Forged in the frozen bowels of Edmonton, Alberta, the folk metal act Mongol, pays homage to the Mongolian Empire of old. Blending heavy melodic riffs with an array of folk instruments and Asian harmonies, Mongol wield a sound as diverse as the nation’s their historical influences conquered. 

Their unique sound has taken them on many exciting journeys, including co-headlining Mongolia’s first international metal festival, Noise Metal Fest, alongside folk metal icons, Nine Treasures, in 2014. Since forming in 2009, Mongol has had the pleasure of sharing the stage with such acts as Arkona, Kalmah, Nekrogoblikon, Havok, and many more. An album, The Return, is to be released physically via Sliptrick Records later this year with the addition of the songs from the current digital EP release Warrior Spirit.

Warrior Spirit by Mongol

 

Metal group Athanasia have released the official music video for their track "White Horse" off of their upcoming album The Order Of The Silver Compass. "White Horse" was directed by Matt Zane and is the third single off of their upcoming album.

White Horse was written after watching too many of our friends and family members getting sucked into the vacuum of substance abuse and spat out as a shell of who they once were. This song is for anybody who's ever lost somebody to addiction. - Athanasia

Pre-order The Order Of The Sliver Compass here.

The Order Of The Sliver Compass tracklisting:

“Read Between The Lines”
“Spoils Of War”
“The Order Of The Silver Compass”
“Cyclops Lord (My Will Is Done)”
“The Bohemian”
“Mechanized Assault”
“Nightmare Sound”
“White Horse”

"White Horse" video:

“The Order Of The Silver Compass” video:

“Spoils Of War” video:

The global metal project Metaspherical will be releasing a new track entitled "Crusher", which features vocalist Chris 'The Heathen' Valagao (Zimmer's Hole/West of Hell), guitarist Jason Morley (Metaspherical), bassist Tony Choy (Atheist/Cynic/Pestilence), drummer Steve Flynn (Atheist/Gnostic) and a killer guest lead from guitarist Sean Parkinson (West of Hell). 

Metaspherical will also be making their exclusive live debut on May 12th at The Wise Hall in Vancouver, B.C. Canada. This show will feature guest lead vocals from Kelly Shaefer (Atheist).  It will also feature guests from Zimmer's Hole and West of Hell. Metaspherical will be sharing the stage alongside Cocaine Moustache, Revenger and Terrifier.

Metaspherical's previously released single “Cloth Of Ought To” featured the likes of Gene Hoglan (Testament/Dark Angel/Death/Strapping Young Lad), Kelly Shaefer (Atheist) and Andy LaRocque (King Diamond/Death). The current live lineup for Metaspherical includes guitarist Jason Morley,bassist Mark O'Halloran,vocalist Laura Kelsey, guitarist Kyden McCormick (Evilosity/Ogroem),and drummer Rob Curtis (Entity).

June 2nd will mark the release of Global Music Award-winning nomadic folk metal group Tengger Cavalry's new full-length album, Die On My Ride. A lyric video for the album track “Ashley” is available for streaming below.

The new album expands on the band's celebrated, exotic metal-meets-Mongolian/Central Asian musical influence and lyrical explorations of tradition, history and warfare by delving into more topical themes of personally-experienced racial discrimination, identity conflicts and equal rights issues.

Die On My Ride was self-produced at Nature G's production studio Raiding Media, and is available to pre-order now in both physical CD and vinyl format via M-Theory Audio or digitally via the band's Bandcamp page.

Tracklisting:

“Snow”
“Die On My Ride”
“Independence Day”
“To The Sky”
“Prayer”
“Strike”
“Ashley”
“Cursed”
“The Frontline”
“The Choice Of My Mind”
“Me Against Me”
“We Will Survive” (Bonus)
“Burn” (Bonus)

“Ashley” lyric video:

“Die On My Ride”:

Die On My Ride is Tengger Cavalry's first album available in vinyl format, as well as their first album to be released with M-Theory Audio - the new label recently launched by Marco Barbieri, former president of Century Media Records and Nuclear Blast America. The album is distributed by AISA/RED in North America.

Just a day after the album drops, the band will kick off a 25+ date North American headline tour featuring support from Venezuelan world music/progressive fusion guitarist Felix Martin and pagan folk metal group Helsott.

The tour will begin in Montreal, QC on June 3rd and visit several other major Canadian and US cities before coming to an end on July 8th in Manchester, NH (Helsott will appear June 18th - June 27th). See below for a full listing of dates.

Tengger Cavalry frontman Nature G states: "After so many months off the road, hours and hours of recording in the studio and many intense rehearsals, we are so excited to finally hit the road and raid with Felix Martin and Helsott! Helsott is amazing - they play European-influenced pagan folk metal, and Felix Martin is an absolutely skillful progressive-influenced metal/rock act. We're stoked to play many songs from our brand new album and also to have these awesome fellow world/folk music artists out with us!"

Tour Dates with Felix Martin, Helsott:

June
3 - Montreal, QC - Bar Le Ritz
4 - Ottawa, ON - Mavericks
5 - Toronto, ON - Hard Luck
6 - Pittsburgh, PA - Cattivo
8 - Grand Rapids, MI - Pyramid Scheme
9 - Indianapolis, IN - Taps Live
10 - Chicago, IL - Beat Kitchen
11 - Fargo, ND - Aquarium
13 - Winnipeg, MB - Windsor Hotel
14 - Saskatoon, SK - Amigos
15 - Edmonton, AB - Brixx
16 - Calgary, AB - Distortion
18 - Vancouver, BC - Rickshaw Theater*
19 - Seattle, WA - Highline*
21 - Portland, OR - Dantes*
23 - San Francisco, CA - Bottom of the Hill*
24 - San Diego, CA - Soda Bar*
25 - Phoenix, AZ - Club Red*
27 - Denver, CO - Hi Dive*
28 - Kansas, City MO - Riot Room
29 - St Louis, MO - Fubar
30 - Memphis, TN - Hi Tone

July
1 - Nashville, TN - East Room
3 - Atlanta, GA - 529
4 - Asheville, NC - Mothlight
5 - Richmond, VA - Strange Matter
6 - Philadelphia, PA - Fire
7 - Brooklyn, NY - Saint Vitus
8 - Manchester, NH - Jewel

* Helsott will appear June 18th - June 27th

Each night on tour, fans can look forward to hearing Tengger Cavalry favorites and new tracks from the band's aforementioned new album, Die On My Ride.

(Photo - Zilan Fan Photography)

In the new video below, Greek extreme metal veterans Rotting Christ perform the title track of their 2013 album, Kata Ton Daimona Eaytoy, live in San Jose, Costa Rica on December 1st, 2016.

Peaceville Records presents the early works of Rotting Christ, commencing with the 1993 classic album Thy Mighty Contract, available now on 180gm heavyweight vinyl, featuring an eight page booklet with thoughts and reflections from the band penned by Cult Never Dies author Dayal Patterson, and including rare images. Also available is a special old school shirt design from the early era of the band, featuring the iconic Satanas Tedeum demo artwork.

Order here.

Tracklisting:

Side A
“The Sign Of Evil Existence”
“Transform All Suffering Into Plagues”
“Fgmenth, They Gift”
“His Sleeping Majesty”

Side B
“Exiled Archangels”
“Dive The Deepest Abyss”
“The Coronation Of The Serpent”
“The Fourth Knight Of Revelation”

German death metallers, Cadaver Disposal (featuring members of Bethlehem and Majesty) have released a new video for the track "Conclusio: Quantum Restat", featured on their latest album, Transformatio Mundi.

Transformatio Mundi was released on April 28th via Nihilistic Empire Records. Artwork and tracklisting below.

Tracklisting:

“De Pulchritudine et de Ruinam”
“Congregation”
“The Ancient Order”
“Seven Seals Unveiled”
“A Fateful Gathering”
“Divine Delectation”
“What Must Never Be Forgotten”
“An Infinite Dream Ascends”
“Transformatio Mundi”
“Failure of Man”
“Saddening Nothingness”
“Return from Exile”
“Conclusio: Quantum Restat”

"Conclusio: Quantum Restat" video:

German thrashers KREATOR will reissue their first four albums from the Noise Records years through BMG this June. 1985's "Endless Pain", 1986's "Pleasure To Kill", 1987's "Terrible Certainty" and 1989's "Extreme Aggression" have all been remastered with the CD versions containing a whole host of extras: EPs, previously unheard tracks from demos and live sets. These reissues have all been curated by the band's leader, Mille Petrozza, and include rare photos, memorabilia and sleevenotes as well as re-imagined artwork. All four albums have been re-mastered from the original tapes and pressed on high-quality heavyweight vinyl, available for the first time in some 30 years!

A teaser trailer for the KREATOR reissues, featuring archive material from the era and commentary by from likes of Nergal from BEHEMOTH, Andreas Kisser from SEPULTURA and Dennis Lyxzen from REFUSED, as well as Mille Petrozza himself, can be seen below. Formed in Essen, Germany in 1984, KREATOR is arguably the most influential and successful European thrash metal band ever. Like many of their European speed metal brethren, KREATOR fused METALLICA's thrash innovations with VENOM's proto-black metal imagery. KREATOR is often credited with helping pioneer death metal and black metal by containing several elements of what was to become those genres. The band has achieved worldwide sales of over two million units for combined sales of all their albums, making them one of the best-selling German thrash metal bands of all time. KREATOR's style has changed several times over the years, from a VENOM-inspired speed metal sound, later moving in to thrash metal, and including a period of transitioning from thrash to industrial metal and gothic metal throughout the 1990s. In the early 2000s, KREATOR returned to their classic thrash sound, which has continued to the present. "Endless Pain" track listing : 01. Endless Pain02. Total Death03. Storm Of The Beast04. Tormentor05. Son Of Evil06. Flag Of Hate07. Cry War08. Bonebreaker09. Living In Fear10. Dying Victims11. Satan's Day ("Blitzkrieg" Demo)12. Messenger From Burning Hell ("Blitzkrieg" Demo)13. Armies Of Hell ("End Of The World" Demo)14. Tormentor ("End of the World" Demo)15. Cry War ("End Of The World" Demo)16. Bonebreaker ("End Of The World" Demo) "Pleasure To Kill" track listing : 01. Choir Of The Damned02. Ripping Corpse03. Death Is Your Saviour04. Pleasure To Kill05. Riot Of Violence06. The Pestilence07. Carrion08. Command Of The Blade09. Under The Guillotine10. Flag Of Hate ("Flag Of Hate" EP)11. Take Their Lives ("Flag Of Hate" EP)12. Awakening Of The Gods ("Flag Of Hate" EP) "Terrible Certainty" track listing 01. Blind Faith02. Storming with Menace03. Terrible Certainty04. As the World Burns05. Toxic Trace06. No Escape07. One of Us08. Behind the Mirror09. Impossible to Cure ("Out Of The Dark…Into The Light" EP)10. Lambs to the Slaughter ("Out Of The Dark…Into The Light" EP)11. Terrible Certainty (live)12. Riot Of Violence (live)13. Awakening Of The Gods (live)14. Flag Of Hate (live)15. Love Us Or Hate Us (live)16. Behind The Mirror (live) "Extreme Aggression" track listing: 01. Extreme Aggression02. No Reason To Exist03. Love Us Or Hate Us04. Stream Of Consciousness05. Some Pain Will Last06. Betrayer07. Don't Trust08. Bringer Of Torture09. Fatal Energy10. Some Pain Will Last (Live in East Berlin 1990)11. Extreme Aggression (Live in East Berlin 1990)12. Under The Guillotine (Live in East Berlin 1990)13. Toxic Trace (Live in East Berlin 1990)14. Bringer Of Torture (Live in East Berlin 1990)15. Pleasure To Kill (Live in East Berlin 1990)16. Flag Of Hate (Live in East Berlin 1990)17. Terrible Certainty (Live in East Berlin 1990)18. Riot Of Violence (Live in East Berlin 1990)19. Love Us Or Hate Us (Live in East Berlin 1990)20. Behind The Mirror (Live in East Berlin 1990)21. Betrayer (Live in East Berlin 1990)22. Awakening Of The Gods (Live in East Berlin 1990)23. Tormentor (Live in East Berlin 1990)

ALL 41 is not just another project born of Frontiers president Serafino Perugino's imaginative A&R mind, but is a project very close to the hearts of each musician involved. With none other than the amazing Terry Brock (GIANT, STRANGEWAYS) on lead vocals, Robert Berry (THREE, ALLIANCE) on bass and lead vocals, Gary Pihl (BOSTON, SAMMY HAGAR, ALLIANCE) on guitar, and Matt Starr (ACE FREHLEY, MR. BIG) on drums, ALL 41 is a project born of passion and fire. Their debut album, "World's Best Hope", will be released July 7.

You can see a behind-the-scenes look at the making of the album below. Pihl says: "It started with some great-sounding songs in a rough 'demo' form, but every time I got a new version with each musician's real performance on it, I got stoked! We're all bringing our 'A' game to the band. I can't wait to do some gigs with these guys! Robert and I go way back, and Terry and Matt are, like, the best players ever!" Berry adds: "So many times musicians get together and struggle to find common ground in style and substance. When Serafino, president of Frontiers, called me with the lineup for ALL 41, I had no idea that he had put together perfectly matching musical pieces. From playing bass to Matt's solid drums, trading vocals with Terry's soaring voice, to the warmth and feel of Gary's own style of powerful-yet-melodic guitar playing, this band came together like missing puzzle pieces. I can't wait to get it on to the concert stage." "What a great bunch of musicians to work with and such talented, classy guys. I am proud to be associated with this project and I am so proud of my great friend and collaborator Alessandro Del Vecchio for his incredible work!!!! Thank you Serafino, Mario and Frontiers for ANOTHER amazing opportunity....GRAZIE MILLE AMICI," says Brock, with drummer Matt Starr adding, "I had a lot of fun making this record. There are some amazing songs and everybody really played great!" Musically, these guys gel incredibly well and have come up with a superb debut album which mixes MR. BIG's most melodic moments together with the more keyboard-laden years of VAN HALEN along with obvious nods to STRANGEWAYS and ALLIANCE. The dual lead vocals are an amazing plus for this absolutely beautiful record, not to mention the excellent production which highlights the unforgettable melodies. Track listing:

01. After The Rain02. Cyanide03. Down Life's Page04. Mother Don't Cry05. Show Me The Way06. Walk Alone07. Don't Surrender (To Love)08. Hero In Your Life09. Never Back Down Again10. Who Knows11. The World's Best Hope

Considered one of the most influential bands of the alternative rock scene, PEARL JAM has sold nearly 32 million records in the U.S. and garnered critical acclaim throughout their career, including a 2017 induction to the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame in their first year of eligibility. Hal Leonard is proud to now release "Pearl Jam Anthology - The Complete Scores".

This deluxe, hardcover book provides 130 scores of every song on the PEARL JAM albums "Ten" through "Lightning Bolt". Over 800 pages of music contain lyrics and streamlined transcriptions of every instrument that was recorded for an amazing written documentation of this influential band. Guitar and bass parts are written in both standard notation and tablature.

Songs include:

* Alive* Animal* Better Man* Black* Breakerfall* Corduroy* Daughter* Dissident* Do the Evolution* Elderly Woman Behind the Counter In A Small Town* Even Flow* Given to Fly* Go* Grievance* Indifference* Jeremy* My Father's Son* Not for You* Nothing As It Seems* Once* Porch* Rearviewmirror* Wishlist

and more.

Packaged in its own protective box, this book is a must-own for any serious PEARL JAM fan or collector.

"Pearl Jam Anthology - The Complete Scores" is available from music and bookstores or by visiting www.halleonard.com.

A year after stepping down as president of TNA Wrestling, SMASHING PUMPKINS frontman Billy Corgan is reportedly close to purchasing the National Wrestling Alliance, according to The Pulse Of Radio. As first reported by PWInsider, the deal would see Corgan purchase the name, rights and trademarks of the NWA as well as the rights and possession of its championship belt.

Corgan, a lifelong wrestling fan, began investing in TNA in June 2016 and helped to finance several of the company's televised matches. After investing more and acquiring a larger share in TNA, Corgan was named president in August 2016 and announced his intentions to purchase the company. But Corgan was denied the opportunity to buy TNA, after which he resigned from his presidency and sued TNA.

In his October 2016 lawsuit, Corgan claimed that he was entitled to a majority stake in the company — although a judge ruled against him.

He later settled with Anthem Media, which eventually bought TNA, and was paid back his entire investment plus interest, which amounted to a total of $2.7 million.

If the deal with NWA goes through, it is not clear Corgan's plans for the National Wrestling Alliance will be or what changes he intends to make as new owner.

Corgan has flirted with buying wrestling companies for years, going back to the late 1990s when he was offered a 10 percent stake in the original Extreme Championship Wrestling.

Speculation has been brewing for months that Corgan is planning to reunite with the original lineup of the SMASHING PUMPKINS for a tour, but Corgan has been largely silent about that possibility since saying in a January radio interview that "things look good" for a reunion.

Virginia’s Inter Arma has announced North American tour dates throughout August and September. The band will perform headlining concerts from August 5th - 17th then appear at the third annual Psycho Las Vegas the weekend of August 18th - 20th. Afterward, Inter Arma will provide support for Pelican from August 21st - 26th with additional headline shows to follow. Tickets go on sale this Friday, May 5th. All confirmed tour dates below.

Additionally, Inter Arma has shared a trance-inducing video for the title-track from 2016’s full-length, Paradise Gallows. Watch the video, directed by Jordan Vance, below:

Inter Arma is currently on tour throughout Europe until May 13th, then return to the states on May 25th to hit the road with Pallbearer and label-mates Gatecreeper.

Inter Arma tour dates:

May
2 Manchester, UK - Star & Garter *
3 Bristol, UK - Exchange *
4 Arlons, Belglium - Festival Aralunaire
5 Tours, France - Le Temps Machine *
6 Toulouse, France - Le Saint Des Deins
7 L’Hospitalet, Spain - Salamandra 2
9 Marseille, France - Jas Rod
10 Milan, Italy - Ligera
11 Luzern, Switzerland - Sedel
12 Cologne, Germany - Underground
13 Berlin, Germany - Cassiopeia

* with Celeste

May (with Pallbearer and Gatecreeper)
25 Kansas City, MO - The Riot Room
26 Minneapolis, MN - 7th St. Entry
27 Des Moines, IA - Vaudeville Mes
28 Madison, WI - High Noon Saloon
30 Columbus, OH - Ace of Cups
31 Pittsburgh, PA - Rex Theater

June (with Pallbearer and Gatecreeper)
1 Washington, DC - Rock and Roll Hotel
5 Harrisonburg, VA - The Golden Pony
6 Louisville, KY - Zanzabar
7 St. Louis, MO - Fubar

August
5 Detroit, MI - UFO Factory
6 Chicago, IL - Empty Bottle
7 Minneapolis, MN - 7th St. Entry
8 Fargo, ND - The Aquarium
11 Vancouver, BC - The Cobalt
12 Seattle, WA - Barboza
13 Portland, OR - Doug Fir Lounge
17 San Francisco, CA - Thee Parkside
18-19 Las Vegas, NV - Psycho Las Vegas
20 Salt Lake City, UT - Urban Lounge
21 Boulder, CO - Marquis Theater *
22 Albuquerque, NM - Launchpad *
23 El Paso, TX - Lowbrow Palace *
24 Tucson, AZ - Club Congress *
25 Tempe, AZ - The Crescent Ballroom *
26 San Diego, CA - Brick By Brick *
29 Dallas, TX - Club Dada
30 Austin, TX - The Mohawk
31 New Orleans, LA - Siberia

September
1 Birmingham, AL - The Syndicate
2 Atlanta, GA - The Earl
3 Asheville, NC - The Mothlight

* with Pelican

October
27 - Baltimore, MD - Rams Head Live (Days of Darkness Prefest)

Melodic hard rock band, Ten, has announced they will release their new album, Gothica on July 7th. The new album promises to be one of their strongest collection of songs to date. It is full of all the trademark textures and flavors we have come to expect from Ten, arguably one of the best and most consistent melodic hard rock bands in the genre.

Gothica proudly displays all the hallmarks of classic Ten albums and will surely continue to build upon the rich legacy that the great British rockers have forged over a career spanning 22 years and counting.

Gothica emerges as their darkest album to date. Embracing history, romance and erotic horror in equal measure as it does, the title proves to be a fitting name. As listeners, we are transported from the darker side of human nature to the nocturnal supernatural, a dramatic realm of nightmares and the forbidden. Gothica is cinematic in every sense of the word. A web of musically elaborate spells, evoking embers that spark the imagination courtesy of the classic song writing of vocalist Gary Hughes.

Of the album, Gary says, "I am extremely pleased with the collection of songs on Gothica as they feel like they belong together. The band are firing on all cylinders once again and it is a gift to the army of fans everywhere who have relentlessly supported us over the years. It is ironically fitting that our 13th studio album should be a little more sinister, at the same time retaining all the commercial traits usually associated with a Ten album."

Following their success on the recent albums Albion and Isla De Muerta, Gary Hughes is joined once again by guitarists Dann Rosingana, Steve Grocott and John Halliwell along with bass player Steve McKenna, keyboard maestro Darrel Treece-Birch, and drummer Max Yates. On their third outing as a collective unit, the musicians in Ten have raised the bar even higher than they had previously. The album is full of stunning guitar work over a rich keyboard, bass, and drum tapestry with Hughes’ vocals once again bringing the nuances of the intricate lyrics to life.

Gothica was produced by Gary Hughes and mixed and mastered by Dennis Ward. Ten’s longstanding professional association with Dennis has been ongoing since he mixed their 2011 album, Stormwarning.

Additionally, the album features stunning original artwork by Stan W. Decker, depicting a beautiful enchantress reading incantations from a book whilst summoning shadowy characters from its pages. Stan has cleverly illustrated the piece in order to portray the characters emerging from the books pages as the actual characters from the songs on the album. The atmospheric sleeve photography is once again provided by the remarkably talented Adrian Ashworth.

Tracklisting:

“The Grail”
“Jekyll And Hyde”
“Travellers”
“Man For All Seasons”
“In My Dreams”
“The Wild King Of Winter”
“Paragon”
“Welcome To The Freak Show”
“La Luna Dra-cu-la”
“Into Darkness”   

Ten is:

Gary Hughes - Vocals, Backing Vocals, Guitar, Bass and Programming
Dann Rosingana - Guitar
Steve Grocott - Guitar
John Halliwell - Guitar
Steve McKenna - Bass Guitar
Darrel Treece-Birch - Keyboards
Max Yates - Drums and Percussion

Additional Backing Vocals - Karen Fell

Swedish death metallers, Entrails, will release their new album, World Inferno, on June 16th via Metal Blade Records. A track from the upcoming release, “The Soul Collector”, is available for streaming below. Pre-order the album at this location.

Comments Entrails guitarist Jimmy Lundqvist: "I am damn proud to finally unleash this nasty beast, A new chapter is written for Entrails to satisfy all old school maniacs out there. Having new blood in the band, Martin and Tommy, helped making this fifth album the rawest and heaviest to date. Prepare yourself to stretch out your neck in full headbanging!"

The recordings for World Inferno started in December 2016 in Lundqvist's Bloodshed Studio. Dan Swanö once again handled the mixing and mastering for the album.

Dan Swanö comments on World Inferno as follows: "I don't know if I had said this before, but I say it again. Every time I start thinking about putting together some new SweDeath project, Entrails show up at my doorstep with a new album to mix, and every time I think "Fuck!! - What's the point in making my own project when this is so fucking good, and exactly what I wanted to do…" And if I felt there were some details to improve upon from our previous work together, they fix that and then some, and return with an album even stronger than the previous one. What the fuck is going on in Linneryd!? Are Jimmy cloning death metal warriors in some barn over there or what!? To sum it up. Yet another amazing slab of SweDeath coming your way from Entrails! Beyond. Blown. Away!"

Tracklisting:

“World Inferno”         
“Condemned To The Grave”         
“Serial Murder (Death Squad)”         
“The Soul Collector”    
“Dead And Buried”         
“Insane Slaughter”         
“Into Eternal Fire”         
“Suffer”         
“The Hour Of The Casket”         
“The Blood Breed”

“The Soul Collector”:

Entrails lineup:

Jimmy Lundqvist: Guitars
Tommy Carlsson: Vocals/Bass
Pontus Samuelsson: Guitars
Martin Michaelsson: Drums

“Are You Ready To Fly”, a track from Snakecharmer’s sophomore album, Second Skin, is available for streaming below. The album will be released on May 12th.

The British hard rock supergroup was originally founded in 2011 by former Whitesnake/David Coverdale members Micky Moody and Neil Murray along with the perfect mix of high calibre musicians including Laurie Wisefield (Wishbone Ash), Harry James (Thunder, Magnum), Adam Wakeman (Ozzy Osbourne, Black Sabbath live), and Chris Ousey (Heartland).

The band’s debut self-titled album was released in 2013 and musically the record showed a finely crafted hard rock style mixed with blues and melodic overtones, akin to Micky and Neil's former band and Bad Company, with hints of early Foreigner as well.

Snakecharmer played live shows regularly in support of the album’s release and built a solid fanbase in the UK and Europe. In 2016, Moody left the band and was replaced by the Irish-born Simon McBride on lead guitar.

Second Skin is the hotly anticipated second effort from Snakecharmer and brings the listener straight back to the good old days of real rock n' roll played with heart and soul. Slightly harder edged compared to the debut, but with roots still firmly planted in the classic hard rock vibe with a hint of late '70s AOR, this new record sounds fresh and crisp.

Bassist Neil Murray says: “It’s been a rather long journey, but finally I’m very pleased to announce that Snakecharmer are soon to release our new album, Second Skin. The band has now found its own unique musical identity and in particular Laurie Wisefield and Chris Ousey have contributed some very powerful and melodic songs, which still have the Snakecharmer blues-rock distinctive trademarks. The band works in a very democratic and collaborative way, which means that sometimes there is a lot of discussion before decisions are finally made, and it was great to have a more objective viewpoint from producer Gary Stevenson, who also fired the band up with his ideas, enthusiasm and sonic skills. We can’t wait to get out on tour and play some of the new songs, together with the best of our established classics, both Snakecharmer and Whitesnake, and showcase our new virtuoso guitarist, the brilliant Simon McBride.”

Tracklisting:

“Sounds Like A Plan”
“That Kind Of Love”
“Are You Ready To Fly”
“Follow Me Under”
“I'll Take You As You Are”
“Hell Of A Way To Live”
“Fade Away”
“Dress It Up”
“Punching Above My Weight”
“Forgive & Forget”
“Where Do We Go From Here”

“Are You Ready To Fly”:

“Punching Above My Weight”:

“Follow Me Under”:

EPK:

“That Kind Of Love” video:

UK tour dates:

May
5 - Cardiff, UK - The Globe
7 - Bingley, UK - Bingley Arts Centre
10 - Hull, UK - Fruit
12 - Sheffield, UK - The Plug
13 - Tavistock, UK - The Wharf
14 - London, UK - O2 Academy Islington
18 - Glasgow, UK - 02 ABC2
19 - Newcastle upon Tyne, UK - 02 Academy
20 - Alva, UK - Scotland
24 - Preston, UK - Guildhall
25 - Milton Keynes, UK - The Stables
26 - Frome, UK - Cheese And Grain
27 - Holmfirth, UK - Picturedrome

Snakecharmer lineup:

Chris Ousey - vocals
Laurie Wisefield - guitar
Simon McBride - guitar
Adam Wakeman - keyboards
Neil Murray - bass
Harry James - drums

Swedish doom/folk/medieval metal mongers; Apocalypse Orchestra; have released a video for “The Garden Of Earthly Delights”, the opening track from the new album, The End Is Nigh, out on May 12th via Despotz Records. Watch the new video below.

With one leg in medieval times and the other in modern metal, Apocalypse Orchestra weaves their own special tapestry of music. The tones of the hurdy gurdy and the bagpipe intertwine with heavy guitars, allowing music separated by over 800 years to meet.

The band was formed by musical partners in crime Mikael Lindstrom and Erik Larsson in Gävle, Sweden, bonding over their love of folk music and sludgy metal. With the idea to combine the two genres and having a wealth of original music and lyrics they decided to incorporate melodies from as far back as the 11th century in order to round out their vision. The idea was to create an homage to a bygone era.

The End Is Nigh tracklisting:

"The Garden of Earthly Delights"
"Pyre"
"Flagellants' Song"
"Exhale"
"Theatre Of War"
"The Great Mortality"
"To Embark"
"Here Be Monsters"

"The Garden of Earthly Delights" video:

"Flagellants' Song" video:

A lyric video for “Star Men”, a track from Pyramaze’s upcoming Contingent album is available for streaming below. The album is out now via Inner Wound Recordings.

With their milestone fifth album, Contingent, Pyramaze have grown and matured into a band that is capable of satisfying their fans while simultaneously continuing to break new ground. The incorporation of modern cinematic film score elements mixed with progressive metal riffs and melodies will leave the listener breathless! Huge, sweeping, hard-hitting, and poignant, Contingent is an epic post-apocalyptic conceptual piece inspired by current events, the human spirit to overcome struggle and diversity, and the brotherhood that lies there in. Produced, mixed and mastered by Jacob Hansen (Volbeat, Amaranthe, Epica, Evergrey).

"Divided by oceans, bound together by brotherhood, we must become that which divides us.... we are Pyramaze, and we are the Ocean!"

Contingent tracklisting:

“Land Of Information”
“Kingdom Of Solace”
“Star Men”
“A World Divided”
“Nemesis”
“Contingent - Part I: The Campaign”
“20 Second Century”
“Obsession”
“Heir Apparent”
“Contingent - Part II: The Hammer Of Remnant”
“Under Restraint”
“The Tides That Won't Change”
“Symphony Of Tears”

“Star Men” lyric video:

“A World Divided” video:

“Kingdom Of Solace” lyric video:

“20 Second Century” lyric video:

Pyramaze lineup:

Terje Harøy - Vocals
Jacob Hansen - Guitars, Bass
Jonah W. - Keyboards
Toke Skjønnemand - Guitars
Morten Gade Sørensen - Drums

Melodic progressive metal project, Fortis Amor, has been a passion project for guitarist/vocalist/composer/producer Ryan Duke since its inception. After spending years carefully crafting and perfecting his music and releasing two EP's of more modern takes on the genre (2009's Passage and 2012's Seismic), Duke is releasing his earlier musings out into the world. The self-titled full-length Fortis Amor album is scheduled to be released on May 19th and is available for pre-order via Bandcamp.

With one listen, it's clear that the different styles and influences on Fortis Amor quite literally transcend any recent metal trend defined by a period of time. After spending nearly two decades honing a signature sound, incorporating years of inspiration becomes inevitable. Fortis Amor creates a progressive blend that will appeal to any listener - combining complex songwriting and clever guitar solo styles one might liken to bands such as Between The Buried And Me and The Contortionist, melded with more straightforward, heavy progressive rhythm sections harking back to early Devin Townsend and Nevermore. Listen to Fortis Amor's first single, "Holding On To Nothing”, available for streaming below.

Duke says, "I began writing some of the songs on this album as far back as 1998, which might be why this album sounds so timeless. I don't feel it can be tied directly to any passing trend. I would say 75% of the writing for this record actually happened between 1998 and 2005 on an acoustic guitar in total solitude."

With uncapped time on his side, Duke was able to create and engaging soundscapes that almost trick the listener into believing they're hearing a full band throughout Fortis Amor's 10 tracks. Aside from select guest solos by Jack Daniels (War Of Ages, Hope For The Dying) and Zack Uidl (ex-7 Horns 7 Eyes), the record is purely a one-man effort.

"After playing in many bands, I found it very hard to find the right fit for the vision of the music, which is why I remained solo in the end," adds Duke. "That said, I wanted to make sure this record didn't sound like a solo record. I love massive and elaborate soundscapes. Getting a big sound can be done with more layers, but that often lead to making things really hard to mix and instruments getting lost in the final recording. I think it's more about letting the music breathe and good songwriting. Keeping the listener engaged and captive, so they keep wanting to hear what comes next."

Fortis Amor opens gracefully with an orchestral arrangement accompanied by intricate acoustic guitar, but wastes no time revealing its true nature - a blend of hooky, rhythmic metal accented by passionate vocals and mixed atmospheric undertones. The overall tone of Fortis Amor is positive emotion, which is reflected by the project name, meaning "strong love" in Latin.

Duke adds, "This record is heavy, but in no way is it what you'd expect when listening to metal. My perspective on music is to embrace the intensity and aggressiveness of metal and use it to symbolize love and passion rather than hate and anger. I find that many young metal musicians start out angry and then... we grow up. We aren't as young and frustrated with the world anymore. This record finds me in a place of growth and understanding as an artist."

Duke explains that the album art is also telling of the album's concepts, "The album art concept was derived not only from the tattoos that I have, but from the songs on the album themselves. The man on the cover is being torn apart which comes from the song "Particles" which starts the album. The art coincides with the rest of the tracks too, essentially focusing on redemption, hope and getting your life pieced back together to become more of who you were meant to be."

Fortis Amor utilized Kiesel guitars, Bareknuckle pickups, Taylor Acoustics, Clayton pics, Shure SM7B microphones and many other top-tier products on Fortis Amor.

Fortis Amor tracklisting:

“Particles”
“Holding On To Nothing”
“Renewal” (feat. Jack Daniels - War of Ages, Hope For The Dying)
“Subjected To Frustration”
“Upon Yourself”
“Bring This Petition To The Castle”
“The Maiden's Vineyard”
“Outpouring”
“Deathless”
“Take Heart” (feat. Zack Uidl - ex-7 Horns 7 Eyes)

“Holding On To Nothing”:

Fortis Amor by Fortis Amor

RANCID will release its new album, "Trouble Maker", on June 9 via Hellcat/Epitaph Records. This is the ninth studio album for the punk legends and the follow-up to 2014's critically acclaimed "…Honor Is All We Know". "Trouble Maker" was produced by RANCID's longtime producer and founder of Epitaph Records, Brett Gurewitz.

The official video for the new RANCID song "Ghost Of A Chance", taken from "Trouble Maker", can be seen below.

Emerging from the blue-collar swamps of Berkeley, California, RANCID has now been a living, breathing punk rock band for over a quarter century. Back in 1991, after the demise of their much beloved first band, OPERATION IVY, founding members Tim Armstrong (vocals, guitar) and Matt Freeman (bass, vocals) decided to do the impossible — start an even better band. Thus, RANCID. Signing with Epitaph Records, the band released their first album, "Rancid", in 1993. Shortly thereafter, Lars Frederiksen (vocals, guitar) joined the band, because... well, are you going to tell him he can't? The result, in 1994, was "Let's Go".

In 1995, RANCID released the classic platinum-selling "...And Out Come The Wolves". You still remember when you first heard it. They followed with the even more ambitious "Life Won't Wait" in 1998, and in 2000, RANCID released another album titled "Rancid", just to see if anyone was paying attention. After "Indestructible" in 2003, Branden Steineckert (drums) joined to solidify RANCID's current lineup. They subsequently released the albums "Let The Dominos Fall" (2009) and "Honor Is All We Know" (2014).

Through it all, RANCID has remained fiercely independent, never losing their loyalty to community or each other. Their music confronts political and social issues, while balancing personal tales of love, loss, and heartbreak with attitude. RANCID gives their listeners a community where everyone can belong. By carrying on the traditions and spirit of the original punk rock bands that came before, RANCID has become a legend an inspiration to punk bands that have come after.

Michigan heavy rockers Bison Machine have signed to American heavy rock institution, Small Stone Records. The Hamtramck-based volume dealers have been on a this-time-it's-personal quest to hand-deliver their riffs across the country since the 2015 release of their debut album, Hoarfrost, on Kozmik Artifactz, and with tours throughout the US under their belt, they're ready to take their game to the proverbial next level.

Bison Machine is currently preparing a new album for release later this year as their Small Stone debut. They will enter Rustbelt Studios (Five Horse Johnson, Halfway to Gone, Novadriver) later this summer to record.

"It's amazing," enthuses Bison Machine bassist Anthony Franchina about the signing. "Small Stone has released some of my favorite records, from Sasquatch to Greenleaf to Lo-Pan, and we couldn't be more thrilled to work with Scott [Hamilton] on our next record, which is going to completely blow away everything we've done before. We'll be hitting the road too, so keep an eye out!"

In addition to working on their next LP, the members of Bison Machine are involved in organizing the Burnin' Turf festival, which is set for June 3rd at the Parisville Saloon in Ruth, Michigan with a lineup featuring Bison Machine, Wild Savages, Dead Feathers, BoneHawk, Red Stone Souls, Rip VanRipper, and Gear Jammer, as well as chopper games, raffle prizes, van and tank lettering by Zak Warmann of Detroit Sign Painters, camping, DJ Smoak (Loy Smoak Jr.) all the way from San Antonio, bonfires, and of course, plenty of beer. Ticket pre-sales are available at this location.

"I can't wait to hear what Bison Machine bring to this next record," says Scott Hamilton of Small Stone Records. "They've been unstoppable on tour for the last couple years and I'm thrilled to welcome them into the Small Stone fold representing the next generation of great American heavy rock and roll."

Bison Machine released their latest single, "Cloak And Bones”, last year. A video for the track can be seen below.

Bison Machine:

Casey O'Ryan - guitar
Breck Crandell - drums
Tom Stec - vocals
Anthony Franchina - bass

(Photo - Rory Rummings)

With song titles like "You're a Fucking Dick”, "Busted, Broke & American" and "All Out of Bubblegum" you would think that M.O.D. - shorthand for Method Of Destruction - and their founder and fearless leader (the artist formerly known as the legendary Billy Milano), aren't masking their intentions on their new album. In fact, it would be a logical assumption that Milano and co. are putting their unabashed and unedited thoughts and feelings out there for all to see and hear with their new album Busted, Broke & American - self-righteous and politically correct social justice warriors be damned! Busted, Broke & American will be released July 7th via Megaforce Records.  Pre-orders will be available shortly.

As to be expected, Busted, Broke & American is fast, it's furious, and it makes no apologies. It also mixes hardcore, punk rock, and thrash and the end result is a thoroughly combustible collection of songs. The words "I'm sorry" are not a part of the album's vocabulary. At the center of the sonic storm remains Milano, who has never been known to shy away from speaking his mind.

Billy Milano, a voracious reader, avid cook and a Proud and Loud Republican, inadvertently resurrected his hardcore punk rock band in a time when he needed it most. You'd be mistaken to assume anything when it comes to Billy Milano. For M.O.D. and their new album, which finds the band returning to original label home Megaforce Records after two decades, there was no pre-determined mission. At all. It was born of love.

"I had taken off time with M.O.D. in 2009," Milano recalls. "We had done 100 shows for [2007's] Red, White & Screwed. I needed a break. My dog Buster, an American bulldog, got sick with cancer and I started to play guitar again while staying home with him. I started jamming again, anticipating something quick, but it wasn't."

Buster was a huge part of Milano's life, having toured with the frontman. As anyone that truly has forged a deep bond with a canine can relate to, Milano turned to his trusted instrument to help him endure the pain of watching his friend wind down his life. "I just started playing guitar, while sitting there, looking at him, giving him medicine," he says. "I wanted to run and play with my dog, and I couldn't. The only way to be with him was to sit there and play guitar. I had no goal to do a record. I just wrote all the material."

While Milano may be older and wiser these days, he's not any softer. He's admittedly still cynical, but has learned to temper it by being more caring and forgiving. Still, music remains something he loves doing and he still operates off the zero fucks given principle. "I don't give a fuck, but I like playing," he reasons. "I like making records. It's like cooking - it's an extension of me."

Busted, Broke, & American tracklisting:

“Eisenhower Was Right”
“The Final Declaration”
“You're A Fucking Dick”
“Busted, Broke & American”
“Fight”
“Hooligan”
“Billy Be Damned”
“Shattered Dreams & Broken Glass”
“They”
“All Out Of Bubblegum”
“Go Go Revolution”
“Kennedy Speaks”

Atlanta, GA based metal pianist Kyle Morrison is set to release his debut, full-length album, Pianometal, on May 26th via Sony Music / The Orchard Enterprises.  The effort is a follow up to 2016’s Lore Of The Immortals, and is described as “a progressive combination of thrash and power metal fronted by blistering fast classically infused piano.” The album contains 12 tracks that feature some of modern metal’s most prominent musicians.

Pianometal features guest performances from Dirk Verbeuren (Megadeth, Soilwork), Francesco Ferrini (Fleshgod Apocalypse), Sean Z (Daath, Chimaira, Sinsaenum), and Elias Holmlid (Dragonland).

Morrison states: “This is a truly unique crossover experience that provides an entirely new perspective on the context of piano within heavy metal music. It has become increasingly difficult to break the traditional mold and venture in to new territory within metal, but I do hope to have accomplished just that.”

From the brutality of “Hymn oO Blasphemy” and “Eye Of The Storm” to the power metal infused “The Road To Eternity” and “Orion’s Curse,” this album cranks up the tempo and reaches over the top for a truly cinematic experience.

Pianometal will be released in physical and digital formats along with sheet music for solo piano.

Pianometal tracklisting:

“Centrifuge”
“Hymn Of Blasphemy”
“The Cosmos I - Martian Dusk”
“Mammoth”
“Ocean Black”
“The Cosmos II - Orion’s Curse”
“Eye Of The Storm”
“The Cosmos III - Interstellar Survival”
“Seasons”
“The Road To Eternity”
“Mammoth” (Instrumental)
“The Road To Eternity” (Orchestral)

Digital pre-orders are available now on every major music outlet. Physical pre-orders are available here.

Syteria, the Yorkshire, UK-based rock band featuring Girlschool guitarist Jackie Chambers, will release their debut full-length album, Rant-O-Bot, on May 30th. A video for the album track “I’m All Woman” is available for streaming below.

The video for “I’m All Women” was filmed at The Showroom Cinema in Sheffield, by Lucy and Scott at Redönya Media.

Speaking about the new video, guitarist Jax Chambers commented, “”I’m All Woman” is a song about those individuals who believe themselves to be Gods gift to the opposite sex, they see others as objects and as play things for their own amusement with no care who they hurt or of any consequences, not believing in love just passion.”

Rant-O-Bot will be available from TuneCore, iTunes, Spotify, Amazon Music and a variety of online music stores. You can also order a CD featuring a booklet containing lyrics and photos directly from the band's official website here.

Rant-O-Bot tracklisting:

“Revolution”
“When I Get Out Of High School”
“Complication”
“Sheeple”
“I'm All Woman”
“Get A Life”
“Stupid Girl”
“Loner”
“Hypocrite”
“Kamikaze”
“If”
“New World Order”

“I”m All Woman” video:

Syteria lineup:

Julia Calvo – Vocals
Jackie Chambers – Guitars/Vocals
Keira Kenworthy – Bass Guitar/Vocals
Pablo Calvo – Drums/Vocals

Swedish metallers IN FLAMES have recruited Bryce Paul — a member of the Southern California pop-rock outfit IVES — to play bass for the band on their current U.S. tour, which includes a number of headlining shows and festival appearances.

Fan-filmed video footage of Bryce performing with IN FLAMES on April 29 at the Fort Rock festival at JetBlue Park in Fort Myers, Florida can be seen below.

Longtime IN FLAMES bassist Peter Iwers quit the band in November saying that he was leaving IN FLAMES "to pursue other endeavors." His replacement for some of the recent European shows was Håkan Skoger, who had previously played with PASSENGER and GARDENIAN.

Asked by Metal Express Radio why Iwers chose to depart IN FLAMES after almost twenty years with the band, IN FLAMES guitarist Björn Gelotte said: "He's always been a very busy man, and I think he was just done with this life. He's still writing music, playing music with friends in different constellations. [Peter and I] have [a] bar together [in Gothenburg, Sweden], 2112, so he's busy doing that. He has a brewery together with the old drummer from IN FLAMES, Daniel [Svensson], so he's a very busy man."

According to Gelotte, Iwers first brought up the subject of leaving IN FLAMES before the band's fall 2016 tour with HELLYEAH. "We talked a little bit before the last U.S. run now, and that was, like, November 'till December some time," the guitarist recalled. "We talked a little bit beforehand, and I think he just made the decision early on on that tour.

"We're not 18 anymore," he added. "There's different priorities for different people, and it's just how it works. It's super sad — it's our brother — but then again, we have so much together that we do that I will talk and meet him all the time anyway."

"Battles", IN FLAMES' twelfth studio album, was released on November 11 via Nuclear Blast in all territories excluding North America and Scandinavia and Eleven Seven Music Group in the U.S.

Fan-filmed video footage of reunited cult New York thrashers DEMOLITION HAMMER performing on April 28 at the Keep It True festival at Tauberfrankenhalle in Lauda-Königshofen, Germany can be seen below.

DEMOLITION HAMMER will celebrate the 25th anniversary of its second album, "Epidemic Of Violence", by performing the LP in its entirety at a special show on June 24 at the Gramercy Theater in New York City. There will also be special 25th-anniversary "Epidemic Of Violence" merchandise that will only be sold at the show and will never be manufactured and sold again afterwards.

DEMOLITION HAMMER was active between 1986 and 1994 and released three full-length albums — "Tortured Existence" (1990), "Epidemic Of Violence" (1992) and "Time Bomb" (1994) — all through Century Media.

A DEMOLITION HAMMER compilation, "Necrology: A Complete Anthology", was issued in 2008, also through Century Media. The set contained the band's entire three-album discography across two discs.

In March 2015, Century Media reissued "Tortured Existence" and "Epidemic Of Violence" on vinyl.

Asked how the DEMOLITION HAMMER reunion came about, guitarist Derek Sykes told Rock Hard magazine: "It's kind of something that we've been watching, or I've been watching, for a very long time. Our last show that we played, up until recently, was twenty-five years ago. I've kind of maintained web sites and things like that, and I've been just kind of listening to people talking about the band, and they started talking more and more and more and more. And I had the idea, went to Steve [Reynolds; bass/vocals] and said, 'Hey, what do you think? Maybe we [should] try it.' And he was, like, 'I don't know.' So it really just kind of sat for a while and I just sat in awe, looking at how many people were kind of into it. I didn't expect that at all. And then we reconnected with Jim [James Reilly, guitar] here, and it was great just all three of us hanging out and really just having a great time. And then we went to the Maryland Deathfest not last year, but the year before. And our friends' band SOLSTICE played one of our songs, and we saw the crowd went nuts, and that's really when it hit us: 'Holy shit! We can actually do this.' So we dusted off the guitars, dusted off our arms, and tried to re-learn stuff that we hadn't literally played in twenty years. And we got most of it right."

Added Reynolds: "Derek had been talking to me about it and said, 'Hey, there's really a lot of interest,' and I said, 'Yeah, you're crazy, you're delusional. No one cares about DEMOLITION HAMMER.' But I'm not somebody who's very connected with the Internet or Facebook or anything. He was persistent about it, and like he said, when we went to the Maryland Deathfest and I saw it with my own eyes how much interest there was, I said, 'Okay, you're not crazy. Maybe there is something about this.' Then when we talked to James about it and he was in, that's what really put us over the top."

Regarding whether there are plans for DEMOLITION HAMMER to record a new album, Steve said: "We've talked. But we were so busy just trying to work all this in, we haven't really solidified any plans for that. But we're still talking about it."

Added Reilly: "Now that we see how well this is going, we do have it in our heads to start writing some new material and see where it goes."

Said Derek: "We're just amazed that we can actually still play the stuff that we played twenty-five years ago, and it sounds relatively good. So the next step is, 'Can we still write stuff that holds up to what we did twenty-five years ago?' 'Cause if it doesn't, we're not doing it. So that's really the last hurdle: can we still do it? We'll try to find out."

Continued James: "I think we can. As long as we stay true to ourselves and try not to be something we're not, it should work. I think it'll work."

BARDSPEC, the ambient project/band led by ENSLAVED composer/guitarist Ivar Bjørnson, will release its debut album, "Hydrogen", in June via By Norse.

Having launched at Roadburn in 2015, BARDSPEC has since evolved into a fully-fledged band, with Steve Austin on guitars/effects, David Hall presenting the live visual aspect of the project, and the layout created by Josh Graham (SOUNDGARDEN, NEUROSIS).

The song "Bone", taken from "Hydrogen", can be streamed below.

"Bone", in Bjørnson's words, is "a song that is a meditation upon the concepts of strength and endurance, in the micro and the macro. How evolution has made us upright and made to be on the move — and how hard it can be to adapt those features into the realms of our psyche — so that we can undergo the mental evolution that is dormant within us."

BARDSPEC combines stirring, hallucinatory synth-sounds with mercurial guitar effects and hypnotic rhythms that navigate illusory landscapes. Field recordings, and other found-sounds also drift and evaporate into the ether. Working intuitively with these elements and with sharpened senses, attuned to inner impulses, this is immersive music that can exist anywhere and anytime within the minds of the listener.

Whilst BARDSPEC might essentially be the same brain and personality making the music, compared to ENSLAVED, it is a widely different entity. Thematically and sonically, BARDSPEC is about minimizing, subtracting, and meditating upon the simplest essence of "things;" the single points exemplified through song titles like "Bone", "Salt" and so on, the basic elements and foundations that make up the whole. There is an element of "space" in the music and the artwork, as a representation of the inner workings of the mind and the subconscious.

BARDSPEC is inspired by the German masters TANGERINE DREAM, Klaus Schultze and Conrad Schnitzler, in addition to contemporary ambient music like Norwegian one-man-band BIOSPHERE and abstract modern electronic music like WHEN (Norwegian also), as well as the electronic/industrial-driven metal like GODFLESH. Ivar describes the appeal and trance-inducing aspects of such music to him. "I remember listening to Richard Burmer and his album 'Mosaic' from 1984," he says. "I thought I fell asleep but I was in a semi-lucid state where I still registered music — but not much else. At the end of side A there's an explosion so violent and extreme that I jumped two feet into the air and was totally shocked. The weird thing is, I couldn't remember it being there. When I revisited the music again, it was just a little 'thud.' I was just experiencing a trance so deep into the music that this deviation from the pattern and frequencies in the foregoing half hour of monotony totally shocked me. I loved it!" "Hydrogen" track listing:

01. Intro - Deposition02. Bone03. Fire Tongue04. Gamma05. Salt06. Teeth (bonus track) "Hydrogen" willl be released on June 23 across all formats. The six-panel CD digipak is available as limited first press to a thousand copies including bonus track "Teeth". The double gatefold LP is limited to five hundred copies on black vinyl, and the digital format also including the bonus track.

"Judas", the brand new music video from FOZZY — the band featuring WWE wrestling superstar Chris Jericho alongside members of STUCK MOJO — can be seen below.

Jericho offers his take on the "Judas" clip, stating: "For such a dark and sexy song like 'Judas', we wanted a dark and sexy video to match...and we got that and more! In one take we filmed a unique, visually stunning masterpiece that combines an incredible song, psycho clowns, hot chicks, a man on fire and a great rock n roll band, all in one tasty video morsel. What more could you want...a giant rabbit holding balloons? Oh yeah, we've got that too!"

"Judas" is the title track of FOZZY's new album, which will be released this summer via Century Media. Jericho told "The Front Row Report" about what fans can expect from the new disc: "It's definitely the next step. It's an extension. It's more of an evolving FOZZY. We really put a lot of stock in bands like U2 and GUNS N' ROSES and METALLICA, and I think the best example might be David Bowie, where there's always different styles, different eras, and we like that too. And we're not completely changing what we do. But there's different more melodies and this is very much a hookier record. There's not as many guitar solos on the record, but it's still heavy and melodic. It's an evolution from 'Do You Wanna Start A War' [2014] as much as 'Do You Wanna Start A War' was an evolution from 'Sin And Bones' [2012]. I think it's a great trilogy of records that shows a lot of growth, but it's still very heavy and very melodic. Like I said, the trilogy of records — from 'Sin And Bones' to 'Judas' — I think they're all very great records that have a little bit different elements to them all, which is a key to longevity for sure."

Jericho also talked about the songwriting process for "Judas", which was composed during late 2015 and most of 2016 while FOZZY took a break from the road.

"We never really sit in a room and write," he said. "In the past, I would write my parts and send them over to [guitarist] Rich [Ward] and Rich would send it back to me. Also, we had Johnny Andrews writing with us for the whole record. He wrote 'Lights Go Out' on the last record, so we wanted him involved. He produced the record, so Rich and him did a lot of sessions [in the studio where they spent many hours] jamming it out… We wanted to give him total control and let him produce the record and make the record that he thought we should make, and we're really happy that we did."

FOZZY recently announced the return of bassist Paul Di Leo. Paul previously played with FOZZY between 2011 and 2014 and appeared on the group's last two studio albums.

After "Do You Wanna Start A War"'s release, Di Leo was replaced on the road by Jeff Rouse and later by Randy Drake.

"Do You Wanna Start A War" sold around 5,600 copies in the United States in its first week of release to debut at position No. 54 on the Billboard 200 chart. The CD arrived on July 22, 2014 via Century Media.

The official lyric video for the song "Resistance" from POWERFLO — the new band featuring BIOHAZARD's Billy Graziadei and former FEAR FACTORY bassist/guitarist Christian Olde Wolbers alongside Sen Dog from CYPRESS HILL, Rogelio Lozano from DOWNSET, and Brazilian drummer Fernando Schaefer — can be seen below.

"Resistance" is taken from POWERFLO's forthcoming self-titled debut album, due out June 23 via New Damage Records. Those who preorder the album digitally will receive "Resistance" as an instant grat track. Both New Damage and PledgeMusic pre-orders include bundle options with various exclusive limited items, including snapback caps, rolling papers, signed vinyl, test presses, exclusive performances and more. Melding hip-hop, metal, punk, and rock into a potent offering, POWERFLO draws on its powerhouse resume to collectively smash boundaries. The album is produced by Josh Lynch and Billy Graziadei, mixed by Jay Baumgardner (GODSMACK, PAPA ROACH, HELMET) and mastered by Maor Applebaum (FAITH NO MORE, HALFORD, ADRENALINE MOB) at Maor Applebaum Mastering. Of the "Resistance" lyric video, Sen Dog commented, "We're here to make honest music. It's not about pleasing anybody or confirming anything. We're creating from a pure place. We worked our asses off. It's not a one-time thing. It's just the first POWERFLO album. There's much more to come..." Graziadei added: "Getting our music out there has been a while in the making but I'm looking forward to finally having POWERFLO in everyone's hands. We dropped a video for 'Resistance' first since it basically sums up how we all roll, living life on our terms! Our lives, our way, rising up against any force that stands against us. Next up, live POWERFLO in your face like a shotgun blast!" The origins of POWERFLO can be traced back over more than two decades as the members of the band would collaborate on numerous occasions. In addition to both CYPRESS HILL and BIOHAZARD appearing on the landmark platinum-selling "Judgment Night" soundtrack, Sen Dog delivered a cameo on BIOHAZARD's "State Of The World Address" in 1993, while Christian both guested on CYPRESS HILL's chart-topping 2000 double-album "Skulls & Bones", which Roy also guested on, and 2001's "Stone Raiders" in addition to performing with the group countless times. In 2015, longtime friend Roy played demos for Sen on a ride to the airport. The music immediately spoke to the rapper and thus POWERFLO was born.

Regarding how the name for the new project came about, Christian told The New American Media: "Basically, Sen Dog was spitting his game on some of the heavy riffs and shit. And he was, like, 'Do you like this?' And Roy, the other guitar player, said, 'Yeah. A power flow. That's good.' So that's where it kind of came from."

Graziadei has described POWERFLO's musical direction as a cross between IRON MAIDEN, BLACK SABBATH and CYPRESS HILL.

Photo credit: Travis Shinn

As METALLICA gets ready to hit the road and kick off its North American tour, the band thought it might be cool to revisit the very beginning of "Hardwired… To Self-Destruct" by pressing one of the live release celebrations on vinyl.

It all started with the Fifth Member show at the 1,500-capacity Webster Hall in New York City in September of last year, so this Friday, May 5, the three-LP set of that show will be available exclusively online at Metallica.com as well as in the band's pop-up stores in select tour cities this summer (more on that soon).

Newly mastered for vinyl and mixed by the team that brought you "Hardwired…To Self-Destruct", the three-disc limited edition package is pressed on 140-gram vinyl and includes the digital download of the show as well.

Track listing:

Disc One / Side A

01. Breadfan02. Holier Than Thou03. Battery04. Harvester Of Sorrow

Disc One / Side B

01. Fade To Black02. Moth Into Flame

Disc Two / Side C

01. Sad But True02. Orion

Disc Two / Side D

01. One02. Master Of Puppets

Disc Three / Side E

01. For Whom The Bell Tolls02. Enter Sandman03. Encore Jam04. Whiskey In The Jar

Disc Three / Side F

01. Hardwired02. Seek & Destroy

Orders expected to begin shipping before street date on May 5. Limit one (1) per customer.

Fans were able to witness the Webster Hall concert after entering an online contest for a chance to purchase $25 tickets, the proceeds from which benefited City Harvest, an organization that delivers food to New Yorkers in need. Also in attendance were members of TOOL and VOLBEAT and a cast member from "Orange Is the New Black".

The North American leg of METALLICA's "WorldWired" 2017 tour kicks off on May 10 in Baltimore, Maryland and will hit stadiums in 25 cities before winding down in mid-August. Support on the quartet's first North American trek since 2009 will come mainly from AVENGED SEVENFOLD and VOLBEAT, with GOJIRA taking over for the latter group for the last six shows.

American rock act CKY has debuted a brand new single titled "Days Of Self Destruction". The track is the first bit of new music from the band since 2009.

"Days Of Self Destruction" is taken from CKY's new album, "The Phoenix", which will be released on June 16 via eOne Music. The all-new LP will be the first release since the band put out "Carver City" in 2009. The disc was engineered and mixed at Rancho De La Luna, the highly regarded recording studio in Joshua Tree, California.

"We're stoked to get a new album out after an eight-year hiatus," says drummer Jess Margera. "'Days Of Self Destruction' was the first song we recorded at Rancho De La Luna, featuring our buddy and all-around badass Brent Hinds [of MASTODON]!"

In addition to all preorders now being live, the track is also an iTunes instant gratification track, meaning fans who pre order the album on iTunes will receive "Days Of Self Destruction" as an instant download.

The cover art for "The Phoenix" is also being revealed today. The band commissioned chandelier maker and artist Adam Wallacavage to create a one-of-a-kind piece for the cover.

CKY has tour dates booked all summer highlighted by a return to the 2017 Vans Warped Tour. This is the band's first time returning to the Warped Tour since 2000. But first the band will head over to the U.K. to do thirteen-show run, most of which are already sold out. This will be the first time the band has been back to the U.K. since 2009. CKY will then head to Canada for ten key shows from Quebec all the way to Vancouver.

Chad I Ginsburg, the band's guitarist and singer, steps into the frontman role with charisma, charm, and bravado, confidently delivering a diverse performance as he claims a position that was clearly rightfully his to own. He's joined in enduring partnership and musical and personal chemistry by fellow CKY co-founder, Jess Margera, the drummer whose extracurricular work in projects like THE COMPANY BAND (with guys from CLUTCH and FIREBALL MINISTRY) expanded CKY's horizons as much as Ginsburg's solo work has as well. The duo returned to their primary project refreshed and reenergized, with bassist Matt Deis (ex-ALL THAT REMAINS), who first joined CKY in 2005.

GUNS N' ROSES, METALLICA and DEFTONES have all personally invited CKY on tour, cementing a legacy as a hard-charging live act. CKY built a worldwide fanbase of dedicated acolytes, friends, and supporters, lovingly dubbed the CKY Alliance, with a broader group of musicians, athletes, and other creative types in the CKY family, both literally and figuratively.

"We're grown adults now with an eagle-eye perspective on who we are, what we do, and how to do it right," Ginsburg declares, with matter-of-fact certainty. "None of us are out there in the clouds. We're pretty well-grounded people that have an honest perspective on where we're at."

"The Phoenix" track listing:

01. Replaceable02. Days of Self Destruction03. Unknown Enemy04. Head For a Breakdown05. The Other Ones06. Wiping Off The Dead07. Lies From You08. Better Than Get Even