Florida-based metal act, Yashira, has signed with Good Fight Music and has plans to release a new LP this spring.

"We’re beyond excited to get these songs out," says the band. "We’ve been working tirelessly on this album and the accompanying artwork since early 2016. The fact that such a solid label like Good Fight wanted to put the record out is just incredible. We’re super grateful.”

Yashira is also releasing a music video for their single "Redact (Flood)" (see below). Directed by Cameron Nunez, this is the first song the band is releasing from their upcoming LP.

The band continues, "This is some of the most aggressive material we’ve written and we feel the visual ideas Cameron brought to the table really accentuate the mood of the song.”

"Redact (Flood)" is also available as an iTunes instant gratification track. Meaning, fans who pre-order the LP on iTunes will get the single as an immediate download. Pre-order digitally here, or physically here.

Tracklisting:

"Redact (Flood)"
"Writhe (Embrace)"
"Raze (Deject)"
"Shrine (Contra)"
"Surmise (Descend)"
"Ignis (Ascend)"

"Redact (Flood)" video:

The band will hit the road with Axis starting today. Kicking off in Gainesville, FL at The Atlantic, the tour will send the band up and down the east coast before wrapping up in Greensboro, NC at New York Pizza. All tour dates here.

(Photo - Cameron Nunez)

On February 23rd, the next two Riot reissues will be added to the rich catalogue of this fabulous band, recently made available again by Metal Blade Records. These two albums - Nightbreaker and The Brethren Of The Long House - have been reissued as digipak CDs before and are now finally available on vinyl, for the first time ever.

Both albums have been remastered by Patrick Engel for the best sound quality ever. The vinyl versions include 350 g covers, an insert and a free poster. See below for an overview of all versions; pre-order your copies now at metalblade.com/riot, or indiemerch.com/metalbladerecords.

Riot - Nightbreaker vinyl re-issue with the original Japanese front art and three bonus tracks:

- 180g black vinyl
- clear orange red vinyl (EU exclusive - limited to 300 copies)
- opaque pastel orange marbled vinyl (EU exclusive - limited to 200 copies)
- white vinyl (USA exclusive - limited to 100 copies)

Riot - The Brethren Of The Long House vinyl re-issue including one bonus track:

- 180g black vinyl
- clear salmon pink vinyl (EU exclusive - limited to 300 copies)
- forest green vinyl (EU exclusive - limited to 200 copies)
- clear vinyl (USA exclusive - limited to 100 copies)

Greek thrashers, Memorain, have unveiled the artwork and tracklisting for their upcoming new album, Nous Of Time, due for release later this month via EMP Label Group/Ellefson Music Productions/SPV.

Tracklisting:

"Vultures"
"Ashes Of Faith"
"Nous Of Time"
"Prisoner Of Fate"
"Last Hope"
"Veil Of Lies"
"Feeding Your Fears"
"Human"
"Foundation Of Discord"  
"This Means War"
"Taking Control"

"Last Hope":

"Ashes Of Faith":

Metal Blade Records has announced the sealing of a pact with German speed metallers, Vulture. The full metal quintet has signed a multiple album deal with the label and is right now in the songwriting process for their tentative new album, to be released by the end of 2018.

Comments Vulture: "We feel proud and honored to officially announce our contract conclusion with Metal Blade Records! Signing up with the legendary label that released many of those albums that sparked our passion for extreme metal in our youths feels like completing the circle. Now, more motivated and bloodthirsty than ever, we are already eagerly working on new tracks for our second full-length. Attention posers! Prepare to die!"

The high speed metal militia that is Vulture was formed in late summer 2015. It was only half a year later when their first demo, entitled Victim To The Blade, saw the light of the day.

Their first output contains four fast, eerie and face melting tracks that created a huge furor around the scene. The feedback was so tremendous that it not only resulted in multiple rereleases as an EP on vinyl and CD, but also for participations in renowned concerts and festivals around Europe such as Metal Assault, Hell Over Hammaburg or the infamous Live Evil festival in London.

Vulture released their debut LP, The Guillotine, in the summer of 2017 and straight on the boys continued their killing streak with eight massive songs that contained even more aggression and fury than their predecessors. Having added more melody and variation to their songwriting, Vulture clearly emphasizes that they are not in line for being yet another homage to the 80s metal scene.

Being joined by a fifth member and now permanent drummer just a few months ago, Vulture has lifted off higher than ever in order to deliver another full-length album soon. The studio has already been booked for this summer and we can definitely assure you: Vulture kills!

Vulture is:

L. Steeler - vocals
S. Genozider - guitar
M. Outlaw - guitar
A. Axetinctor - bass
G. Deceiver - drums

San Francisco Bay Area stoner/doom heavyweights THE WATCHERS will release their debut album, "Black Abyss", on March 9 via Ripple Music.

THE WATCHERS is a gathering of international seasoned players Tim Narducci (SPIRALARMS, WHITE WITCH CANYON) on vocals, Carter Kennedy (ORCHID) on drums, Jeremy Epp (BLACKGATES, THE VENTING MACHINE) on guitar, and Cornbread (SPIRALARMS, WHITE WITCH CANYON) on bass.

THE WATCHERS delivered "Black Abyss" during an extensive tour schedule last year in support of "Sabbath Highway", the band's debut EP released in 2016. Mixed by Max Norman (OZZY OSBOURNE, MEGADETH), the album is everything you'd expect and more from a band well-versed in the enigmatic ways of heavy rock, packing an onslaught of massive riffs and twists that take the listener through a heady and heavy musical trip.

What's more, fans on both sides of the Atlantic will also be able to catch the band live as they take to the road once again to play dates across the U.S., along with key shows at SXSW this March, DesertFest London in May, and Maryland Doom Fest in June.

"Black Abyss" track listing:

01. Black Abyss
02. Alien Lust
03. Oklahoma Black Magic
04. Buzzard
05. Starfire
06. People Of The Gun
07. Suffer Fool
08. Seven Tenets

The "Black Abyss" title track can be streamed below.

Former ANTHRAX singer Dan Nelson has launched a brand-new project called WOLFPACK BLACK. Rounded out by bassist Pat Foote (STEEL REIGN) and drummer Dan Mintzer (PULL, BREAKAGE RISING), the group's sound is described as "metal through and through" with songs that are "both brutal and catchy."

For more information, visit the WOLFPACK BLACK Facebook page.

Nelson is also involved with YEAR OF THE TYRANT, in which he is joined by bassist Jason Viebrooks (GRIP INC., HEATHEN), guitarist Vinnie LaBella (EXHORDER) and drummer Sasha Horn (FORBIDDEN, HEATHEN).

Nelson in 2012 settled a lawsuit he filed against ANTHRAX over the fallout from his departure from the veteran metal group. Details of the settlement were not made public.

The singer, who was in ANTHRAX for nearly two years — from late 2007 until July 2009 — filed a lawsuit in November 2011 claiming that Charlie Benante (drums), Frank Bello (bass) and Scott Ian (guitar) falsely stated in "numerous interviews" that he had "abruptly resigned" after getting sick, forcing a cancelation of a tour. The $2.65-million suit also alleged that Benante told BLABBERMOUTH.NET that Nelson "was a bully."

The Long Island native said his ex-bandmates' "intentional defamation" has caused him a loss of income and damaged his reputation.

Before reaching the deal, ANTHRAX attorney Brian Caplan told the judge that Nelson had been offered a "fairly small dollar amount" and co-authorship of eleven ANTHRAX songs that the band recorded for "Worship Music", according to the New York Daily News.

Photo credit: Nicole Harissiadis

The official lyric video for the song "War" from VENOM INC., the band featuring original VENOM members Jeff "Mantas" Dunn (guitar) and Anthony "Abaddon" Bray (drums) alongside ex-VENOM bassist/vocalist Tony "Demolition Man" Dolan, can be seen below. The track is taken from VENOM INC.'s debut album, "Avé", which was released last August via Nuclear Blast.

Dolan says: "Avé, legions... May I present our recent endeavor... our new lyric video for our album track 'War'! This is an extended version for your enjoyment and precedes our current list of dates as we prepare to slay 2018! Starting in Japan and taking in Singapore, Bangkok, Australia, Tasmania and New Zealand before returning to the Northern hemisphere where we start a European double headline tour with SUFFOCATION in the U.K. Enjoy the new video and get your tickets now... it's gonna be a face-melting tour, I promise! All hail and avé!"

VENOM INC. was born during an impromptu live set at 2015's Keep it True festival in Lauda-Königshofen, Germany. The onstage reunion was a rousing success amongst VENOM fans and music industry personnel alike, and although it was originally only set up for fun, Dolan began receiving numerous show offers for VENOM INC. from booking agents around the world. What started as a live set to celebrate VENOM's legacy immediately turned into a serious reunion discussion.

While unexpected at the outset, the end result of this reunion is an album that true VENOM fans will gladly add to the top of their playlists. Dolan says: "We tried to shape 'Avé' so that it comes at you dark, then it gets bright and heavy and just keeps growing into some kind of monster."

"Avé" track listing:

01. Avé Satanas
02. Forged In Hell
03. Metal We Bleed
04. Dein Fleisch
05. Blood Stained
06. Time To Die
07. The Evil Dead
08. Preacher Man
09. War
10. I Kneel To No God
11. Black N Roll

Going in to writing "Avé", VENOM INC. realized their live performance was the key to creating an album that would be a metal classic. It was clear that any songs the trio came up with had to have the intensity, the honesty and the aggression that was happening for VENOM INC. in a live situation. Simply put, they needed to translate what they do on stage onto a record. Not once did they look back on the VENOM catalogue and think, "We have to write another 'Black Metal' or another 'Schizo'..." The focus is on VENOM INC. and everything the rejuvenated three-piece do in the here and now.

VENOM INC. is not to be confused with the Conrad "Cronos" Lant-fronted version of VENOM, which is continuing to tour and make albums under the VENOM moniker. Joining Cronos in that group are Rage (a.k.a. Stuart Dixon) on guitar and Danté (a.k.a. Danny Needham) on drums.

Dunn, Bray and Dolan released three albums as VENOM between 1989 and 1992 — "Prime Evil" (1989), "Temples Of Ice" (1991) and "The Waste Lands" (1992).

The classic lineup of VENOM — Lant, Dunn and Bray — is often credited with kickstarting the whole black metal movement, but is more accurately seen an early example of extreme metal.

VENOM's second album, 1982's "Black Metal", was a major influence on on the early Norwegian black metal scene.

Photo credit: Stephanie Cabral

Former JUDAS PRIEST guitarist K.K. Downing says that "some of the details" in his forthcoming book will surprise his longtime fans.

It was announced late last month that Da Capo Press has set a September 18 publication date for Downing's memoir, "Heavy Duty: Days And Nights In Judas Priest". The book was co-written by the Scottish author and journalist Mark Eglinton, whose previous collaborations include "Official Truth, 101 Proof" with Rex Brown of PANTERA and "Confessions Of A Heretic" with BEHEMOTH's Adam "Nergal" Darski.

In a new message posted to his official Facebook page, Downing said: "It was with great surprise to me that I saw articles recently relating to my book, as work is still in progress finalizing everything. The Internet-led world we live in doesn't make it easy to keep secrets! However, I was secretly desperate to tell you all about this book, as my life story is something that I am very proud of — even though I suspect that some of the details will surprise you just as they did me as I lived through them.

"Recollecting my life as I have done in this book has often brought me to close to tears, but has also made me laugh with the fondest memories. It is true that I have made many friends along the way but it is also true that I have made some enemies. But one thing is for sure: the music that has been everything to me has not only been my salvation, but has also brought me closer to the people of so many nations — and I can honestly say that I consider all of you to be my very dear friends.

"'Heavy Duty' is now destined to come your way in September, and it is my proudest moment to be able to share it with you."

"Heavy Duty" official book synopsis: "JUDAS PRIEST formed in the industrial city of Birmingham, England, in 1968. With its distinctive twin-guitar sound, studs-and-leather image, and international sales of over 50 million records, JUDAS PRIEST became the archetypal heavy metal band in the 1980s. Iconic tracks like 'Breaking The Law', 'Living After Midnight' and 'You've Got Another Thing Coming' helped the band achieve extraordinary success, but no one from the band has stepped out to tell their or the band's story until now.

"As the band approaches its golden anniversary, fans will at last be able to delve backstage into the decades of shocking, hilarious, and haunting stories that surround the heavy metal institution. In 'Heavy Duty', guitarist K.K. Downing discusses the complex personality conflicts, the business screw-ups, the acrimonious relationship with fellow heavy metal band IRON MAIDEN, as well as how JUDAS PRIEST found itself at the epicenter of a storm of parental outrage that targeted heavy metal in the '80s. He also describes his role in cementing the band's trademark black leather and studs image that would not only become synonymous with the entire genre, but would also give singer Rob Halford a viable outlet by which to express his sexuality. Lastly, he recounts the life-changing moment when he looked at his bandmates on stage during a 2010 concert and thought, 'This is the last show.' Whatever the topic, whoever's involved, K.K. doesn't hold back.

"With the band at the beginning through his retirement in 2010 (and even still as a member of the band's board of directors), Downing has seen it all and is now finally at a place in his life where he can also let it all go. Even if you're a lifelong fan, if you think you know the full story of JUDAS PRIEST, well, you've got another thing coming."

Downing announced his retirement from PRIEST in April 2011. He has since been replaced by Richie Faulkner, who was once the guitarist in the backing group for Lauren Harris, daughter of IRON MAIDEN bassist Steve Harris.

During a 2015 interview with Guitar International, Downing elaborated on his reasons for leaving PRIEST. He said: "I had lots and lots of reasons for not continuing, as I wasn't content with things as they were. I wasn't happy with the band's live performance. I thought it could have been better; not that the fans would notice. To me, PRIEST was always a stealth machine and that's what I liked about it. Even though you get older, you still need to be able to deliver the goods. People came a long way and paid a lot of money to see us, so you've got to make sure you still give 110 percent. I thought that should be inherent and what it should always be."

K.K. also said that he didn't think his return to PRIEST would "ever, ever happen." He explained: "Obviously I'm quite happy for Richie Faulkner to be in the band. But I really wasn't expecting to have someone who had so many familiarities as me, the looks and everything. At a glance, nothing too much has changed for the fans."





Hi Everyone!
I just wanted to make reference to my upcoming autobiography. It was with great surprise to me that I saw...

Posted by K.K. Downing's Steel Mill on Friday, February 2, 2018

Associated Press/AL.com is reporting that the Alabama Supreme Court says a man can't go forward with his lawsuit against a company involved in booking a death metal concert where he was injured.

The justices on Friday blocked a lawsuit against the Los Angeles-based ICM Partners by Jordan Taylor Pardue and his mother.

Pardue sued claiming he was badly injured during a 2014 concert by the band Cannibal Corpse at Soul Kitchen Music Hall in Mobile. The decision says the young man was thrown down and suffered a spinal injury that resulted in more than $1.2 million in medical treatments.

Read more at AL.com.

Greece's Rockpages.gr recently conducted an interview with singer Cristina Scabbia of Italian heavy rockers LACUNA COIL. You can now watch the chat below.

Asked if the spate of recent concert terrorist attacks — including those in Las Vegas, Manchester and Paris — have affected the way she approaches her live performances, Cristina said: "To be honest, I am so focused on the stage and the crowd coming to show that I don't think about it. I think this is the goal of the people who want to create chaos — they want us to be in fear.

"It's really horrible, because no one in a million years would have thought that music or a concert could be connected with a terrorist attack," she continued. "This is the thing that weirded everything out, because terrorist attacks are horrible [in and of themselves] but [even more so when] connected to a moment where people should [be] more connected than ever and having a good time and sharing good vibes. This is unbelievable; it's hard to believe, for sure, that something like that could happen."

Cristina added: "So, I am not afraid, and not because I wanna be cocky, but I'm very… I don't know if the word in English is correct, but I'm very fatalist — I know that my life could end in any moment, so I want to enjoy every second, I want to try to spread positive energy around me and try to make whoever comes to the show feel good, to whoever I talk to to feel good. So I don't think about what could happen, because I can't read into the future. Hopefully nothing like that will happen again — not only at a concert, but ever."

LACUNA COIL celebrated the 20th anniversary of its debut by playing a very special show, dubbed "Nothing Stands In Our Way", on January 19 at London, England's O2 Forum Kentish Town. The unique extravaganza, which included visual effects, circus artists and enhanced stage production, was professionally filmed and recorded for future release.

LACUNA COIL is working on its first-ever book, also titled "Nothing Stands In Our Way", which is scheduled to be published later in the year.

Co-singer Andrea Ferro told the Impact metal channel last year that LACUNA COIL fans will have to wait until at least 2019 for the follow-up to 2016's "Delirium" album.

Cliff Burton will be honored with a "Cliff Burton Day" on February 10 in Castro Valley, California. The proclamation comes after METALLICA fans started a Change.org petition and tallied thousands of signatures to recognize the band's late bassist.

METALLICA announced the news on Twitter, writing: "It's official! The Board of Supervisors from Alameda County has just proclaimed February 10th, 2018, which would have been Cliff's 56th birthday, 'Cliff Burton Day.' Thanks to all of the fans who got behind this initiative. We love that he remains so revered."

Burton was born in Castro Valley. His life was tragically cut short at the age of 24 in a tour bus crash on September 27, 1986 in Sweden.

Petition organizer Robert Souza asked the Castro Valley Municipal Advisory Council (MAC) to back his effort, and the Council voted 7-0 in favor of it. The issue then went to the Alameda County Board of Supervisors, who met earlier today (Tuesday, February 6).

Burton was asked to join METALLICA in 1982 after the band saw him perform with his group at the time, TRAUMA.
The bassist was not willing to move to Los Angeles, where METALLICA was based at the time, so they decided to move to the San Francisco area so that he would join.

Burton played on METALLICA's first three studio albums — "Kill 'Em All", "Ride The Lightning" and "Master Of Puppets" — and co-wrote classic songs like "Ride The Lightning", "For Whom The Bell Tolls", "Fade To Black", "Creeping Death" and "Master Of Puppets".

Burton's initial replacement in the group was Jason Newsted, who stayed in the lineup until 2001. Robert Trujillo joined in 2003 and remains in the band to this day.

Above photo of Cliff Burton by Harald Oimoen taken from the Bazillion Points photo book "Murder In The Front Row: Shots From The Bay Area Thrash Metal Epicenter", which can be ordered here.

Glenn Hughes of making a documentary of his current world tour, which sees him performing a complete set of DEEP PURPLE songs for the first time since leaving the band in 1976.

Speaking to Jack Antonio of "Do You Know Jack?", Hughes said (hear audio below): "I'm about to embark on an 18-month-long Glenn Hughes 'Classic Deep Purple Live'. It's all the songs I recorded and wrote back in the '70s. It's the first time I've ever done a show like this, where it's a production, where it's a full-production show of all those hits, from that wonderful moment in time in the early '70s where you can never repeat that. So I've never done a show quite like this before."

Hughes added that he is "recording all of the shows in South America, which are happening in April. Only because I need to get this recorded," he said. "I think everybody should record their music that they recorded all those years ago later in life. And in South America, I have an amazing career down there, and I think it will be fantastic to play these songs and record them down there."

According to Hughes, the documentary will include footage from various concerts filmed all over the world. "But the [main] show itself will be recorded later on in the year — I think it might be recorded in the U.S. or Canada," he said. "So we'll have to wait [and see] what happens."

Glenn said that DEEP PURPLE fans should not expect to hear faithful versions of the songs as they appear on the band's classic albums. "What I'm not doing is I'm not playing studio arrangements of the songs; I'm actually doing live arrangements from the mid-'70s of these songs that were taken from California Jam or live in Europe or live in L.A. or live in Paris or live in Tokyo," he explained. "I'm doing stuff that no one has done, which is duplicate those arrangements that we did early in the '70s, which is pretty remarkable, actually. It's sounding pretty good."

Hughes recently told the the "White Line Fever" podcast that he will be the only person capable of playing DEEP PURPLE's songs with authenticity once the band completes its "The Long Goodbye" tour.

"All I can say to you is I'm doing the respectful thing by playing these songs," Hughes said. "I may be the last man standing to do this, who can actually carry this off, and I'm going to embrace it and give it some love and bring it back to the fans.

"I just figured it was time to carry the torch, if you will, and play the songs I recorded and wrote whilst I was in the band — three albums and two live albums — and play a couple of the songs they did with David [Coverdale] in Mk III and a couple of Mk II hits which I will carry in the same arrangement that I did back in the seventies. And I think it will be an incredible thing for me to embrace the songs and for the songs to be very believable from somebody's who's spiritually inclined to do that."

Hughes said his motivations surrounded the honoring of fallen bandmates. "You know why I'm doing it? I lost two members in Jon Lord and Tommy Bolin," he explained. "I'm basically gracefully saying goodbye to those guys. I'm also saying goodbye… I'm going to be doing some touring behind this and it's very therapeutic for me, it's very cathartic to do this and to do it with love because, you know, I almost didn't make it.

"At the end of the seventies, I was almost a statistic so I stepped out of the fast lane and got well. All these years later, I'm spiritually in a good place and I'm trying to bring the love back to the fans and the followers. There's two generations of DEEP PURPLE, the fans that are my age and their children."

Hughes was inducted into the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame in 2016 along with fellow DEEP PURPLE members Coverdale, Lord, Ritchie Blackmore, Rod Evans, Ian Gillan, Roger Glover and Ian Paice.

Joe Satriani says that he is hoping that CHICKENFOOT will reassemble this summer to begin working on new music.

The supergroup, which features the legendary guitarist alongside former VAN HALEN singer Sammy Hagar, ex-VAN HALEN bassist Michael Anthony and RED HOT CHILI PEPPERS drummer Chad Smith, has been largely inactive since 2012 when it toured with Kenny Aronoff on drums due to Smith's busy schedule with his main band.

Last March, CHICKENFOOT released "Divine Termination", its first new tune in five years, on "Best + Live", the band's first-ever best-of collection.

During a brand new interview with Meltdown of Detroit's WRIF radio station, Satriani was asked if there are any plans for CHICKENFOOT to do anything else again. Joe responded (hear audio below): "Well, I think all of us… I should say when I say 'all of us,' I mean myself and Chad and Mike, we're trying to convince Sammy to spend some time working on some new songs with us. I think he wants to do it, but he's too busy having a good time with all his other stuff. So we just have to go in there and [write down] in his date book that he's got some sessions ahead of him. So maybe this summer. It looks like all of us are gonna have a little time this summer, so we're gonna try to see if we can get in the studio then."

CHICKENFOOT's most recent album of all-new material was "Chickenfoot III", the band's second LP, issued in 2011.

In May 2016, CHICKENFOOT reunited for two one-time shows at Harrah's Lake Tahoe, and played its first complete set in more than six years, along with a special unveiling of "Divine Termination".

In addition to "Divine Termination", "Best + Live" includes over ninety minutes of live music "Best + Live" for the first time released on CD.

Satriani released his sixteenth solo album, "What Happens Next", on January 12 via Sony/Legacy Recordings.

Just a day prior to the album release, Satriani revived his G3 tour entity, inviting DREAM THEATER's John Petrucci and DEF LEPPARD lead guitarist Phil Collen to join him.

Interview (audio):

Stephen Wayne of iRockRadio.com conducted an interview with ASKING ALEXANDRIA guitarist Ben Bruce before the band's February 2 concert at The Palladium in Worcester, Massachusetts. You can now watch the chat below.

Asked if there was one album in particular that changed his life, Ben said: "Oh, man. There's so many. I come from a family of musicians, so music's just pretty much in my blood. I grew up listening to a lot of blues, like Gary Moore and Eric Clapton. I think Gary Moore's 'Still Got The Blues' album completely changed my life; it made me wanna pick up a guitar in the first place. But then I started listening to bands like METALLICA, and then even heavier, like SLIPKNOT and SYSTEM OF A DOWN. I think the thing that really, really sold me was… I was probably 16 or 17 and I heard METALLICA's 'Black' album for the first time. You know 'Through The Never', that main riff, I was, like, 'That's what I wanna do for the rest of my life.' That was just the moment for me. I remember bouncing up and down in my bed, just uncontrollable excitement. I was, like, 'This is weird. Why am I jumping in my bed? I'm too old for this.' But I was so excited by that album. And that was it. I was, like, 'This is what I'm doing for the rest of my life.'"

ASKING ALEXANDRIA's latest, self-titled album was released on December 15 via Sumerian. The disc marks the group's first full-length effort with singer Danny Worsnop since he rejoined ASKING ALEXANDRIA in the fall of 2016.

"Asking Alexandria" was produced by FROM FIRST TO LAST's Matt Good and mixed by Taylor Larson.

The reunion between Danny and ASKING ALEXANDRIA was confirmed in October 2016 following weeks of rumors and speculation regarding the status of his replacement, Denis Shaforostov, who joined the band in 2015.

KISS frontman Paul Stanley has admitted to Billboard in a new interview that while the thought of him one day "not being involved" with the band anymore "certainly comes to mind," he is "not sure about the idea of KISS coming to an end. We've built something that's so iconic, and I think it transcends any of the members so I can certainly see me not being there, seriously," he said. "There was a time where people said it had to be the four of us [Stanley, Gene Simmons, Ace Frehley and Peter Criss] and those people are already 50 percent wrong. So I'm betting [another absence] could be overcome, too."

Last May, Simmons told Glasgow Live that he didn't think the KISS members would be able to tour once they are in their seventies. "We'll do it for a few more years, and then when we think it's time to go, we'll go, and we'll do it the right way, with a big party," he said. "I'd like to think that we would do something that rocks the planet — something big and worldwide and maybe free."

Stanley has repeatedly said that KISS could one day continue without him and Gene, explaining in an interview: "Once the original [KISS lineup] was no more, it just became clear to us that, in some ways, we're much more a sports team. We don't fall into the limitations of other bands, because we're not other bands. So, yeah, at some point, I'd love to see somebody in the band in my place, and it's because I love the band."

It was back in 2005 that KISS manager Doc McGhee first told the New York Times that the group had "been toying with the idea of recruiting an entire band to don the band's famous makeup." McGhee said, "KISS is more like Doritos or Pepsi, as far as a brand name is concerned. They're more characters than the individual person. I think [new members] have a legitimate chance to carry the franchise."

Frehley said in 2016 that the idea that the band could continue without any original members was "the most ridiculous statement I've ever heard [Stanley and Simmons] make." He added: "I think the only reason they make those statements at this juncture is to try to validate the fact that they have two other guys in the band that aren't the original members. So they're trying to rationalize to the fans, 'Well, you know, we replaced Peter and we replaced Ace, and eventually we're gonna replace ourselves. That's like Mick Jagger saying, 'Yeah, after me and Keith [Richards, THE ROLLINGS STONES guitarist] die, THE STONES will continue on with two other guys.' I mean, it's a joke."

HALESTORM bassist Josh Smith spoke to the Little Falls, Minnesota radio station FM94 about the band's upcoming follow-up to 2015's "Into The Wild Life" album. He said (hear audio below): "It's the best stuff we've ever done. It's amazing. It'll be out this year. I can't tell you when, but we're finishing it up at the moment. As soon as we get off tour, we go right back in the studio, get back to work and hopefully we're finishing it up shortly thereafter."

HALESTORM's fourth album is being recorded at Dark Horse Recording studios just outside Nashville with Nick Raskulinecz, an acclaimed producer who has previously worked with RUSH, KORN, ALICE IN CHAINS and DEFTONES, in addition to having produced HALESTORM's third covers EP, "ReAniMate 3.0: The CoVeRs eP", which came out in January 2017.

HALESTORM debuted a new song called "Black Vultures" at the opening show of its Canadian co-headlining tour with STONE SOUR on January 27 at Abbotsford Entertainment And Sports Center in Abbotsford, British Columbia.

HALESTORM guitarist Joe Hottinger told the SiriusXM show "Trunk Nation" that the band's upcoming album will contain some of "the heaviest stuff we've ever done." Guitarist/vocalist Lzzy Hale concurred, adding: "We just don't like staying in the same lane, because, as you know, album cycles for rock right now, it's, like, three years is one album cycle, and you're a whole different person than you were in the beginning of it. So it's really hard for us to go back, so we just keep moving forward."

"Into The Wild Life" was criticized by some HALESTORM fans for veering too far into pop music territory.

ANTHRAX bassist Frank Bello says that the members of SLAYER have been talking for a while about calling it quits.

Last month, SLAYER, one of metal's most popular and influential bands of the past four decades, announced its "final world tour" via a 30-second video. The group also confirmed that its last-ever North American run of dates would feature support from LAMB OF GOD, ANTHRAX, BEHEMOTH and TESTAMENT.

In an interview with RadioactiveMike Z, Bello was asked how felt about SLAYER pulling the plug on an impressive three-and-a-half-decade career.

"It's been happening for a while," he said (hear audio below). "I know these guys pretty well; they're good friends of mine, specifically Kerry [King, guitar]. And they've been talking about that for quite a while. And I'm actually surprised that it came now, [and] I'm kind of bummed, but, you know, SLAYER will never die, at the end of the day. So maybe they'll do one-off shows and stuff like that."

Bello went on to say that he understands why SLAYER would want to retire from touring after spending so many years on the road.

"This touring stuff, it's pretty grueling," he said. "As much as people think it's like a dream [job], the best part about it is the show. The rest of it, the traveling… And, thankfully, we have buses and all this nice stuff. But being away from you family — we all have families — being away from your family, all that stuff comes into play. And the wear and tear — it's not as easy as it used to be, but I understand it. But I'm not ready yet to pack it in, 'cause I genuinely enjoy this. So it's hard on the family, it's hard on your body, but it is what it is, and I'm having a good time doing it."

Frank said that he will "miss SLAYER," because he loves touring with the Tom Araya-fronted outfit, but he added that he is looking forward to doing one more run with his friends.

"ANTHRAX and SLAYER have done a lot of tours together," he said. "There's nothing better for me than to send these guys off, and being there, just hanging with them. I don't know even know what's gonna be crazier — the backstage or the shows. It's a really good time. That's a traveling circus. That's gonna be a lot of fun."

Bello also said that he shares MEGADETH mainman Dave Mustaine's desire to stage at least one more show featuring the so-called "Big Four" of 1980s thrash metal — METALLICA, MEGADETH, SLAYER and ANTHRAX — before SLAYER retires from touring.

"Look, it's not up to me," he said. "It's obviously up to METALLICA. All four bands, or at least the three of us, would love to do another 'Big Four,' but it's really up to METALLICA, of course. But if they wanna do it, they're the biggest in the world, and we'd love it. METALLICA are great, we're all good friends, and if it's time to do that, then great. Of course I'd love to do that."

Asked whether he thinks ANTHRAX will one day call it a day with a farewell tour, just like SLAYER is doing right now, Bello said: "Hopefully that won't be for a while. I think we're writing the best music we've written so far, so I'm happy. I wanna see what comes out of us next. I love playing, and I think there's a whole new fanbase that's coming to ANTHRAX [shows] right now, which is nice — it's really great to see it grow every year and every record cycle. So there's a whole new generation [of fans]. And from the beginning of the 'Big Four' [shows], I think that opened up a lot of people to ANTHRAX. Maybe they heard of ANTHRAX and maybe they never heard ANTHRAX, and now they've heard and seen ANTHRAX live, and it's nice to see. So we're ready to go."

SLAYER will kick off the first leg of its farewell world tour 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 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.

The official music video for the song "Pale And Perfect" from WE SELL THE DEAD can be seen below. The track is taken from the band's debut album, "Heaven Doesn't Want You And Hell Is Full", which will be released on February 23 via earMUSIC.

Revolving around Niclas Engelin (IN FLAMES, ENGEL), DRÖMRIKET's Jonas Slättung, Gas Lipstick (former HIM drummer) and the voice of Apollo Papathanasio (SPIRITUAL BEGGARS, FIREWIND), WE SELL THE DEAD goes 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 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 percent 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 1880s. 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 as a CD, LP and on digital.

Track listing:

01. The Body Market
02. Echoes Of An Ugly Past
03. Leave Me Alone
04. Imagine
05. Turn It Over
06. Too Cold To Touch
07. Trust
08. Pale And Perfect
09. Silent Scream

The official music video for "Mindfucker", the title track of the 11th album from MONSTER MAGNET, can be seen below. Due on March 23 via Napalm, the disc "is different, a step forward and a step back at the same time to the almighty roots of hard rock music, kindled by the unpretentious proto-punk era," according to a press release. "Up-tempo, savage in both sound and spirit, 'Mindfucker' is the real deal! The album has the potential to surprise and to whip up the love for the genre, while still giving the sludgies and stoner freaks exactly what they wish for in a new MONSTER MAGNET album."

Commented MONSTER MAGNET leader Dave Wyndorf: "'Mindfucker' is a fuzzed out, headbangin' celebration of hard rock and 21st Century paranoia. Ten fuel-injected, nitro-burning tracks of fiery rock 'n' roll and garage psych madness, all done MONSTER MAGNET style. It's also an album that gets right to the point: the world is out of its fucking mind and I'm livin' it…. for better or worse. It's simple, really. In these crazy times, I've been wanting to just drive my car at 100 miles per hour and howl, you know what I mean? So I wrote songs I can do that with. And with lyrics that don’t deny the times we're living in. Feels good, feels right. Rock is alive, baby!"

MONSTER MAGNET guitarist Phil Caivano told Metal Express Radio in May 2016 that the band's follow-up to 2013's "Last Patrol" was "very aggressive, very straight-ahead, very 'Detroit.' Once again, [it's] back to some of our American roots. We did the 'space rock' thing on the last couple of records. Being the huge HAWKWIND fans we are, AMON DÜÜL fans, GROUNDHOGS fans… that whole thing. 'Last Patrol' was very, very influenced by space rock, and there'll always be elements of space rock in MONSTER MAGNET stuff, but we brought it back to what we were influenced by as kids, which would be the Detroit thing: STOOGES, MC5, GRAND FUNK RAILROAD. Very punchy, American… That's really what it is. All I can say is the word 'Detroit' always keeps coming to mind."

"Mindfucker" track listing:

01. Rocket Freak
02. Soul
03. Mindfucker
04. I'm God
05. Drowning
06. Ejection
07. Want Some
08. Brainwashed
09. All Day Midnight
10. When The Hammer Comes Down

MONSTER MAGNET's last release was "Cobras And Fire (The Mastermind Redux)", which came out in October 2015. The album was dubbed an "alternative listening experience" to the band's 2010 effort "Mastermind". The approach was similar to what MONSTER MAGNET did in 2014 when they took "Last Patrol", pulled the songs apart and rebuilt them as "Milking The Stars: A Re-Imagining Of Last Patrol".

MONSTER MAGNET is:

Dave Wyndorf (vocals, guitar)
Garrett Sweeny (guitar)
Phil Caivano (guitar)
Chris Kosnik (bass)
Bob Pantella (drums)

Photo credit: Jeremy Saffer

LYNCH MOB has been rejoined by singer Robert Mason for "selective dates" following the recent departure of Oni Logan. Guitarist George Lynch told SiriusXM's Eddie Trunk: "[Robert is] doing the Monsters Of Rock cruise with us, and there's an '80s In The Park festival we're doing in a couple weeks, along with a few others. But we're not sure how deeply he's going to be involved in LYNCH MOB, if it's anything that's going to stick. His primary band, obviously, is WARRANT, and we recognize that and respect that. I'm not trying to steal him out of WARRANT or anything like that. That's his home. But we have history, and it's a wonderful fit. Him and Myles Kennedy are in that world — I mean, where do you go from there when you sing like that? I mean, it's just incredible. It's fascinating to me to work with a guy like that, that has that kind of pipes and that sort of consistency and can basically just do anything that he wants, it seems like. He's a vocal contortionist."

George also revealed that drummer Scot Coogan is back in LYNCH MOB. "I played with Scot off and on in various projects over the years, and he was in LYNCH MOB a number of variations, most recently up to a few years ago," he guitarist said. "Scot's wonderful. He brings so much to the table. He's one of those multitasking guys. He's a great singer; he's a great songwriter; and he plays everything a little bit. He's very tuned in with drum programming and the recording side of it, so that always helps. He's like a Swiss army knife, plus his drumming, it's got a great R&B feel. LYNCH MOB has that — LYNCH MOB has this blues-based, R&B-based, heavy rock thing. He really brings a lot to the table. He's a great fit, and we're great friends."

As for the rest of the LYNCH MOB lineup, George said: "[Bassist] Sean [McNabb]'s still here. We've got a lot of history too. He was in LYNCH MOB as well in the early 2000s. It's just this kind of revolving door thing [laughs]. I was at the NAMM [Ultimate] Jam, and it was kind of funny — I was like, 'There was more people backstage that have played in LYNCH MOB than haven't. I played with all these you-know-whats at one point or another."

Lynch declined to get into specifics about Oni's decision to exit LYNCH MOB last month, explaining: "We have tremendous respect for each other on the musical level, and I'll just leave it there and wish him well. I'm sure he's going to do fine. He's one of the great ones. Maybe he hasn't been recognized like I feel he should be. To me, he's a modern-day Paul Rodgers. We made a lot of fantastic music together, including the latest record, 'The Brotherhood' — which didn't turn out to be such a brotherhood after all [laughs], but it's a beautiful, beautiful record. I'll have a soft spot in my heart for these guys and wish it had continued on, but it didn't, so..."

Mason and Lynch are also involved in SUPER STROKE, a new project in which they are joined by two other members of DOKKEN's classic lineup, bassist Jeff Pilson and drummer Mick Brown.

Logan first hooked up with LYNCH MOB in 1990, but exited the group after the release of its first album, only to rejoin the George Lynch-led outfit in the late 2000s.

"The Brotherhood" was released last September via Rat Pak Records.

The first trailer for "Back With A Vengeance", the second album from SAINTED SINNERS, the band featuring former ACCEPT singer David Reece, can be seen below. The disc will be released on February 16 via El Puerto Records.

Expressing the "pure essence of rock 'n' roll" was the ambition that paired those four well-known and experienced musicians together in early 2016 to create and play the music which is deeply inside their hearts and in their blood. The love for rock legends, such as DEEP PURPLE, LED ZEPPELIN, RAINBOW, WHITESNAKE, UFO, BLACK SABBATH, VAN HALEN and many others, built the cornerstone for the music of the new founded quartet called SAINTED SINNERS.

Fronted by the unique, soul-driven voice of American-born vocalist David Reece and highly gifted guitar player Frank Pané (BONFIRE), SAINTED SINNERS got completed by the dynamic rhythm section of the two former PURPENDICULAR members Malte Frederik Burkert (bass) and the Hungarian drum maestro Berci Hirleman.

"We were aiming for a more guitar-heavy approach this time and also a warmer, more ballsy sound," explains Pané and continues: "This time we already knew where to go. You definitely can hear my huge VAN HALEN and Randy Rhoads influences more than on the previous one. But it also has that DEEP PURPLE touch, even with less keyboards this time. In other songs, you definitely hear a RAINBOW and DIO influence... and it goes on and on. These influences are totally natural and are not planned. So we just go with the flow and that's the essence of rock 'n' roll for us."

The keyboards on "Back With A Vengeance" were handled by guest musicians Angel Vafeiadis and Eric Ragno, who is known for his work with Alice Cooper, Paul Stanley (KISS) and Billy Gibbons (ZZ TOP).

"I'm really happy and satisfied with the end result," summarizes Pané. "Being a new band, it's hard to be recognized nowadays with all the hundreds of releases every month, so we wanted to make a statement that SAINTED SINNERS is a band you should look out for."

The video for the song "Burnin' The Candle" can be seen below. Pané says: "For the video, we went for a very spontaneous approach. Having a day off in Hamburg between two shows, we were happy to have our friend Volker Thiele (who did our previous clips as well) with us. There was no bigger plan what to do; we basically walked through the city searching for cool locations."

Reece adds: "The shooting was a challenge, because firstly the weather was cold and we shot some on the pier in Hamburg, but it was freezing balls and tough to do. We looked behind us and there was Hard Rock Cafe Hamburg, so we asked the manager out of need to warm up if we could shoot some footage and he luckily agreed, before we froze to death, haha!"

SAINTED SINNERS is:

David Reece - Vocals
Frank Pané - Guitar
Malte Frederik Burkert - Bass
Berci Hirleman - Drums

Despite the fact that he has just announced the details of his farewell tour — dubbed "No More Tours 2" — Ozzy Osbourne insists that he is not calling it quits. "I'm not retiring," he tells Rolling Stone in a new interview. "It's 'No More Tours', so I'm just not doing world tours anymore. I'm still going to be doing gigs, but I'm not going on tour for six months at a time anymore. I'd like to spend some time at home."

Osbourne, who spent the last few years touring with BLACK SABBATH before the legendary heavy metal act retired from the road, says that he wants to "slow it down a little" and be there for his family. "I enjoy being a grandfather. I don't want to go through another generation of Osbournes without seeing them grow up."

After he completes the tour, Ozzy says that he will consider possibly making a new album. He tells Rolling Stone that he has "eight or nine good song ideas" for the follow-up to 2010's "Scream", including "Mr. Armageddon" and "Crack Cocaine"." He will also play sporadic one-off shows but will not stay on the road for months at a time.

"It's what I do," Ozzy says. "It's my job. And when I say, 'It's my job,' I mean it's a passion for me. It's the greatest love affair I ever had, being in a rock band and playing for the people who come to the shows."

"No More Tours 2" is a reference to Ozzy's 1992 "No More Tours" trek, which marked the first time the singer announced the end of his days as a touring artist. The tour name was a pun based on the title of his then-most recent solo album, "No More Tears". Ozzy returned to action three years later and has been on the road ever since.

Ozzy has previously made conflicting statements about whether or not he intends to record a new studio album, telling The Orange County Register last fall that "it's not cost-effective" to release full-length collections of tracks. "You actually lose money because people aren't buying records anymore," he said. "A couple of songs, maybe I'll do that and put that out. I'll go to Sharon [Osbourne, Ozzy's wife and manager] and say, 'I want to do an album' and then I'll go to her and say, 'I don't want to do an album.' I really can't make up my mind."

Last year, Ozzy reunited with guitarist Zakk Wylde, who played on studio albums such as "No Rest For The Wicked", "No More Tears" and "Ozzmosis" and who has toured on and off with Ozzy for nearly thirty years.

Ozzy has played a handful of solo shows since doing his final concerts with BLACK SABBATH a year ago. The legendary band wrapped up its forty-nine-year career with a year-long farewell tour, ending with two shows in its hometown of Birmingham, England.

Leaves' Eyes have checked in with the following update:

"We just got the latest chart entries for our new album, Sign Of The Dragonhead. It was the best metal entry of the German Official Album Charts! In Austria and Germany the album topped the iTunes metal charts at #1! Thank you very much for your fantastic support! You rule!"

International Album Charts
#21 Germany
#33 Switzerland
#69 Austria
#10 UK (Rock & Metal)
#18 UK (indie)
#35 USA (Top New Artist)
#39 USA (Hard Music)
#7 Germany (DAC)
#1 Amazon (Gothic Metal)

iTunes (Rock & Metal)
#1 Germany
#1 Austria
#2 Switzerland
#5 Canada
#6 USA
#7 Norway
#7 Mexico
#8 Australia

Leaves' Eyes have posted video of vocalist Elina Siirala unpacking the limited box set edition Sign Of The Dragonhead. Check it out below.

Leaves' Eyes have released an official lyric video for the song "Jomsborg". Produced by Alexander Krull at Mastersound Studio, the Sign Of The Dragonhead album features cover artwork by Stefan Heilemann (Lindemann, Epica, Kamelot). A video for the title track can be found below.

The hearts of symphonic metal fans will beat faster: Epic metal hymns, cracking rock songs, great choirs, powerful classical music, a top notch production and magic melodies - on top of it all Elina's outstanding voice. The energy of the latest shows and tours were taken directly into the music and studio recordings. The biggest Leaves’ Eyes record to date.

The London Voices choirs of Lord of The Rings and Stars Wars are back again, as well as the classical ensemble of Victor Smolski from Belarus and various folk, classical and percussion musicians. Once more Leaves' Eyes take the listener into the world of Norse mythology and Viking sagas. The dragon ship sets sail to new horizons. Full speed ahead!

Tracklisting:

“Sign Of The Dragonhead”
“Across The Sea”
“Like A Mountain”
“Jomsborg”
“Völva”
“Riders On The Wind”
“Fairer Than The Sun”
“Shadows In The Night”
“Rulers Of Wind And Waves”
“Fires In The North”
“Waves Of Euphoria”

“Jomsborg” lyric video:

"Across The Sea" video:

“Sign Of The Dragonhead” video:

Leaves' Eyes are:

Elina Siirala - vocals
Alexander Krull - vocals
Thorsten Bauer - guitars
Pete Streit - guitars
Joris Nijenhuis - drums

On February 1st, Cradle Of Filth and Moonspell brought their ongoing European tour to Tilburg, Netherlands. During Moonspell's support set, Cradle Of Filth backing vocalist Lindsay Schoolcraft joined the band on stage for "Scorpion Flower". Fan-filmed video is available below.

Lindsay posted the following message after the show:

"Last night I got the chance of a lifetime to be up on stage with Moonspell and sing their signature duet, 'Scorpion Flower'. After the performance I could barely hold back tears. Not because the performance was bad! I’m happy to say I kept my pitch the whole time. The reason was because many years ago I created a vision board and listed one of my crazy, out-there dreams as 'sing 'Scorpion Flower' with Moonspell.' Since then I have accomplished many of my goals I set out to complete, but on occasion I felt defeated and like I wanted to give up. Some dreams were a hard reality and not always enjoyable, and more often than you’d think I’d felt seriously cornered or at a dead end, but what I’m trying to say here is DO NOT GIVE UP. No matter how big or ridiculous your dream may be! 

The gentlemen in Moonspell have such humility and it was an honour to be up there on stage with them. That performance was proof that you can be anyone and come from anywhere and do big things! I’m just some chick from Oshawa, Canada and I NEVER GAVE UP and neither should you! Thank you endlessly to Fernando, Pedro, Ricardo, Aires, Mike and their fantastic crew for giving me this opportunity that I’ve held dear in my heart for so long."

Cradle Of Filth's complete tour itinerary can be found here.

Canadian bashers Varga have checked in with the following update:

"Check out our latest original track, 'Mileage, available for download now, exclusively on Bandcamp.com. There are 200 free downloads available per month, or you can pay whatever amount you like. Any proceeds will go towards improving the studio at Varga HQ, so we can continue to make more and better recordings for you! Cheers everyone, horns up!"

Mileage by Varga

During the summer of 2017, Varga  posted a cover of the Michael Schenker classic instrumental “Into The Arena”. Mainman Joe Varga comments: 

“In between writing material for the new Varga disc we like to bang out a few cover tunes in the studio just for fun! Here's our version of ‘Into The Arena’ instrumental by the great Michael Schenker. Cheers Everyone! And as always Crank it Up!!!!”

Varga has released four full-length albums, their last one being 2014’s Return Of The Metal.

Texas based hard rock band Blacktop Mojo has released a video for their track, "Underneath", from their 2017 LP, Burn The Ships. Filmed live at Audioworx Studios in Palestine, TX, the Drew McCuistion filmed video features frontman Matt James and lead guitarist Ryan Kiefer performing an acoustic version of the track.

"I've seen firsthand how bitterness and anger can destroy a person from the inside out. This song is about that, but also saying 'I understand what happened, and I'm sorry you went through the painful things that brought you to this point.' Keep your heart free , forgive people even if they don't deserve it." - Nathan Gillis (drums)

Tracklisting:

"Where The Wind Blows"
"End Of Days"
"Burn The Ships"
"Prodigal"
"Shadows On The Wall"
"Sweat"
"Pyromaniac"
"8000 Lines"
"Dog On A Leash"
"Make A Difference"
"Chains"
"Dream On"
"Underneath"

At the beginning of 2018, the band has started work on its third full length release, as well as touring to support the second radio single from Burn The Ships.

Catch Blacktop Mojo live at the following shows:

February
10 - River Run ATV Park - Jacksonville, TX
14 - Bareback Bar and Icehouse (acoustic) - Spring, TX
 
March
17 - Garage Bar (unplugged) - Tyler, TX
24 - Dogwood Festival - Palestine, TX
 
July
12 - CV Music Festivals - Arthur, WI

For further details, visit BlacktopMojo.com.

 

When Bruce Lamont released his first solo album, Feral Songs For The Epic Decline, seven years ago, he was best known as the leader of the psychedelic Chicago jazz-metal group Yakuza. Thus, that album's morose, arty songs came as a radical departure, showing him to be just as comfortable constructing droning, Swans-like epics as exploding with industrial and black metal-inspired rage. In the six years since, his creative journey has taken him farther and farther afield. He's part of electronic noise-dirge squad Corrections House, with Eyehategod's Mike IX Williams, Neurosis's Scott Kelly, and longtime creative partner Sanford Parker; the mind-melting jazz-prog-hardcore trio Brain Tentacles, with Keelhaul bassist Aaron Dallison and grind drummer par excellence Dave Witte, and dozens of other projects, large and small, collaborating with an ever-growing network of like minds.
 
Broken Limbs Excite No Pity, Lamont's second solo album, is in many ways a harsher experience than Feral Songs. Tracked in Chicago's Minbal Studios with Sanford Parker behind the board, it's a one-man show like its predecessor -- Lamont sings, harmonizing mournfully with himself, and plays saxophone, guitar, percussion, and electronics. Also like last time, it opens with an eleven-minute epic. "Excite No Pity" starts out featuring multiple crying saxophones and deep, almost Bill Laswell-esque bass drones, but is ultimately overtaken by searing electronic noise. "MacLean" warps an acoustic guitar melody with tape effects, to keep it from sounding too much like a Kansas song, while "Goodbye Electric Sunday" is a unique blend of spaghetti western soundtrack and beat poetry over an almost hip-hop groove. Lamont uses his voice as an instrument almost as often as he uses it to put across his lyrics. On "Neither Spare Nor Dispose," he wails and groans as loops of forcefully strummed acoustic guitar and rumbling percussion thunder past, and static washes over it all like a wave.
 
At its base, music is sound (noise, if you like) organized into patterns. And those sounds/noises don't have to be pretty ones, as long as the patterns are compelling. Bruce Lamont understands this intuitively, and has demonstrated an ability to create hypnotic, ominous, emotionally resonant and even somehow transcendent arrangements of patterned sound. These aren't "songs" like you hear on the radio. They're literally sound art. This is an album you dunk your head in like a bucket of ice water, and when you pull it back out, you're not the same person you were before. - Phil Freeman, 2018
 
Broken Limbs Excite No Pity will see release on CD, digital, and limited vinyl formats via War Crime Recordings on March 23rd.

Tracklisting:

“Excite No Pity”
“8-9-3”
“MacLean”
“Goodbye Electric Sunday”
“Neither Spare Nor Dispose”
“The Crystal Effect”
“Moonlight And The Sea”

Trailer:

On March 16th, Rivers Of Nihil will release their third full-length, Where Owls Know My Name, via Metal Blade Records. Whereas The Conscious Seed Of Light (2013) and Monarchy (2015) were thematically centered around spring and summer, respectively, Where Owls Know My Name represents the fall. And although that season is usually associated with death, for Rivers Of Nihil, the autumn serves as a rebirth. 

For a first preview of Where Owls Know My Name, the album track "The Silent Life" can be heard below.

The album can be ordered at MetalBlade.com in the following formats:
-CD
-Swamp green vinyl + download card (limited to 400 copies - USA exclusive) 
-Olive green w/ black splatter vinyl + download card (limited to 300 copies - USA exclusive) 
-Doublemint inside swamp green vinyl + download card (limited to 300 copies - USA exclusive) 
* exclusive bundles with a shirt, plus digital options are also available!

Where Owls Know My Name reunites Rivers Of Nihil with Monarchy producer Carson Slovak (August Burns Red, The Last Ten Seconds of Life) and Dan Seagrave, the storied artist behind such celebrated album covers as Entombed's Left Hand Path and Suffocation's Effigy of the Forgotten. The result is the Reading, PA quintet's most visceral, accomplished, and satisfying offering to-date. 

Guitarist Brody Uttley comments: 

"This record is Rivers Of Nihil being exactly who we want to be. Many bands get stuck in a comfortable routine of releasing the same album over and over again. Constantly relying on the same familiar formula may work for some bands, but it does not work for us. Music is art, and art is ever-changing. Without change, there is no progress. Without progress, the very fire that powers art and expression will die. This record is the sound of where we come from, where we are, and where we are going." 

Adds bassist/vocalist Adam Biggs: 

"This time around, the lyrics feel a little more personal than on previous albums. The story picks up several millennia after the events of 'Monarchy', where one person still remains alive, chosen by the planet to be the sole intelligent witness of its ultimate fate. But 'Where Owls Know My Name' is less about overarching narrative than our previous albums. The scenario is just a backdrop for the more emotional material we tried to put forth this time around. Ultimately, this is an album about loss, getting older, and reaching a point where death becomes a much more present part of your life."

Tracklisting:

“Cancer / Moonspeak”
“The Silent Life”
“A Home”
“Old Nothing”
“Subtle Change (Including The Forest Of Transition)”
“Terrestria III: Wither”
“Hollow”
“Death Is Real”
“Where Owls Know My Name”
“Capricorn / Agoratopia”

“The Silent Life”:

To kick-off the album's release, Rivers of Nihil will embark on a North American tour this March/April with Dying Fetus, Thy Art Is Murder, Enterprise Earth, and Sanction.

March 
15 - Poughkeepsie, NY - The Chance
16 - Rochester, NY - Montage Music Hall
17 - Cleveland, OH - Agora
18 - Toronto, ON - Opera House
20 - Pontiac, MI - Crofoot
21 - Joilet, IL - The Forge
22 - Minneapolis, MN - Skyway
23 - Merriam, KS - Aftershock
24 - Denver, CO - Summit
27 - Portland, OR - Bossanova
28 - Seattle, WA - Studio Seven
30 - San Jose, CA - The Ritz
31 - Pomona, CA - Glasshouse

April 
1 - Phoenix, AZ - Club Red
3 - Tulsa, OK - The Vanguard
4 - Springfield, MO - The Riff
6 - Knoxville, TN - International
7 - Miami, FL - The Ground
8 - Tampa, FL - Orpheum
9 - Birmingham, AL - Zydeco
10 - Atlanta, GA - Masquerade
11 - Jacksonville, FL - 1904
13 - Houston, TX - Come and Take It Live
14 - Austin, TX - Texas Independence Fest 2018
15 - Dallas, TX - Gas Monkey Live
17 - St. Louis, MO - Ready Room
18 - Columbus, OH - Skully's Music Diner
19 - Allentown, PA - One Centre Square
20 - Worcester, MA - New England Metal & Hardcore Fest 2019
21 - Asbury Park, NJ - House of Independence
22 - Amityville, NY - Revolution

The Canadian Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences (CARAS) today announced the nominees for the 2018 Juno Awards. The Juno Award is the most prestigious recognition a musical artist can receive in Canada. The 2018 Juno Awards will be held in Vancouver, BC on March 25th.

Nominated in the Metal / Hard Music Album Of The Year category: 

Anciients - Voice Of The Void
Archspire - Relentless Mutation
Longhouse - II: Vanishing
Metz - Strange Peace 
Striker - Striker

Striker guitarist Timothy Brown comments: "We were beyond happy to wake up to the news today that we were nominated for a Juno for best metal album. We're finishing up mixing for the next album as a Juno nomination comes in for the last. Thanks to everyone out there for all the support. It's been an incredible year and it just keeps getting better." 

To view a complete list of the 2018 nominations, visit this location.