SUPERJOINT's new video for the song "Fuck Your Enemy" can be seen below. The clip was shot by Mike Holderbeast in New Orleans, Lousiana during the band's 2017 tour.

SUPERJOINT's latest album, "Caught Up In The Gears Of Application", was released in November 2017 via singer Philip Anselmo's Housecore record label. The disc was recorded at Philip's New Orleans-area studio, Nodferatu's Lair and was produced by Anselmo and Stephen Berrigan. The effort was mastered by Scott Hull (AGORAPHOBIC NOSEBLEED, PIG DESTROYER) at Visceral Sounds.

SUPERJOINT's current lineup includes guitarists Kevin Bond (CHRIST INVERSION, ARTIMUS PYLEDRIVER) and Jimmy Bower (DOWN, EYEHATEGOD), drummer José Manuel Gonzalez (WARBEAST, PHILIP H. ANSELMO & THE ILLEGALS) and bassist Stephen Taylor (PHILIP H. ANSELMO & THE ILLEGALS, WOVEN HAND, 16 HORSE POWER).

Anselmo told Decibel magazine that SUPERJOINT was forced to drop the "RITUAL" from its name was "because there's a bloodsucking leech out there who took advantage of a situation. But we're all at fault as well for signing a document that basically has a zero sunset clause, meaning that this person is privy to a cut of any money a 'SUPERJOINT RITUAL' would make. Hence getting rid of the 'RITUAL,' coming back as SUPERJOINT, and cutting out that cancer."

Swedish multi-instrumentalist, singer and producer Thobbe Englund (ex-SABATON, WINTERLONG) has released his new solo album titled "The Draining Of Vergelmer" via Metalville Records.

Following the successful 2017 release of "Sold My Soul" and a European tour, seeing Englund going back to the roots of heavy metal, the time has come to move forward into the landscape of metal and shred.

As Thobbe puts it himself: "On this album, I was really hungry to make a very solid, melodic yet aggressive statement, so what you hear on 'The Draining Of Vergelmer' is everything at full force. I don't think I've ever played this clean and fast. Me and my guitar are in perfect synchronization, and the most powerful album I've ever written is there to back us up."

With nordic mythology as the foundation for the album, songs like "Viking", "Odins Hall" and "The Land Where You Belong" tells of ancestry battles and bravery. Thobbe explains: "The song 'Viking' is actually sung in Swedish, simply to make it more powerful and true."

"The Draining Of Vergelmer" contains vocal guest appearances by Joakim Brodén (SABATON), Patrik J. Selleby (BLOODBOUND) and Hulkoff (RAUBTIER). The album really pushes ahead with faster guitars, faster drums, louder screams, and simply more of everything.

Englund adds: "This album is just full force right through the wall, the most explosive album that I've ever made! Tons of guitar solos, more of everything! Turn it up LOUD!!"

"The Draining Of Vergelmer" track listing:

01. Thou Ancient, Thou Free
02. Illuminati
03. Heart Of Metal
04. Fingerspitzengefühl
05. Viking
06. Odins Hall
07. The Land Where You Belong
08. I Am A Viking
09. Aim And Fire
10. The Ghost & The Darkness

Englund left SABATON in 2016, stating: "I have in recent years become more aware of what would make me feel real happiness and content, and that is to expand my own creativeness in combination with a somewhat stiller life, where I will not tour all year round at the speed of light."

CHAOSTAR, the band led by SEPTICFLESH guitarist Christos Antoniou, has released "Tazama Jua", the second single from its forthcoming album, "The Undivided Light". The disc is due on March 23 via Season Of Mist.

CHAOSTAR vocalist Androniki comments: "Every blessed virtue in this world multiplies and growths when being shared and not constrained. Like wisdom, knowledge, and patience, the flame of light itself can brighten a room, but when being divided and shared can illuminate the entire world's human intellect. This has been the motivational thinking that flared up the creation of the new CHAOSTAR album. Our existence consists of dust formed into concrete shapes of hard stones, awaiting to degrade back into the light-weight form of dust and finally to the liberated state of time, light, and space."

"The Undivided Light" track listing:

01. Tazama Jua (3:48)
02. Blutbad (4:25)
03. Stones And Dust (4:59)
04. The Undivided Light (5:11)
05. Mέμνησο (6:15)
06. Silent Yard (10:51)
07. Ying & Yang (7:09)

"The Undivided Light" comes as an invitation to a fascinating musical journey around the globe, which is equally true for space as well as time.

CHAOSTAR was conceived out of Christos's longing to create music that reflects more on his aspect as an academy trained composer and go beyond the possibilities that his orchestral arrangements for SEPTICFLESH offer. After all, the guitarist finished his studies of classical composition in London with honors and distinction.

When SEPTICFLESH released its single "The Eldest Cosmonaut" in 1998, the Greek band took a step towards classical music, which in turn inspired Christos to create CHAOSTAR to pursue this course even further.

Out of a timeless confrontation of different sounds and styles rose an avant-garde concept for emotional music to which vocalist Natalie Rassoulis added a feminine voice. After a first statement of intent via a demo titled "The Underworld" in 2000, CHAOSTAR released the albums "Chaostar" (2000), "Threnody" (2001) and "The Scarlet Queen" (2004), as well as the "Underworld" compilation in 2007.

After a self-imposed hiatus of both CHAOSTAR and SEPTICFLESH, Christos decided to revive his project as well when the latter reunited. The former returned with their fourth full-length, which was based on a Greek word roughly translating as "sin". "Anomima" featured the celestial vocals of new singer Androniki Skoula, who also contributed most of the lyrics.

"Anomima" brilliantly combined rich, classical orchestration with lush soundscapes and modern textures, and even some elements of extreme music. CHAOSTAR easily adopted a global musical language that induced the listener into a dreamlike trance with geographically unchained sounds.

With the "The Undivided Light", CHAOSTAR takes its experimentation another step further. Classic orchestration, traditional instruments, electronica, rock, and more are deconstructed by Christos only to be reassembled into something fresh and exciting. "The Undivided Light" gives new meaning to the term world music.

CHAOSTAR is:

Christos Antoniou: trigger, synth, orchestration
Androniki Skoula: vocals, lyrics
Charalampos Paritsis: electric violin
Nikolaos Velentzas: drums, percussion

Guest musicians:

Kiara Konstantinou: cello
Vahan Galstyan: duduk
Stella Valasi: santur
George Emmanuel and Greg Eleutheriou: guitars on "Ying And Yang"
Nikolaos Velentzas: guitars on "Blutbad"
Margarita Stadler: girl's voice on "Blutbad"

Audio samples of the songs that will appear on the third album in British heavy metal vocalist Blaze Bayley's (IRON MAIDEN, WOLFSBANE) "Infinite Entanglement" trilogy can be streamed in the YouTube clip below. Due on March 2, the new album, called "The Redemption Of William Black", is the highly anticipated third part of the trilogy, bringing the sci-fi concept to a conclusion.

This will be the tenth album of Blaze's solo career, following his rise to global fame as singer with IRON MAIDEN (1994-1999). He was chosen for the MAIDEN role after coming to notice with his first band WOLFSBANE, based around home city of Birmingham, England, which is now the location for the recording of all his more recent solo releases.

The past three or four years has been an exciting period in Blaze's career, with a real sense of purpose, increased sales and media attention, not least with the recent front cover of Powerplay magazine (November 2017 issue), together with a three-page tour report from North America. Blaze received further recognition when voted by fans as the 67th best singer of all time in Sweden Rock Magazine, while a guest performance with DISTURBED at the U.K.'s premier music festival Download was another highlight.

"The Redemption Of William Black" has been co-written with Chris Appleton of fellow British metal band ABSOLVA. Chris, who also co-produces the album, is lead guitarist and backing vocalist in Blaze's band for recording and touring, together with his ABSOLVA bandmates Martin McNee (drums) and Karl Schramm (bass and backing vocals).

Special guests on the album include FOZZY singer Chris Jericho, also of WWE fame, for whom Blaze has specially created a character within the "Infinite Entanglement" story. Also, on choir duty is Luke Appleton (ICED EARTH bassist and ABSOLVA rhythm guitarist), as well as Michelle Sciarrotta (choir/voice actor), Jo Robinson (choir), Mel Adams (choir), Liz Owen (backing vocals/choir), Aine Brewer (voice actor) and Rob Toogood (choir/voice actor).

"The Redemption Of William Black" track listing:

01. Redeemer
02. Are You Here
03. Immortal One
04. The First True Sign
05. Human Eyes
06. Prayers Of Light
07. 18 Days
08. Already Won
09. Life Goes On
10. The Dark Side Of Black
11. Eagle Spirit

The official video for the song "Prayers Of Light", featuring a guest appearance by Chris Jericho, can be seen below.

Pictured below (from left to right): Martin McNee (drums), Chris Appleton (lead guitar and backing vocals), Blaze Bayley (lead vocals), Karl Schramm (bass and backing vocals)

Image courtesy of Duke TV

We Sell The Dead, featuring Niclas Engelin (In Flames, Engel), Drömriket’s Jonas Slättung, Gas Lipstick (ex-HIM) and the voice of Apollo Papathanasio (Spiritual Beggars, Firewind), are a streaming a pre-listening of all tracks off their debut album Heaven Doesn’t Want You And Hell Is Full, out on February 23rd via earMUSIC. 

“What if Jack the Ripper had played in a band? A heavy metal band?” This is the question that formed and influenced We Sell The Dead, this is the question that made the band. We Sell The Dead go beyond the strains of conventional storytelling and create a multi-media experience of premium quality heavy metal music embedded in visually stimulating and atmospheric visuals.

Heavy, yet melodic sounds transport the listener into a Victorian inspired world that is defined by pompous manors and daunting luxury standing in deep contrast to the harshness and cruelty of the gutter. It is a world that reeks of hysteria, but above all a sense of mysticism and dark romanticism. We Sell The Dead’s music rises above this, not merely pointing out this injustice, but expanding the narrative into the extreme, playing with themes of ghosts, death or religion.

But not only…

Despite a reference to Victorian times, We Sell The Dead maintains a very modern and ever-so-current approach that translates to the world we live in today.

Explains Jonas Slättung: “From the late 1800, an era that has inspired our band enormously, comes one of the greatest and darkest crime mysteries of them all: Jack the Ripper. We don’t know 100% who he was but we know his horrendous deeds. All the visuals we had in our mind, combined with the sometimes slightly morbid lyrics, made us think that this is what music would have sounded like if heavy metal had existed in the 19th century, or if Jack the Ripper had travelled forward in time to join a metal band. We Sell The Dead would have been his natural choice for a backing band. He probably would have felt right at home with us.

But, at the same time, the world hasn’t exactly evolved into a beautiful place since the 1880’s. In the 1979 movie, Time After Time, Jack the Ripper escapes justice by, indeed, fleeing in a time machine to 1979. After getting caught by his followers, The Ripper utters this line of wisdom: – back in 1893, I was a monster. Today... I’m an amateur.”

Heaven Doesn’t Want You And Hell Is Full will be released on CD, LP and Digital formats. Pre-order links below:

- CD
- LP
- Digital

Heaven Doesn't Want You And Hell Is Full tracklisting:

"The Body Market"
"Echoes Of An Ugly Past"
"Leave Me Alone"
"Imagine"
"Turn It Over"
"Too Cold To Touch"
"Trust"
"Pale And Perfect"
"Silent Scream"

"Pale And Perfect" video:

"Turn It Over" video:

"Echoes Of An Ugly Past" video:

Power Quest, the renowned melodic power metal band based in the UK released their new album Sixth Dimension in October last year through Inner Wound Recordings. The title track "The Sixth Dimension" is now available for streaming below. The song was written by Steve Williams and Richard West (Threshold) and features guest vocals by Anette Olzon (The Dark Element, ex-Nightwish).

Steve Williams of Power Quest comments:

"It was brilliant to have the opportunity to write this song together with Richard West. We've known each other for many years and Richard was previously involved in a production capacity with the Master of Illusion album back in 2008. It's turned out to be one of my favourite PQ songs and hopefully I'll have the opportunity to work with Richard in the future. It was also fantastic to be able to secure the services of one of my favourite vocalists, Anette Olzon, to be part of this song and it was a real pleasure to work with her."

Power Quest live (as special guest of Freedom Call):

February
22 – Glasgow, UK – Cathouse
23 – Sheffield, UK – Corporation
24 – Cannock, UK – The Station
25 – London, UK – Underworld

June
6 – Amplified Open Air Festival UK

This year will mark the eagerly awaited 5th studio album Abandon all Hope from the Iconic Sons of Sweden Engel. As expected with this new release, it will illustrate the much lauded and artistically crafted symmetry for which the band are known and to set a high standard for 2018 and to lead the revolution going forward.
 
Since their Inception back in 2005 with their unique style and approach, they became a part of the acclaimed Sound of the Gothenburg death metal music scene.
 
The band has been proven to be a force to be reckoned with in their own right and have established themselves as true masters of the Gothenburg sound, always encompassing their mixture of incredibly skilled and crafted guitar riffs with outstanding melodic harmonies whilst still retaining the hard edge and power that have defined this incredible band and their veritable wall of sound.

 
Tracklisting:

“The Darkest Void”
“The Legacy Of Nothing”
“Book Of Lies”
“As I Fall”
“Buried”
“Untouchable”
“Death Reversed”
“Across The Abyss”
“Gallows Tree”
“Abandon All Hope”
“The Condemned”

Dave Mustaine has once again commented on the dispute over songwriting credits that apparently contributed to the shelving of the previously announced expanded version of METALLICA's 1982 demo tape, "No Life 'Til Leather".

"No Life 'Til Leather" was released as a limited-edition cassette for Record Store Day in April 2015, available exclusively in independent record stores. It featured artwork copies from drummer Lars Ulrich's own personal copy of the original demo, as well as his handwriting. At the time, the band also promised that expanded editions of the demo, which had never before been commercially available, would arrive on CD, vinyl and in a collector's set.

Last November, Mustaine revealed that he was contacted by METALLICA frontman James Hetfield two years earlier about "officially" releasing "No Life Till Leather" with "27 tracks, pics, the whole enchilada," but, he said, "the talks broke down because Lars wanted credit on two songs I wrote every note and word to. I have the texts. I passed."

Earlier today (Thursday, February 8), Mustaine was asked by a fan on Twitter if the disagreement over song authorship is the reason METALLICA refuses to play any more shows featuring the so-called "Big Four" of 1980s thrash metal. He responded: "Who knows. I ain't giving my songwriting credit to Lars for songs I wrote in PANIC," a reference to the band Dave was in before he joined METALLICA.

The original "No Life Till Leather" seven-song tape was recorded with the first lineup of the band that appeared live as METALLICA, including Ulrich, Hetfield, Mustaine and bassist Ron McGovney. The recordings were paid for by High Velocity record label owner Kenny Kane, with a view of making them available as an EP in 1982.

Ulrich told Metal Forces in 2016 that "some unexpected difficulties on the legal side… prevented the 'No Life 'Til Leather' box set and our vision for how we were going to kick this whole reissue series off. We spent some time doing that dance, but then James and I decided that it wasn't worth it getting bogged down in all the unpleasantries, because this was supposed to be a celebration and not end up being a tug of war, so we thought, 'You know what? Fuck it. We'll just move on to 'Kill 'Em All'," he said.

Ulrich did not want to get into the details of the exact issues that were preventing the demo tape from being released. "It's a little more complicated than that," he said. "There's no reason to go deeper into it. It was just something that we hadn't expected."

When Ulrich spoke to Metal Forces in 2016, he made it clear that METALLICA was still hopeful that the expanded version "No Life 'Til Leather" would arrive at a later date. "As you know, I am the eternal optimist, and I am the eternal 'glass is well fucking half full,' so who knows?" he said. "I think some of those parties have circled back around now that they've seen that this is real and so we'll have to see. It would be great to share 'No Life 'Til Leather' in a year or two with our fans and with the people that care. We haven't shut the door on it."

"No Life 'Til Leather" was recorded on July 6, 1982 at Chateau East Studio in Tustin, California. All the songs on the tape later appeared on the band's 1983 debut album, "Kill 'Em All", including "Hit The Lights", "Motorbreath", "Jump In The Fire", "Seek And Destroy", "Metal Militia", "Phantom Lord" and "The Mechanix", which was renamed "The Four Horsemen" on the album.

"No Life 'Til Leather" track listing:

01. Hit The Lights
02. The Mechanix
03. Motorbreath
04. Seek & Destroy
05. Metal Militia
06. Jump In The Fire
07. Phantom Lord

"No Life 'Til Leather" recording lineup:

James Hetfield - lead vocals, rhythm guitar
Lars Ulrich - drums
Dave Mustaine - lead guitar
Ron McGovney - bass

Mustaine was a member of METALLICA for less than two years, from 1981 to 1983, before being dismissed and replaced by Kirk Hammett.

Mustaine was not inducted into the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame with METALLICA during the April 2009 ceremony at Cleveland, Ohio's Public Auditorium. Ulrich later explained to The Plain Dealer that Mustaine "never played on any METALLICA records. No disrespect to him. But there [were] half a dozen other people that were in the lineup in the early days. We thought... the fair thing to do would be to include anybody that played on a METALLICA record." He added: "Dave Mustaine was in the band for eleven months, predominantly in 1982... I'm not trying to play it down. I have nothing but respect and admiration for his accomplishments since."

Who knows. I ain’t giving my songwriting credit to Lars for songs I wrote in Panic. https://t.co/X2Q6oOX9FL

— Dave Mustaine (@DaveMustaine) February 8, 2018

Jeff Pilson says that he is "all for" the idea of a Ronnie James Dio hologram touring the world, explaining that it exposes the legendary heavy metal singer's music to more people.

Dio died in 2010 at the age of 67 from stomach cancer. His hologram was created by a company called Eyeillusion and made its debut at the Wacken Open Air festival in August 2016 in front of more than 75,000 fans.

Asked by "The Blairing Out With Eric Blair Show" for his opinion on the Dio hologram, Pilson — who was a member of DIO from 1993 to 1997 and again from 2004 to 2005 — said (see video below): "I've only seen photographs, and from the photographs, it looks really cool. So I can't tell you from a having-seen-it-in-person feeling. But I'm one of those people that, any chance people get to hear that music and see that music and hear that voice, I'm all for. So, I say more power to 'em."

Pilson also talked about his time playing in DIO, saying that touring with Ronnie and the rest of the group was "great, because we were an amazing band. And when you're a great, great, great band, you have a lot of fun up there." As for Ronnie as a person, Pilson said: "He was just… Man, there's rarely a day that goes by that I don't think about him to some extent, 'cause he was not only an amazing singer, an amazing musician, but he was an amazing human being — just a really good person with a good heart. I mean, he'd give you the shirt off his back — he was that kind of guy. He was engaged in your life. There wasn't anything superficial about him; he was very, very real."

He added: "So being in a band was great, because we were a great band. And then the other side was the camaraderie, 'cause Vinny Appice [drums] is a very dear friend of mine. Tracy G [guitar] was a great friend. Scott Warren was a good friend, who was playing keys at the time, and Ronnie was a dear friend. So there was a lot of camaraderie, and we were a great band. It doesn't get better than that."

Pilson told the "Music Mania" podcast last year that he thought Ronnie would have been thrilled with the idea of a hologram in his likeness. "Ronnie loved technology, and I think, deep down, he would have loved the thought that that could have happened," Jeff said. "And knowing him, 'cause he was quite an imaginative guy, he probably did imagine that something like that could happen. And honestly, I think Ronnie would have approved."

The "Dio Returns: The World Tour" production uses audio of Ronnie's live performances from throughout his career, with the DIO band playing live, consisting of Craig Goldy on guitar, Simon Wright on drums and Scott Warren on keyboards, along with Bjorn Englen on bass. Also appearing with them are former JUDAS PRIEST singer Tim "Ripper" Owens and LYNCH MOB's Oni Logan.

Based on video footage of the first leg of the tour, Dio fans had mixed reactions to the apparition of their favorite singer, with some loving it and others thinking the performance didn't live up to the real thing or that it was just plain creepy.

SLIPKNOT's M. Shawn "Clown" Crahan took part in the "Underground To Mainstream: What Are Metal And Hip-Hop Doing Right (And Where Does It Go From Here?)" panel at the 2018 Pollstar Live! event, which was held February 6-8 at the InterContinental Los Angeles Downtown. The panel, which was moderated by Josh Bernstein, director of live events for Townsquare Media, included additional speakers Rich Best (Live Nation), Cory Brennan (5B Artist Management), Coolio (recording artist), Bex Majors (UTA), Modi Oyewole (Trillectro) and Danny Wimmer (Danny Wimmer Presents).

When Wimmer — whose Danny Wimmer Presents has grown to produce a dozen festivals nationwide, including Rock On The Range in Columbus, Ohio — said that he wanted SLIPKNOT to be on festival bills alongside the FOO FIGHTERS, Crahan chimed in: "I ask myself, does SLIPKNOT want to play next to the FOO FIGHTERS? The answer is no, because my kids don't want me to do that.

"If we play alongside the FOO FIGHTERS, we are going to get new fans, I agree with that. I love that," he continued. "But I'm worried about the kid that won't come to the show, because we're playing with the FOO FIGHTERS. He wants to know why we're not playing with NINE INCH NAILS. Those kids tell all of us what they want. So, don't try to figure out ways of how to combine things for the new fan. I don't need the new fan, I need the fan that has anxiety, parents are getting divorced, social problems, gender problems — I need them to come to the ultimate show. And they're going to get that at Knotfest."

At the end of 2016, Danny Wimmer Presents was No. 29 among Pollstar's Top 100 Promoters worldwide with 567,621 tickets sold. And that year's Rock On The Range, co-promoted with AEG Live May 20-22, had the 17th-largest gross among festivals worldwide at $6,804,796.

Last year's Knotfest marked the first time since the festival's 2012 inception that it did not include performances by SLIPKNOT, the band that founded and curated the event.

SLIPKNOT's touring cycle in support of its latest album, 2014's ".5: The Gray Chapter", ended in November 2016, with singer Corey Taylor returning to STONE SOUR last year.

".5: The Gray Chapter" was released following a six-year hiatus during which founding SLIPKNOT bassist Paul Gray died and drummer Joey Jordison was dismissed.

Tim "Ripper" Owens has once again defended DIO DISCIPLES' decision to go on the road with a hologram of Ronnie James Dio, saying that he is only doing it to "celebrate" the legendary heavy singer's "life and music."

Dio died in 2010 at the age of 67 from stomach cancer. His hologram was created by a company called Eyeillusion and made its debut at the Wacken Open Air festival in August 2016 in front of more than 75,000 fans.

The "Dio Returns: The World Tour" production uses audio of Ronnie's live performances from throughout his career, with the DIO DISCIPLES band playing live, consisting of Craig Goldy on guitar, Simon Wright on drums and Scott Warren on keyboards, along with Bjorn Englen on bass. Also appearing with them are Owens and LYNCH MOB's Oni Logan.

Based on video footage of the first leg of last year's tour, Dio fans had mixed reactions to the apparition of their favorite singer, with some loving it and others thinking the performance didn't live up to the real thing or that it was just plain creepy.

Speaking to IndeOnline.com about how he came to be involved with the "Dio Returns" tour, the former JUDAS PRIEST singer said: "Wendy [Dio, Ronnie's wife and manager] and the hologram people both asked if I would be interested in singing. I love doing the DIO DISCIPLES stuff, and this is definitely done for the love.

"I'll hear people say, 'Oh, someone's making money.' No, someone — Wendy Dio — is spending tons of money to try to make fans happy," he continued. " We don't do it for the money. I get paid more doing solo stuff, but I love it. I love Wendy and Ronnie was a friend, so we just love doing it and celebrating Ronnie's life and music."

Asked if there was any trepidation on his part to take part in the tour, Owens said: "At first, I wasn't sure about the hologram. But I thought, 'I would love to at least see a David Bowie/Ziggy Stardust hologram or a Bon Scott hologram.' Maybe I wouldn't like it; I don't know. But with us, it's a live band playing to Ronnie's vocals. I think it would be really cool to see those other artists in the same way, so that's the way I kind of looked at it. I thought, 'Let me try this.' I get some people might not want to see it, but the strangest thing is that a lot of those people would go watch a movie with a digitally created person that has passed away and be fine with it. Not liking it is one thing, but to attack Wendy Dio, who is doing it to try to make fans happy, that's the problem."

In 2018, "Dio Returns: The World Tour" will make stops throughout Scandinavia, Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Canada, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, France, Germany, Japan, Mexico, New Zealand, United States, Venezuela and other countries, with many more dates to be announced.

LAMB OF GOD frontman Randy Blythe has called on lawmakers to enact stricter gun control in the wake of last week's shooting at a Florida high school that left 14 students and three teachers dead.

The attack in Parkland was the deadliest school shooting since the 2012 rampage that killed 26 people at Sandy Hook Elementary in Newtown, Connecticut.

Writing on his Instagram account, Blythe was among those calling for action instead of just thoughts and prayers after a troubled former student opened fire with a military-style rifle at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School.

He wrote: "No more 'thoughts and prayers,' please. You can take those and put them towards something that only God, fate, random chance, the universe, whatever you believe/do not believe in can affect — they might do some good there.

"Instead of 'thinking and praying,' here's a CONCRETE ACTION you can take — you can contact your legislators and DEMAND that there be some reasonable, common-sense gun law changes. DEMAND IT AND KEEP DEMANDING IT.

"Most of the American people, including a lot of gun owners, want this. Why isn't this happening? How many more kids have to die until WE THE PEOPLE get fed up enough to force the government to do something?

"The time for 'thoughts and prayers' is long past — it's a slap in the face of people who continue to die as a result of crazy people armed with LEGALLY obtained high-powered semiautomatic weapons, weapons that are designed for JUST ONE THING — killing human beings.

"I grew up in the country with guns in the house — these were shotguns, used for hunting. You don't use an AR-15 for hunting deer, you use it for hunting MEN or (apparently) CHILDREN.

"The lunatic shooter in Florida is 19 years old and can't buy a six-pack of beer by law because our society doesn't believe he is mature enough to handle it, but he LEGALLY obtained a deadly weapon of war designed to inflict as many casualties as possible from a single person wielding it, and he used it to wage war on CHILDREN. What does this tell you about American society?

"Some people don't like the term 'assault rifle.' Okay, cool — why don't we call them 'Kid Killers' then? Is that a little better? Can we get a little KID KILLER control happening? Is it still 'too early' to start talking about getting these KID KILLERS off the streets? Are the students who survived the massacre in Florida and who are publicly begging us, the adults in charge of things, for gun law reform 'politicizing' the whole thing? Is it 'too early' for THEM to bring it up? Should we just tell them to shut up because they are children and don't understand adult matters, stuff like why crazy people can easily buy assault rifles and then SHOOT THEM DEAD in the classroom?

"NO MORE THOUGHTS AND PRAYERS — THEY AIN'T WORKING."

LAMB OF GOD will support SLAYER on the first leg of the latter band's farewell world tour. The trek will kick off with a May 10 concert at San Diego's Valley View Casino Center, with dates running through June 20 at Austin's 360 Amphitheatre.

ANTHRAX drummer Charlie Benante has slammed President Donald Trump for suggesting that the FBI was to blame for failing to stop the latest Florida mass shooting, because the agency was distracted by the Russia probe.

"Very sad that the FBI missed all of the many signals sent out by the Florida school shooter. This is not acceptable," Trump wrote on Twitter.

"They are spending too much time trying to prove Russian collusion with the Trump campaign — there is no collusion. Get back to the basics and make us all proud!"

The FBI has said it failed to act on information about school shooter Nikolas Cruz, who killed 17 people Wednesday at his former high school in Parkland. A person close to Cruz contacted the FBI's Public Access Line in early January, reporting Cruz's gun ownership, desire to kill others, erratic behavior and disturbing social media posts.

After Trump alleged in a series of tweets that the FBI missed clues from Cruz because, in his view, the agency was preoccupied with the probe into Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election campaign, Benante took to his Twitter account to respond. "Man... 17 kids died and you are making this about You?" he wrote. "I find this so horrible. How can people who support him not be upset with this as well??"

Trump and others have been criticized by survivors of last week's shooting, who rallied against the gun lobby and called for gun control, saying that the president has offered little more than thoughts and prayers.

ANTHRAX will release its long-awaited live-in-concert DVD, "Kings Among Scotland", on April 27 via Megaforce. The DVD is preceded by ANTHRAX's North American co-headline tour with KILLSWITCH ENGAGE — "KillThrax 2018" — which kicked off January 25 in Montreal.

ANTHRAX will support SLAYER on the first leg of the latter band's farewell world tour. The trek will kick off with a May 10 concert at San Diego's Valley View Casino Center, with dates running through June 20 at Austin's 360 Amphitheatre.

Man... 17 kids died and you are making this about You? I find this so horrible. How can people who support him not be upset with this as well?? https://t.co/5Xc7kKPcn4

— Charlie Benante (@skisum) February 18, 2018

SAXON frontman Biff Byford says that he doesn't like the idea of deceased rock stars touring once again in holographic form.

While the recently launched tour featuring a hologram of Ronnie James Dio and several of his DIO bandmates has the backing of the legendary heavy metal singer's wife and manager Wendy, it has been panned by some Dio fans who think the performance doesn't live up to the real thing or is just plain creepy.

Asked if he thinks tours featuring digital recreations of dead musicians will be commonplace in 10 years' time, Biff told Lords Of Metal: "Well, I really don't like this hologram thing. I'd rather a watch a DVD instead. Fortunately, there aren't that many people interested in that kind of thing, so I don't think they'd be doing arenas or anything. But I don't know — the technology has to improve a lot to make it interesting. I think it's more a curiosity thing that people want to see it, and I'm not sure if they will continue to go and see it. I don't know. Personally, I don't like it. There's something a bit… wrong with it with me. I'm really not interested in it, to be honest, and I don't think it's going to be a big thing. Maybe if they did that in Las Vegas and they'd put Elvis [Presley] on, maybe that'd work. Though I'm not sure if Elvis would have liked that."

Dio died in 2010 at the age of 67 from stomach cancer. His hologram was created by a company called Eyeillusion and made its debut at the Wacken Open Air festival in August 2016 in front of more than 75,000 fans.

The "Dio Returns: The World Tour" production uses audio of Ronnie's live performances from throughout his career, with the DIO DISCIPLES band playing live, consisting of Craig Goldy on guitar, Simon Wright on drums and Scott Warren on keyboards, along with Bjorn Englen on bass. Also appearing with them are ex-JUDAS PRIEST singer Tim "Ripper" Owens and LYNCH MOB's Oni Logan.

SAXON's 22nd studio album, "Thunderbolt", was released on February 2 via Militia Guard (Silver Lining Music). The follow-up to 2015's "Battering Ram" was once again helmed by producer Andy Sneap, who has previously worked with JUDAS PRIEST, MEGADETH, ACCEPT and TESTAMENT, among others. The disc features original artwork by longtime SAXON collaborator Paul Raymond Gregory.

Svart Records has announced the signing of Worship Of Keres. The first fruit of this union shall be the band's debut album, Heir To Fire, which will be released internationally later this spring/summer.

Founded in 2013 by Matthew Woods Wilhoit, Worship Of Keres are a heavy metal band hailing from the Central Valley of California. Having been through many lineups since the idea was originally conceived as a side-project by Wilhoit, the curse began to grow and the Worship became the singular focus of its current lineup:

Justin (Hel) Helvete - vocals
Matthew Woods Wilhoit - guitars
Ryan Fernandes - drums
Chris Giblin - bass

Though proudly carrying the banner of heavy metal, Worship Of Keres’ roots and influences are as gnarled, windy, and volatile as the area they come from, so it should be no surprise that, in a moment's notice, they can craft a style of music that combines distinctive elements of doom, early thrash, New Wave Of British Heavy Metal and gothic hard rock. With a whole host of influences both classic and contemporary, Worship Of Keres are able to weave together hauntingly dark melodies and incredibly visceral sonics into a cohesive soundscape that is all their own: unique yet inspired, brimming with bewitchingly catchy songs.

After a series of self-released EPs, which garnered an overwhelmingly enthusiastic response, a deal was struck with Finland's fiercely independent and cutting-edge Svart Records for the release of Worship Of Keres' successive debut album. To be tiled Heir To Fire, the band's debut LP will possess you from its first breath to its last. Taking the listener on a freefall into musical abandon, where all is possible in the pitch black - from the most vivid dreams to vicious nightmares, and beyond - Heir To Fire is a veritable love letter to everything that's influenced the band and given it the strength to push forward with freedom of expression. Nothing is sacred in Worship Of Keres' ambitious exploration of melody and malady.

The curse of Worship Of Keres will spread like plagues of wildfire, proudly carrying the torch lit by the Great Ones before them, throughout alien terrain and into your blood. Then again, words are words and talk is cheap, especially these days. So turn the volume up and listen for yourself! Cut the bullshit and begin the worship of Worship Of Keres!

Release date, cover art, and tracklisting to be revealed shortly.

(Photo - Cam Evans)

"Devastation Trail" is Saber Tiger’s latest single and video, taken from their forthcoming album Bystander Effect (Expanded Edition), which will be released via Sliptrick Records on March 13th. Get the single via iTunes, or Amazon, and watch a video for the track below.

Through some of their heaviest and most aggressive riff work, the track tells the story of internet trolls who target their messages of jealousy and hatred towards entertainers and other talented people. A subject that is as relevant worldwide as it is in the band’s native of Japan. No sympathy nor subtlety is shown towards the cowardly behaviour of internet trolling.

"Devastation Trail" is written by guitarist and founding member Akihito Kinoshita with lyrics by Fubito Endo, whose current resume also includes lyrics for legendary Japanese heavy metal band Anthem.

Pre-order your copy of Bystander Effect (Expanded Edition) here.

Tracklisting:

"Dying Breed"
"Sin Eater"
"Act Of Heroism"
"Dreadout"
"One Last Time"
"Just-World Hypothesis"
"What I Used To Be"
"Shameless"
"An Endless End: Another Time"
"Devastation Trail"
"Afterglow"
"Ship Of Theseus"
"First Class Fool"
"Sin Eater" (2013 Demo)
"What I Used To Be" (2013 Demo)

"Devastation Trail" video:

"Sin Eater" video:

Saber Tiger are:

Takenori Shimoyama - Vocals
Akihito Kinoshita - Guitar
Yasuharu Tanaka - Guitar
asuhiro Mizuno - Drums
Hibiki - Bass

February 23rd will see the release of the debut album from CoreLeoni, entitled The Greatest Hits, Part 1. A video for an acoustic rendition of the album track "All I Care For" is available for streaming below. Pre-order the album here.

CoreLeoni is the new project founded by none other than Gotthard guitarist and founder Leo Leoni to pay a very personal tribute to his rock & roll past. In Leo’s words, "On the 25th anniversary of the release of the first Gotthard album, I wanted to pay tribute to songs like "Downtown", "Firedance", "Higher", "Here Comes The Heat", "In The Name", "Ride On...", "Let It Be", and "All I Care 4". Songs that with Gotthard we have kind of left aside. We've re-recorded, refreshed, and "re-brushed" them in a respectful way. These songs are very dear to me and they are part of a period that will remain forever with me."

Tracklisting:

"Il Padrino"
"Firedance"
"Downtown"
"Higher"
"Get It While You Can"
"In The Name"
"Let It Be"
"All I Care For"
"Walk On Water"
"Here Comes The Heat"
"Tell No Lies"
"Ride On"
"Anytime Anywhere"
"El Traidor" (Bonus Track - CD edition only)

"All I Care For":

"Walk On Water" live video:

"Downtown":

"Walk On Water" video:

Behind-the-scenes:

Joining CoreLeoni on this release:

Ronnie Romero (Lords Of Black, Rainbow) - vocals
Hena Habegger - drums
Jgor Gianola - guitar
Mila Merker - bass

Queen have released this new video for "All Dead All Dead", generated for the 40th anniversary of the original News Of The World album track, sung by Brian May. The visualisation was created by Unanico Studios (Directors Jason Jameson & Robert Milne, Producer Paul Laikin), in collaboration with Brian, and stars Brian’s childhood pet cat Pixie.

Following a phenomenally successful 25-date tour of Europe and the UK this past November and December 2017, Queen + Adam Lambert recently made the surprise announcement that the band will play further shows in Europe this summer. The new tour dates follow unprecedented demand for more concerts in Europe and will see the band perform in cities not included in last year’s tour.

Already announced are shows in Italy and Germany. Others to be announced are expected to include Portugal, Spain, Denmark, Norway, the Netherlands, and Belgium.

In the UK the band will return to play London O2 Arena on July 2nd, where they performed two sold-out shows at the end of their last tour.

Speaking of the dates, Brian May said: “The almost unanimous reaction to our last round of dates in Europe was this is absolutely the best production we’ve ever mounted. There has been a great demand for us to go back and cover the cities we missed! So, while we're still physically able to perform at those high energy levels on this massive scale, we thought… ‘YES !! One more around the block!’ It’s live, it’s dangerous, and it takes every ounce of fitness we can muster. But it’s still fun!“

Says Adam Lambert: “I enjoyed every second of the recent European tour and really felt the love in every city. I can’t wait for us to get back there again in the spring!”

The summer shows tour will again showcase Queen + Adam Lambert’s spectacular new stage production which was conceived around the 40th anniversary of Queen’s News of the World album and drew rave reviews.

On the musical side, the Queen + Adam Lambert touring band also features Spike Edney on keyboards, Neil Fairclough on bass, and Tyler Warren on percussion.

Since first sharing the stage for the American Idol final in May 2009, Queen + Adam Lambert have proved to be a hugely successful global partnership, having now played more than 130 shows in every corner of the world.

Ahead of the forthcoming European summer dates, Queen + Adam Lambert play ten sold out arena shows in Australia and New Zealand, beginning in Auckland with two shows at Spark Arena on February 17th and 18th, and ending at Perth Arena on March 6th.

Dates:

June
13 - Cologne, Germany - Lanxess Arena
19 - Berlin, Germany - Mercedes Benz Arena
20 - Hamburg, Germany - Barclaycard Arena
25 - Milan, Italy - Forum

July
2 - London, England - 02 Arena

The band will perform in New Zealand and Australia this month and next. Find their live itinerary here.

Relapse Records has announced the official signing of German psychedelic hard rock trio Black Salvation.
 
Black Salvation -- featuring Uno Bruniusson formerly of In Solitude and Grave Pleasures and currently of Death Alley -- challenges the listener to open wide the doors of perception and slowly drift away among their transcendental compositions and deeply hypnotic tales of magic and mysticism. Across eight tracks and over forty minutes, Black Salvation exquisitely blends hard rock, doom, and psychedelia into an intoxicating synthesis of rock 'n' roll alchemy. Uncertainty Is Bliss is surely one of the most captivating rock debuts in years.

Black Salvation's Uncertainty Is Bliss is due out April 6th on CD, LP, and digital formats via Relapse Records. Physical packages are available at Relapse.com. The digital edition can be purchased at this location.

Issues the band of the signing and new album, "Our hands and minds are trembling in anticipation to release this record, as it's been a long and intense road for us to get here. Throughout the entire process, we traveled down a path trenched in uncertainty, which was both disarming and blissful. Signing to Relapse Records is probably the most unexpected door that opened up in the process of finding a home for the record. We're very eager to have an open minded, diverse label to spread our words and music to all corners of your perception."

Tracklisting:

“In A Casket’s Ride”
“Floating Torpid”
“Breathing Hands”
“The Eye That Breathes”
“Leair”
“A Direction Is Futile”
“Grey River”
“Getting Slowly Lost”
“The Chapel” (Bonus track)
“Follow Me Down” (Bonus track)

“In A Casket’s Ride”:

Nuclear Blast USA has joined forces with So Cal brewery and blendery Phantom Carriage to celebrate a love for heavy metal and craft brew, with the creation of a unique beer called Blast Beast Black India Pale Lager. The collaboration beer will be available in limited 16oz cans this March exclusively at PhantomCarriage.com and the Phantom Carriage taproom in Carson, CA.

Phantom Carriage comments: "We are beyond excited to announce this collaboration as we have been fans of the music that Nuclear Blast puts out for many, many years… and when this opportunity came up we were stoked to partner with them and develop a unique beer that is inspired by Germany's Black Forest but is also approachable with West Coast influences.

"The Blast Beast will be an IPL built almost entirely off of Germany’s finest pilsner malt, and a small addition of some wheat. Although simple, this beast hits hard with heavy doses of El Dorado, Citra, and Amarillo throughout many of its stages. Fermented with a German lager yeast strain to round out this beer.”

Adds Nuclear Blast: "We are thrilled to announce Nuclear Blast’s first beer meticulously crafted by our friends at Phantom Carriage! A mutual love for horror, metal and beer brought our teams together and it has been a rewarding experience to unite our passions and create what is the Blast Beast Black IPL."

The canned version of the Blast Beast will make its debut at the Phantom Carriage three-year anniversary party on Saturday, March 17th (21+ only). Stay tuned for details at PhantomCarriage.com.

In addition the Blast Beast will make its way to the East Coast at the 2018 Decibel Metal & Beer Fest in Philadelphia, PA the weekend of March 31st - April 1st. Tickets can be purchased here.

The beer is named after Nuclear Blast mascot, the Blast Beast, who is featured on the beer can label in a new illustration by artist Blake Armstrong. The label was designed by Rob Kimura.

"A Love Unreal", the new video from BLACK LABEL SOCIETY, can be seen below. The song is taken from the band's upcoming tenth full-length album, "Grimmest Hits", which was released on January 19 via Entertainment One (eOne). The clip was directed by BLACK LABEL SOCIETY's longtime collaborator Justin Reich.

Regarding the songwriting process for "Grimmest Hits", BLACK LABEL SOCIETY frontman Zakk Wylde told the Omaha World-Herald: "The only ideas I really had [prior to going into the studio] were 'The Only Words'. I wrote that when I was sitting in a hotel room. It reminded me of a CREAM thing. The only other riff I had laying around was 'Trampled Down Below'.

"Every record that we do, it's like a box of cracker jacks," he continued. "We don't know what we're gonna get till we get there.

"That's the whole fun thing about making records. You're going in with, 'Let's see what happens.'

"You could be listening to 'Heart Of Gold' on the radio and then me and you listening to that, it'd be cool if we wrote something like that.

"A lot of things happen like that. You get sparked off by writing the riff. Listening to [LED] ZEPPELIN or [BLACK] SABBATH or THE ALLMAN BROTHERS. What you end up coming out with can be something different."

BLACK LABEL SOCIETY recently kicked off a North American tour in support of "Grimmest Hits". Joining them on the trek are CORROSION OF CONFORMITY on all dates, with EYEHATEGOD and RED FANG appearing at select shows.

BLACK LABEL SOCIETY is:

Zakk Wylde - Vocals/Guitar
John DeServio - Bass
Dario Lorina - Guitar
Jeff Fabb - Drums

"I Want To Know What Love Is", "Cold As Ice", "Waiting For A Girl Like You", "Hot Blooded", "Juke Box Hero". FOREIGNER's timeless anthems continue to rock the charts with 10 multi-platinum albums, 16 Top 30 hits and album sales now exceeding 75 million copies. For the first time ever, FOREIGNER will present all its hits with a 58-piece orchestra and a 60-piece choir with "Foreigner With The 21st Century Symphony Orchestra & Chorus" available on April 27 via earMUSIC.

In May 2017, the band performed two sold-out shows in Lucerne, Switzerland, together with the 21st Century Symphony Orchestra & Chorus, conducted by Ernst Van Tiel. "Foreigner With The 21st Century Symphony Orchestra & Chorus" represents this year-long collaboration between FOREIGNER founding member and lead guitarist Mick Jones and Grammy-nominated composing/arranging team Dave Eggar and Chuck Palmer, exploring the deep symphonic potential of these classic and iconic songs. Eggar, Juilliard protégé and cellist/pianist/composer, and Palmer, producer/writer/percussionist, have toured, performed and recorded with artists such as Paul Simon, James Taylor, Patti Smith, COLDPLAY and many more.

Says Mick Jones: "I could never have imagined when I set out to create FOREIGNER 40 years ago, that we'd still be touring around the world and performing the music we love all these years later. Dave Eggar and Chuck Palmer's orchestral arrangements have shown us a new symphonic dimension of our music, which I hope our fans will enjoy."

"Foreigner With The 21st Century Symphony Orchestra & Chorus" CD track listing:

01. Overture
02. Blue Morning, Blue Day
03. Cold As Ice
04. Waiting For A Girl Like You
05. Say You Will
06. When It Comes To Love
07. That Was Yesterday
08. Feels Like The First Time
09. Starrider
10. Double Vision
11. Fool For You Anyway
12. Urgent
13. Juke Box Hero
14. I Want To Know What Love Is

"Foreigner With The 21st Century Symphony Orchestra & Chorus" DVD track listing:

01. Overture
02. Blue Morning, Blue Day
03. Cold As Ice
04. Waiting For A Girl Like You
05. Head Games
06. When It Comes To Love
07. Say You Will
08. The Flame Still Burns
09. That Was Yesterday
10. Juke Box Hero
11. Starrider
12. Double Vision
13. Fool For You Anyway
14. Hot Blooded
15. Urgent
16. Feels Like The First Time
17. I Want To Know What Love Is

Photo credit: Karsten Staiger

Fan-filmed video footage of ACCEPT's February 17 performance at Logomo in Turku, Finland can be seen below.

ACCEPT guitarist Wolf Hoffmann told Brazil's Heavy Talk that it's "very important" for his band to continuously write new material. "We felt when we got back together with Mark [Tornillo, vocals] or we got a 'rebirth' about ten years ago, we made a vow that we're not going to be a nostalgia band," he explained. "We really didn't want to be a band who plays old stuff over and over again because there's enough bands doing that already. We felt if we're going to do this, we want to do it right. We want to write new material that can be on an even level with the stuff that we've done in the past and by all accounts, I think we've achieved that with these last four albums. That's maybe one reason why we've made four albums in nine years, plus a live DVD. I think we've been really productive in all these years. I think we're going to do that as long as we can. We like it. It's fun to do stuff that's relevant and meaningful to people. That's really the main motivation for us is to have stuff that is relevant."

Hoffmann added that ACCEPT doesn't "really have any specific goals" for the future. "Maybe a Nobel Prize for heavy metal," he joked. "But that's unlikely. I don't know, man. We just enjoy what we're doing. I don't think there's as much you can really work for in our stage right now. We're totally happy where we are. We always want to get bigger and always want to make better albums. That's always my goal. Right now, we have so many things in our pipeline that I don't even know where to begin. We're plenty busy right now."

ACCEPT's latest album, "The Rise Of Chaos", was released last August via Nuclear Blast. The cover artwork for the disc was created by the Hungarian artist Gyula Havancsák.

DEF LEPPARD drummer Rick Allen joined TESLA on stage at this year's Monsters Of Rock cruise to perform an acoustic version of the song "Little Suzi". Fan-filmed video footage of the performance can be seen below (courtesy of Decibel Geek TV).

TESLA singer Jeff Keith told Pollstar in a 2016 interview that the members of DEF LEPPARD are "like our big brothers."

TESLA's ninth full-length album, "Shock", which is tentatively due in the fall, was helmed by DEF LEPPARD guitarist Phil Collen. Collen previously co-wrote and produced the TESLA song "Save That Goodness", which was released in August 2016 and included on the "Mechanical Resonance Live!" album.

"Mechanical Resonance Live!" was made available in 2016 via Tesla Electric Company Recordings/Mailboat. The effort celebrated the 30th birthday of the original multi-platinum album and featured classic hits as well as the aforementioned "Save That Goodness" single.

TESLA will support STYX and JOAN JETT & THE BLACKHEARTS on a summer U.S. tour that kicks off May 30 in Irvine, California at the FivePoint Amphitheatre

TESLA's current lineup includes four of the five original members: Keith, Hannon, Brian Wheat (bass) and Troy Luccketta (drums). Dave Rude (guitar) joined in 2006 as the replacement for Tommy Skeoch.

Former SKID ROW singer Sebastian Bach has revealed that he is in the process of having a drum recording studio built on his property in Southern California for the purpose of demoing music for his next studio album.

"The mission of this record is to capture a cool vibe, and I think that really involves live drummers playing — not just a drum machine, which seems to be too pervasive today in music," Sebastian said in a video message (see below).

According to Bach, he is still "in the writing and demoing stage" for the follow-up to 2014's "Give 'Em Hell". "I'm in the process of changing record labels," he said. "My manager, Rick Sales, wants me to have a good demo that he can take to people to play for them. Right now we have seven songs. Two of them are by John 5 [former MARILYN MANSON and current ROB ZOMBIE guitarist], and I also have Steve Stevens [BILLY IDOL] sending me some tunes, and Billy Morrison [BILLY IDOL]. And Brent Woods [VINCE NEIL]. And we will see which riffs make the cut."

Sebastian also talked about the inspiration for his forthcoming album. He explained: "My tastes have changed a bit since my doctor told me that if I wanna keep my hearing in great shape, I have to turn the music down sometimes. He told me this a couple of years back. And since he told me that, I've taken his advice and I don't crank my music as loud as it will go anymore, and that's all I can tell you. So I've gotta make a record that I like. So I don't think it's gonna be a death metal record; I think it's gonna be more uplifting and fun. And also real people playing real music — that's very important to me."

Bach was particularly thrilled to be once again working with John 5, whom he described as "just incredible. Everybody knows him and he is one of the greatest guitar players in rock and roll.

"Some people always want me to reunite with the old band, but think of it this way — I get to make records with John 5. So that's pretty amazing," he added.

Bach hasn't released a full-length disc since "Give 'Em Hell", which was criticized by some for sounding "too modern" and a departure from his '80s hard rock past.

Sebastian told Australia's Hysteria magazine last fall that he wanted to make what he called his "'California record,' which is probably gonna be more concerned about the vocals than the guitar, the drums and the bass. The last records I loved that I've done, but they're kind of similar. So now it's time for me to do a different-sounding kind of record," he said. "So that's what I'm doing. I'm into acoustic guitar right now a lot. And that's not to say if somebody plays me some wicked crazy riff that I won't do it, but I'm trying to make a record that's gonna put me into the next phase of music. That's what I'm working on now."

Bach went on to defend his decision to make a softer-sounding album this time around. He said: "The thing is that my records, mostly, have had a lot of aggression in them, and I'm not feeling aggressive right now. So I'm not gonna pretend to channel some anger that's not real. But, you know, there's things that I am angry at, like the climate being destroyed — I'm angry at that. And the first song that I just recorded has lyrics kind of to do with that. But people like my ballad voice; that's, really, at the end of the day, what people like to hear me sing like. And I like that too, and that's the way I'm feeling right now, so that's the [way the] music [is] coming out — it's got a lot of harmonies, and the vocals sound great, and that's what I'm gonna give you in your ears… It's gonna be focused on the vocals, harmonies, but it's gonna sound like me, 'cause that's all I can sound like."

Asked to elaborate on his comment that he is writing a "California record," Bach said: "Well, you know, California has a great history of music that sounds like Southern California. You know, THE DOORS' 'L.A. Woman'. The sound of, like, STEELY DAN, VAN HALEN, MÖTLEY CRÜE… Los Angeles has a great sound of its own, and I wanna make my record. You know, THE EAGLES … Okay, there you go. My next record will be a mix between THE EAGLES and MÖTLEY CRÜE. [Laughs] Both [THE EAGLES and MÖTLEY CRÜE] sound California, and I want… I live here now, so I wanna make a record that sounds like it's made here. I'm not into Pro Tools and the computer making it all perfect. On this record, it's real players, recording real human beings. No drum machines — I'm not into that. I want real guys playing real instruments. That's for sure."

Sebastian's autobiography, "18 And Life On Skid Row", came out in December 2016 via Dey Street Books (formerly It Books), an imprint of HarperCollins Publishers.

Video footage of former GUNS N' ROSES drummer Steven Adler rocking out behind a drum kit at the Soultone stand during this year's NAMM show in Anaheim, California can be seen below.

As previously reported, Steven has revived his ADLER'S APPETITE band and is planning to embark on a tour celebrating the 30th anniversary of GN'R's classic debut album, "Appetite For Destruction". He is expected to play the landmark LP in its entirety "plus other GN'R classics."

In a February 2017 interview with the "One On One With Mitch Lafon" podcast, Adler said that he wasn't interested in making any more albums with his namesake band (ADLER), which released an acclaimed debut, "Back From The Dead", in 2012. "Rock and roll doesn't sell," he said at the time. "Unless I get into a band that's already established, there's no point in doing it, dude. It's such a pain in the ass to fly all over the world, and you play little clubs or bars… Dude, I am so tired of driving up to the gig and going… I have pair of dice in my hand and I go, 'C'mon, seven. Let there be people here. C'mon!' I walk in and I go, 'Fuck! There's twenty people.' It's not the same. So unless I get in an established band, there's no point in doing it. There's no money. And my whole goal is to play for as many people as possible. Don't get me wrong — I love and appreciate playing for that one or ten or hundred people. I was thankful. But I wanna do it right."

Adler published an autobiography in 2010, titled "My Appetite for Destruction: Sex, And Drugs, And Guns N' Roses", in which he delved into his depression, suicide attempts, drug-related heart attacks, and the debilitating stroke that left him with muscular paralysis and permanently slurred speech.

Although not part of the reunion that launched in 2016, Adler rejoined GUNS N' ROSES at several shows on the band's "Not In This Lifetime" tour, including three stops on the U.S. leg and one gig in Buenos Aires, Argentina, playing drums on "Out Ta Get Me" and "My Michelle".

Texas native metal band Bloodline has announced plans to release their debut, full-length album, Insolent, on March 23rd. Today, they’re giving fans a first taste of the record with a video for the brand new single, “Faded Memory”.

“'Faded Memory' is the fifth song from our upcoming album Insolent," says vocalist Joe. "The approach on songwriting for this particular track varies from others in the sense that it was truly a collaborative effort between the four of us. The chorus is vocally shared between myself, and Titus (guitars, clean vocals). We feel as though this style prequels the future sound of Bloodline.”

In 2014, Dallas, TX birthed one of the city’s best metalcore bands in years, Bloodline. In their few short years of existence, the band has become a power player on the scene, with a debut EP, III, and shows / tours with the likes of The Faceless, Bad Omens and Kublai Khan. Now, Bloodline is preparing to take their sound global with the impending release of their debut, full-length album, Insolent, which is scheduled for release on March 23rd.

Combining elements of metal, hardcore and rock, Bloodline has poured blood and sweat into crafting an incredibly compelling debut that sets a new bar for Texas metalcore.

"The adage, 'you have your entire life to write your first album' resonates heavily with me, this track, and this album, admits vocalist Joe. "This collection of songs is what I’ve been trying to write for years, and I finally feel like I’ve been able to capture and encompass what I’ve been feeling. The idea of someone extremely important, entering, and exiting your life repeatedly. A revolving door of human emotions."

Catch Bloodline live at the following shows:

February
16 - McAllen, TX - Yerberia Cultura
17 - Dallas, TX - Dirty 30
18 - Austin, TX - The Dirty Dog
20 - Houston, TX - The White Swan
22 - Birmingham, AL - Homeroom at UAB
23 - Atlanta, GA - Swayzee’s
24 - Nashville, TN - The End
25 - Gainesville, VA - Vapez Cloud House

 

Italy-based melodic prog metal band Last Union have checked in with the following update:

"So, we're done in the studio with an exclusive b-side for the 'Taken' single, which will be released at the beginning of March. Details will be released soon, but for now we can tell you this is something very special that we've never done before. Stay tuned..."

Behind-the-scenes photos from the "Taken" video shoot, exclusive to BraveWords, can be viewed below.

Destined for big adventures, Last Union features guitarist Cristiano Tiberi's and vocalist Elisa Scarpeccio. Most Beautiful Day also celebrates ex-Helloween / ex-Masterplan drummer Uli Kusch' s return after a few years absence, and welcomes Symphony X bassist Mike LePond.

Tracklist:

"Most Beautiful Day"
"President Evil" (featuring James LaBrie)
"Hardest Way"
"Purple Angels"
"The Best of Magic"
"Taken" (radio edit - featuring James LaBrie)
"18 Euphoria"
"A Place in Heaven" (featuring James LaBrie)
"Ghostwriter"
"Limousine"
"Back in the Shadow"
"Taken" (featuring James LaBrie)

Check out the lyric video for "President Evil" below.

Last Union is:
Elisa Scarpeccio - vocals
Cristiano Tiberi - guitars
Mike LePond (Symphony X) - bass
Uli Kusch (ex-Helloween) - drums

For information and updates on Last Union go to this location.

Metallica have checked in with the following update:

"Mannheim! Thank you so much for a great night at SAP Arena! Relive the (February 16th) show by pre-ordering a professionally mixed audio recording of the show now at Metallica.com or LiveMetallica.com.

The setlist on the night was as follows:

"Hardwired"
"Atlas, Rise!"
"Seek & Destroy"
"Harvester of Sorrow"
"Welcome Home (Sanitarium)"
"Now That We're Dead"
"Confusion"
"For Whom the Bell Tolls"
"Halo on Fire"
"Last Caress" (Misfits cover)
"The Memory Remains"
"Moth Into Flame"
"Sad But True"
"One"
"Master of Puppets"

Encore:
"Spit Out the Bone"
"Nothing Else Matters"
"Enter Sandman" (with "The Frayed Ends of Sanity" outro)