Vater has introduced DEFTONES drummer Abe Cunningham's Cool Breeze drumstick model. Cunningham's new drumstick design is a perfect stick choice for when a 5B is too light and a 2B/Rock model is too heavy. The slightly enlarged diameter, heavier taper and little extra length make Abe's model great for harder-hitting drummers but is also very suitable for laid-back/solid-groove playing. The medium-sized acorn tip delivers warm-but-articulate tones from around the kit.

Length 16 5/8" / 42.23 cmDiameter .600" / 1.52 cm Said Abe: "Offering balance, consistency, great feel and ultimate durability. My Vaters bring me pure joy and peace of mind. My search is over… I have found my sticks!!!"

DEFTONES is continuing to tour in support of its latest album, "Gore", which debuted at No. 2 on The Billboard 200, having shifted 71,000 equivalent album units in the week ending April 14, 2016. It was the band's highest-charting effort since their self-titled fourth album bowed and peaked at No. 2 in 2003.

"Gore" serves as the follow-up to 2012's "Koi No Yokan", which featured the Top 15 rock radio hit "Tempest".

The new disc features a guest appearance from ALICE IN CHAINS guitarist Jerry Cantrell.

Photo credit: Ed Davis

ARMORED SAINT will release a new live album, "Carpe Noctum", on February 24 via Metal Blade.

Having toured with METALLICA, WHITESNAKE, ALICE COOPER, SCORPIONS and many other artists since their inception in the early '80s, ARMORED SAINT has always been a highly regarded live act — not only in their hometown of Los Angeles, but also around the world. The only official release to capture this, however, is 1989's live album "Saints Will Conquer" — until now.

After reforming with their original lineup in 1999 (John Bush - vocals, Joey Vera - bass, Phil Sandoval - guitar, Jeff Duncan - guitar, Gonzo Sandoval - drums), and releasing subsequent albums, "La Raza" (2010) and "Win Hands Down" (2015), to critical acclaim, ARMORED SAINT has been delivering their heavy metal mastery around the globe, joining the likes of SAXON, METAL CHURCH — and even QUEENSRŸCHE in November/December 2016 — on the road. Of all of these performances, the band recorded their 2015 Wacken Open Air festival set as well as their headlining show in Aschaffenburg, Germany, with the intention of giving fans another live release that holds up to "Saints Will Conquer".

For a preview of "Carpe Noctum", a live video of "March Of The Saint" from the Aschaffenburg show, filmed by Oliver "Bomber" Barth, can be seen below.

"Carpe Noctum" can be pre-ordered at PledgeMusic in various formats and bundles, with every "pledge"/purchase receiving a digital download of the tracks, plus behind-the-scenes content (including footage from Wacken 2015, plus 2016's Ozzfest and QUEENSRŸCHE appearances, and more).

"Carpe Noctum" track listing:

01. Win Hands Down02. March Of The Saint03. Stricken By Fate04. Last Train Home05. Mess06. Aftermath07. Left Hook From Right Field08. Reign Of Fire

In regards to the PledgeMusic campaign, ARMORED SAINT comments: "Why PledgeMusic? Our fans have been extremely supportive over the years. We want to share the process of realizing this project with you by giving you the chance to be a part of it, from start to finish. How does it work? You place your orders here and when the album is released, you will get your items in the mail. But throughout the process, you will have access to the regular updates that we will post on [the PledgeMusic] page."

Steve Vai, Tom Morello (RAGE AGAINST THE MACHINE, AUDIOSLAVE, PROPHETS OF RAGE), Nuno Bettencourt (EXTREME), Richie Kotzen (THE WINERY DOGS), Marty O'Brien (LITA FORD) and Glen Sobel (ALICE COOPER) performed at the 41st weekly "Soundcheck Live" on January 11 at Lucky Strike Live in Los Angeles, California. Bettencourt curated the event, which saw him performing the AUDIOSLAVE classic "Cochise" with Morello, Kotzen, O'Brien and Sobel.

Check out video footage below. High-quality photos can be found at California Rock News.

"Soundcheck Live" is a weekly live music night that brings together the industry's top musicians alongside emerging talent to create a vibrant social experience driven by the artists.

Over the last year, Lucky Strike Live has gone through profound changes in becoming a live music and entertainment venue. The venue is known for the 2016 launch of a weekly Wednesday night series, "Soundcheck Live" where the night is formatted into three riveting acts including Meet The Cast, Guest Curated and ending with an "All Together Now" jam session, completely unrehearsed. The intimate music stage has had special guest performances by the likes of Gene Simmons, Johnny Depp, Sebastian Bach, Linda Perry, Phil X of BON JOVI, Gilby Clarke of GUNS N' ROSES, Robbie Krieger of THE DOORS and Jackson Browne.

BLACK SABBATH this week landed at position No. 1 on Billboard.com 's "Hot Tours" list of top-grossing tours with $10.4 million in ticket sales from three performances as part of the band's "The End" tour.

64,744 tickets were sold to the band's December 4 show in São Paulo, Brazil, with another 26,764 fans attending the group's December 2 show in Rio De Janeiro, Brazil. The November 16 concert at Mexico City's Foro Sol stadium drew 60,506 people, around a thousand less than saw SABBATH play at the same venue in 2013.

SABBATH will bring its storied career to a close in its native England, with seven shows booked there in January and February. The last two, on February 2 and February 4, will take place in SABBATH's hometown of Birmingham and will likely be their final shows.

"It will be bittersweet," SABBATH bassist Geezer Butler said about the band's final shows. "It has been a great achievement lasting so long and still being relevant — it's something to be proud of, but my life will be very empty without the band. I hope our music will be around for a very long time after we've gone."

BLACK SABBATH played its last show ever in the U.S. on November 12 at AT&T Center in San Antonio, Texas. The gig took place nearly five years to the day that the legendary act announced their reunion.

The original lineup of SABBATH came together in 1969 with Ozzy Osbourne on vocals, Tony Iommi on guitar, Geezer Butler on bass and Bill Ward on drums. That lineup recorded and toured through 1978, and periodically reformed through the '90s and 2000s for live work.

They regrouped again in late 2011 for a new album and tour, although Ward dropped out after just a few months. The remaining trio issued the "13" album in 2013 and backed it with a successful world tour — despite Iommi being treated for lymphoma since 2012.

A snippet of "Crossing Lines", a brand new solo song from former PANTERA and DOWN bassist Rex Brown, can be heard below as part of the Loudwire Podcast #12. The track will appear on Brown's debut solo album, which is tentatively due in May 2017. The effort, which he previously described as a "monster," sees him singing and playing guitar and bass on tracks inspired by his love of 1970s music.

Regarding how his solo disc came together, Rex told Eddie Trunk's SiriusXM show "Trunk Nation": "I went to [the] NAMM [convention in Anaheim, California in 2015], and I have a really good friend, this songwriter, Lance Harvill — a great songwriter and just killer guitar player. And we started putting together songs. And it's just one of those things, I feel free again."

He added: "Man, I'm a musician number one, and doing this thing on my own and being an artist is what I've wanted to do for a long time. So I'm just letting the wind blow, buddy. That's all you can do. And the material on this is as good as anything I've ever done."

Brown worked on the solo album with ACCEPT drummer Christopher Williams — whom Rex calls "incredible" — and producer Caleb Sherman, a "New York transplant" who moved his studio to Nashville, Tennessee in 2009.

On the topic of why he decided to make his solo album at Sherman's Cygnus Sound studio, Brown said: "Nashville has become this hotbed of super-cool people. You go to L.A. and you ask somebody to play on your record and they go, 'How much?' without playing a note. Fuck you! Nashville, there's just this community that welcomed me in. I lived at [Caleb's] place; he's got a huge spread."

According to Rex, there will be a number of live performances in support of his solo album, but "it's not gonna be extensive touring," he said. "We're going to Europe, doing a bunch of festivals, and then we'll see where we go from there."

Brown previously described his solo album as "a rock and roll record. It's not your standard fare or typical metal thing," he told Metal Hammer magazine. "I was always a big [LED] ZEPPELIN fan and even though it has its little fringes of it... It's a new journey that sounds like anywhere from FOGHAT to old Tom Waits. I'm a child of the '70s and I love those kind of songs."

After leaving DOWN in 2011, Rex went on play with KILL DEVIL HILL, which has released two albums so far: "Kill Devil Hill" (2012) and "Revolution Rise" (2013).

Brown's memoir, "Official Truth, 101 Proof: The Inside Story Of Pantera", was released in March 2013 via Da Capo Press.

Former ARCH ENEMY frontwoman Angela Gossow has revealed in a new interview with France's Hard Force that she is planning to launch a new extreme metal project at some point in the not-too-distant future.

The German-born Gossow, who is still closely involved with ARCH ENEMY as their manager, said that she will likely begin work on the new project in 2018, once the initial promotional and touring activities for ARCH ENEMY's next studio album have been completed.

Gossow said in a 2016 interview that she was "losing the joy" of fronting an extreme metal band before finally making the decision to quit ARCH ENEMY, explaining that she wanted to "step down rather than pretend."

After 13 years as ARCH ENEMY's vocalist, Gossow shocked the heavy metal world in 2014 with the sudden announcement of her retirement from the band.

"I took over management in 2008 already, after I noticed our previous manager was making a nice chunk of money, but we — the artist — did not at all," she told Roppongi Rocks about her move into artist management. "We hardly managed to get by. That couldn't be right. A lot of things changed for us since then. I think most managers take way too much out of the artist's pocket. Like 20% of the gross income, then they waste away what's left, no regards for the budget and the fact the artist should really make the most out of it. I've changed that. I take a lot less commission and I always make sure the artist makes more money than me at the end of the day!"

About her decision to step down as ARCH ENEMY's singer, Gossow said simply: "There's a time and place for everything. I started out in 1991. I was simply losing the joy to be doing this, living a life on the road. So I decided to step down rather than pretending."

Gossow also praised her replacement in ARCH ENEMY, Alissa White-Gluz, while revealing that she has started managing Alissa's new, yet-to-be-disclosed solo project.

"I took notice of [Alissa] a couple of years ago [after] she came to an ARCH ENEMY show in Montreal and told me 'Wages Of Sin' was her reason to get into growling," Angela said. "I checked out her stuff [with her previous band THE AGONIST and] I was really impressed. When I started to think about my future and the future of the band, I decided to approach her. There's not many out there who'd be up for that task, it's easy to throw some clips on YouTube and pretend to be serious. But the real game is much tougher. You'll be out there performing no matter how you feel, you got a responsibility. You need to step it up big time to become a professional touring and recording musician. You need discipline, health and talent. She's got it all."

ARCH ENEMY is currently working on material for the follow-up to its latest album, 2014's "War Eternal", tentatively due before the end of the year.

MEGADETH mainman Dave Mustaine has recorded a guest solo for the forthcoming album from BODY COUNT, the metal band fronted by hip-hop legend, actor and director Ice-T. Titled "Bloodlust", the disc is tentatively due in March via Century Media.

After Ice-T tweeted that Mustaine "killed it" with his contribution to the album, Mustaine tweeted back: "I had to. The song is badass! Glad you dig it! By far my fave guest appearance. Thanks again!!"

"Bloodlust" is also expected to include a guest appearance from former SEPULTURA and current SOULFLY frontman Max Cavalera on the song "All Love Is Lost". Other titles set to appear on the effort include "No Lives Matter", "This Is Why We Ride" and "The Purge".

Mustaine told Metal Hammer magazine last year that MEGADETH will tour the world with BODY COUNT in 2017.

The MEGADETH leader said that, while he is not a hip-hop fan, he is an admirer of Ice-T and that he can't wait to share the stage later this year.

"We're talking about a very large tour next summer with five bands on it with us," Mustaine said. "It's going to be more of a guest appearance than a direct support kind of thing.

"We've been looking at a lot of interesting acts, but for me I don't always try and pick out the flavor of the month — I have loyalty to my friends.

"I always thought that BODY COUNT, while if not for everybody, I thought it was great. It's not your normal metal band. It's cool to see somebody crossing over from the hip-hop world into the metal world. I think it's great to be open-minded about different people from different backgrounds."

BODY COUNT's follow-up to 2014's "Manslaughter" was recorded with producer Will Putney (MISS MAY I, UPON A BURNING BODY), who also helmed the band's last effort.

I did a solo for the new Body Count record. https://t.co/vG5MxMXW0e

— Dave Mustaine (@DaveMustaine) January 12, 2017

I had to. The song is badass! Glad you dig it! By far my fave guest appearance. Thanks again!! https://t.co/0Z3hfL1XtY

— Dave Mustaine (@DaveMustaine) January 12, 2017

The track I played on is great! Not because of me though...because of Ice-T! @FINALLEVEL https://t.co/kcXlEaNdeK

— Dave Mustaine (@DaveMustaine) January 12, 2017

A great hang with our friend Ice-T in Newark @FINALLEVEL #dystopiaworldtour pic.twitter.com/8PS5K5oWeO

— Dave Mustaine (@DaveMustaine) October 16, 2016

MÖTLEY CRÜE singer Vince Neil says that he has "over a hundred shows" with his solo band booked for 2017.

Neil's backing group continues to include Dana Strum and Jeff Blando from SLAUGHTER and drummer Zoltan Chaney.

In a brand new interview with TheArnoldFans.com, Vince stated about the conclusion of CRÜE's "The Final Tour" and his plans for this year: "We finished up New Year's Eve, just about a year ago. Within ten days, I was on the first show of my solo tour.

"I'm someone who likes to be on tour constantly. [I am] taking a little bit of a break with the holidays right now, and actually next week, I start up again.

"I have over a hundred shows booked for [2017], so [there will be] a lot of touring."

Neil is among the celebrities competing on NBC's "The New Celebrity Apprentice", which shifted to Los Angeles for its eighth season, with twice-elected California governor, successful businessman and international movie superstar Arnold Schwarzenegger taking control of the boardroom. "The New Celebrity Apprentice" premiered on January 2 and airs weekly on Monday nights at 8 p.m.

Neil's first solo album, "Exposed", came out in 1993, reaching No. 13 on The Billboard 200 chart. His follow-up effort, "Carved In Stone", arrived two years later. Neil's third and latest solo album, "Tattoos & Tequila", was released in 2010 and included two originals along with covers of classics songs from AEROSMITH, SCORPIONS and SWEET.

Frontiers Music Srl will release "Saint Of The Lost Souls", the tenth studio album from HOUSE OF LORDS, on March 24. The first audio offering from "Saint Of The Lost Souls", a song called "Oceans Divide", can be streamed below. Recorded and produced by the band's singer and mastermind James Christian, the follow-up to 2015's "Indestructible" has an incredible flow of up-tempo and mid-tempo rockers mixed with power ballads, which lean a bit more toward keyboards this time around, but without compromising the band's trademark sound which is based around Jimi Bell's guitar. "Saint Of The Lost Souls" is already one of the years most anticipated melodic rock releases and will not disappoint fans of the band or genre. James Christian's well-crafted and smooth vocals bring the band's songwriting to new heights. Guitarist Jimi Bell is on fire and the melodic riffs throughout the album will leave you breathless. A new addition on bass is Chris Tristram, who is no stranger to the rock community. His solid performance adds another dimension to the sound and BJ Zampa brings a solid and powerful rhythm foundation to HOUSE OF LORDS. The band has toured relentlessly in Europe and the States in support of their releases and has now become a true staple of the hard rock scene on both continents.

HOUSE OF LORDS stands for superb hooks and majestic atmospheres that bring back the memories of their stellar debut album, monumental guitar riffs and a production to die for. All these ingredients you will find on "Saint Of The Lost Souls" which shines from the first second to the last! "Saint Of The Lost Souls" track listing:

01. Harlequin02. Oceans Divide03. Hit the Wall04. Saint of the Lost Souls05. The Sun Will Never Set Again06. New Day Breakin'07. Reign of Fire08. Concussion09. Art of Letting Go10. Grains of Sand11. The Other Option

METALLICA performed the songs "Now That We're Dead" and "Halo On Fire" live for the first time during the band's concert earlier today (Wednesday, January 11) at Gocheok Sky Dome in Seoul, South Korea. Check out fan-filmed video footage below.

METALLICA's setlist for the show was as follows:

01. Hardwired02. Atlas, Rise!03. Sad But True04. Wherever I May Roam05. The Unforgiven06. Now That We're Dead (live debut)07. Moth Into Flame08. Harvester Of Sorrow09. Halo On Fire (live debut)10. The Four Horsemen11. One12. Master Of Puppets13. For Whom The Bell Tolls14. Fade To Black15. Seek & Destroy

Encore:

16. Battery17. Nothing Else Matters18. Enter Sandman

"Now That We're Dead" and "Halo On Fire" are both taken from METALLICA's latest album, "Hardwired... To Self-Destruct", which came out in November.

As previously reported, METALLICA frontman James Hetfield and guitarist Kirk Hammett revealed in an interview with the Nerdist podcast that the band will cap its live schedule starting in 2017 at around 50 shows a year. Hetfield explained: "My body has told me to tell these guys that 50 shows a year is kind of what we can do, so make the best of those. And I think we all kind of agree in that. But 50 shows a year, that's pretty good. My body can handle that. Body, mind and spirit all need to kind of revitalize themselves at home, and days off for voices — things like that — so 50 shows a year, it goes pretty quick, I'm sure."

Hammett remarked that the band used to tour "for 10 out of 12 months in the past," playing five shows a week for 12, 15, 16 weeks in a row," to which Hetfield added, "And we came home, and we were divorced, girlfriends were gone, and we were addicted to a few substances, and we were fighting."

Hetfield recalled that METALLICA toured constantly in the first 10 or 15 years of its existence, saying, "We would go and play where no one else would play. We're the working man's band. We'd go to the C, D and E markets, you know, and people would be so appreciative."

Hammett candidly admitted in a 2012 interview with Rolling Stone that METALLICA has to tour pretty continuously in order to pay for the band's huge overhead, which includes their own studio, salaries for their staff and crew, and their live show production.

METALLICA has shows booked in South Korea, China, Singapore, Denmark, Mexico and South America over the next three months, but has yet to unveil its full 2017 tour plans, including its first North American tour in eight years.

The band's sole North American date so far is May 21 at the Rock On The Range festival in Columbus, Ohio.

The most shows METALLICA has played in a single year since 2010 is 75, with 45 last year and 43 the year before that.

Melodic metallers Temperance have released a video for the song "A Thousand Places", taken from their new album, The Earth Embraces Us All. Check it out below.

The Earth Embraces Us All was released on September 16th via Scarlet Records. The album artwork has once again been made by Gustavo Sazes (Kamelot, Arch Enemy, Morbid Angel).

Tracklisting:

“A Thousand Places”
“At The Edge Of Space”
“Unspoken Words”
“Empty Lines”
“Maschere”
“Haze”
“Fragments Of Life”
“Revolution”
“Advice From A Caterpillar”
“Change The Rhyme”
“The Restless Ride”

Singer Chiara Tricarico comments: “This is without any doubt the most complex and mature album we’ve ever done. It basically gave us the chance to add many new elements to our music. Most of the songs in our previous albums were short and straight to the point, these new ones are longer and stylistically challenging, it takes time to fully grasp their essence. The Earth Embraces Us All is the natural evolution of our musical path, we are very proud of it, I think it represents us well!”

My Ruin guitarist Mick Murphy released a new Neanderthal album, Get A Move On, on January 11th. It is now available for free download at this location. It is available for streaming via the widget below.

Get A Move On by NEANDERTHAL

The complete tracklist is as follows:

"Kicking For Vengeance"
"Soundtrack In My Head"
"Diary Of A Radman"
"Anti Pop Culture Manifesto"
"Triptych"
"Alarm Bells"
"Party Knights"
"Introvert's Anthem"
"Euphonious Dissonance"
"Song For Sam III"

Check out the video for "Kicking For Vengeance":

Photo by Tairrie B. Photography

DEF LEPPARD's performance video for the song "Animal" can be seen below. The clip is taken from the band's upcoming concert film "And There Will Be A Next Time - Live From Detroit", which will arrive on February 10 via Eagle Rock Entertainment on DVD+2CD for $21.98, Blu-ray+2CD for $26.98, and Digital Video.

With two prestigious Diamond Awards to their credit, DEF LEPPARD continues to stand tall in the music industry and deliver some of the most iconic rock melodies and memorable anthems of all time. Most recently, their 2015 self-titled album featured singles "Dangerous" and "Let's Go" which hit #1 on the Billboard Top Rock Albums chart.

Filmed at the DTE Energy Music Theatre in Clarkston, Michigan, "And There Will Be A Next Time - Live From Detroit" is an incredible showcase that captures the electrifying energy and power of DEF LEPPARD live today. As the sun began to set over a frenzied Detroit crowd, DEF LEPPARD's legendary hooks and anthemic rock served up an audiovisual feast second to none. The audience were served hit after hit with fan favorites from across their iconic career.

Said Elliott: "I had this idea that we should film one of the shows from the 2016 tour because apart from the 'Viva Hysteria' shows, we hadn't actually had a live performance filmed since 1988. With a new album out that was being so well received, it was just a case of where to do it. From the second the house lights went down, we could see the sun setting from the stage, and the energy from the crowd just seemed to intensify. It was a good choice and a great way to document DEF LEPPARD in 2016."

As a bonus, the DVD set will include the official music videos for "Let's Go", "Dangerous" and "Man Enough", and the lyric video for "Let's Go".

"And There Will Be A Next Time - Live From Detroit" track listing:

Disc 1

01. Let's Go 02. Animal 03. Let It Go 04. Dangerous 05. Foolin' 06. Love Bites 07. Armaggeddon It 08. Rock On 09. Man Enough

Disc 2

01. Rocket02. Bringin' On The Heartbreak 03. Switch 625 04. Medley: Hysteria / Heroes 05. Let's Get Rocked 06. Pour Some Sugar On Me 07. Rock Of Ages 08. Photograph

NORÐ was formed in 2013 in Odense, Denmark. Originally formed by members from Denmark, Faroe Islands and Iceland with the ambition of creating heavy music with a Nordic feeling combining dreamy soundscapes, tight riffing and headbanger breaks. Within a year the first set was written and the band started playing live gigs. The crowd really embraced the music from the very beginning and recorded material was in demand. In 2016 the recording of the debut EP, Alpha, began at Molten Rock Studio in Odense with Jesper Egeskov Sommerby. By the time the single "Rosehip Garden" hit the internet around Christmas 2016 there was immediate international interest and the single received airplay in United States, Australia, Spain and other countries. Alpha will be released digitally on March 3rd, via Inverse Records.

The tracklist is as follows:

"Kill The Marshalls"
"Rosehip Garden"
"Restless"
"Omega"

Check out the official lyric video for "Rosehip Garden" below.

Line-up:
Bjarne Brogaard Matthiesen - vocals
Niels Thybæk-Hansen - guitar
Thomas Bøgh Jensen - guitar
Peter Littau - bass
Magnus Elisson - drums

For information on NORÐ go to this location.

Brazil's Life In Black have released their debut album Broken Ego and it’s now streaming in full below:

Featuring nine tracks, Broken Ego was recorded and mixed at Sign of Sanity Studio in São Paulo plus mastered at the giant Absolute Master.

Life In Black recently announced their new lineup. The group now consists of veterans Daniel Monfil and Ricardo Oliveira along with debut guitarist Marcus Lara (formerly Temblor), bassist Marco Guerra (formerly Darkland) and drummer Richard Brandelik (formerly Lost Dogs and Shadows Of Dream).

Tracklisting:

“Inside The Mind”
“Thunder Hell”
“Spirit Of The Ruins”
“Suffering Souls”
“Useless Gold”
“Blood”
“Solitary”
“A Life In Black”
“Walking”

Brazilian black metallers, Patria, will release their new album, Magna Adversia on March 3rd via Soulseller Records. Watch the new lyric video for "Axis" below.

Magna Adversia offers ten tracks under the tenuous line between black metal and experimental avant-garde music, mixing the South American metal madness with the classic and dark Scandinavian vein.

It was co-produced, mixed and mastered by Øystein G. Brun (Borknagar), features Asgeir Mickelson (Ihsahn, Sarke, Borknagar, Spiral Architect) on drums and Fabiano Penna (Rebaelliun) as special guest on the orchestrations.

The cover art was made by Patria guitarist Mantus, known in the graphic art world as Marcelo Vasco, who already worked for major bands like Slayer, Kreator, Machine Head, Soulfly, Dark Funeral, Hatebreed to name a few. A teaser for "Magna Adversia" can be found below.

The band comments: “We’re so excited for having signed with Soulseller Records. They have been a very prolific and prominent label in the metal scene and I can’t wait to see what we’ll be able to do together through this new and great cooperation. Onwards! The album Magna Adversia definitely marks a new stage in our music and Patria history. We have been worked with full force along this entire year on this record, in a way we never did before, doing experiments on rehearsals, pre-productions and trying to synthesize in a very cool and dynamic way all our musical energy during these 8 years since our formation. This album carries our sweat, blood and soul, for real! It’s really special!”

Tracklisting:

“Infidels”
“Axis”
“Heartless”
“A Two-Way Path”
“Communion”
“Now I Bleed”
“Arsonist”
“The Oath”
“Porcelain Idols”
“Magna Adversia”

"Axis" lyric video:

Teaser:

(Photo - Janaina Perotti Fotografia)

Las Vegas rockers OTHERWISE have entered a Los Angeles studio to begin recording their new album with producer Bob Marlette (SHINEDOWN, SEETHER). The band's fourth full-length effort will arrive later in the year via longtime label Century Media.

Commented OTHERWISE's Adrian and Ryan Patrick in a joint statement: "It feels good to finally be surrounded by positivity.

"It's empowering to know that we can withstand the inferno of our own unbridled passions, to be reminded we have what it takes to pursue transcendence.

"Connecting with Marlette for this next album was an extremely natural process. Their visions for the future of OTHERWISE and what our message represents have only emboldened us in our life's work."

OTHERWISE's latest album, "Peace At All Costs", was released in September 2014 via Another Century.

In a 2015 interview with Full Metal Jackie, OTHERWISE singer Adrian Patrick was asked how the band's strength and perseverance has benefited them as a group on a larger, national level. "It's serving as an inspiration, I think, to our growing fan base," he responded. "Whether you like our band or not, it doesn't really matter to us. As long as you can see that we are an example of not giving up on yourself and not giving up on what you believe in.

"We've had so many obstacles thrown in front of us, major ones at that. We've had life events, tragedies, happen to us for whatever reason. We take those dark moments and it makes us stronger.

"We want that to be a shining beacon for people who are going through darkness. We want them to know there is hope, there is light and they're not alone.

"I think because of the experiences we've had, we're able to connect with people on a very visceral level.

"We play every night on stage like it's going to be our last show. People can see that. Every night, whether we feel like we did a good job or not, without fail, the fans are, like, 'I was blown away by you guys. The emotion, the power.' It's quite flattering.

"For us, we're proud of the fact that we can take something sad and tragic and focus that energy and use it for something positive."

Paul "HR" Hudson is a misunderstood spiritual warrior. As the voice of BAD BRAINS, punk/hardcore pioneers, one of the most influential bands to rise out of the 1980s, and Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame nominees, HR has trail blazed a musical aesthetic and codified a way of living. "Finding Joseph I", directed by James Lathos and produced by Small Axe Films with executive producer Jay Mohr, takes the viewer on a harrowing odyssey into the life and spiritual struggles of this iconic iconoclast. "Finding Joseph I" has been praised by the New Yorker, Rolling Stone, OC Weekly and the Washington Post. The documentary has been screened in New York, Maryland, Long Beach, California, England and Finland, with upcoming screenings in Brooklyn on January 24; in San Francisco on February 9 and February 11, at SF's Independent Film Festival; at the Long Beach, California Art Theater on February 12; and Missoula, Montana, at the Big Sky Film Festival. Currently, "Finding Joseph I" is also being considered for other national and international film festivals. From the start, HR oozed charisma and never-say-die swagger. His vocals were soulful and tribal, hitting us deep in our spiritual core. In performance, he gave it all, springing forth from stage monitors into swan-dive leaps into the audience, arguably, pioneering the stage dive. He frothed over with fiery enlightenment gleaned from his Rastafarian faith, Napoleon Hill's seminal self-help treatise Think And Grow Rich, punk rock, and his inborn sage wisdom. With the BAD BRAINS, he harnessed the fiery potential of melding punk rock, reggae, dub, jazz-fusion, metal, and funk into a kaleidoscopic art form. HR's uplifting ethos — P.MA. (Positive Mental Attitude) — have cast a light amidst dark defiance, and inspired everyone, from rock stars to regular Joes. He is a punk prophet, and his legacy is as resonate today as it was nearly four decades ago. Offstage, HR was mercurial and eccentric. "Finding Joseph I" presents a complex picture of a complex man. It shares his explosive artistry as well as his explosive temper, showing how a leader unraveled through being tangled in his own dogma and truth. Over the years, the BAD BRAINS have reunited several times only to struggle with their unpredictable singer. HR's increasingly strange and abnormal behavior has left many convinced that he his suffering from psychological troubles while others believe he is still living out his journey as one of the greatest frontmen in rock and roll history. "Finding Joseph I" features never-before-seen archival footage, photography, and exclusive interviews. Interviewees include Paul "HR" Hudson, Earl Hudson (BAD BRAINS, HR's brother), Ras Michael (THE SONS OF NEGUS), Anthony Countey (BAD BRAINS' manager), Ian MacKaye (MINOR THREAT, FUGAZI), and members of SUBLIME, DEFTONES, FISHBONE, CRO-MAGS, MURPHY'S LAW, THE WAILERS and LIVING COLOUR. In this revealing documentary, HR's peers and fellow musicians share their stories and firsthand experiences with the tumultuous singer. HR's own interviews find him digging deep to discuss his life, philosophies, and career. James Lathos is a director, cinematographer, editor, and published writer living in Florida. He makes his documentary debut with "Finding Joseph I: The HR From Bad Brains Documentary". Previously, he wrote the definitive tome "Finding Joseph I: An Oral History Of H.R." (Lesser Gods). This oral history is the first fully authorized biography of the enigmatic frontman.

Swedish metallers Soilwork have recruited Taylor Nordberg (Infernaeon, Ribspreader) to play bass for the band on their upcoming European tour with Kreator, Sepultura and Aborted, which is scheduled to kick off on February 1st in Metz, France. It is not presently clear how this affects the status of Soilwork's bassist of the past couple of years, Markus Wibom, who was previously in the Helsingborg hardcore group Hearts Alive. Wibom joined Soilwork in 2015 as the replacement for the band's longtime bassist Ola Flink, who amicably left the group to focus on other endeavors.

Soilwork released a special collection of rarities under the moniker Death Resonance lasy year via Nuclear Blast Records.

Australian metal destroyers Aversions Crown will unleash their third album, Xenocide on January 20th via Nuclear Blast Entertainment. The video for “Prismatic Abyss” is streaming below.

Xenocide was tracked by Adam Merker at Studio Anders Debeerz in Brisbane and mixed and mastered by Mark Lewis (Whitechapel, Devildriver) from Audio Hammer.

Fans can now preorder the album with or without the limited Erebus / Parasites 7" from the Nuclear Blast web shop. Xenocide can also be preordered digitally from iTunes, Amazon (widgets below) and Google Play. Pre-order the album digitally via iTunes or Amazon and receive the songs "Ophiophagy" and "Erebus" instantly.

Xenocide tracklisting:

“Void”
“Prismatic Abyss”
“The Soulless Acolyte”
“Hybridization”
“Erebus”
“Ophiophagy”
“The Oracles Of Existence”
“Cynical Entity”
“Stillborn Existence”
“Cycles Of Haruspex”
“Misery”
“Odium”

"Prismatic Abyss" video:

“The Soulless Acolyte” drum playthrough:

“The Soulless Acolyte” track video:

“Ophiophagy” lyric video:

“Erebus”:

Trailers:

 

 

 

 

(Photo - Harley Folbigg)

Portuguese thrash metal quintet Primal Attack has premiered a music video for the song “Halfborn”, taken from the band’s second full-length album, Heartless Oppressor, due out on February 10th via Rastilho Records.

Produced, mixed and mastered by guitarist/backing vocalist Miguel Tereso, the new album not only picks up right where its predecessor left off, but also surpasses expectations showcasing a much stronger, tighter and more dynamic unit. “Heartless Oppressor” also sees the Lisbon-based group expanding their musical palette, incorporating new influences from prog, industrial and even rock without ever compromising the pummeling metallic heaviness of their thrash-metal roots.

Tracklisting:

“Red Silence”
“Halfborn”
“The Prodigal One”
“Truth And Consequence”
“Strike Back”
“Heart And Bones”
“Hypersonic Generation”
“Above The Live”
“XXI Century Curse”

“Halfborn” video:

Portuguese death-metal newcomers Burn Damage have premiered a new music video for the song “Acid Rain” from their imminent debut full-length album, Age Of Vultures, due out on January 15th via Raging Planet.

Recorded and mixed by Nuno Pardal and Hugo Andrade (Switchtense) at Ultrasound Studios and mastered by Daniel Cardoso (Anathema), the band’s follow-up to 2013’s five-track EP Reborn features eight tracks of pummelling and groovy death-metal with some thrash-metal influences.

Tracklisting:

“Age Of Vultures”
“My Own Game”
“Seventh Seal”
“4 Four Little Pigs”
“Refugee”
“Slaughterhouse Of Cowards”
“Acid Rain”
“Beyond Good And Evil”

“Acid Rain” video:

Born Of Osiris are streaming the new song, “Glorious Day”, featured on their upcoming release, The Eternal Reign, out on February 24th via Sumerian Records.

In regards to The Eternal Reign (The New Reign completely re-recorded and re-envisioned, including the brand new song “Glorious Day”), guitarist Lee McKinney comments: “We are beyond excited to break the silence on what we've been up to this past year. 10 years ago we were seniors in high school in Chicago and spent our spring break recording a record that we had no idea would massively impact our lives. The New Reign was something we all believed in, and for that reason we were all anxious and curious to see how it would be taken.

“This past year we decided to re-record our debut. I know what you're thinking.... "they took the album and sent it to someone else to re-mix / re-master and they are going to re-package and re-sell it." Wrong! We went to the studio, re-recorded the entire thing, changed guitar riffs/drum parts/bass/vocals and even recorded a new song that I wish made it onto the original version 10 years ago. This song "Glorious Day" was made before some of the other songs that made the original recording.

“I must say, it's crazy to still be in our 20's and be on a 10 year anniversary. I'm so thankful for this... and I must thank the fans for supporting us every step of the way, as well as Sumerian Records for believing in us all of this time.

“So to go along with such a monumental occasion, we give you The New Reign Tour to go along with this release. We are going to play this record for you now that we as a band and production are better and tighter than ever. Joining us, Volumes, and some more new friends on what should be one of the most meaningful Born Of Osiris tours to date.”

Sumerian Founder, Ash Avildsen states: “The New Reign was a seminal album for both Born Of Osiris and Sumerian Records. 10 years later, it is getting a well-deserved rebirth as they have re-created it from scratch. I believe fans, old and new, will be excited to hear these songs come to life re-imagined both musically and production wise."

Tracklisting:

“Rosecrance”
“Empires Erased”
“Open Arms To Damnation”
“Abstract Art”
“The New Reign”
“Brace Legs”
“Bow Down”
“The Takeover”
“Glorious Day”

“Glorious Day”:

The New Reign Tour runs from February 17th - March 19th. Dates and tickets here.

Massachusetts metal veterans, Within The Ruins, have debuted a music video for their new track "Beautiful Agony". “It has a darker vibe than most of our previous material and this video totally conveys that,” says guitarist Joe Cocchi.

Directed by Justin Reich, this is the first music video being released from the forthcoming LP. “Justin Reich did an amazing job with the video!”

"Beautiful Agony" and the previously released "Death Of The Rockstar" are available on all major streaming services and will be offered as an iTunes instant gratification tracks. Fans who pre-order the album today will get both tracks immediately as a download.

Within The Ruins will release Halfway Human on Friday, March 3rd via Entertainment One (eOne) in North America and SPV overseas. The band recorded the new effort from their own studio with producer and guitar player Joe Cocchi at the helm. Vocal production took place at Zing studios in Westfield, MA with Jim Fogarty (Killswitch Engage, The Devil Wears Prada).

"The writing process was a bit different for this album," says Cocchi. "We took a step back and kind of reviewed some of our older material. Typically we'd rush and blast out a group of songs and then hit the studio. At the time it felt right. And It had a more organic feel. Now because of a combination of maturity and honestly just feeling sick of the same old formula, we really focused on creating something different sounding."

Halfway Human will be the band's followup to the critically acclaimed Phenomena LP released in 2014. Cocchi concludes, "We went back to a more organic style of writing and production. I personally was finally able to abandon a lot of my writing habits or 'rules,' if you will. No more 'oh, that part doesn't really sound like us, have to change that,' type of bullshit. Doing that created a fresher sound. This is the most raw and extreme sounding material we've ever written. Keep an eye out for studio blogs and more updates."

Within The Ruins maintain an emphasis on showmanship but with diversity, smartly sidestepping predictable structures and contrived breakdowns. Born and bred in the same heavy metal rich Northeast soil as New Wave Of American Heavy Metal progenitors Killswitch Engage, All That Remains, Unearth and Shadows Fall and weaned on the dark sounds of classic death metal, the technical melodicism of Scandinavia and the precision staccato crunch of Meshuggah, Within The Ruins have busted their collective ass to carve out a unique identity for themselves from those ingredients.

Within The Ruins are refreshingly authentic, feverishly committed and have proven that they will endure. Filled with power, deserving of utter respect, armed with concise compositions and technical might, Within The Ruins will not be stopped.

Tracklisting:

“Shape-Shifter”
“Death Of The Rockstar”
“Beautiful Agony”
“Incomplete Harmony”
“Bittersweet”
“Objective Reality”
“Absolution”
“Ivory Tower”
“Sky Splitter”
“Ataxia IV”
“Treadstone”

“Death Of The Rockstar”:

The band will be heading out on the road in support of the new LP with friends in Born Of Osiris on The New Reign Tour. Click here for all tour dates.

(Photo - Jeremy Saffer)

Swedish metal band, Zonetripper, have released a music video for “Disconnected”, the first single from their debut album, due for release later this year. The video was shot by Ninja Agborn in support of Standing Rock and the water protectors there - to commemorate the Wounded Knee massacre. Watch below:

Zonetripper was formed by metal and rock producer Fredrik Reinedahl, known for producing, engineering and mixing bands like Solstafir, Peter Dolving, Opeth, In Flames, Burst, Gadget and more, with the idea to reinvigorate the metal scene by taking what he learned from growing up as a metal fan and fusing it together into a something fresh, something never heard before. Everything from blues to thrash metal, from psychedelia to pop. There are no limits, that was the basic idea.

Songs came together quickly, but forming the band took some time. Numerous singers have passed the door, among them Peter Dolving from The Haunted (now in I Am Fire and Dress The Dead) and Krummi Bjorgvins (Legend).

Now the band consists of some known faces from the Gothenburg metal and punk scene. The bass is handled by none other than Martyrdöd vocalist Mikael Kjellman. Kalle Persson from Skitsystem joined Zonetripper on drums last spring, together with keyboard player Niklas Abrahamsson. The band is fronted by vocalist Anette Lith, who has a background as a singer and dancer in musicals and shows across the globe.

The band have recorded it's first album and is looking to release it in 2017. In the meantime, the band will do as much touring as possible.

The first signing on the newly created label, Fighter Records, a division of Xtreem Music devoted to heavy metal, is Swedish epic metallers, Candle.

The new band emerged in 2015 with guitarists Markus Janis and Christian Kanto (both from Corrosive Carcass), who shared the same enthusiasm for heavy metal. Soon after, brothers Jorma Pihlajainen (drums) and Juhani Pihlajainen (bass) joined the lineup, as well as vocalist Erik Nordkvist with a very personal voice that perfectly fits the context of the band.

Blending classic influences that go from the mighty Mercyful Fate with a dose of old US metal a la early Savatage and of course some NWOBHM a la early Judas Priest, just to name a few, Candle created a haunting and epic kind of classic metal with which they started to work on writing songs for their debut demo that was finally recorded during summer-fall 2016, and is now officially released through Fighter Records, while the band is finishing work on their debut album due to be recorded around spring-summer 2017.

Demo 2016 tracklisting:

“Betrayal”
“Dancing Lights”
“Frozen With Fear”
“No Peace For My Soul”

“Dancing Lights”:

Demo 2016 will be released on February 15th through Fighter Records on an initial limited run to 500 copies on CD format.

British rock 'n' rollers, The Temperance Movement, have teamed up with streaming service Deezer for the release of an exclusive new live EP.

The Live Bear EP was recorded at the band's London show during their January 2016 European tour, and features five tracks including a rendition of David Bowie's "Ziggy Stardust" in honour of the late icon.

Frontman Phil Campbell comments: "January 2016 was an exciting time for The Temperance Movement. We released our second album and embarked on a nationwide UK tour with The Sheepdogs, playing to 2000 people a night in some of the best venues in the country. The tracks on this EP were recorded at The Forum in London on Wednesday, 27th January, the final date of the tour. Although all the nights were recorded, this was by far the best. We opened the show that night with David Bowie's “Ziggy Stardust” in honour of the great man from Beckenham who passed the week before our tour started. His death rocked the world and we felt it at our shows with calls from fans to play one of his songs, but we held back until London. That version is included here and we're very proud to share it on the first anniversary of his passing. Thank you to all who attended those shows. It was an exhilarating experience which I'll never forget."

Listen to the Live Bear EP now exclusively on Deezer at this location.

Live Bear EP tracklisting:

“Ziggy Stardust” (Live)
“Magnify” (Live)
“Modern Massacre” (Live)
“The Sun and Moon Roll Around Too Soon” (Live)
“I Hope I'm Not Losing My Mind” (Live)

Don't miss The Temperance Movement live on tour:

January
20 - Strasbourg, France - La Laiterie
21 - Nancy, France - Le Hublot
22 - Lille, France - Le Splendid
24 - Paris, France - Divan Du Monde (Sold Out)
26 - Rennes, France - L'Ubu
27 - La Roche-sur-Yon, France - Fuzz'Yon
28 - Cognac, France - Le West Rock
29 - Limoges, France - La Fourmi

February
1 - Besançon, France - La Rodia
2 - Lyon, France - La Marquise
3 - Marseille, France - Le Moulin
4 - Toulouse, France - Le Metronum

The release of the self-titled debut album from Finnish rockers One Desire is scheduled for March 24th. The music video for first single, "Hurt”, can be seen below.

One Desire was started in 2012 by drummer Ossi Sivula. A couple of years were spent writing songs and making demos with different musicians and friends with an aim to create music that could change the world. Various musicians came and went along the way, but in 2014 things started to click when they met Jimmy Westerlund (Negative, Sturm und Drang, Joel Madden of Good Charlotte, Pitbull, etc.), who has several platinum and gold albums to his credit as a producer, guitarist, and songwriter. He had just moved back to Finland after a stint in Los Angeles and the band hired him to produce some songs.

After recording three songs with a new musical direction, they managed to attract the attention of Serafino Perugino, owner and head of A&R at Frontiers Music Srl, but, at this point the band needed a great singer. After trying out some different options, Jimmy suggested his long time friend Andre Linman from the band Sturm und Drang (who had sold over 100,000 records and gone platinum and 2x gold in Finland) who had recently decided to go on hiatus. Andre got together for a couple of sessions with the guys and after writing a couple new songs together, the style and sound that was about to become One Desire was born. Ossi and Andre asked Jimmy to join the band in 2016 and this is the album that was born from that collaboration. Also, not long after this happened, the very talented Jonas Kuhlberg (Paul Di'Anno, Cain's Offering, MyGrain) was brought on and he became the last link in the chain.

This kickass new lineup perfectly captures the original vision for the band and continues upon Linman's and Westerlund's successful legacies. Musically, the band draws musical influences from classic rock bands like Journey, Toto, and Def Leppard, but also lots of heavier, more modern bands. “Our sound is very melodic, slightly pop-ish at times, but still based on a heavy rock sound,” says singer Andre Linman.

After Jimmy brought in the song “Hurt”, the band felt that that they had taken it to the next level. Andre wrote the beautiful ballad, “This Is Where The Heartbreak Begins” plus many other songs and at that time, One Desire started to find the right direction for Ossi's rocker, “Do You Believe”. Finally, in mid-2016, the band felt they finally were musically locked in and had the material to make an album that they could honestly stand behind and love beyond a shadow of a doubt.

“After the album is released we will be touring heavily, so stay tuned for some shows!” concludes Linman. 2017 will be a fantastic year as the journey of One Desire just begins!

One Desire tracklisting:

“Hurt”
“Apologize”
“Love Injection”
“Turn Back Time”
“Falling Apart”
“Straight Through The Heart”
“Whenever I'm Dreaming”
“Do You Believe”
“Buried Alive”
“This Is Where The Heartbreak Begins”

“Hurt” video:

Lineup:

Jimmy Westerlund - guitars
André Linman - lead vocals
Ossi Sivula - drums
Jonas Kuhlberg - bass guitar

Norwegian Balkan metallers, Trollfest, will release their new album, Helluva, on February 24th via NoiseArt Records. The Trolls once more bring their mix of extreme metal and Balkan influences to a new level with an added brass section, combined with more kaos. A first video trailer, in which the band talk about the cover artwork, can be found below.

Tracklisting:

“This Is Just The Intro”
“Professor Otto”
“Spelunking Sisters”
“Gigantic Cave”
“Steel Sarah”
“Trollachen”
“Hen Of Hades”
“Reiten mit ein Fisch”
“Fräulein Helluva”
“Kabaret”
“La Grande Finale”
“What A Good Idea”

Bonus tracks (Digipak)
“Don Gnomo Vega”
“Sputnik”

Trailer #1:

"Steel Sarah" video:

Studio Trailer #1:

Studio Trailer #2:

Helluva will be available in the following formats:

- CD-Digipak incl. Helluva-Patch
- Gold Vinyl incl. Poster
- Mint Vinyl incl. Poster
- Silver Vinyl incl. Poster
- Black Vinyl incl. Poster
- Download and Streaming

Pre-order a copy here. "Steel Sarah" is now available as an instant download, when you preorder Helluva digital. The single is also available on all digital plattforms.