and Keri Kelli (lead and rhythm guitars).

"Don't Let Up" track listing:

01. Somehow Someway02. Running Out Of Time03. Truth04. Day And Night*05. Don't Let Up 06. Won't Be Your Fool Again07. Say What You Want08. We Can Work It Out09. Comfort Me10. Jamie11. Nothing Left Of Yesterday

* Bonus audio track on deluxe edition

* Bonus DVD: Band Interviews; "Running Out Of Time" (video); "Day And Night" (Video)

Dan Lorenzo (Hades, Non-Fiction, The Cursed) recently teamed up with Nathan Opposition (Ancient VVisdom) to form a musical project called Vessel Of Light. The duo will enter Spider Studios in Cleveland to record their debut this summer. Lorenzo has issued the following update:

"I just got home from Cleveland and my first two rehearsals with Nathan Opposition. It was pretty magical. We already have seven songs written. I'm going back to record with Nathan the end of July to record". 

Lorenzo previously stated: "I really haven't played guitar too often over the decade since Blitz (Overkill) and I released The Cursed Room Full Of Sinners CD in 2007. I've had a few bands ask me to join them, but that has never really interested me.

“Back in December, I went to Austin and before I arrived I was Googling 'Stoner rock' or 'Doom bands from Austin' or something like that and I came upon the video for Ancient VVisdom's "The Opposition". I literally watched the video about twenty times over the next couple of days. I have a Jesus tattoo. I met the Pope. I go to church and the lyrics were not what I'm into, but I couldn't deny it was one of the catchiest vocal lines I'd ever heard in my life. Then I listened to their song "Deathlike" multiple times.

“I decided to write about the band  in NJ's Steppin' Out magazine) and I mailed Nathan Opposition (Ancient VVisdom's singer) a magazine and I think an old Hades CD. We started communicating by email and then on the phone. I had no intentions of asking him to write with me because my musical career is long over. I'm considerably older than him and I honestly wasn't playing guitar much, but when Nathan asked me if I wanted to write together I couldn't say no."

Nathan Opposition says, "Lorenzo and I became friends due to my inability to not be susceptible to flattery. Turns out he's a really cool guy who writes awesome riffs too. Randomly one day I ask him about the band we are starting in joking fashion. I guess it was the right timing and the right person because we immediately agreed we should actually start a project. Before I knew it he was sending me CDs of riffs and I had lyrics flowing like a faucet."

Lorenzo will handle all guitars and bass on the recordings and Opposition will play drums and sing all vocals. Stay tuned for updates.

Los Angeles based thrashers Mindwars (featuring former Holy Terror guitarist Mike Alvord) are working on their third album. Recording are underway between Europe (Number 8 Studio in Turin, Italy) and the US (Los Angeles and Santa Ana,CA.). More details soon to be announced. Some footage from the studio is available below.

Mindwars’ previous album, Sworn To Secrecy, was mixed and mastered by Bill Metoyer (Armored Saint, COC, Fates Warning) at the Skull Seven Studios in Los Angeles.

“Scalp Bounty” video:

"Cradle To Grave" video:

(Photo - Alex Solca)

Renowned Danish composer and classically trained multi-instrumentalist, Myrkur, ascends with Mareridt's debut single today. “”Måneblôt" is a tale which portrays a nightmare engaging a woman, girl, animal, violence, sun and fire worship and the pagan ritual, Blót," Myrkur explains.

“Mareridt” (translation: Nightmare) is a rich juxtaposition of the dark and the light; the moon and the mother earth; the witch and the saint. Myrkur explores deeper into the mysterious and the feminine with 11 tracks that further progress her visionary blend of metal with gorgeous, stirring melodies, dark folk passages, choral arrangements and superb, horrific beauty.

Further taking Myrkur to new artistic heights are lyrics in multiple languages, an unforgettable collaboration with Chelsea Wolfe and an array of special instrumentation including violin, mandola, folk drums, nyckelharpa (an ancient Swedish key harp), and Kulning (an ancient Scandinavian herding call). Mareridt is a profound manifestation of nightmares that demonstrates Myrkur as one of the truly exceptional artists of our time.

"I wanted to make an album that I always needed to exist but never did," she explains. "So, I wrote it myself."

Myrkur found herself plagued by insufferable nightmares and sleep paralysis. "I was in one of the worst times of my life," she recalls. "I was afraid to sleep."  She reluctantly lived in her subconscious and tried all the movements that would normally center her: being in nature, swimming, sitting outside and carving wood, but nothing changed.

"You know how they say that when you have been through trauma or abuse, you tend to recreate the situation in an attempt to take ownership of it?" she says. "I think I was doing that. I was trying to solve things [in my nightmares] that I could not solve in real life. Things I could not run away from."

Myrkur knew she had to start listening. She stopped trying to shove the nightmares away, and embraced them. She kept a notebook by her bed and documented everything from the recurring symbols, archetypes and animals that crawled around her head. She obsessed over Nordic fairy tales, mythology and folklore. She pulled meaning from Hans Christian Andersen's Little Mermaid to verses from the Bible, and connected these stories to the spiritual solace she found outside her house. Once the songs started coming, they didn't stop. Myrkur would bring a small, string instrument into the forest to write. "It's very giving," she says. "Your environment becomes part of the song, and the songwriting. I just love that. Nature changed this record." She was manic, writing any moment she was awake, expelling the subliminal material like an exorcism.

"This record is very connected to my true self, without an ego or persona," Myrkur says. "I am interested in human spirit, when it goes beyond the layers. When I get to that place, I feel invincible."

Mareridt was recorded between Copenhagen and Seattle with producer, Randall Dunn (Earth, Marissa Nadler, Sun O))), Boris). Like a marriage of King Diamond's Them with Tchaikovsky's Swan Lake, Mareridt is a carefully composed concept freed from genre. It flows between English and Danish, from guttural growls charged with testosterone, to emotive feminine hymns and Kulning. The compositions sweep into one another like a soundtrack designed to guide the listener through emotional turmoil. One minute the songs are fighting back, the next lulling you to submission. Lyrically, Myrkur hatches open the folklore of her Nordic heritage, applying the ancient fables to her personal piety. Mareridt toys with juxtaposition and finds life between theoretical opposites. Timeless, triumphant, powerful and hypnotic, Mareridt is a sonic nightmare that you never want to escape.   

Relapse offers an exclusive, one time pressing deluxe 2LP on red inside clear with blue splatter and custom Myrkur logo etching on side D; limited to 900.  The deluxe version also features alternate cover art painted by Norwegian painter Odd Nerdrum and contains core album on LP 1 plus 5 bonus tracks on LP 2 (not available on CD or single LP versions). Pre-order Mareridt now via Relapse.com.

Mareridt will be released on September 15th. Artwork and tracklisting below.

Tracklisting:

“Mareridt”
“Måneblôt”
“The Serpent”
“Crown”
“Elleskudt”
“De Tre Piker”
“Funeral” (featuring Chelsea Wolfe)
“Ulvinde”  
“Gladiatrix”  
“Kætteren”
“Børnehjem”
“Death Of Days” *
“Kvindelil” * (featuring Chelsea Wolfe)
“Løven” *
“Himlen blev sort” *
“Två Konungabarn” *

* Digital / Deluxe 2xLP Bonus Track

“Måneblôt”:

Live dates:

July
21 - Katowice, Poland - Metal Hammer Festival
22 - Sheffield, UK - Tramlines Festival

August
17 - Brooklyn, NY - Saint Vitus
18 - Las Vegas, NV - Psycho Las Vegas

October
26 - Stockholm, Sweden - Close-Up Baten Cruise

November
4 - Leeds, UK - Damnation Festival
17 - London, UK - Heaven #
18 - Leeuwarden, Netherlands - Neushoorn #
19 - Lille, France - Maison Folie Beaulieu #
20 - Paris, France - Alhambra #
21 - Rennes, France - Antipode MJC #
23 - Bilbao, Spain - Santana27 #
24 - Madrid, Spain - Caracol #
25 - Barcelona, Spain - Razzmatazz2 #
27 - Milan, Italy - Circolo Magnolia #
29 - Munich, Germany - Theaterfabrik #
30 - Salzburg, Austria - Rockhouse #

December
1 - Bologna, Italy - Locomotiv #
7 - Budapest, Hungary - A38 #
8 - Vienna, Austria - Arena #
11 - Prague, Czech Republic - Roxy #
12 - Berlin, Germany - Heimathafen #
13 - Cologne, Germany - Kantine #
15 - Rotterdam, Netherlands - maasSilo #
16 - Brussels, Belgium - VK #
18 - Copenhagen, Denmark - Pumpehuset #
20 - Stockholm, Sweden - Debaser Strand #

# - with Solstafir

(Photo - Daria Endresen)

Experimental prog-rock/metal group, In The Presence Of Wolves, will release of their new EP, Of Two Minds, Stages 1-2: The Ape And The Cage, this Friday, June 30th. The EP is available for pre-order now via Bandcamp. The new track, “White Noise”, is available for streaming below.

Of Two Minds, Stages 1-2: The Ape And The Cage is a two-in-one part EP in an eventual multi-release story that explores ITPOW's personal confrontations with mental illness, emotional struggle and the five stages of grief. The EP tells the story of twin brothers, one with paranoid schizophrenia and one without. The sane brother deals with the first two stages of grief as he investigates the reasons behind his twin taking his own life.

Vocalist/bassist Vini Stamato explains that "White Noise" is one of the more important tracks in relation to the concept of Of Two Minds...: "Conceptually, this is the last track that represents our main character's denial stage of grief and in reality, this marks a major change in the ITPOW song writing style. When we started writing this album, we knew that we wanted to focus more on the song writing aspect of our music and not just how many technical curveballs we could throw at our listeners. This track was delicate from the beginning. Opening the track with a common time signature allowed us to focus more on melody but it also presented us with more of a challenge in regards to selecting the perfect melody for the song itself. Writing the non-instrumental passages for this track was like walking on egg shells.

“Fortunately, the majority of the song came together when I was home sick from work for a few days. In those few days, most of the vocal melodies were finalized and also the majority of the middle instrumental section was constructed. One of the parts that we had the most fun writing for this track was the outro. That was pretty much a straight, solid hour of Chris and I hashing out the entire section step by step and seeing what pieces fit where. We were extremely surprised to find how well this section translates live. When we get to this part in our set, the entire room goes silent as we play. We were floored the first time this happened. I remember thinking to myself, 'oh wow. I think we created a moment'."

At the helm on Of Two Minds, Stages 1-2: The Ape And The Cage was producer Kevin Antreassian of Backroom Studios, otherwise recognized as guitarist for kings of metallic chaos, Dillinger Escape Plan. The album was mastered by Alan Douches at West West Side Music.

Of Two Minds, Stages 1-2: The Ape And The Cage tracklisting:

“As We Speak Pt. 1”
“The One Who Fell To Earth”
“White Noise”
“The Ape And The Cage”
“M.U.A. (Manipulation Under Anesthesia)”

“White Noise”:

"The One Who Fell To Earth”:

"The One Who Fell to Earth" guitar playthrough:

Calgary, AB progressive death metal band Divinity have posted more lyric videos in support of their new album The Immortalist that was unleashed on May 26th. 

The band comments on the tracks:

"‘PsyWar’: This was a song that had a concept before the music was written.  We knew we needed to create a groovy song with a real sinister message.  Once the main riff was written, the rest wrote itself.  I am very proud of the final song as it relays the message that we all live in a world of psychological warfare where the elite rulers have fabricated a narrative that we have come to accept as normal.  Through media and mainstream news, they have convinced us of all kinds of false beliefs, and they have found a way to get their wars and their ways of normalizing violence and all the terrible things that would normally be completely unacceptable.  We have been fully and completely brainwashed to accept atrocities and lies, as truth.  Now that we are so conditioned to accept this as normal, we won’t question authority, meaning they can do whatever it is they want, without a backlash from the public.

“‘Distorted Mesh’: This song started as a riff of Sean’s, which I took and spiced up and sped up.  The song concept was loosely inspired by the movie"Insidious, where the demon lives in the underworld and emerges only to find his victims, and take them into the other world to torture.  Our current world is a very scary place these days, where lies and distortions of the truth are the new norm.  We are all connected to each other in this madness, but the things that connect us are distorted and manipulated by evil entities who have succeeded in making us thoughtless slaves.  There is no way out of this nightmare that is our modern world's reality."

Orders of the album are at Divinity.ca, iTunes, and Amazon plus an exclusive digipak CD available on their website for those who want to support the band directly.

The Immortalist is a culmination of 5 years of hard work and dedication to their craft.  The album features 12 tracks that include their two previous EP releases The Immortalist, Pt. 1 – Awestruck and The Immortalist, Pt. 2 –Momentum with their 3rd EP The Immortalist Pt. 3 - Conqueror now finished completing the trilogy series for one huge full length album. All the tracks on the album are remixed and remastered by the talented Chris Donaldson (Cryptopsy, The Grid Productions) to make the songs more cohesive and work as a full-length album experience. This album also features Bjorn ‘Speed’ Strid of Soilwork on vocals for the song “D.M.T.”. Divinity is also offering fans an exclusive digipak CD available on their website for those who want to support the band directly.

The bands comments on release:

"Closure is such great thing! We’ve finished our third EP for The Immortalist trilogy concept and have decided to take all three EP’s and turn it into a full-length album."

Tracklisting:

“Manhunt”
“Atlas”
“Hallowed Earth”
“D.M.T.”
“PsyWar”
“Distorted Mesh”
“The Dead Speak From Behind”
“Lucid Creator”
“The Reckoning”
“All Seeing Eyes”
“Momentum”
“Conqueror”

"Atlas" video:

“Manhunt” video:

Album teaser:

Over the past couple years Metal Blade Records has reissued a whole bunch of Riot albums on digi-CD and vinyl.

On June 30th the next three titles will be added to the rich catalogue of this fabulous band. Inishmore, Shine On and Sons Of Society are two studio albums and a live album that can easily be described as melodic power metal gems. Metal Blade is streaming two tracks from each reissue - "Liberty" and "Angel Eyes" from Inishmore, "Bloodstreets" and "Soldier" from Shine On, and "Twist And Fate" and "Dragonfire" from Sons Of Society.

Inishmore will be available on digi-CD with four bonus tracks (“15 Rivers”, “Red Reign”, “Danny Boy” and “15 Rivers” (acoustic demo) as well as on vinyl in four different versions (180 g black/night blue violet marbled/lime green/clear dawn red (US-exclusive)).

Shine On will be available on Digi-CD with the Live At Club Citta January 31st, 1998 DVD as bonus. The DVD features a full live show as well as extra live clips and video clips, 31 titles in total.

Sons Of Society will be available on Digi-CD with five bonus tracks (all instrumental rough mixes of album songs) as well as on vinyl in four different versions (180 g black/clear orange-red/purple blue/orange-brown (US-exclusive)).

All three albums have been remastered by Patrick Engel for the best sound quality ever. The vinyl versions include 350 g covers, an insert and a free poster each, the digi-CDs poster booklets.

Preorders are available at Metal Blade.

Dirty Thrills are a young, exciting and charismatic London-based hard rock quartet who play bluesy rock 'n' roll with an appealing filthy edge, churning out endless crowd pleasers that make guitar music sound sexy again. With lung-busting, powerful vocals from front man Louis James, killer guitar riffs from Jack Fawdry and solid low-end grooves from the rhythm section of Aaron Plows and Steve Corrigan, each member's wide-ranging influences also combine to produce a pool of sound similar to current rock icons such as Queens Of The Stone Age, The Black Keys and Rival Sons.

Dirty Thrills are set to release their new album, Heavy Living, on September 15th. A video for the first single from the album, for the track "Law Man”, is available for streaming below.

Dirty Thrills formed after a drunken night of jamming in a quiet village pub in Wiltshire, but what started out as an inconspicuous session swiftly birthed an ambitious group with the drive and determination to bring the glory days back to the rock scene. Having released and toured a self-titled debut record in 2014, the band recently signed to Frontiers Music Srl and played the UK's Camden Rocks and Wildfire Festivals in June as part of the build-up to their new single, “Law Man”, which Louis James describes as a song "about one man's fight for freedom, only to be struck down by a figure of austerity." They will also be performing at Ramblin' Man Fair in late July, while a full UK tour will follow the mid-September release of their brand new album, Heavy Living, which was recorded at Monnow Valley Studio in Rockfield, Monmouth and produced/mixed by James Loughrey (The Darkness, Skindred, Sumo Cyco).

Heavy Living tracklisting:

“I'll Be With You”
“Go Slow”
“Law Man”
“Hanging Around”
“Lonely Soul”
“No Resolve”
“Interlude”
“The Brave”
“Rabbit Hole”
“Drunk Words”
“Get Loose”

“Law Man” video:

Dirty Thrills lineup:

Louis James - Lead Vocals, Harmonica
Jack Fawdry - Guitar, Backing Vocals
Steve Corrigan - Drums
Aaron Plows - Bass

Wolves In The Throne Room re-imagine black metal as an ode to rain storms, wood smoke and the wild energies of the Pacific Northwest. Now, a portal into their mythic ethereal heathen landscape opens once again. On September 22nd the band will release Thrice Woven on their own label, Artemisia Records. It is a glorious return to the blazing and furious black metal that they alone can create.

The album begins with "Born From The Serpent’s Eye" a true thrashing black metal epic that is bisected with a haunting northern lament sung by Swedish star Anna von Hausswolff. The band worked with metal documentarians Peter Beste and Nico Poalillo to create a video for this track which captures a bonfire-lit performance in the forest near their Olympia compound. More on this very soon; to tide us over, check out a trailer below that hints at what's to come.

"The Old Ones Are With Us" opens with the crackling of a fire and the voice of Steve Von Till (Neurosis) invoking the springtime thaw. It then storms into a dirge inspired by 90’s Finnish doom with lyrics that celebrate Imbolc, the holy day which marks the end of winter and the first stirrings of spring. Figures from Norse mythology intertwine with personal heartbreak and rebirth in the bleak "Angrboda". The song is named after a frost giantess who birthed Fenrir Wolf, a beast who was destined to destroy the world and murder the gods.

Fenrir Wolf also appears on the cover of Thrice Woven in a painting by Russian occult artist Denis Forkas. Forkas’ obscure medieval painting techniques perfectly compliment the music of Wolves In The Throne Room, you can explore the glimmering painting at the bottom of this post.

A raven’s wings stir the air in the interlude "Mother Owl, Father Ocean". Anna von Hausswolff returns in a duet with Turkish harpist Zeynep Oyku, forlorn industrial atmospheres haunt the mix, Hausswolff’s lyrics, sung in Swedish, echo over a barren grey seascape. "Fires Roar In The Palace Of The Moon" is the classic Cascadian black metal epic, the third eye opens to see holy rivers being born from the ice on the tallest peaks, the lyrics offer blessings to the waters of the earth as they flow from the high places to the source of darkness, the ocean.

When the band returned to the road in summer 2016 long-time touring guitar player Kody Keyworth was welcomed as a full member of Wolves In The Throne Room. On Thrice Woven, Kody contributes raven’s screams and some of the most brutal and dark riffs. The live lineup also features Peregrine Somerville (Sadhaka) playing third guitar and Brittany McConnell (Wolvserpent) on keyboards and percussion. The effect of three guitars on stage is mesmerizing and reflects the dark psychedelia of the band’s albums.

Look for Thrice Woven to be available on September 22nd and stay tuned for more news from Wolves In The Throne Room to surface soon.

Thrice Woven tracklisting:

“Born From The Serpent's Eye”
“The Old Ones Are With Us”
“Angrboda”
“Mother Owl, Father Ocean”
“Fires Roar In The Palace Of The Moon”

Teaser:

(Band photo - Peter Beste)

Unparalleled Universe, the new album from iconic US death metallers Origin, is set to be released this Friday, June 30th, via Agonia Records (Europe / Rest Of World) and Nuclear Blast Records (North America). A playthrough video for the album track “Accident And Error” is available for streaming below.

For 20 years, Origin has engaged a full-blown sensory assault of tight, taut, and technical death metal amplified by flashes of grindcore and groove. However, 2017’s Unparalleled Universe sees the quartet - Paul Ryan, John Longstreth (drums), Mike Flores (bass, vocals), and Jason Keyser (vocals) - strengthen that blueprint with a handful of surprises.

"It feels like an Origin album, but it’s unparalleled to what you might expect if you haven’t heard us for 10 or 15 years" says Ryan. "To me, it’s a true reflection of ourselves. I compare it to an action movie. Our earlier material is filled with action from beginning to end. Now, the idea is to add a little more depth and dynamics. You could say there are some twists in the plot musically".

Origin began compiling ideas for what would become Unparalleled Universe while touring in support of their 2014 sixth offering, Omnipresent. Along the way, the record snatched their highest position on the Billboard Heatseekers Chart, bowing in the Top 10. Meanwhile, it garnered acclaim from metal press and successful tours with everyone from Aborted and Exhumed to Immolation and Marduk over the last three years. They’ve also shined on the Summer Slaughter Tour in 2009 and 2014. On the road with Belphegor last year, the members debuted a skeleton of the first single "Accident and Error" in front of packed crowds.

"We would ask the audience to give us title ideas, but we could never discern what they were actually saying" laughs Ryan. "Riffs typically start on tour, and I keep them in my back pocket. That’s the way it is. Ultimately, Unparalleled Universe begins another era for Origin. In the end, we’re still writing death metal songs, but we’re adding new dimensions. We’re still Origin".

Unparalleled Universe was recorded and mixed at Chapman Studios in February 2017 alongside longtime collaborator and engineer Robert Rebeck (Tech N9ne). The band emerged with ten new songs including a cover of Brujeria's "Revolución", that were mastered in March 2017 by Colin Marston at Menegroth - The Thousand Caves (Altar of Plagues, Jarobe, Krallice) and wrapped in a cover prepared by Filip Ivanovic (Dismember, Cryptopsy, Heavy Montreal, Gorguts).

Tracklisting:

“Infinitesimal To The Infinite”
“Accident And Error”
“Cascading Failures, Diminishing Returns”
“Mithridatic”
“Truthslayer”
“Invariance Under Transformation”
“Dajjal”
“Burden Of Prescience”
“Unequivocal”
“Revolucion”

“Cascading Failures, Diminishing Returns” lyric video:

“Accident And Error” lyric video:

In-Studio videos:

Part 1:

Part 2:

Part 3:

Unparalleled Universe album formats:

- Digipack CD
- Limited BOX CD (including beer opener with album cover, flag with band logo and alternative CD version of the album)
- 12” gatefold LP (black)
- 12” gatefold LP (gray)
- 12” gatefold LP (splatter) - Agonia Records Webshop exclusive
- 12”gatefold picture LP
- Digital

Pre-order here.

Lineup:

Paul Ryan - guitar and backing vocals
John Longstreth - drums
Mike Flores - bass and backing vocals
Jason Keyser - lead vocals