The original 1991 lineup of Swedish death metal pioneers GRAVE — Ola Lindgren (guitar, vocals),Jörgen Sandström (vocals, guitar),Jens "Jensa" Paulsson (drums) and Jonas Torndal (bass) — will reunite for a series of concerts in 2025 during which they will perform "an exclusive old-school set" consisting of material from the first three classic GRAVE albums: 1991's "Into The Grave", 1992's "You'll Never See..." and 1994's "Soulless". The first confirmed performance will take place at the Party.San Metal Open Air festival at Flugplatz Obermehler in Schlotheim, Germany in August 2025.

One of the very first Swedish death metal bands alongside NIHILIST, MORBID and TREBLINKA, GRAVE released its first demo in 1986 under the band name CORPSE, before they switched to GRAVE in 1988. GRAVE's debut album, "Into The Grave", arrived in August 1991 through the then-young record label Century Media.

Lindgren told the "Swedish Death Metal" book by Daniel Ekeroth about how GRAVE landed its record deal: "We sent our third demo to just every label there was. A lot of them kept in touch, such as Earache and Peaceville. But Century Media was working faster than any of them, so we just went with them without thinking too much about it. Century Media invited us down to Germany to record that single ('Tremendous Pain'),and it was only after that we started to discuss a deal. It felt amazing for us to go abroad, so in a way they lured us into their roster! But it turned out well."

After Century Media and GRAVE parted ways after seven albums with the release of 2006's "As Rapture Comes", the band launched two highly acclaimed albums, "Dominium VIII" (2008) and "Burial Ground" (2010) through Regain, before reuniting with Century Media for 2012's "Endless Procession Of Souls" and 2015's "Out Of Respect For The Dead".

In 2019, GRAVE teamed up with Century Media Records to bring back the albums "Dominion VIII" and "Burial Ground" as classy, limited colored and black vinyl editions, hand-numbered digipak CDs limited to 3,000 copies each, and digitally. Remastered in 2019 by Lindgren and mastered for vinyl by Patrick W. Engel of Temple Of Disharmony, these records offer crushing and savage GRAVE tracks that fully live up to the group's morbid legacy.

This past January, GRAVE parted ways with bassist Tobias Cristiansson and guitarist Mika Lagrén.

Out of the Grave - Back from the Dead 2025 !

Featuring the original 1991 lineup:
Ola Lindgren - Jörgen Sandström
Jensa...

Posted by Grave on Monday, August 12, 2024
GRAVE
Swedish band circa 1992 #DeathMetal#OldSchool#Sweden#90spic.twitter.com/NZWx0J8EQu

— Death Metal Old School (@LegionsDeath) May 1, 2017

PANTERA will play a special club show Thursday night (August 15) at First Avenue in Minneapolis, Minnesota.

First Avenue tweeted out news of the show, which will take place the night before the reformed band — consisting of classic-lineup members Philip Anselmo (vocals) and Rex Brown (bass),along with Zakk Wylde (guitar) and Charlie Benante (drums) — opens for METALLICA at U.S. Bank Stadium in Minneapolis.

Tickets for the concert will go on sale Tuesday, August 13 at 10 a.m. via AXS.com, priced at $32. The club is enforcing a strict policy of no transfers or resale options with the tickets.

In a recent interview with Sweetwater, Brown spoke about the decision to tour with a reformed version of PANTERA. The lineup has reportedly been given a green light by the estates of PANTERA's founders, drummer Vincent "Vinnie Paul" Abbott and guitarist "Dimebag" Darrell Abbott. Rex said: "The last show, man, I had a creepy, like a cold — something came by me. It felt like there was a cold feeling. And I've gotten this a couple of times before. When we were down recording with Charlie — me and Charlie just went down [in late 2022], put up eighty to a hundred hours of tape before Zakk [started rehearsing with us]. Zakk was still on the road. So we wanted to get the bass and the drum real tight, and we had this scratch guitar player. I felt that same chill. And, to me, they're angels. And I think you know who they are. Those guys, I think they're looking down, or they're looking around us, with us, and I think they're digging what they're seeing, man. I really do. And that's the only kind of way I can look at it, and get as close as we can with Charlie and Zakk. And God, it's getting really, really good. And there's so much more potential to get even tighter."

Speaking about the opportunity to perform PANTERA's music to new generations of fans who never saw the band before, Rex said: "There's a lot of memories in this band that are hard to put down. And losing the brothers, I just never in a million years thought that something like that would happen. Here we are 22 years later, and to see these new fans' faces. You've got one kid sitting there, or man, woman or child crying, and you have this other guy just going, 'You did it right.' It's just amazing."

In April, Rex spoke to American Musical Supply about how touring with PANTERA in 2024 is different from how it was in the band's heyday. He said: "This is a completely different thing, man. We have Charlie and Zakk now, and they're just — number one, they've been great friends of ours for all these years. We get along extra super cool. Charlie and I went down, probably put about eighty, hundred hours on tape of all the songs we were gonna do for the set, and others that we would want to do. Charlie and I worked on this for six months before we ever got into a rehearsal room. That's just how good friends we are. Charlie has been one of my best friends for years. So, this is another band. It's hard to fill the shoes of the brothers. At the same time, this has become a really tight unit. And Zakk just puts the extra… Dime was a very unique guitar player, and he was my best friend, and it's good to see those boys up on the screens and with us. And that's what this is about tonight, for me."

Regarding how he and the rest of the current PANTERA lineup have balanced honoring the band's legacy with any new creative goals they might have, Rex said: "There's many ways that we wanna keep this legacy alive, 'cause the music is still played all over. We have a whole new generation of fans that, they probably wouldn't have heard this stuff if we weren't playing out here playing these shows. And so, that generation of fans — let's say the 15-to-18-year-old kids that come out — they'll shortly have children, and that keeps that new generation alive. And Phillip even says it in the set, the parents of the '90s, which I'm a parent of the '90s, it's a very important statement in the set because it's about the gratitude.

"We're not doing this for ourselves; we're doing it for the name and the brand PANTERA," he continued. "And by God, this music needs to be heard again. It does. It needed to for a long fucking time. And that's what we're here doing tonight… It's just wonderful to be able to do this and pay homage to my music, the riffs that I wrote, or the riffs that Dime wrote, or the patterns that Vinnie played, and for what Phil came up with — tremendous impact on this music."

Also in April, Rex told Rolling Stone Australia about performing with PANTERA in 2024: "Two of our beloved brothers that just aren't here anymore man, that's life, you know? They're just not with us man. That's just fate; it's the way the ball rolls, dude."

He added: "This is no tribute band — Philip and I get to play these songs of ours that we haven't played in 23 years. And to be able to do that and connect with the enormity of what's happened is just extraordinarily fucking insane, you know?"

Regarding PANTERA's latest additions, Rex said: "We knew who would fit and who wouldn't. We knew what the obstacles were in front of us, and we knew after… I'll put it this way — Charlie and I came down in September [2022] before we played that [first] show in December [2022], and we have probably one hundred hours of tape of us playing every fucking PANTERA song that I could remember. And so, you know, me and Charlie lockin' in like that… the drummer and the bass player, that's your foundation. So when Zakk came in, there were certain things we had to go over and over and over, to get tight. And today, this band is about as tight and about as badass as I fucking want. You know what I mean, and that's all I'm gonna say on that."

"But, man, this band is on fuckin' fire, and I couldn't be happier, man," he added. "I just can't explain that as much as I need to, I could not be happier."

Rex previously told AndrewHaug.com that he was "absolutely" open to writing new music with the reformed version of PANTERA. "Yeah, I could tell you more but I'm not going to," he teased.

Earlier in the chat, Brown talked about what is has been like to go out and perform as PANTERA to a whole new generation of fans.

"You can't see it on the YouTube. You can't feel that vibe until you actually come to the show," he explained. "And we haven't been doing interviews just for the fact we want people just to come to the show. It's not about anything prior past or present that I wanna talk about today — just the show tonight.

"We're pinching ourselves over these new fans that have never seen this before, and it's a whole another generation that we either didn't know a) that were out there, b) that were still listening to us, and the turnout has just been unbelievable," Rex continued. "Of course, at first you had the naysayers and all that stuff, and as we played gig by gig, it's made us tighter. And I've been trying to rehearse this band as much as I can within schedules, and we'll just go down for no fucking reason and just jam. That's what makes a band tight."

The reformed PANTERA is headlining a number of major festivals across North America, South America and Europe and staging some of its own headline concerts. They are also supporting METALLICA on a massive stadium tour in 2024.

It was first reported in July 2022 that Anselmo and Brown would unite with Wylde and Benante for a world tour under the PANTERA banner.

Asked how it feels playing those "timeless" songs again, Rex told AndrewHaug.com: "You just said it — they're timeless. So getting to play them again is a… These were a big part of Philip and I's songs too. Of course, respect to the brothers. I think that looking down on us and giving us a big — and they're with us. It's just uncanny. That's the glue. Those guys are hanging around with us.

"Look, I'm not some crazy old man, man. I know that we're here for reasons," Rex added. "And this time he gave us a heavy load, and we have come through in spades. And I'm very proud of Charlie and Zakk and Phillip for stepping up… All of us [were very close back in the day]. We were intertwined. There was a close-knit family of friends — Jerry Cantrell and all those guys, ALICE IN CHAINS. We were all brothers and we all had each other's backs — even as fucked up as we got. We're fine now, I'll put it that way. But it's just such a different time and we're older men and can appreciate this more. And I feel 25 years younger, man. It's just insane."

Addressing complaints from some fans that Brown and Anselmo are going out and touring under the PANTERA name even though Dimebag and Vinnie Paul are not involved, Rex said: "I don't call it anything. I call it PANTERA. The show itself is a celebration of the lives of all four of us. Two are sadly not with us, and we cannot bring them back. God, do I want them back. But that's just not possible. So we're doing the best thing that we can to keep our music alive. And I think they're smiling down and saying, 'You guys are doing all right, man.' And they're with us. And I'm not shittin' you."

Asked what his initial thoughts were when he was first approached about relaunching PANTERA as a touring act, Rex said: "Philip and I talked for several months before. He got on the phone and said, 'Hey, man, you wanna do it? I didn't have — maybe a six-second… not a hesitation, but just to wrap my head around the full gravity of the enormity of it. I went, 'Okay, I've got a couple of questions.' And, man, ever since that call we've worked really, really hard to get this thing going. And we've jumped over a lot of mountains."

Up until his passing in June 2018, Vinnie remained on non-speaking terms with Anselmo, whom the drummer indirectly blamed for Dimebag's death.

Vinnie Paul and Dimebag co-founded PANTERA. On December 8, 2004, while performing with DAMAGEPLAN at the Alrosa Villa in Columbus, Ohio, Dimebag was shot and killed onstage by a troubled schizophrenic who believed that the members of PANTERA were stealing his thoughts.

Vinnie, who was Dimebag's brother, and Anselmo had not spoken since PANTERA split in 2003. But the relationship got even more acrimonious when Vinnie suggested that some remarks the vocalist had made about Dimebag in print just weeks earlier might have incited Dimebag's killer.
Just Announced: CFH at First Avenue on Thursday, August 15.

On sale Tues, August 13 at 10am → https://t.co/xD2CCtpVzd

Note: all tickets will be NON-TRANSFERRABLE
Note: no resale allowed pic.twitter.com/4odNreGrO3

— First Avenue (@FirstAvenue) August 12, 2024

AVENGED SEVENFOLD has announced a special throwback show featuring a setlist composed of songs from the band's breakout 2003 album, "Waking The Fallen", and its 2005 follow-up, "City Of Evil". Headlining the October 25 concert at Santa Ana, California's Observatory venue will be the long-running Southern California hardcore punk band DEATH BY STEREO

Tickets to the show will be available starting on August 16 at 10:00 am. PT exclusively for members of the Deathbats Club, a next-generation fan club and community built around AVENGED SEVENFOLD, priced at $25 each (there is a two-ticket limit on orders). You can sign up to become a fan club member at this location.

AVENGED SEVENFOLD and DEATH BY STEREO have a long history together, having toured together two decades ago. In addition, AVENGED SEVENFOLD singer M. Shadows contributed guest vocals to two songs — "Entombed We Collide" and "This Is Not The End" — on DEATH BY STEREO's 2005 album "Death For Life".

This past June, AVENGED SEVENFOLD guitarist Zacky Vengeance told NME that he and his bandmates were making plans to celebrate the anniversaries of their albums "City Of Evil" and "Nightmare", which are turning 20 and 15 in 2025, respectively. He said: "I think those albums are really monumental and fans have grown with them. They've meant a certain thing to people at a certain place in their life, so I think it's important that we do something."

Explaining that he didn't want AVENGED SEVENFOLD to be a "nostalgia act", Vengeance added: "I've always wanted to be as proud of whatever we put out today as I was when we put out those albums." But, he said, "I'm totally cool with celebrating those albums because it was such a great place and time. Plus, it's actually fun to relive and play those songs and get those reactions. To bank our entire career off past successes, we can't do it, but we'll definitely do something to celebrate those albums though. For us, the most exciting thing about looking back is recalling where our heads were at when we were young and writing them. Remembering that they're part of who we are."

"City Of Evil", AVENGED SEVENFOLD's third album, produced the singles "Bat Country" and "Beast And The Harlot", while "Nightmare", the band's fifth studio LP, debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 in the United States. Both records have since been certified platinum by the RIAA (Recording Industry Association of America) for shipments in excess of a million copies in the U.S. alone.

AVENGED SEVENFOLD has spent much of the past year touring in support of its most recent album, 2023's "Life Is But A Dream…"

$25 for 25 years.
Deathbats Club presents Death By Stereo with special guests Avenged Sevenfold (playing their two new...

Posted by Avenged Sevenfold on Monday, August 12, 2024

Professor Reggie Almeida of the Renzo Gracie TN Brazilian jiu-jitsu school in Tennessee, who has been traveling with MEGADETH on the band's recent tours, has uploaded backstage and performance video of the Dave Mustaine-fronted outfit's June 7 concert at the Mystic Festival in Gdansk, Poland. Check out the clip below.

MEGADETH kicked off the "Destroy All Enemies" summer 2024 U.S. tour on August 2 at Walmart AMP, Rogers, Arkansas. Produced by Live Nation, the trek, which features MUDVAYNE and ALL THAT REMAINS as support, is hitting 33 cities, including Las Vegas, Boston and St. Louis, before wrapping up on September 28 in Nashville, Tennessee.

Finnish guitarist Teemu Mäntysaari joined MEGADETH last September after the band's longtime axeman Kiko Loureiro, announced earlier that month that he would sit out the next leg of MEGADETH's "Crush The World" tour in order to stay home with his children back in Finland. It was later revealed that Mäntysaari would continue to play guitar for MEGADETH for the foreseeable future, with Loureiro seemingly having no plans to return.

The 37-year-old Mäntysaari was born in Tampere, Finland and began playing guitar at the age of 12. In 2004, he joined the band WINTERSUN. He has also been a member of SMACKBOUND since 2015.

MEGADETH played its first concert with Mäntysaari on September 6, 2023 at Revel in Albuquerque, New Mexico.

Loureiro officially joined MEGADETH in April 2015, about five months after Chris Broderick's exit from the group.

Since its inception in 1983, MEGADETH has ascended from its raw thrash metal roots to become an unstoppable force in the heavy metal world. With founder Dave Mustaine at the helm, MEGADETH's journey has been marked by a penchant for pushing the boundaries of speed, technicality, and complexity in their music. Their groundbreaking album "Rust In Peace", released in 1990, is frequently cited as a seminal work in the thrash metal genre. Along with the critically acclaimed "Peace Sells... But Who's Buying?", it cemented MEGADETH's place in the annals of metal history.

Over four decades, the band's discography has earned numerous certifications, including platinum and multi-platinum awards, with albums like "Countdown To Extinction" and "Youthanasia" achieving widespread critical acclaim. 2016's "Dystopia" not only marked a high point with their first Grammy Award for "Best Metal Performance" after twelve nominations but also set the stage for their latest triumph, "The Sick, The Dying... And The Dead!" in 2022. MEGADETH's status as part of the "Big Four" of thrash metal underscores their trailblazing role in the genre, laying the groundwork for countless bands and musicians who have followed in their wake.

In a new interview with Kyle Meredith, LAMB OF GOD frontman Randy Blythe spoke about concertgoers using cell phones to take photos and videos of performances and sometimes filming entire shows instead of enjoying the moment. He said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "Put your fricking phones down and be present. I haven't done this yet, but I'm going to. As the phones come more and more and more, I'm going to walk out one day at a particularly phone-driven show and I'm gonna bring a stool, and I'm gonna set it down in the middle of the stage after a song or two, and then I'm going to turn on my phone, and I'm gonna point it at the audience, and I'm gonna sit there, and I'm gonna sing a whole song. I'm not gonna move. I'm gonna do what they do. And then at the end, I'm gonna say, 'Did you people enjoy that? No? I didn't either. So why don't we be here together? Put your fricking phone down.' The memories that you're going to have, because you're experiencing this show through this digital filter or whatever of a crappy cell phone video… You're not [movie director] Steven Spielberg. Sit here and enjoy the show with me. Be here with me, because that's how it was when I started going to shows. Except for — thank God — those people back in the '80s who were photographer nerds. The weird people, there was always one or two with a camera who would take pictures, and thank God for them, 'cause they documented things. But everybody else was present. And people are missing it nowadays by viewing a show through a tiny iPhone screen. Be here with me."

Blythe went on to say that there is a particular reason he has publicly started to push back on these behaviors.

"I'm not asking for sympathy, like, 'Poor Randy, he feels bad.' But, yeah, the relationship is missing," he explained. "And I want a relationship with the audience. Because the harder you go, the harder I'm gonna go. The more you look at the phone, the more I wanna sit on a stool and film you. And it's gonna happen one day."

Asked if he has considered banning the use of cell phones at LAMB OF GOD concerts, similar to what TOOL has done, Randy said: "I thought about it. My band probably wouldn't be down with it. I'd be totally great if they were no cell phones. Because these things, they are warping the shape of our reality in a horrific way across the board.

"I'm not a Luddite, I am not anti-technology — clearly we are using it right now — but I think it would behoove us to step back and examine our relationship with technology and see what is being taken from us, the human aspect," he continued. "And I'm just gonna discuss music here — it's certainly removed that human aspect, in a lot of ways, from shows at times.

"I'm certainly not, like, 'Oh, nobody can take a picture,' I'm not that guy or whatever, but it's really disturbing to me how much people are missing," Randy added. "You are, in fact, missing the show. You're not here. You're looking at your phone, bro. When I went to shows, I was looking around and I wasn't looking at the band. I was looking around at the cute chicks who were there. You know what? You're not gonna get that on your cell phone. There is no 'swipe left' or whatever in the middle of the show. Get off your phone. Be here with us. Meet people, talk, have a human experience."

Back in September 2020, Blythe offered his perspective on the well-known downside of social media, which is the addiction it creates, in an interview with "The Hardcore Humanism With Dr. Mike" podcast. He said: "This is one thing that worries me for the younger generation, who are raised with these things. The 'pocket Jesus,' as I call it, the cell phone, has everything you need; it's your savior. The world is your oyster.

"For instance, I've traveled the world. I've been to every continent except for Antarctica. I can tell you there is a vast, vast difference from looking at pictures of, let's say, the Highlands in Scotland, or watching a documentary about the Highlands in Scotland — you can learn some things. There's a vast difference between viewing that on a screen and being there. It is unbelievable. That's a plug for the Highlands; it's an amazing place. But it's not comparable.

"So, for me, I'm not a Luddite — I believe the Internet is a valuable tool — but I feel it should be as the tool, a means to an end rather than the end itself. And I feel that's kind of, in a lot of ways, what it's become, with social media and so forth, people chasing likes and building their profiles and all that other stuff. And it's, like, to what end? What does that get you in the end? A bazillion Instagram followers. What does that get you? How does that translate into something of value within your life other than you're popular on cell phones. [Laughs]"

Blythe went on to say that while social media can be a valuable educational and communication tool, it can also be an immense distraction.

"When I lay down on my death bed, and I do hope I'm cognizant when I am dying — I hope I'm awake," he said. "I want to experience this; I want to understand what's happening, and hopefully I will meet it with fortitude and bravery. But when I lay down on my death bed and I think about my life, I doubt I will say to myself, 'You know, I really wish I had spent more time looking at my cell phone, building my social media profile. I really wish I had been on the computer more Googling kangaroos,' or whatever I was doing.

"I like to use these things in order to inject myself into the stream of life," he continued. "I'm lucky enough to travel — or I used to be — with my band a lot, and when we would go into a city, I'd go on Google. [I would look for] museums, or what's an interesting neighborhood here, or what's the local food. And then I put the phone in my pocket and I go. Because I want to taste that food, I want to walk in that museum — I want to see these things. And I think the challenge right now, being stuck at home so much, is there's a lot of things about my town, and I think this is for anyone probably, that they take for granted, that become mundane after you're exposed to them daily. And I'm trying to really broaden my perspective on where I live and go see some things I haven't seen in a while or maybe find some new things — try and view the world in a different way."

LAMB OF GOD launched its "Ashes Of Leviathan" co-headlining tour with MASTODON on July 19 in Austin, Texas. The trek, dubbed "Ashes Of Leviathan", also features openers KERRY KING and MALEVOLENCE.

"Ashes Of Leviathan" celebrates the 20th anniversary of LAMB OF GOD's "Ashes Of The Wake" and MASTODON's "Leviathan" albums, both of which were released on the same date in 2004 (August 31).

LAMB OF GOD is Randy Blythe (vocals),John Campbell (bass),Mark Morton (guitar),Willie Adler (guitar) and Art Cruz (drums). Formed in 1994, the Richmond, Virginia-based band have released nine critically acclaimed albums, received five Grammy Award nominations and are widely regarded as one of the most influential and innovative forces in heavy music. The band's most recent collection, "Omens", arrived in late 2022, with Kerrang! noting that the album finds the band "as reliably heavy, violent, and pissed off as ever," and Consequence saying the "album will break you down to nihilistic pieces."

In a new interview with Ultimate Classic Rock, DEEP PURPLE singer Ian Gillan addressed the name of the band's upcoming tour with YES, "=1 More Time". Asked how close the end of the road — and, perhaps, DEEP PUPRLE — feels to him, the singer, who will turn 79 next week, responded: "Well, you know what?! It was only recently that I heard somebody mention [the tour name]. I'd never heard that before. I'd never even spoken to anybody about it. No one asked me. That's rubbish. [Laughs] That's not the name of the tour. I think the tour is called 'Unleashed'. Not that it matters; it's a DEEP PURPLE tour and we're happy and whatever. But to answer your question: it is what it is. As soon as you start feeling unable to deliver at that level — of course, you adjust, of course, you adapt and make do the best you can. But when the energy level goes, that's time to stop because then it gets embarrassing and nobody wants that. But so far, so good. I think that's a much better title than what you just said. [Laughs]"

Last December, DEEP PURPLE drummer Ian Paice, who turned 76 in June, was asked by Zoom when he and his bandmates will eventually retire from performing live. He responded: "We have never planned a date to stop working. We are realists. The guys are getting older, and there's gonna come a point where maybe one or two of us don't want to do it anymore or [it's] not physically possible for them to do it. But we don't think about that. We're still having a great deal of fun. A lot of people still enjoy what we do, and so long as those two things stay in harmony, we'll continue.

"I don't think we'll ever know what the last gig, what the last tour is," he continued. "I think it'll come and just smack us in the face. Unless there's a definite plan, which there isn't, to do something as a final bye-bye, I just think we'll just go, 'Sorry, guys. We're finished. We can't do it anymore. It's been wonderful.' But even then, I think if we stopped touring, there's no reason why we couldn't make more records. That's the easiest thing in the world. All you've got to do is have the ideas. That's the hardest thing in the world. But physically making a record is easy."

Paice added: "Touring only works if you enjoy it. You can't just enjoy the two hours a night when you're playing. You've got to be able to deal with the whole thing. You've got to be able to deal with a ten-hour flight, a hotel which is less than perfect, transportation which goes wrong. You've gotta deal with all that. And if you can, and still enjoy it, then why would you stop something that you got into as a kid 'cause it made you happy? And if it still makes you happy, why would you stop it?"

Paice's PURPLE bandmate Roger Glover expressed a similar sentiment about the band's final tour in a June 2023 interview with Rock Hard Greece. The bassist, who turned 78 last November, said: "I don't like the idea of announcing the last show: 'And here they are. This is their last show.' I mean, the stress involved in that would be ridiculous. Where would it be? When would it be? For me, the ideal ending for PURPLE is that we just carry on until it stops. No announcement. We're not gonna announce, 'This is the last one.' People would buy tickets: 'Oh, this is the last one.' It's an exercise in making money. It's not very good. I've never liked it. I'd rather go and play and play and play and play, and one day when something happens and one of us drops dead or gets really ill or whatever, [we say], 'Well, that's that.' And leave it at that."

In 2022, DEEP PURPLE keyboardist Don Airey, who turned 76 in June, told Rolling Stone magazine that there is no concrete plan for him and his DEEP PURPLE bandmates to stop playing live shows.

"We started the farewell tour in 2017. It was due to end in 2019," he noted. "But the thing is, when you're a musician in a band, you think you're in control of it, but you're not. The business is running you.

"Of course, there was so much demand for the band to continue from the promoters and agents that we said, 'Okay, we'll do one more year.'"

Regarding when he thinks DEEP PURPLE will finally call it quits, Don said: "The words of T.S. Eliot [the greatest English-language poet of his generation] come to mind: 'This is the way the band ends. Not with a bang, but with a whimper.' I think we won't know it's the last gig. We won't have a clue that this one is going to be the last one. That's how it's going to end. It's going to be no big scenario.

"I like what Buddy Guy said. He said, 'Musicians don't retire. They drop.' You do have thoughts about being in the garden and bouncing the grandchildren on your knee, but it's part of your blood system, playing and touring. It's an addiction. I hope I keep playing for a while yet."

In July 2022, guitarist Steve Morse officially left PURPLE to care for his wife, Janine, who is battling cancer. He has since been replaced by Simon McBride.

DEEP PURPLE's latest album, "=1", came out on July 19 via earMUSIC.

Photo credit: Jim Rakete

SLIPKNOT bassist Alessandro "VMan" Venturella has unveiled his latest mask, created in collaboration with German visual artist, writer and sculptor Hedi Xandt.

Xandt's work ranges from poetry and time-based digital works to complex visuals and monumental sculptures, encompassing and evolving classical subjects such as vanity, physical tension and the depths of human life. An apt user of traditional and digital creation techniques, the artist blurs the lines between illusion and existence: though many of his works trigger the urge to obtain and possess them, they are often masterful, immaterial renditions of a fantasy, whereas others that seem to be confined in a digital space are in reality monstrous entities of stone and metal.

Venturella said about his collaboration with Xandt: "I've been a massive fan of his work and thought it was time to go get him to make me a piece of his art for SLIPKNOT. Beyond stoked!"

Hedi stated about the piece he created for Venturella: "Its design nods to earlier incarnations of V Man's face and references Italian expressionist sculptures ravaged and converted into a mask by brute force. This 'slashed' appearance is one of three different designs."

Xandt added: "It's been an absolute pleasure to work on these, and there's much more to show you! Thanks to @vmanshreds and the trust he put in me and my work."

Venturella debuted the new mask at the first show of the North American portion of SLIPKNOT's "Here Comes The Pain" tour on August 6 at the Ruoff Music Center in Noblesville, Indiana. This year the nine are celebrating the 25th anniversary of their seminal debut album, "Slipknot", which catapulted the band back in 1999.

Venturella began working with SLIPKNOT during the recording of 2014's ".5: The Gray Chapter" album, contributing bass tracks along with guitarists Jim Root and Mick Thomson and former touring bassist Donnie Steele. He made his live debut with the band in 2014 at the first annual Knotfest.

In 2019, Alessandro told Bass Guitar Magazine that he landed in SLIPKNOT after getting a phone call from Root while working with MASTODON as guitarist Brent Hinds's tech.

"Me and Jim became friends while I was teching," Venturella said. "He was asking if I knew any bass players. When I found out what for, I put my hand up right away. He pointed out, 'But you don't play bass?' and I said something to the effect that I could do whatever he needed from me. Then I just had to make sure it was true."

According to Venturella, his role early on in SLIPKNOT was to "fill a great man's shoes and do him justice," referring to original bassist Paul Gray, who passed away in 2010. "My approach isn't the same as Paul's. I can't be him and never will be; every player is ultimately born different. That said, if you listen to Paul's note choices on 'Vermilion', he was all over the shop and it sounded great. I wanted to try things like that.

"After listening to his stems, I honestly looked at bass in a different light and understood how to support everything as the backbone," he continued. "Take the bass out of the mix and everything will fall flat on its arse — and equally, if you mix too bass-heavy, you're not going to get your point across either. Lead guitarists, on the other hand, always need to cut through because that's what the job entails. As the rhythm section, we're there to hold the fort."

Gray passed away from an accidental overdose of drugs.

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In a new interview with Canada's The Metal Voice, former W.A.S.P. guitarist Chris Holmes was asked how he feels about Blackie Lawless embarking on a tour to celebrate the 40th anniversary of the band's debut album by performing the LP in its entirety. Chris said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "More power to him, if he can. I mean, you've gotta understand, the singing on there, it's not nice and pretty, and he's screaming the whole time and screaming over every song. The whole length, except for 'Sleeping (In The Fire)' he sang, but everything else is just screaming. I even told him that after [we recorded] the album, I go, 'You're gonna have problems singing this.' Hey, more power to him. If he can do that, and that's what the people wanna hear or see or whatever, more power to him."

To celebrate the 40th anniversary of "W.A.S.P.", W.A.S.P. will, for the first time in 40 years, play the entire album from top to bottom, start to finish, on a fall 2024 North American tour, dubbed "Album ONE Alive", this fall. Support on the trek will come from DEATH ANGEL and UNTO OTHERS.

Asked if he would be open to any of the former W.A.S.P. members who played on the "W.A.S.P." album — Holmes, guitarist Randy Piper and drummer Tony Richards — making guest appearances at any of the shows on the upcoming tour, Blackie told Chris Akin Presents… back in June: "I remember specifically having this conversation with someone who had been through the same thing. And he had basically lost his original band and had to rebuild it with studio musicians. And I remember him telling me at that point, he goes, 'These guys are ringers. They're killers, these musicians.' And it wasn't until years went by that I began to understand what he was saying and would compare his original band to what he had built later on with really ringers, musicians. And he was right.

"Here's what happened to us," Blackie continued. "When we started, and this goes back to what we were saying earlier on in the conversation about crafting your skill as a songwriter, getting better as a musician, learning how to use the studio as a tool, all those things you learn, the records get better, but the records get more complex. You reach a point where the musicianship starts to grow. Not everybody in the original incarnation of a band grows together, or do they grow in the same direction.

"Everybody's heard the age-old adage about, 'Well, we broke up because of musical differences,' and as corny as that may sound, a lot of times there is truth to that. And you really find people either growing in different directions or some guys can't keep up with the rest of the class. And so, for one reason or another, if nothing else, just attrition will start to weed guys out, especially when you start getting into more complicated material.

"You can't really compare the band… As much as whatever the first record that we did, the magic that is on that, and I recognize that not as a fan, but as the person who created it," Lawless added. "Again, you're never gonna see it like the average audience member does, because you can't — you're in a bubble. You cannot see it the way they see it. And you have to really open your ears and listen to them when they talk. Whether you agree or not, you have to listen and you have to try to take what they're saying into consideration. But when you reach a point where that band grows — in our particular case, you go from the first record to [1989's fourth album] '[The] Headless [Children]', the band that created that first record could not create 'Headless'. It was impossible. The musicianship that was required to make 'Headless' was vastly different than what created that first album. That first album was done with attitude and snot and spit. That was an angry record made by an angry band. But it kind of reminds me of… In the movie 'Rocky 3', where Rocky wants to fight Mr. T and Burgess Meredith, who plays his manager Mickey, he tells him, he goes, 'You can't,' he goes, 'You can't fight Mr. T. You can't win.' And Rocky goes, 'Yeah, I can. Yeah, I can.' He goes, 'Listen, kid.' He goes, 'Every fighter thinks they got one more good one in 'em.' He goes, 'The worst thing that could ever happen to a fighter happened to you. You got civilized.' That happens to rock bands.

"You mentioned early on in this conversation about the first five years of bands together. If you go back and you look at most bands that you like, their bones were made the first five years they were together," Blackie explained. "Almost every band fits that description. There are a few exceptions. And that doesn't mean that they cannot go on to make great records after that five-year period, but their bones are made those first five years they're together, and then they start moving and growing in different directions and it changes and it morphs.

"I appreciate the energy level that came out of that first [W.A.S.P.] record — I really do. But how do I go back to guys I've been playing with for 25 years and say, 'Your tenure in this band has been five times as long as the guys that I worked with originally, but you can't play on this tour.' I cannot do that. And secondly, we're gonna do the show in two halves. The first half is the first record in its entirety. The second half is like a best-of set. The band that's gonna play that first set has to be able to play that second set as well.

"Listen, I totally get the idea of the romance that people have in people's heads about what an original lineup could be, but me as the person who's on stage has to understand that no matter how much the audience may want that to be the way it was, my responsibility to them as ticket buyers, I have to give you the best show possible. I have that responsibility to you. No matter what you think it is you may want, I know I have to deliver for you. And again, especially when people have been out of the game for a long time, for us to do what is being suggested, that the original band do it, I would think that that would be pretty much an impossibility. Forget the marriage/divorce scenario that you first suggested [about reuniting the original lineup being akin to going on a family vacation with an ex-wife to make the kids happy], which is not altogether untrue, because there is a lot to be said for that, but as time goes on, unless you stay in this game and you stay active, you start to lose it. And we've all seen situations of something we thought would be great and then when you see it, you realize, no, it can never be what it once was. Unless you're working with people who have stayed constant, who stayed in shape, that have done whatever it is they need to do to keep that edge, they're gonna go out there and it's not gonna be very good. And I cannot do that to our fanbase."

Along with bassist Mike Duda and lead guitarist Doug Blair, whose tenures in the band are 29 and 26 years respectively, W.A.S.P. is joined by longtime drummer extraordinaire Aquiles Priester.

The 39-city run kicks off on Saturday, October 26 in San Luis Obispo, California, making stops across North America in Vancouver, British Columbia; Toronto, Ontario; Minneapolis, Minnesota; Dallas, Texas; New York City; Orlando, Florida; and more before wrapping up on Saturday, December 14 at the Hollywood Palladium in Los Angeles, California.

W.A.S.P. will again offer fans VIP tickets that give fans a chance to meet Blackie Lawless, get a personal photo with Blackie, autographs and take part in a very personal question-and-answer session with Blackie. VIP tickets can be purchased at waspnation.myshopify.com.

Because of the extensive back injuries Lawless suffered during the European leg of W.A.S.P.'s 40th-anniversary tour, the band's previously announced 2023 U.S. tour was canceled.

W.A.S.P.'s massive European leg of the 40th-anniversary world tour wrapped on May 18, 2023 in Sofia, Bulgaria at Universidada Sports Hall.

W.A.S.P. wrapped up its first U.S. tour in 10 years with a sold-out show on December 11, 2022 at The Wiltern in Los Angeles. This marked the 18th sold-out shows for the U.S. tour, which kicked off in late October 2022. W.A.S.P.'s performances included the return of the band's classic song "Animal (Fuck Like a Beast)", which hadn't been played live in over 15 years.

W.A.S.P.'s latest release was "ReIdolized (The Soundtrack To The Crimson Idol)", which came out in February 2018. It was a new version of the band's classic 1992 album "The Crimson Idol", which was re-recorded to accompany the movie of the same name to mark the 25th anniversary of the original LP's release. The re-recorded version also features four songs missing from the original album.

W.A.S.P.'s most recent studio album of all-new original material was 2015's "Golgotha".

Image courtesy of Duke TV

Matt Tuck of Welsh metallers BULLET FOR MY VALENTINE was a guest on a recent episode of Occupy The Void With Xtina and Tim, a new podcast about mental health, making music and staying alive hosted by Christina Rowatt and Tim Charles, violinist and clean vocalist of Australia's NE OBLIVISCARIS. You can now listen to the entire 44-minute episode on Spotify. Some of the highlights are available in the YouTube clip below.

Addressing the challenges of the touring lifestyle, Tuck said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "It's not for everyone, this way of life and what we do as a touring band. We're fortunate enough to be a global act, which is an amazing thing. Now we've worked really hard to accomplish that. But yeah, the traveling, the scheduling, all that kind of stuff, it does take its toll physically and mentally. It's a tough thing to deal with. We've adapted to it. We've had a career of nearly 20 years at this point, so we're kind of wise to how to handle it now. But back in the early days, the first couple of album cycles, it was really tough. The physical side was one thing, but I really struggled [mentally]. It was adapting to all that — just the lifestyle of being a successful touring rock band was just like a car crash and a beautiful thing at the same time. It all comes together. It's just hard."

Asked if adapting to the touring lifestyle became easier through experience or if he and his bandmates have had internal discussions about how to handle it, the BULLET FOR MY VALENTINE frontman said: "Like I said, we've had a career of nearly 20 years at this point, so we've just learned, as we've gone along, how to handle certain things and how to adapt going forward so we don't have to have as many struggles as we used to have. And it's all just about pacing yourself, the lifestyle thing, not drinking too much. Back in the early days, we would take it on hard and party and we were just enjoying life and experience. I think everyone does it in the early stages of a career.

"If you want a career out of it, there comes a point where you have a conversation about, 'All right, we need to chill this out. We need to take this a bit more seriously,'" he explained. "If anything, just for your health rather than your career, 'cause it will get you and it will fuck you up if you're not careful."

Tuck also talked about the fact that BULLET FOR MY VALENTINE has managed to beat the odds and become one of the most successful U.K. metal acts of the new millennium. He said: "I couldn't be more proud of myself, of my bandmates, the whole team has been around BULLET for a very long time. We threw everything at it with that gamble of no reward, super high risk, potential no reward. But that's what we were willing to do. We were so passionate about the band, about the potential that we had and we were aware that it was gonna be hard work and it was gonna be a long road, but it's fine. But yeah, we didn't care. We were having the experiences of being able to travel the world with your best mates and play music which you created in front of people that were singing it back. And that was the reward at that point. It was just getting to that point, which was the struggle. But thankfully we're still here and we're still going strong, better than ever. We're still writing the best music we've ever produced. And we control everything now, which is great, whereas in the early days, you're just told, 'This is what's going on,' and you just hope for the best."

BULLET FOR MY VALENTINE and TRIVIUM recently announced the continental European dates for "The Poisoned Ascendancy" tour.

"The Poisoned Ascendancy" will launch in the U.K. in late January 2025 for six shows, before the two bands, along with support act ORBIT CULTURE, head over to mainland Europe for 18 more concerts.

BULLET FOR MY VALENTINE and TRIVIUM will celebrate the 20th anniversary of "The Poison" and "Ascendancy" albums, respectively, by playing them in full, with the newly announced shows kicking off on February 2 in Düsseldorf, Germany and wrapping up at the end of the month in Madrid, Spain.

BULLET FOR MY VALENTINE released the deluxe version of its latest, self-titled album in August 2022 via Spinefarm/Search & Destroy. This extended release featured four brand new tracks, plus "Stitches", a song previously only available as a Japanese exclusive. Following the CD and digital releases, a vinyl pressing launched in November 2022.

Buck Dharma, the writer, vocalist and lead guitarist of Blue Öyster Cult's “Don’t Fear The Reaper”, Burnin’ For You” and “Godzilla”, has released his first solo multimedia creation in decades.


"End Of Every Song" is a fascinating, disturbing and deeply moving audio and video journey. Follow as Buck chronicles the highs and lows of his life, and our lives, with his band, his family, friends and loved ones.







The single is available wherever music is streamed or sold. Complete audio and video credits, and the story of everybody in the video, can be found here. Watch the music video below:










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In a new interview with The Big Takeover, MEGADETH leader Dave Mustaine was asked if he, when he was starting out in the Los Angeles music scene more than four decades ago, had any inkling that he would have the kind of career that he ended up having. He responded: "In my heart, I had hoped that I could continue playing for as long as I live. The question was, how long was I going to live? We were all in this [L.A.] scene at the time that everybody was living super fast and dangerous. People like [MÖTLEY CRÜE singer] Vince Neil getting in a car crash and the drummer for HANOI ROCKS losing his life, that whole period around then — everybody was just dangerous. We had to get away from that. All I wanted to do was just play my guitar. I didn't want to hang. I was not one of those guys that would go over to people's houses and party all night. If I was doing anything, I would do it by myself in the house and play guitar. Not that I was alone in my house, but you know."

He continued: "For me, I didn't have a Plan B. And I didn't want to have a Plan B because my Plan A was all that mattered. And I wasn't going to take no for an answer. Growing up homeless, growing up a poor kid, that does something to you. So yeah, being a poor kid and going from house to house to house, and wearing hand-me-down clothes all the time, and living in a car for as long as I did, that changed me. And that's what I think drove me to want to be successful because I didn't want to be that guy. I didn't want to be stuck in a situation of being homeless and living in a car. I was not going to settle for that. So that's why I worked as hard as I did. Some people will say I was callous with the [MEGADETH] lineup changes and stuff like that, but with every one of the lineup changes we had, there was a really legitimate reason that we made a change."

A little over a year ago, Mustaine told Consequence that "there hasn't been that many" lineup changes in MEGADETH "when you think about how many some of these bands go through. A lot of popular bands will go through lineup changes and sometimes it's really bad for the band. Other times, it's necessary. So, I try not to hold it against guys that are in bands when they have personnel issues. Sometimes, you just end up having a different perspective, and when you guys start off doing stuff, it's very much like a marriage, and you want to have the same vision — but it doesn't always stay that way. So, compared to some bands, yeah, we've had several lineup changes, but not as many as others have. And the lineup that we have right now, I think is magic."

He continued: "I can tell you at any given time, we may have had a period where there was a more popular person on drums or a more popular person on bass or a more popular person on lead guitar. But the magic that the band is operating under right now is so different."

Back in 2012, Mustaine addressed the reasons for MEGADETH's many lineup changes, telling AL.com: "That's the problem when you start a band. You have to pick the right guys. But things happen. … We have our lineup and everything's working, and one guy says, 'I want more money.' Or 'I want to write more songs.' The truth of the matter is that it's hard to write songs. You have your whole life to write your first album. After that, it's hard."

In a recent interview with Portugal's Underground's Voice, MEGADETH drummer Dirk Verbeuren was asked how he has dealt with some of the recent lineup changes in the band, specifically with the departure of guitarist Kiko Loureiro and addition of Teemu Mäntysaari, as well as the return of bassist James LoMenzo following the dismissal of David Ellefson. He responded: "It's life. Things happen. It's difficult being in a band, especially for an amount of time. And it's like any job. Oftentimes they say, [being] in a band, it's kind of like a marriage. And sometimes it doesn't work out. People have things happen in their life. Like in Kiko's case, for example, he had family things happening that demanded that he should be there for his family. And we tour a lot, and it just became very difficult for him to really enjoy and be present on tour, because of the stuff that was happening back at home. So I think we all believe that he made the right decision, because family comes first, of course; his children come first. But that's how it is. And luckily, we found Teemu, who's an incredible guitar player. Kiko recommended him, and Teemu came towards the end of Kiko's time in the band. Teemu came and joined along and watched the show and went over all the details and stuff. And so when we finally started playing with him, he was already very familiar with how we operate. And he's been amazing. He's an amazing guitar player, he's a great person to be around. So it's been really nice. And the same with James. James, of course, he has been in MEGADETH for many years before, between 2006 and 2010, so when James came back, it was very natural as well. And he's an expert — he's been doing this for many years playing with a lot of different people. And [he's] a great person as well. I love James a lot."

MEGADETH's latest album, "The Sick, The Dying... And The Dead!", sold 48,000 equivalent album units in the U.S. in its first week of release to land at position No. 3 on the Billboard 200 chart. It marked MEGADETH's eighth top 10-charting album. Of "The Sick, The Dying... And The Dead!"'s 48,000 units earned for the week, album sales comprised 45,000, SEA units comprised 3,000 and TEA units comprised a negligible sum.

MEGADETH's previous top 10 entries on the Billboard 200 were "Countdown to Extinction" (No. 2, 1992),"Youthanasia" (No. 4, 1994),"Cryptic Writings" (No. 10, 1997),"United Abominations" (No. 8, 2007),"Endgame" (No. 9, 2009),"Super Collider" (No. 6, 2013) and "Dystopia" (No. 3, 2016).

MEGADETH's "Destroy All Enemies" North American tour, produced by Live Nation kicked off in Rogers, Arkansas on August 2 and runs throughout the month before wrapping in Nashville, Tennessee on September 28. Support on the 33-city trek, which includes stops in Los Angeles, Las Vegas, Boston and St. Louis, is coming from MUDVAYNE and ALL THAT REMAINS. The tour begins

Mäntysaari joined MEGADETH last September after Loureiro, announced earlier that month that he would sit out the next leg of MEGADETH's "Crush The World" tour in order to stay home with his children back in Finland. It was later revealed that Mäntysaari would continue to play guitar for MEGADETH for the foreseeable future, with Loureiro seemingly having no plans to return.

The 37-year-old Mäntysaari was born in Tampere, Finland and began playing guitar at the age of 12. In 2004, he joined the band WINTERSUN. He has also been a member of SMACKBOUND since 2015.

MEGADETH played its first concert with Mäntysaari on September 6, 2023 at Revel in Albuquerque, New Mexico.

Loureiro officially joined MEGADETH in April 2015, about five months after Chris Broderick's exit from the group.

In a new interview with Moshpit Passion conducted at this month's Wacken Open Air festival in Germany, SOIL bassist Tim King was asked about the lack of new original material from the band following the release of 2013's "Whole" album. He said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "SOIL is kind of an enigma. It's been something that we've been very proud of for a long time. I guess the best thing to say is we pick and choose our battles. We do things that make sense and when they're gonna be good, like coming to Europe and playing Wacken Open Air festival and a bunch of other festivals and doing headline dates. We don't tour just to tour. We tour when it makes sense and we do things when it's a beneficial thing. With that being said, we are very, very, very long overdue for new material, which me and Ryan [McCombs, SOIL frontman] will not disagree with and we'll talk about all day long. The weird thing about that is we all live in very different areas. I'm not gonna make excuses at this point. We need to do new material.'

Tim continued: "Anyway, we got an offer to do a covers record and re-record old material, which we did during COVID, when nobody was doing anything. And honestly, the covers record I listen to more than any SOIL record that we ever released. I don't know why, but we just really nailed it. I think we did a great job on that. It sounds so good.

"But long story short, we're not gonna release anything else until it's something new, because the fans deserve that," King added. "We've waited long enough. We're long overdue. When the time comes that we have it ready to go, we'll do it. But we have really no excuses for it other than the fact that we suck. [Laughs]"

King went on to say that there are other factors involved in why writing and recording new music with SOIL is taking a lot longer than it used to.

"What is cool is as opposed to SOIL back in the day, when SOIL was our life, we all do different things," he explained. "Our guitarist Adam [Zadel] has his own business, our drummer TJ [Taylor] has his own business. I have the record label. I have my little side project, the death metal band. Ryan got asked to rejoin DROWNING POOL, and instead of being angry and mad about it, we were, like, 'Yeah, do it.'

"Everything's in a very great place," Tim said. "We embrace Ryan doing DROWNING POOL. We embrace what we do with SOIL. Ryan loves what we do with [my death metal side project] EMBRYONIC AUTOPSY. The older we've gotten, we embrace the outside activities to where we might've pulled them a METALLICA-type mentality back in the day, like, 'You can only do METALLICA. You can only do this. You can't do anything else. It's not right.' But now, it's kind of, like, guess what? It's a new era. It's a new thing. We're older, and we understand it more now. So you've gotta do what you need to do to either pay your bills or scratch your itch music or anything.

"But what's great about it is we've rekindled our relationship with DROWNING POOL when we had kind of a falling out before, and now we're all friends," King added. "And it's really awesome to just get along and all enjoy what we're doing. I look at Ryan playing in front of people at a DROWNING POOL festival, I don't get mad at it. I'm, like, 'Wow, cool. He's doing something great like that.' We just played Wacken in front of — what? — 20,000 people, whatever it was. And everybody's just happy for one another. And that comes with age, and it comes with what we're doing now. It's a great, great thing."

Last year, SOIL celebrated its long list of compositional accomplishments with "Restoration", a brand-new set of studio recordings of the band's biggest hits throughout their prolific history. "Restoration" highlighted the band's best musical moments, including smash hit singles "Halo" and "Breaking Down", from SOIL's 2001 award-winning album "Scars".

In August 2022, SOIL released the "Play It Forward" album, consisting of some of the songs that inspired the bandmembers throughout the years. Prior to that. SOIL issued "Scream: The Essentials" in September 2017 via Pavement Entertainment and AFM Records. That effort celebrated the band's 20-year career and featured early recordings as well as alternate versions and mixes.

In March 2023, it was announced that SOIL singer Ryan McCombs had rejoined DROWNING POOL.

McCombs originally hooked up with DROWNING POOL in 2005 and appeared on two of the band's studio albums, "Full Circle" (2007) and "Drowning Pool" (2010),as well as a live album, 2009's "Loudest Common Denominator". He rejoined SOIL after exiting DROWNING POOL in 2011.

McCombs is planning to continue to front SOIL and perform with both bands moving forward.

McCombs, who has lived in Swindon, England since 2018, played his first shows back with DROWNING POOL in March 2023 at Club L.A. in Destin, Florida and at the inaugural Throwdown At The Campground festival in Fruitland Park, Florida.

Legendary German metal queen, Doro, performed at Hellsinki Metal Fest in Helsinki, Finland on August 10th. Fan-filmed video of the entire show can be viewed below.


Setlist:


"I Rule the Ruins" (Warlock)
"Burning the Witches" (Warlock)
"Fight for Rock" (Warlock)
"Time for Justice"
"Metal Racer (Warlock")
"Raise Your Fist in the Air"
"Children of the Dawn"
"Für immer" (Warlock)
"Fire in the Sky"
"Revenge"
"Breaking the Law" (Judas Priest)
"All We Are" (Warlock)
"All for Metal"







Following the tremendous success of her latest album Conqueress - Forever Strong and Proud, released last year in October, Doro is conquering stages across Europe in 2024, bringing her electrifying performance to fans old and new.


As an extra special treat, she will be joining forces with the legendary Alice Cooper as a special guest on select dates!


August
24 - Newark, UK - Stonedead Festival
31 - Speyer, Germany - Halle 101


September
1 - Braunschweig, Germany - Applaus Garten
14 - Bergen, Norway - Full Metal Cruise 


October - Special Guest to Alice Cooper 
2 - Paris, France -  Zenith 
3 - Stuttgart, Germany - Porsche Arena 
4 - Lingen, Germany -  Emsland Arena 
6 - Oberhausen, Germany - Rudolf Weber Arena 
8 - München, Germany - Olympiahalle 
9 - Berlin, Germany - Max-Schmeling-Halle 
11 - Leipzig, Germany - Arena 


October
12 - Kapfenberg, Austria  - Wildstyle
13 - Lindau, Germany - Club Vaudevile
15 - Pratteln, Switzerland -  Z7
19 - Linz, Austria -  Wildstyle
26 - Salzburg, Austria - Wildstyle


December
16 - Hamburg, Germany - Große Freiheit 36
17 - Oberhausen, Germany - Turbinenhalle
18 - Wiesbaden, Germany - Schlachthof
20 - Stuttgart, Germany - LKA Longhorn
21 - Markneukirchen, Germany - Musikhalle
22 - München, Germany - Backstage Werk





Doro recently released the thunderous new single, "Lean Mean Rock Machine", accompanied by an electrifying animated video crafted by acclaimed visual artist Balázs Gróf.


This adrenaline-fuelled anthem, taken from her latest album Conqueress - Forever Strong & Proud, perfectly captures the spirit of heavy metal and the freedom of the open road.


Embark on a thrilling journey with Doro as she rides her awesome tuned motorbike through a landscape pulsating with raw energy and the essence of rock 'n' roll.


Gróf's masterful animation brings to life the intense power of Doro's music, creating a visual spectacle that immerses fans in the heart-pounding world of heavy metal and motorbikes.


Doro comments: "I had the idea of making an animated video years ago, and when I recorded 'Lean Mean Rock Machine' I knew it was the perfect song for it. I've liked Balázs Gróf's work for a long time. He is really incredibly talented. I was totally impressed by how he was able to empathize with the vibe of the song, the lyrics, and me as an artist in order to implement 'Lean Mean Rock Machine' absolutely perfectly: exciting, funny, and world-class craftsmanship. There are so many details in the video that you always discover something new. I'm super happy with the clip!"










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Featured Video

Epica singer, Simone Simons, will release her debut solo album, Vermillion, on August 23 via Nuclear Blast Records. The album is a collaboration with Ayreon mastermind Arjen Lucassen.


Lucassen has shared the clip below.


"Dear Ayreonauts, here's a silly little video from me showing off the vinyl of the new Simone Simons album that I had the pleasure of working on with her. Vermillion will be out in nearly two weeks, hope you will enjoy!"







Lucassen is no stranger to Simone's soaring operatic voice, one that can stir even a gargoyle’s stone heart to tears. Together they have crafted a sonic universe that befits the influential figure she is. Vermillion emerges as a gargantuan goose-bump generator, a universally touching, stellar tour de force.


Pre-order / pre-save Vermillion here.





Vermillion tracklisting:


"Aeterna"
"In Love We Rust"
"Cradle To The Grave" (feat. Alyssa White-Gluz)
"Fight Or Flight"
"Weight Of My World"
"Vermillion Dreams"
"The Core"
"Dystopia"
"R.E.D."
"Dark Night Of The Soul"


"Aeterna" video:





"In Love We Rust" video





"R.E.D










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DarWin, the ongoing musical exploration featuring Simon Phillips, Mohini Dey, Greg Howe, Derek Sherinian and Matt Bissonette, have shared an official video for the track, "The Sun". It is taken from their new album, Five Steps On The Sun.





Five Steps On The Sun is available on CD and strictly Limited Heavyweight Vinyl including exclusive poster.







Tracklisting:


"Soul Police"
"Inside This Zoo"
"Be That Man"
"One Step On The Sun"
"Five Steps On The Sun"
"The Sun"
"Imitation Suede"
"Seasons Of A Life"
"Hulks & Heroes"
"What Do We Know"


"One Step On The Sun" video:





"Be That Man" video:










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Drumeo has shared a new video along with the following message:


"One of Dream Theater’s most iconic tracks, '6:00', showcases Mike Portnoy at his best. In this lesson, Mike takes you behind the kit to dissect the complex rhythms, unconventional time signatures, and explosive fills that make this song a fan favorite." 







Previously, Drumeo challenged Portnoy to learn Tool's 12 minute masterpiece, "Pneuma" from the 2019 album, Fear Inoculum. The session lasted more than six hours.










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INFRARED - "Demon's Blood"

In a new interview with Andrew McKaysmith's "Scars And Guitars" podcast, former HELLHAMMER/CELTIC FROST and current TRIPTYKON singer, guitarist and main songwriter Tom Gabriel Fischer (a.k.a. Tom Gabriel Warrior) asked if there is any chance of him reuniting with Reed St. Mark — drummer with CELTIC FROST's best-known lineup — for a possible live performance or a new project. He responded (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "You know what? It's something I think about every single day. Reed is still one of my closest friends, and we are still in contact. And we have talked about it. And Reed would've been part of the CELTIC FROST union in the 2000s, but Martin [Ain, late CELTIC FROST bassist] didn't like the idea, for some reason. I never really found out why Martin didn't want Reed to be part of it, because I actually flew to New York to ask Reed to be part of it, and Reed said he would be. But Martin opposed it and brought in his own friend, Franco Sesa, which, of course, eventually [led to the band's split]. I respect Martin's choices, which is why it happened. CELTIC FROST wasn't a dictatorship. But now, in hindsight, maybe we should have done it with Reed."

Tom continued: "I frequently talk with Reed about him flying to Zurich. He still lives in North America. I talk to him about flying to Zurich and us doing a session to see where we stand musically with our capabilities, to see if it's possible to do maybe a Martin Ain tribute show or two somewhere. Not to reform CELTIC FROST, of course, which is impossible, but to ask other ex-CELTIC FROST members to come and put together a lineup of people who all were in CELTIC FROST and play CELTIC FROST songs in honor of Martin, maybe for two shows or something like that. We have talked about this, and I'm sure we're gonna try to do it. I can't really comment on Reed's playing proficiency, because I'm constantly on stage and he isn't, so I don't know. It remains to be seen. He says he can do it, so let's see. If he can do it, I'm sure it's gonna happen."

Back in 2006, Fischer explained to Terrorizer magazine why St. Mark did not take part in the recording of CELTIC FROST's "comeback" album, "Monotheist", which was released in May of that year. He said: "Reed was a driving factor in getting the band back together. For years he pestered me and I was not interested. I only got interested when we all got in touch again to do the reissues five years ago. By that time Reed had moved to a place in his life where it was physically and psychologically impossible for him to play on an album, and I'm trying to say it respectfully 'cause I'm still really good friends with him. He knows, too, that he wouldn't have been able, even though he was keen for very many years. I know he's in a much better place now. We talked some time ago and he's doing much better now but at that time it was impossible. He approached it with different values to me and Martin, and it just wasn't supposed to happen. It's a shame but in hindsight, the album sounds good. To force the lineup back together I don't think would have been right and I don't think it would sound as strong as it is now."

CELTIC FROST reformed in 2001 and released its comeback album "Monotheist" via Century Media/Prowling Death. The band broke up in 2008, with Fischer going on to form TRIPTYKON.

In a 2015 interview with DCHeavyMetal.com, Fischer stated about CELTIC FROST: "If I had my way, CELTIC FROST would have existed for many more albums. Unfortunately, certain people's grand designs on their own fame and certain egotistical stunts interfered with that. And, eventually, the band became so unworkable that I personally said the only option that was left was leaving it." At the time, Tom said that a CELTIC FROST reunion was "impossible." He explained: "I mean, there's no more animosity between me and Martin — we just met, actually, a few weeks ago, as we do from time to time — but I think that window has closed. Even though Martin once said, 'Yeah, we'll play music together again,' but after that gargantuan disappointment, I don't think I wanna set myself up for yet another one. CELTIC FROST was my life, and losing that twice wasn't very easy. And I don't trust these people anymore. I invested so much time and so much of my personal money and effort and my songs and my production and everything into the 'Monotheist' album, and I did this because I believed the band could exist for many years. Then I felt betrayed and stabbed in the back. And I really… If I would ever get involved with that again, it would probably end the same, and I don't wanna do that."

In a 2011 interview with BigMusicGeek.com, Tom was asked at what point he realized that his tenure with CELTIC FROST was once again coming to an end. "To be quite honest, I had sensed it for some time," he replied. "I just didn't want to admit it.

"CELTIC FROST was much more than just a band to me," he continued. "It was my life, my ideology and pretty much represented my entire being. Of course, I didn't want to see it destroyed again, so despite having all the inside information, I tried to disrupt its destruction and probably stayed too long even though it was fairly obvious that I couldn't face the band. Actually, I blame the final drummer of CELTIC FROST for the destruction of the band. If Martin has any part of this, it's his inactivity that opened the door to this. He simply did not want to involve himself in anything negative, which, on one hand, is commendable, but on the other hand, it's simply not realistic in this world or within a band that works under pressure 24 hours a day. You simply have to be a man and be involved, especially if certain personal conflicts threaten the whole band. Martin was initially reluctant to become involved and that basically opened the door for one person to let his ego run freely until there was really nothing left of the band."

Ain, who played with Fischer in both HELLHAMMER and CELTIC FROST, died in October 2017 after suffering a heart attack at the age of 50.

Ain handled lead vocals on the song "A Dying God Coming Into Human Flesh" on "Monotheist".

In the clip below, former Skid Row frontman Erik Grönwall spins a prize wheel to randomly select a music genre, then writes and records a new song in that genre on the spot. 


In this episode of Wheel of ForTUNES, Grönwall ends up with a Power Metal challenge.


 









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INFRARED - "Demon's Blood"

In a recent interview with "Guitar Tales" with Dave Cohen, former KISS guitarist Ace Frehley, who has been sober since 2006, discussed his decision to finally step away from alcohol nearly two decades ago. He had begun drinking at the age of 13 and battled addiction issues since the 1970s before a conversation with his daughter persuaded him that he had to stop.

"I can go out and people can have one or two cocktails," Ace said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET). "It doesn't bother me anymore. The first or second year in sobriety, it would have bothered me, but I don't really get urges anymore.

"After 17 years looking in the mirror and then looking at photos of me 20 years ago when I was all bloated from alcohol, that also gives me the willpower and the strength to stay away from all that junk… I listen to my sponsor. I go to meetings. If something's bothering me, I'll go to a meeting and I'll share it and then I get rid of it. You let it roll off your back and it's gone, instead of having to take a pill or a drink to get rid of that resentment."

According to Frehley, his at-times-strained relationship with fellow KISS co-founders Paul Stanley and Gene Simmons initially contributed to his drinking problem.

"I had really big resentments against Paul and Gene when I quit the band the first time and even the second time," he explained. "They used to say I got fired, which is complete bullshit. Both times I left on my own accord, and they would perpetuate the myth that they fired me, which is complete bullshit."

As for why he thinks Stanley and Simmons were always so quick to downplay his contributions to the band, Frehley said: "There was always a jealousy there. The fact that my solo album, with 'New York Groove', was the most successful out of the four. I used to get the hottest girls. I didn't go after movie stars, though, 'cause that just complicates things. 'Cause you're a celebrity, you've got another celebrity there and it's twice as complicated. So I don't understand why Gene went out with Cher, Diana Ross. It just became harder, if you wanna go do anything. But Gene doesn't party. So, he's pretty much in the hotel. And he doesn't like going out on vacations, he told me. He hasn't been on a vacation in 15-plus years. But everybody's different."

Ace went on to say that Paul and Gene "dragged my reputation through the mud on several occasions. I mean, even recently," he said. "[More than a year] ago, once they put the tickets on sale for [KISS's final show at] Madison Square Garden [in New York City], they were telling everybody that they invited me, Peter [Criss], Bruce Kulick, all the people that were involved with KISS over the years. I was a founding member. And they were telling the fans that we were gonna be there at Madison Square Garden and then Paul goes on 'Howard Stern [Show]' and says, well, if me and Peter got up on stage, you might as well call the band PISS, which pissed me off."

Five years ago, Frehley recalled the phone call that led him to finally step away from alcohol, telling SiriusXM's "Trunk Nation With Eddie Trunk": "I got a phone call from my daughter, Monique, and she was living in Florida at the time. A lot of alcoholics talk about how they had that moment of clarity… Monique called me up and she goes, 'Dad, I heard you been drinking again.' I go, 'Yeah, but I haven't done anything else bad, you know? I haven't done any coke yet, I haven't done any pills.' She goes, 'Dad, it's time to stop.' She goes, 'You better call your sponsor and tell them to take you to a meeting tonight.' And I looked in the mirror and I looked like shit. I just said to her, 'All right, honey, I'll give Jimmy a call.' He came and picked me up right after dinner, [and] he took me to my first meeting. He's like my guardian angel on earth. I got a lot of them floating around me. After 10 car accidents, someone's got to be helping me."

After host Eddie Trunk noted that some people still thought he was "loaded", Ace paraphrased an Abraham Lincoln quote, saying: "If you want to find the bad in people, and look for the bad in people, you surely will." He continued: "There's always those people who want to see somebody fall, and people who want to look at the best in people. I always try to look at the good in people. The glass is half full, not half empty.

"Every time I perform a concert I usually have meet-and-greets after the show," he added. "At least one person comes up to me and says, 'Ace, I've been sober two years,' 'Ace, I've been sober five years.' I'm helping people live longer lives, more fruitful lives, because I'm a power of example. Go figure."

The original KISS guitarist is continuing to tour in support of his latest solo album, "10,000 Volts", which was released in February via MNRK Music Group (formerly eOne Music). The LP was produced by Ace and Steve Brown (TRIXTER).

Frehley recently revealed that his next release will be a third "Origins" volume, covering songs by artists who influenced him. He will once again work with Brown on the project, which is tentatively due in 2025.

Photo credit: Jayme Thornton

Brutal death band Emasculator has launched the first single off their debut EP, The Disfigured And The Divine. The song, "In Resplendent Terror," is the band's first offering since signing with New Standard Elite earlier this year.


The Disfigured and the Divine delves into themes of the Goddess in mythology and legend, womanhood and motherhood, overcoming obstacles, justice, spirituality, the human experience, and growing into power. The title symbolizes the state of the Divine Feminine as experienced in the modern world; highly controlled, often under attack, suppressed but ever-present, potent, important, fierce, and beautiful.


The EP is the product of the band sharing music back and forth online, and feeding off each other’s enthusiasm, ideas, and criticism. The guitars are heavily influenced by early 2000s underground brutal death (such as Disgorge, Deeds of Flesh, Disavowed, and Inveracity) while taking some inspiration from modern death metal. The drums meld together relentless blast beats with bone-jarring grooves. The vocals are aggressive and dynamic, featuring a wide range of techniques and styles.




The cover artwork - painted by vocalist and artist Mallika Sundaramurthy - is a portrait of the Hindu goddess Chhinnamasta.


"She is seen making the ultimate sacrifice for others," says Sundaramurthy of the concept behind her artwork. "She has severed her own head and is feeding her followers with her life force, her own blood. In giving, she is also receiving nourishment. She has overcome death and will soon return her head to its place. She is standing on a love-making couple, meaning she is above the life-procreation-death cycle. She can also be interpreted as a mother figure who sacrifices for her children, as mothers sacrifice and even risk their lives for their babies during childbirth."


New Standard Elite will release The Disfigured and the Divine on physical formats on September 25. Preorder at nserecords.bigcartel.com.


Emasculator will make their live debut at this year’s Texas Domination Fest, scheduled for September 26-28 in Dallas / Ft. Worth, TX. The band is set to tour Europe in May of 2025 around Nice To Eat You Deathfest (Czechia).


"The Unassailable" features a guest appearance by Vishal Singh, with chants by Swathi Kalahasti. Guest vocals on "Age of the Goddess" by Daniela Dahlien Neumanová.


The Disfigured And The Divine was mixed & mastered by Josh Welshman. Guitar and bass were recorded by L.B. at Divine Retribution Studios. Vocals recorded by Tonda Smrčka at Seabeast Production. Drums recorded by Taylor Hahn at Hahn Audio.





Tracklisting:


“Ecstasy In Disseverment (Of Self)”
“In Resplendent Terror”
“Thesmophoric Rites”
“The Unassailable”
“Eradication Of The Asuras”
“Age Of The Goddess”
“Supreme Void Of Acephalous Being”


“In Resplendent Terror”:





Emasculator is:
Mallika Sundaramurthy - Vocals
Teresa Wallace - Guitars
Morgehenna - Guitars
Cierra White - Drums







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INFRARED - "Demon's Blood"

PEARL JAM has released a new live music video for the current single "Wreckage", filmed at the band's May 16 Las Vegas show. The single, along with the first release and title track of PEARL JAM's seventh studio album, "Dark Matter", went No. 1 on Billboard's Mainstream Rock Airplay chart, marking the first time PEARL JAM has accomplished consecutive No. 1s on the chart. Dominating the radio charts, both singles were also Top 5 records at Alt Radio and "Wreckage" was a No. 1 at AAA Radio.

The "Wreckage" video features some of PEARL JAM's unique tour visuals that were created by famed creative and fellow Seattle native Rob Sheridan. The visual concept was a first for the band who generally toured with a more general, stripped back production. Sheridan, who's previously worked with Trent Reznor and NINE INCH NAILS as well as notable director David Fincher, told the Seattle Times: "PEARL JAM isn't a bright, cold LED screen; it's a warm, incandescent light. We talked about, 'What if we did this with a really analog feel?' What if we used a projection screen, and some ways to help bring the visuals into the space with the band but not be fighting for attention with what is one of the greatest live bands, in terms of musical performances, of our generation."

"Dark Matter", which recently crossed 100 million streams, debuted Top 5 on the Billboard 200 and also scored No. 1 on five Billboard charts simultaneously — Top Rock & Alternative Albums, Top Rock Albums, Top Alternative Albums, and Top Hard Rock. With their latest release, the band has also tied for most No. 1 albums in Billboard Top Hard Rock Albums chart history (eight).

"Dark Matter" was released in April via Monkeywrench Records/Republic Records.

In 2023, PEARL JAM retreated to Rick Rubin's Shangri-La Studio in Malibu, California where they simply plugged in and played under producer Andrew Watt's watch. Writing and recording in a burst of inspiration, "Dark Matter" was born in just three weeks.

Los Angeles melodic metal outfit, Ninth Circle, have announced the digital rerelease of two albums; 2012’s Legions Of The Brave and 2020’s Echo Black.


“We are proud to announce that two of more most acclaimed and best-selling records, Legions Of The Brave and Echo Black, have come back home under our own label, Ninthcircleworld Records”, explains bassist, Frank Forray.


“For the last 10 years we have had a fantastic relationship with Germany’s Pure Steel Records”, explains Frank. “They did a great job promoting our records and the band all over the world. Now that our agreement has expired, we are pleased to bring these two records home into the fold on our own label, Ninthcircleworld Records. They are now home along with our debut record, the self-titled Ninth Circle and the record that gave us world-wide exposure, 2009’s The Power Of One.”







“Legions Of The Brave and Echo Black”, Frank goes on to say, “are now available on your favorite streaming and digital platforms. I encourage our fans around the world to search for these records as they have become available again for you to enjoy wherever you are and wherever you go!” 


"We've had fans in the past tell us that they discovered us through digital platforms", Dennis adds. "It's a necessary tool, especially right now. I myself have discovered new music this way and we look forward to increasing our fan base with each of our releases!"





“As a great added bonus”, Frank discusses with enthusiasm, “you can now enjoy the cover of the Riot song, Warrior, as it was not available digitally previously. This will be a treat for fans of both Ninth Circle and Riot as we were able to partner with guitarist Mike Flyntz and vocalist Todd Michael Hall, they both contributed to the recording of the song.”


“Dennis had the pleasure of singing duet with Todd and playing dueling guitar solos with Mike. Both, Todd and Mike, were generous with their time to contribute to this recording and I believe the song, Warrior, turned out great and should be a treat for fans!” says Frank.


“Being able to re-release these two records digitally on our label is really about fans and giving them what they want: the ability to hear Ninth Circle music on their favorite streaming and digital services! And hopefully in not too long, we should be adding a new record for fans to enjoy.”







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Featured Video







INFRARED - "Demon's Blood"




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In a new interview with Finland's Chaoszine, OPETH guitarist/vocalist Mikael Åkerfeldt spoke about his evolution as a singer. He said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "I don't really see myself as a singer — or a guitar player for that matter. I see myself as a — I am a musician. I like to come to write music. I think that's fun. The singer thing, it's, like, nobody else wanted to do it [in the early days of OPETH]. I guess it has to be me. And I don't compare myself to my peers or my idols, especially my idols. I don't go, like, 'Hey, Ronnie Dio, what's your trick? Mine's this and that. I'm gonna teach you something.' Those guys up there. I'm just like a bum who got lucky, if you know what I mean.

"With our own albums, I wanna listen to the record and not really hear that it's me, so to speak," he explained. "So I like to distance myself from the person singing on the record. And with death metal vocals, that's quite easy, because, of course, I don't sound like that when I'm talking to you now. And with the clean vocals, I'm just kind of trying to get as close to my idols as I can. But everybody's given this particular voice. I don't have any training. I don't know what the hell I'm doing most of the time. The last album that we recorded, I think I tried to sing more clean vocals with a bit more grovelly type of thing."

Mikael added: "I don't think about vocals. It's an instrument like any other. Sometimes it demands a full-on type of singing, sometimes a really laid-back type of singing. Lucky for me, I can produce the sounds that I want to hear. So I'm fairly wide as a singer in that sense. I'm not great, but I can sing softly, I can sing midrange a bit stronger and I can do death metal screams. So in that sense, I'm kind of covering a lot of bases from the music that I wanna do. But I'm not a master in either style, if you know what I mean. It's just kind of… I can achieve the results I want. And also it's hard for me to, like I said, see myself as a singer. With that said, nobody else can take my place, if you know what I mean, after all these years. In this band, I am the singer; it's just how it is. And even for me it's hard sometimes to get that through my head."

Asked if he feels that the clean singing and death metal vocals go like hand in hand, so if he becomes better with the clean singing, it also helps with the screaming, he responded: "Good question. Not necessarily, I think. It's a different type of technique, I guess. Clean singing to me, first and foremost, you wanna try and be in pitch, kind of. Then, if you look at other singers, there's people who sing perfect pitch, but they don't really have a great, a nice voice to listen to, if you know what I mean. For me, I mostly hear the negative aspects of my clean voice, which, what I said before, I don't really like to hear me, meaning the ugly aspects of my own voice, so to speak. So, I try to develop a style that doesn't really sound like me. And over the years, that's the vocal style that's been developed the most while, in a way, the death metal vocals have suffered a little bit for that. But playing live, of course, playing lots of old songs, you do both. Death metal vocals, for me, feel more consistent than the other vocals. But then again, I don't know. It's all perception. What do people think out there in the crowd? 'Oh, he was shit that day,' or 'great that day.' And I thought I was shit both days, if you know what I mean. [Laughs]"

OPETH's new album, "The Last Will And Testament", will arrive on October 11 via Reigning Phoenix Music/Moderbolaget.

OPETH's fourteenth album was written by Åkerfeldt, with lyrics conferred with Klara Rönnqvist Fors (THE HEARD, ex-CRUCIFIED BARBARA). "The Last Will And Testament" was co-produced by Åkerfeldt and Stefan Boman (GHOST, THE HELLACOPTERS),engineered by Boman, Joe Jones (KILLING JOKE, ROBERT PLANT) and OPETH, with Boman, Åkerfeldt and the rest of OPETH mixing at Atlantis and Hammerthorpe Studios in Stockholm. The strings on "The Last Will And Testament" were arranged by Åkerfeldt and returning prog friend Dave Stewart (EGG, KHAN) and conducted by Stewart at Angel Studios in London. Not one to miss a beat, visual artist Travis Smith returns to the fold, crafting his 11th cover, a haunting "photograph" reminiscent of Stanley Kubrick's infamous "Overlook Hotel" photograph. Miles Showell (ABBA, QUEEN) also revisits mastering and vinyl lacquer cutting at Abbey Road Studios in London.

Åkerfeldt rolls out the red carpet for storied flautist and JETHRO TULL mainman Ian Anderson. Not only do Anderson's signature notes fly on "§4" and "§7", he narrates on "§1", "§2", "§4", and "§7". Joining Anderson, EUROPE's Joey Tempest lends a backing vocal hand on "§2", while Åkerfeldt's youngest daughter, Mirjam Åkerfeldt, is the disembodied voice in "§1".

"The Last Will And Testament" is a concept album set in the post-World War I era, unfolding the story of a wealthy, conservative patriarch whose last will and testament reveals shocking family secrets. The narrative weaves through the patriarch's confessions, the reactions of his twin children, and the mysterious presence of a polio-ridden girl who the family have taken care of. The album begins with the reading of the father's will in his mansion. Among those in attendance is a young girl, who, despite being an orphan and polio-ridden, has been raised by the family. Her presence at the will reading raises suspicions and questions among the twins.

"The Last Will And Testament" is the darkest and heaviest record OPETH has made in decades, and it is also the band's most fearlessly progressive. A concept album recounting the reading of one recently deceased man's will to an audience of his surviving family members, it brims with haunting melodrama, shocking revelations and some of the wildest and most unpredictable music that Åkerfeldt has ever written.

The follow-up to 2019's widely acclaimed "In Cauda Venenum", "The Last Will And Testament" is set in the shadowy, sepia-stained 1920s. It slowly reveals its secrets like some classic thriller from the distant, cobwebbed past, with each successive song shining more light on the stated machinations of our dead (but definitely not harmless) protagonist. The emotional chaos of the story is perfectly matched by OPETH's vivid but claustrophobic soundtrack, which artfully winds its way towards a crestfallen but sumptuous finale. Masters of their own idiosyncratic musical domain, OPETH have never sounded more unique.

"The Last Will And Testament" is destined to be a milestone in OPETH's illustrious recorded history. The band's first out-and-out concept record, it features guest cameos from JETHRO TULL legend Ian Anderson and Joey Tempest, frontman with Swedish rock gods EUROPE. Only one of the album's eight songs has a title: closing ballad "A Story Never Told". The rest are simply labeled as numbered chapters in this slowly unfolding saga of deceit, recrimination and betrayal. Enigmatic, unsettling and immersive, "The Last Will And Testament" is a turbulent, prog metal tale like no other.

Making his recorded debut alongside OPETH's long-established lineup of Mikael Åkerfeldt, guitarist Fredrik Åkesson, bassist Martin Mendez and keyboard maestro Joakim Svalberg on "The Last Will And Testament" is new drummer Waltteri Väyrynen, who joined the band in 2022.

OPETH will embark on a North American tour this fall. The trek, which will kick off on October 11 in Milwaukee, includes stops in New York, Los Angeles, Toronto, Washington, D.C., Atlanta, New Orleans, Austin, Denver and more.

Two months ago, legendary rocker Alice Cooper said that he was gearing up for the 2024 presidential election in the only way he knows how — by running for president, something he has done satirically every four years since releasing the song "Elected" back in 1972.

To accompany the announcement, the Godfather of Shock Rock released a "campaign" video in which he touted his qualifications thusly: "Well, I'm Alice Cooper and I'm a troubled man for troubled times. I have absolutely no idea what to do, so I should fit right in."

Asked in a new interview with the 96.1 KLPX radio station if he is selling "Alice For President" t-shirts at all the shows on his current tour, Cooper said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "Oh, yeah. There's all kinds of stuff like that."

He explained: "I am extremely nonpolitical. I would only do this as because the song was a hit — 'Elected' was a huge hit. It was John Lennon's favorite song, 'Elected' was, because it was such a great satire on politics. But you're never gonna see anything political in my show. I just hate politics. But in an election year, yeah, you have to do it — you have to do the satire on the whole situation."

Alice added: "I'm telling you, we're living in such a Kurt Vonnegut world right now, where everything is so absurd. For a person like me or a comedian, it's writing itself."

Elaborating on how his stage show has evolved, Alice said: "It's so funny because it used to be easy to shock an audience in the '70s. Now nobody's really trying — we're not really trying to shock an audience. I don't think anybody is 'shock rock' anymore, but those elements still remain in the show because they're fun to watch. It's still fun to watch the guillotine and the fact that you really buy in to it because of what happens before that. You're really concerned about this character Alice up there, what happens. And that's what I like about it. I want the audience to get involved in the show. We don't do a lot of lasers. We don't do things like that, because I want the emphasis to be on the character Alice, what happens to him and what he what exactly he's doing. But all that happens during all these songs that everybody knows — 'Feed My Frankenstein' and 'Poison' and 'No More Mr. Nice Guy' and, of course, 'School's Out' at the end."

The original 1972 "Elected" music video is when Cooper first announced his "candidacy" and the formation of the Wild Party.

"Elected" was the first single from Cooper's iconic sixth studio album, "Billion Dollar Babies". The record reached No. 1 in the U.S. and U.K. and was certified platinum by the RIAA.

In a 2018 interview with The Guardian, Cooper said that he keeps his political opinions to himself. "I don't like to mix politics and rock 'n' roll," he said. "I don't look at Bono, Sting and Bruce Springsteen as political. I look at them as being humanitarian. I'll contribute to anything humanitarian. Helping people who can't help themselves. But when musicians are telling people who to vote for, I think that's an abuse of power. You're telling your fans not to think for themselves, just to think like you. Rock 'n' roll is about freedom — and that's not freedom."

Eight years ago, Cooper said that rock stars offering their political opinions is "the worst idea ever." "First of all, why do people think rock stars know more than they do?" he said. "That is the biggest fallacy in the world — if anything, we're dumber. We're not smarter than anybody else. I mean, why do you think we're rock stars?

"Trust me, we don't read magazines you don't read. Nobody calls us up and gives us as inside information on politics. We know less than you do. If I watch TV, it's 'Family Guy'.

"Rock 'n' roll was built to go as far away from politics as you could get. When my mom and dad talked about who to vote for, I'd go in the other room and put on THE BEATLES or ROLLING STONES — and I'm still like that."

Cooper, who considers himself a humanitarian, said that he had no problem with artists using their platform to highlight global issues if it benefited others. He said: "I think what Bono does and what [Bruce] Springsteen does, Sting and all the people that raise money for others — that's humanitarian, and I'm all for that. But I don't think that's political."

In a 2016 interview with Rolling Stone, Cooper stated about then-Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump: "He's an interesting character. It seems like he shoots himself in the foot every single day and gets more popular by doing it. It's the weirdest. It's like [Kurt] Vonnegut: Everything that shouldn't happen is happening."

Cooper previously said that he would even go so far as to do the opposite of what everyone else is doing just to make a point. During the 2004 election season, he said: "When I read the list of people who are supporting Kerry, if I wasn't already a Bush supporter, I would have immediately switched. Linda Ronstadt? Don Henley? Geez, that's a good reason right there to vote for Bush."

He also mused about sitting between such political rocker icons as John Lennon and Harry Nilsson while they argued politics and thinking, "I don't care."

Photo credit: Jenny Risher

Metallica's Robert Trujillo and Kirk Hammett performed a rendition of Ministry's "Just One Fix" during the band's August 11 show at Soldier Field in Chicago, Illinois.


Ministry approved, sharing fan-filmed video of the performance, captioned: "Thank You Metallica".










Metallica have also shared the official live video below, featuring their performance of "Screaming Suicide", filmed at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Massachusetts, on August 4.





To view remaining dates on Metallica's 2024 tour, head here.

Symphonic melodic metal overlords, Rhapsody Of Fire, have shared the live clip below along with the following message:


"Our show at Hellfest was a blast and we wanted to share that incredible moment with our fans all around the world as a thank you for your unfaltering support across so many years. 


From September we will begin our Tour throughout Asia, Australia and Europe. Make sure to check the dates on rhapsodyoffire.com."  







Rhasody Of Fire have announced a European tour in support of their new studio album, Challenge The Wind, available via AFM Records.


The trek, which features support of select dates from Freedom Call, The Unity, Secret Sphere and Xeneris, launches on October 25 in Toulouse, France, and concludes on November 25 in Munich, Germany. Dates are listed below.


Dates:


October
25 - Le Metronum - Toulouse, France
26 - La Rayonne - Villeurbanne, France
27 - La Machine du Moulin Rouge - Paris, France
29 - Le Camji - Niort, France


November
1 - Copérnico - Madrid, Spain
2 - Salamandra - L'hospitalet De Llobregat, Spain
3 - Sala Totem Aretoa - Villava, Spain
5 - Turock - Essen, Germany
6 - Logo - Hamburg, Germany
7 - Plan B - Malmö, Sweden
8 - Surr Arena - Göteborg, Sweden
9 - Fryshuset Klubben - Stockholm, Sweden
10 - Centralteatern - Gävle, Sweden
11 - Vulkan Oslo - Oslo, Norway
12 - Folken - Stavanger, Norway
14 - Gimle - Roskilde, Denmark
15 - DVG Club - Kortrijk, Belgium
16 - De Pul - Uden, Netherlands
17 - Poppodium Nieuwe Nor - Heerlen, Netherlands
18 - Z7 Konzertfabrik - Pratteln, Switzerland
20 - Studio im. Budki Suflera - Lublin, Poland
21 - Randal Club - Bratislava I, Slovakia
22 - Masters of Rock Cafe - Zlín, Czech Republic
23 - Collosseum Club - Košice, Slovakia
24 - Viper Room - Vienna, Austria
25 - Backstage Halle - Munich, Germany










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