Original FOREIGNER members Lou Gramm (vocals), Dennis Elliott (drums), Al Greenwood (keyboards), Ian McDonald (multi-instrumentalist) and FOREIGNER's second bassist, Rick Wills, rejoined the band's founder Mick Jones (guitar) on stage for a two-night special event on October 6 and October 7 at the Soaring Eagle Casino & Resort in Michigan for the ultimate toast to forty years of rock and roll. This special event was recorded for a forthcoming 2018 TV special, DVD and accompanying album release.

Jones, Gramm, Greenwood, Elliott, McDonald and Wills ran through a five-song mini set consisting of "Feels Like the First Time" — which Jones dedicated to late original bassist Ed Gagliardi — "Double Vision", "Blue Morning, Blue Day", "Long Long Way From Home" and "Dirty White Boy". The musicians later joined FOREIGNER's current lineup to play "I Want to Know What Love Is" and "Hot Blooded".

Fan-filmed video footage of the October 7 performance can be seen below (recorded by Ronald Mark).

Although there have been previous partial FOREIGNER reunions earlier this year — in Florida, Spain and at Jones Beach in New York — the Michigan concerts marked the first time all of the musicians were together onstage at the same time.

Prior to the October 6 concert, Jones said: "Playing alongside Lou, Dennis, Al, Ian and Rick again certainly brought back some special memories and we decided it would be the ultimate celebration to join together on one stage, and give the fans the best possible farewell to our fortieth anniversary."

Gramm told Billboard that FOREIGNER's current linup is "great." He added: "They made us feel very welcome and no attitudes or anything. It really felt like we all belonged onstage." Gramm and Jones's June 2013 performance of "I Want To Know What Love Is" and "Juke Box Hero" at the Songwriters Hall Of Fame in New York City marked the first time the pair performed together in a decade after Gramm left FOREIGNER for a second time. Kelly Hansen has fronted the group since 2005. Jones is the sole remaining founding member in FOREIGNER's current lineup.

FOREIGNER recently completed a fortieth-anniversary U.S. tour with support from CHEAP TRICK and JASON BONHAM'S LED ZEPPELIN EXPERIENCE.

OPERATION: MINDCRIME, the band led by former QUEENSRŸCHE singer Geoff Tate, will release "The New Reality", the third and final of a concept album trilogy exploring international politics, the world economy and social ethos, on December 1 via Frontiers Music Srl.

"The New Reality" track listing:

01. A Head Long Jump02. Wake Me Up03. It Was Always You04. The Fear05. Under Control06. The New Reality07. My Eyes08. A Guitar In Church?09. All For What?10. The Wave11. Tidal Change12. The Same Old Story

The cover artwork can be seen below.

"The whole OPERATION: MINDCRIME project was really a group effort," Tate told the Chicago Tribune.

"I wanted to have an open-door policy where really great players could come in, contribute and also do other projects. I just called all the people I really respect that I've met over the years, asked them to be part of it and gave them all the material I've written.

"We did one really massive session and recorded everything. I've just been finishing it over the years."

OPERATION: MINDCRIME recorded and released the first part of the trilogy, "The Key" in 2015 and followed it a year later with "Resurrection".

"Resurrection" continued to track Tate's protagonist, H, as he plowed ahead in his quest to bring a project called The New Reality to fruition. "I wanted it to be what happens next, of course," Tate explained to Billboard. "The first part was kind of set up where you see a little bit about what's going on with the characters; the second one is what actually happened, then how do the characters get out of it."

Among the musicians who have contributed to the OPERATION: MINDCRIME project are keyboardist Randy Gane; guitarists Kelly Gray and Scott Moughton; DISTURBED bassist John Moyer; and drummers Brian Tichy (OZZY OSBOURNE, WHITESNAKE) and Simon Wright (AC/DC, DIO).

"I love storytelling. I like telling stories with music," Tate told the Chicago Tribune. "It's something that I just grew up with, listening to the ALAN PARSONS PROJECT's 'Tales Of Mystery And Imagination' and PINK FLOYD's 'The Wall' and 'The Dark Side Of The Moon'.

"They were fantastic albums that told stories that really got under my skin and influenced me. It's what I enjoy."

PÄNZER, the heavy metal "supergroup" featuring DESTRUCTION frontman Schmier alongside Pontus Norgren (HAMMERFALL) and V.O. Pulver (G.U.R.D., POLTERGEIST) on guitar and Stefan Schwarzmann (ACCEPT, ex-RUNNING WILD) on drums, released its second album, "Fatal Command", on October 6 via Nuclear Blast. The follow-up to 2014's "Send Them All To Hell" marks PÄNZER's first release since the departure of guitarist Herman Frank (ACCEPT, VICTORY), who left the group to focus on his solo project.

The official lyric video for the song "I'll Bring You The Night", taken from "Fatal Command", can be seen below.

Schmier comments on the song: "We all have a bad day sometimes. This song might help you through this! Sometimes the animal in you needs to get tamed; people with a high temper like me will understand… hahaha! But I think this is the most groovy track on the record, melodic but still dirty and in your face with a tight and driving right-hand picking. It is the most German-sounding track on the record. You gotta play it loud!!!"

"Fatal Command" track listing:

01. Satan's Hollow02. Fatal Command03. We Can Not Be Silenced04. I'll Bring You The Night05. Scorn And Hate06. Afflicted07. Skullbreaker08. Bleeding Allies09. The Decline (…And The Downfall)10. Mistaken11. Promised Land

Bonus (digipak and 2LP only!)

12. Wheels Of Steel

"Fatal Command" lives and breathes heavy metal like a few other albums of recent years do. It is a monolith of a record on which the tempestuous music, the provocative artwork and Schmier's social criticism come together under a metallic and indestructible hide, courtesy of Little Creek Studio in Basel, Switzerland. One thing, however, is setting "Fatal Command" apart from the perfect heavy metal record: "There's no ballad! But as the singer, I wanted to spare mankind," Schmier laughs. Consequently, PÄNZER prefer to hit the throttle and concentrate on kicking as much ass as possible. "Fatal Command" proudly wears the insignia that so many current bands are lacking, a bold statement against wimps and posers. PÄNZER swear a solemn oath on "Fatal Command": They will be true to heavy metal in good as well as in bad times, in sickness and in health. They will love it and honor it all the days of their lives until death does them part. Amen!

In a recent interview with Metal Master Kingdom, Schmier said about PÄNZER: "Lineup changes are always a little difficult, but, basically, the backbone of the band didn't change at all; we kept everything rolling. And it's great fun. To me, it's a great alternative to play heavy metal — just straight metal and maybe very German also. And there's no limits; we just do what we want. There's no high expectations that we have to sound like this or that; we just praise the good old fucking metal."

Regarding the musical direction of "Fatal Command", Schmier said: "It's a lot of JUDAS PRIEST, ACCEPT… but there's also a lot of fast-forward music. There's no ballads… I think the new one is even more melodic [than the first one]. There's some really catchy choruses and nice hooklines, a lot of great lead guitars, double harmonies everywhere and stuff."

Pulver and Norgren officially joined PÄNZER in December. At the time, V.O. stated about his decision to hook up with Schmier and Stefan: "After producing the debut with PÄNZER, the guys asked me to help them out live to help provide the double axe-attack on stage. Of course I took the opportunity to rock out with my buddies. And when the chance came up to join them permanently, I didn't hesitate to accept and now I can't wait to play the sound of my youth!"

Norgren was just as excited to join the heavy metal war machine. "It was not a hard decision when I got asked to join the PÄNZER project; it was a straight-up YES!" he said. "To be able to create music with good friends is the most important thing in my world and in this band, having fun when making music, is number one. I'm looking forward to all of the craziness that the future is going to bring with these guys. So let's kick some serious...!"

THE OFFSPRING is planning to release a new studio album in 2018.

Singer Dexter Holland and guitarist Kevin "Noodles" Wasserman spoke about the band's long-awaited follow-up to 2012's "Days Go By" during an interview at last month's Rock In Rio festival in Brazil.

Asked if it's true that THE OFFSPRING will make new music available in the not-too-distant future, Dexter said (see video below): "It is true! We're working on it." Noodles added: "We have been, yeah, for a while. We've got a few songs already done. We wanna do a couple more, and we definitely wanna get something out soon. Our fans have waited long enough, I think, so we wanna get something in their hands that they can listen to and hold and put in their ears."

As for a possible release date for the next THE OFFSPRING record, Dexter said: "2018, for sure!"

THE OFFSPRING issued its ninth album, "Days Gone By", five years ago. It spent 2014 on the road promoting the twentieth anniversary of its breakout album, "Smash", by performing the disc in its entirety at a number of shows.

In April, THE OFFSPRING played its 1992 album "Ignition" in full at a benefit show in Berkeley, California, to celebrate the thirtieth anniversary of 924 Gilman, a nonprofit music and art community space.

Earlier in the year, Noodles told the Phoenix New Times that THE OFFSPRING has "been really lucky" in that the band has "had a bunch of success" and is able to do what they love to do despite a steep decline in recorded-music sales in the last few years. He said: "We don't have to get day jobs. [Laughs] I hate when I see one of my fave bands, like someone that's super-influential and consistently making good music, and they have to get day jobs and can’t just do their music. And that's unfortunate. So when bands that are heroes of mine… to see them struggle and deal with the Internet and piracy, it's a problem. We personally benefit from the Internet being relatively a free exchange of ideas. It's mixed feelings; gotta take good with the bad. I love I can get on Twitter and get feedback from fans immediately and share ideas. It's more positive for us."

Photo credit: Sam Jones / MSO PR

Thanks: DyingScene.com

Five years ago, New Hampshire-based groove-thrash band Death Rattle self-released their debut album, Man's Ruin, which served as a striking introduction to the fist-in-face outfit that channeled the musical styles of their favorite bands into sharp-taloned songs that sunk deep. Back, refreshed and heavier than ever, Death Rattle return with their sophomore full-length album, Volition, set for independent release on October 20th. The album is available for pre-order now via Big Cartel - more pre-order options are coming soon. A new video for “Love And War”, directed by Emvision Productions, is streaming below.

After charging out the gates with the release of their music video for "Love and War" last week, Death Rattle is following up with another blistering new track, "Adrenalize".The band describes the track as, "a musical description of adrenaline pumping through your veins as a major battle approaches!"

Death Rattle perform thrash with a purpose - music that emphasizes groove and lethal riffage over speed and interchangeable guitar parts. It's a sound bred from the attitude and angst of New England, a region that has faced economic and social strife and frustration time and again. Yet every time it lowers its head and pushes forward, obstacles be damned.
 
"Volition is the act of using free will to accomplish something," says guitarist and main songwriter Ryan VanderWolk. "It's taken a lot of work, but we've been able to overcome a lot of obstacles as a band, so the name has meaning that's very relevant to our experience."
 
With more time to work on and fine-tune the songs on their second album, Death Rattle were able to approach each cut from various musical directions to see what worked best. The band recorded the final tracks appearing on Volition at Brick Hithouse studio in Cape Cod, MA with engineer Sean Fitzpatrick over the course of several months.

Tracklisting:

“Internal Determination”
“Love And War”
“Sentenced To Hell”
“Snake In The Grass”
“Adrenalize”
“Sociopath”
“Order Within Chaos”
“Unfinished Business”
“Doomsday”
“From Blood To Black”

"Adrenalize":

“Love And War” video:

In addition to featuring stronger, more original songs, Volition features a high-energy performance that effectively captures the frenzied excitement of the band's high-impact concerts. "We live for playing live and that's one thing that we spent a lot of time working at as a band," says VanderWolk. "We love bands that bring their albums to the stage and come alive. We've always tried to do that and now we finally have an album that's worthy of our live show."

Death Rattle will support the release of Volition on their upcoming tour supporting The Convalescence, Wings Denied and Shaping The Legacy. Death Rattle will appear on dates running from October 21 in Placerville, CA through November 18 in Englewood, OH. See below for a full list of tour dates featuring Death Rattle.

Following is a message from Saigon Kick guitarist Jason Bieler about his ongoing side-project, Owl Stretching:

"New music hot off the presses! Today I learned that mp3's don't get better by heating or pressing them. Who knew?"

Listen to and purchase the new EP using the widget below.

Birds Of Prey EP by Owl Stretching

The tracklist is as follows:

"Birds Of Prey"
"Disarmed & Disowned"
"Wonderwall"
"Don't Bring Me Down"
"Lion's Head"

Bieler recently checked in with an update on Owl Stretching:

"I'm so proud that with no label, no press, no radio, no crowdfunding and without even a single live show we just passed 100k plays on our Bandcamp site! So a huge thanks to all of you for the support and continuing to make it grow! Amazing things can happen when you only think about creating music! Please keep spreading the word!"

Denver’s nihilistic trio, Primitive Man, return with Caustic, their second full-length offering of soul-crushing blackened doom and noise-ridden claustrophobia. A full album stream is available below.

Recorded and produced at Flatline Audio by Dave Otero (Cobalt, Cephalic Carnage, Cattle Decapitation), Caustic is 12 songs and 75+ minutes of bloodcurdling howls, abysmal tones and dense, unsettling feedback spewing forth a cesspool of utter misery. With lyrical themes ranging from political corruption, personal struggle and the crumbling social climate facing the world today, Caustic serves as a cataclysmic soundtrack for a world gone awry.

Caustic is available now on CD/2xLP/CS/Digital via Relapse Records. Physical packages and digital orders are available via Relapse.com here and Bandcamp here.

Caustic tracklisting:

“My Will”
“Victim”
“Caustic”
“Commerce”
“Tepid”
“Ash”
“Sterility”
“Sugar Hole”
“The Weight”
“Disfigured”
“Inevitable”
“Absolutes”

Album stream:

“Victim” video:

“Commerce” visualizer:

(Photo - Alvino Salcedo)

The release of the self-titled debut from British hard rockers, Bigfoot, is scheduled for October 13th. A lyric video for the album’s opening song, “Karma”, is available for streaming below.

With a wide range of influences from The Eagles through to Pantera, the group boasts the powerful vocals of Antony Ellis, dual lead guitars from Sam Millar and Mick McCullagh, plus the thunderous rhythm section of bassist Matt Avery and drummer Tom Aspinall.

The self-titled debut album was co-produced by the band with Justin Richards (who also mixed the record), and consists of eleven songs.

Tracklisting:

“Karma”
“The Fear”
“Tell Me A Lie”
“Forever Alone”
“Eat Your Words”
“Prisoner Of War”
“Freak Show”
“I Dare You”
“The Devil In Me”
“Uninvited”
“Yours”

“Karma” lyric video:

“Forever Alone”:

“The Fear” video:

 
Bigfoot is:

Antony Ellis - vocals
Sam Millar - guitar
Mick McCullagh - guitar
Matt Avery - bass
Tom Aspinall - drums

Narcotic Wasteland, the full-time project of former Nile frontman Dallas Toler-Wade, is set to release a brand new, full-length album, entitled Delirium Tremens, on October 13th via Megaforce Records/MRI. Delirium Tremens is now available for pre-order here, with more options coming soon.

A few weeks ago, the band surprised fans with a brand new track, "Faces Of Meth", to great acclaim. Today, you can watch a guitar playthrough of the track.

Dallas says, "When writing this song, I was tapping into some of the musical ideas I had in the early 90s. I have always loved the toxic tri-tone sound. So, years ago I figured out a way to play them using my index and middle, then kind of hammering on the next strings over with my middle and pinky. This is all over the two albums in one form or another, and it is something I have quite enjoyed experimenting with over the years."

Check out an official Gear Gods "Rigged" video detailing the guitar gear used on Delirium Tremens:

Delirium Tremens shines a spotlight on negative human behavior, again inspired by - but not entirely based on - our country's addiction epidemic. Loosely inspired by the unstable drug culture present in the band's stomping grounds of Fayetteville, North Carolina, Delirium Tremens traverses an atmosphere of instability and toxicity that audibly manifests as a gritty, unrelenting, pulverizing extreme metal storm. On Delirium Tremens, Narcotic Wasteland manages to create challenging music without losing a sense of meaning and vital emotional connection with the listener.

"The topic of drug use and death is still present, but we are also branching off a bit to talk about venomous human behavior, self-reflection, and big pharmaceutical companies ruining lives for big profits," continues Dallas."I'm very excited for our fans, and fans of metal to hear this album. I feel in many ways it's our best work, yet I feel we are only skimming the surface of what is possible with this band."

Delirium Tremens was produced and mixed by Narcotic Wasteland at Vegas View Recording and Dallas' home studio. For recording and mixing, the band tapped Grammy award winning producer Neil Kernon at Auslander, with mastering by metal producer-elite Alan Douches at West West Side Music.

Dallas adds: "I have worked with Neil Kernon on many albums at this point. He has always inspired me and pushed me to be better than I thought I could be. He is a great producer and a great friend. He is brutally honest. That's one of the things I love about him the most."

Delirium Tremens tracklisting:

“Introspective Nightmares”
“Faces Of Meth”
“Return To The Underground”
“We Agnostics”
“In Memoriam” (intro)
“Bleed And Swell”
“Delirium Tremens”
“Self Immolation”
“Life Revolted”
“You Will Die Alone”
“Husk”
“Pharma Culture”

“Faces Of Meth” lyric video:

In support of the new album, Narcotic Wasteland will head out on a 20+ city North American tour, beginning October 21st in Greenville, SC and hitting several states and provinces, coming to an end in Orlando, FL on December 9th. Select dates will feature support from Dreaming Dead and Extinction Level Event. See below for a full listing of tour dates and get tickets via individual venues as they become available.

Tour dates:

October
21 - Greenville, SC - The Radio Room
24 - Houston, TX - Walter's Downtown
25 - Fort Worth, TX - The Rail Club
26 - OKC, OK - Thunder Alley
27 - Wichita, KS - The Elbow Room
29 - Las Vegas, NV - The Dive Bar
30 - San Diego, CA - Brick by Brick
31 - Anaheim, CA - Doll Hut

November
3 - Bend, OR - The Third Street Pub
4 - Seattle, WA - Studio Seven
5 - Vancouver, BC - Astoria
7 - Edmonton, AB - The Starlite Room (BRIXX)
8 - Calgary, AB - Dickens Pub
22 - Akron, OH - The Empire
24 - Joliet, IL - The Forge
26 - Westland, MI - The Token
28 - Montreal, QC - Piranha Bar
29 - Quebec City, QC - l'anti bar & spectacles
30 - Manchester, NH - The Jewel

December
1 - Amityville, NY - Revolution Room
3 - Philadelphia, PA - Kung Fu Necktie
6 - Chesapeake, VA - Riffhouse
8 - Charleston, SC - The Sparrow
9 - Orlando, FL - Bombshells Tavern

Support bands: 10/30-11/5 Dreaming Dead, 11/30-12/6 Extinction Level Event

Narcotic Wasteland is:

Dallas Toler-Wade - Guitar, Vocals
Ed Rhone - Guitar Vocals
Chris "Lutachrist" Dupre - Bass, Vocals
Phil Cancilla - Drums

Spanish goregrind stalwarts, Haemorrhage, have released their seventh studio album, We Are The Gore, via Relapse Records. The album is available on CD/LP/Digital. Physical packages and digital orders are available via Relapse.com here and Bandcamp here. A full album stream is available below.

Embalmed at Mpire Studio in Madrid by Alfredo and Javi Ustara and mastered by Brad Boatright (Obituary, Nails, Skinless), We Are The Gore embodies 14 tracks and 35 blood-soaked minutes of pathological gore, ideal for listening to in mortuaries and mausoleums.

With numerous guest appearances from current and former members of Carcass, Impaled, Dead Infection, Ghoul and others, Haemorrhage take their nauseating blend of scalpel-sharp riffs, triple threat guttural vocals, and bone-scraping rhythms to a new extreme. One listen to We Are The Gore will leave you soaked in buckets of bile and feeling like a freshly made cadaver.

Tracklisting:

“Nauseating Employments”
“Gore Gourmet”
“We Are The Gore”
“Transporting Cadavers”
“Bathed In Bile”
“The Cremator’s Song”
“Medical Maniacs”
“Forensick Squad”
“Gynecrologist”
“Miss Phlebotomy”
“C.S.C. (Crime Scene Cleaners)”
“Prosector’s Revenge”
“Organ Trader”
“Intravenous Molestation Of The Obstructionist Arteries (O-Pus Vii)”
“Artifacts Of The Autopsy” (Bonus Track)

Album stream:

“We Are The Gore” video:

“Transporting Cadavers” in-studio video:

“Nauseating Employments” lyric video:

Haemorrhage lineup:

Luisma - Guitar/Vocals
Ana - Guitar
Lugubrious - Vocals
Ramon - Bass
Erik - Drums

(Photos- Miguel Angel Galindo)

Akercocke, the celebrated masters of dark and twisted British extreme metal, have released a video for “One Chapter Closing For Another To Begin”, featured on their new studio album, Renaissance In Extremis, out now via Peaceville. Check out the video below, and order the new album in various formats at this location.

Towering above the vast majority of nefarious contemporary noisemakers, London’s Akercocke erupted across the consciousness of the UK metal scene in the late ‘90s, wielding a fiendishly inventive blend of death, black and progressive metal. Their distinctive, smartly-dressed demeanour and eloquent preoccupation with all things dark and Satanic marked them out both as ferociously individual artists and enlightened students of the pitch-black sonic code. Immediately embraced by the British faithful upon the release of debut album Rape Of The Bastard Nazarene, Akercocke spent the following decade leading the creative charge for their entire native scene.

Collectively buoyed by a renewed sense of purpose, the band reunited with former home Peaceville Records, to unleash their sixth full-length release - Renaissance In Extremis. Mixed by legendary studio guru Neil Kernon (Nile, Deicide, Thin Lizzy) and mastered in NYC by Alan Douches (Death, Misfits, Cro-Mags) at West West Side Music, Renaissance In Extremis is nothing short of a new dawn for these most eccentric of extremists.

A comprehensive reinvention and expansion of the band’s multifarious sound, Renaissance In Extremis delivers euphoric force and mind-boggling weirdness. There are scything thrash and death metal riffs in abundance, plus warped but elegant melodies and clouds of ugly dissonance; moments of unsettling calm and quiet. Renaissance In Extremis is a bold, bullish and belligerent statement of creative intent: metal’s dark spirit reborn in an explosion of bright ideas and inspirational fury.

Standard CD tracklisting:

“Disappear”
“Unbound By Sin”
“Insentience”
“First To Leave The Funeral”
“Familiar Ghosts”
“A Final Glance Back Before Departing”
“One Chapter Closing For Another To Begin”
“Inner Sanctum”
“A Particularly Cold September”

“One Chapter Closing For Another To Begin” video:

“Disappear”:

Akercocke have confirmed they will be heading out on a headline tour of the UK in support of the release of Renaissance In Extremis. Hecate Enthroned will be in support.

Inner Sanctum tour:

October
13 - Glasgow, Scotland - Audio
14 - Sheffield, England - Corporation
15 - Milton Keynes, England - The Crauford Arms
20 - Belfast, Ireland - Voodoo
21 - Dublin, Ireland - Voodoo lounge
22 - Nuneaton, England - Queens Hall
27 - Manchester, England - Rebellion
28 - London, England - Underworld
29 - Colchester, England - The Arts Centre

Ticket details at this location.

Norway’s Communic have released a lyric video for “Where Echoes Gather (Part 2 - The Underground Swine)”, featured on their new album, Where Echoes Gather, due for release via AFM Records on October 27th. Watch the clip below.

Communic’s first album for AFM is nothing short of another dark and atmospheric masterpiece, created by the very same three guys who founded the band back then. Communic’s characteristic mixture of prog, power and thrash sounds as fresh and relevant as ever and will amaze the band’s countless fans to the fullest.

Where Echoes Gather will be available as Digipak and limited colored vinyl (250 units gold, 250 red/marbled). The cover artwork created by artist Eliran Kantor (Testament, Sodom, Iced Earth):

Tracklisting:

Digipak
“The Pulse Of The Earth (Part 1 - The Magnetic Center)”
“The Pulse Of The Earth (Part 2 - Impact Of The Wave)”
“Where Echoes Gather (Part 1 - Beneath The Giant)”
“Where Echoes Gather (Part 2 - The Underground Swine)”
“Moondance”
“Where History Lives”
“Black Flag Of Hate”
“The Claws Of The Sea (Part 1 - Journey Into The Source)”
“The Claws Of The Sea (Part 2 - The Underground Swine)”

Bonus Tracks
“Watching It All Disappear” (Live In Studio 2017)
“At Dewy Prime (Live In Studio 2017)
“Waves Of Visual Decay” (Acoustic Live Version - 10th Anniversary Concert)

Vinyl

Side A
“The Pulse Of The Earth (Part 1 - The Magnetic Center)”
“The Pulse Of The Earth (Part 2 - Impact Of The Wave)”
“Where Echoes Gather (Part 1 - Beneath The Giant)”
“Where Echoes Gather (Part 2 - The Underground Swine)”
“Moondance”

Side B
“Where History Lives”
“Black Flag Of Hate”
“The Claws Of The Sea (Part 1 - Journey Into The Source)”
“The Claws Of The Sea (Part 2 - The Underground Swine)”

“Where Echoes Gather (Part 1 - Beneath The Giant)” lyric video:

“Where Echoes Gather (Part 2 - The Underground Swine)” lyric video:

Jeff Lynne’s ELO will release a live CD/DVD of their concert at Wembley Stadium in June. Titled Wembley Or Bust and directed by Paul Dugdale, the release will be available in multiple formats on November 17th via Sony Music. Watch a video trailer below.

In Wembley Or Bust, we see Jeff and his remarkable musical ensemble filling Wembley Stadium with one of the greatest rock & roll spectacles of all time, complete with bells, whistles and spaceships in front of a 60,000 capacity crowd. As Jeff says himself, “It’s the best time I ever had in music… It is beyond anything I could have imagined.”

Most importantly the film includes performances of many of the most beloved songs of our lifetime, from vintage ELO classics like "Mr. Blue Sky," "Livin' Thing" and "Evil Woman" to "Do Ya" from his days with The Move, "Handle With Care" which he recorded with the Traveling Wilburys, right through "When I Was A Boy" from his latest ELO masterpiece, Alone In The Universe.

More popular than ever, Jeff Lynne’s ELO have always been known for their epic live shows and with a distinct style that seamlessly and innovatively blends rock, pop and classical, ELO has had more than 20 Top 40 hits across the US and the UK, making Lynne's sweeping productions some of the most recognizable music of the last forty years and helping sell over 50 million records worldwide.

Widely agreed upon as one of the greatest record producers in music history, Lynne was a co-founder and member of The Travelling Wilburys together with Bob Dylan, Roy Orbison, George Harrison and Tom Petty as well as a producer and collaborator with some of the biggest names in music including The Beatles, Paul McCartney, Ringo Starr, Joe Walsh, and most recently, Bryan Adams.

Wembley Or Bust is available for pre-order here in the following formats:

- 2 CD
- 2 CD/DVD
- 2 CD/Blu Ray
- Vinyl (3 Discs)



Tracklisting:

“Standin' In The Rain”
“Evil Woman”
“All Over The World”
“Showdown”
“Livin' Thing”
“Do Ya”
“When I Was A Boy”
“Handle With Care”
“Last Train To London”
“Xanadu”
“Rockaria!”
“Can't Get It Out Of My Head”
“10538 Overture”
“Twilight”
“Ma-Ma-Ma Belle”
“Shine A Little Love”
“Wild West Hero”
“Sweet Talkin' Woman”
“Telephone Line”
“Turn To Stone”
“Don't Bring Me Down”
“Mr. Blue Sky”
“Roll Over Beethoven”

Trailer:

The Black Dahlia Murder have released their eighth full-length, Nightbringers, via Metal Blade Records. A full album stream is available below. Nightbringers can be ordered in various formats at this location:

Nightbringers tracklisting:

“Widowmaker”
“Of God And Serpent, Of Spectre And Snake”
“Matriarch”
“Nightbringers”
“Jars”
“Kings Of The Nightworld”
“Catacomb Hecatomb”
“As Good As Dead”
“The Lonely Deceased”

Album stream:

“Nightbringers” video:

The Black Dahlia Murder have embarked on a North American trek in support of the new album. Suffocation, Decrepit Birth, Necrot, and Wormwitch join them on this run, with select dates to include Exhumed.

October
6 - Rochester, NY - Montage Music Hall
7 - Lowell, MA - Mill City Ballroom
8 - Poughkeepsie, NY - Chance Theater
10 - New York, NY - Highline Ballroom
11 - Teaneck, NJ - Debonair Music Hall
12 - Baltimore, MD - Ram's Head Live
13 - Easton, PA - One Center Square
14 - Lancaster, PA - The Chameleon
16 - Montreal, QC - Les Foufounes Electriques
17 - Ottawa, ON - Bronson Center
18 - Toronto, ON - Opera House
20 - Joliet, IL - The Forge
21 - Ft. Wayne, IN - Piere's
22 - St Louis, MO - Delmar Hall
23 - Omaha, NE - The Slowdown
25 - Ringle, WI - Q & Z Expo Center
26 - Winnipeg, MB - Pyramid Cabaret
27 - Regina, SK - The Exchange
28 - Edmonton, AB - Starlite
29 - Calgary, AB - Marquee
31 - Vancouver, BC - Rickshaw Theater

November
1 - Seattle, WA - Studio Seven (with Exhumed)
2 - Eugene, OR - WOW Hall (with Exhumed)
3 - Lake Tahoe, NV - Vinyl @ Hard Rock (with Exhumed)
4 - Petaluma, CA - Phoenix Theater * (with Exhumed)
5 - San Bernardino, CA - KnotFest ** (with Exhumed)
6 - Mesa, AZ - Club Red (with Exhumed)
7 - Las Vegas, NV - Hard Rock Cafe
9 - Oklahoma City, OK - Diamond Ballroom
10 - Birmingham, AL - Zydeco
11 - Louisville, KY - Diamond Pub Concert Hall

* no Suffocation
** no Necrot, Wormwitch

Dead Quiet's new album Grand Rites will be released on November 3rd. Preorders for Grand Rites start today on Bandcamp and iTunes. When you preorder from iTunes you'll be able to own the song “Spiritual Abuse” or you can listen to it on Apple Music or Spotify.
 
With influences ranging from doom metal to classic rock, Dead Quiet seeks to meld melody with catastrophe as they weave through a dissonant landscape of crushing metallic riffs and somber choral musings. While remaining loyal to crucial heavy metal foundations, the band is successful at pronouncing that heaviness with depth and honesty.
 
Having the addition of full time keyboard player Justin Hagberg (3 Inches Of Blood) to the creative process, the songs have seen a richer dynamic and further broadened their already ‘70s rock and early heavy metal characteristic.

 
With the release of Grand Rites on the horizon, Dead Quiet hope to continue traversing the globe, playing what has become well known as an ultra-energetic, charismatic and ear splitting live performance.
 
After just finishing a cross-country Canadian tour, supporting Season Of Mist recording artist Anciients, Dead Quiet will be playing a CD release party in Vancouver, BC on November 17th at Rickshaw Theatre.

 

The Swedish melodic metal band Metalite have released a lyric video for "Nightmare", the second single from their debut album Heroes In Time.

Metalite was formed in Stockholm, Sweden in 2015 when Edwin Premberg (guitar) met Emma Bensing (vocals). The goal was to write and record melodic and memorable metal songs with a modern and fresh sound.

Edwin and Emma started to co-operate with the Danish producer Jacob Hansen (Volbeat, Evergrey, Amaranthe) and songs started to take shape. During 2016, Metalite found three experienced musicians that agreed to join the band: Lea Larsson (drums), Robert Örnesved (guitar) and Robert Majd (bass).

Heroes In Time is an impressive debut album filled with melodic and memorable songs, crowned with the strong and emotional vocals by vocalist Emma Bensing as well as a powerful production by Jacob Hansen. The album should be perfect for fans of bands like Beyond The Black, Dynazty and Amaranthe.

The artwork was created by Jan Yrlund (Apocalyptica, Leah, Korpiklaani) and guest appearances on the album includes Fraser Edwards (Ascension) and Jakob Svensson (Wigelius).

Heroes In Time tracklisting:

“Afterlife”
“Purpose Of Life”
“Nightmare”
“The Hunter”
“Heroes In Time”
“Power Of Metal”
“Over And Done”
“The Light Of Orion”
“In The Middle Of The Night”
“Black Horse Rider”
“The Great Force Within Us”

"Nightmare" lyric video:

“Afterlife” video:

PAPA ROACH drummer Tony Palermo spoke to Germany's Metal-Heads.de earlier this week about the group's brand new song "Geronimo", which he and his bandmates have been previewing on their current European tour.

"Well, it's so new that it's not even finished yet in the studio," Tony said (see video below). "But we're just playing a little verse-chorus-type thing. It's definitely its own little vibe.

"I think the lyrics are basically [about PAPA ROACH singer] Jacoby [Shaddix] growing up and looking for stuff to do in a small town.

"Like I said, it's not really finished yet, but we just play a little bit of it. I don't even know if he has all the lyrics written, but he has enough of 'em just to do what we're doing."

Palermo also confirmed that PAPA ROACH has already been in the studio writing and recording material for the follow-up to this year's "Crooked Teeth" album.

"We basically finished 'Crooked Teeth', and at the beginning of the year, we had a tour cancel on us, so we had to… We couldn't just go out and book a tour; it takes time," he explained. "So we thought, 'What better time to continue the creative process with our producers, Nick [Nicholas 'Ras' Furlong] and Colin ['Doc' Brittain].' So we went back in the studio right after we finished the last record, 'Crooked Teeth', and got about five or six songs down, demoed out."

Regarding the musical direction of the brand new PAPA ROACH songs, Palermo said: "They're definitely more in the bouncy, riffy era of PAPA ROACH.

"It's a great start to creating some new music again, even though ['Crooked Teeth'] is still new," he continued. "So it feels good that we have somewhat half a record already written. But that's not to say that those are gonna all make the record, because that's determined at a later time. But we've already had fun writing some of the newer stuff — like, new-new."

"Crooked Teeth" was released on May 19 via Eleven Seven Music.

Issue No. 4 of the newly launched Rock Candy magazine features an exclusive candid interview with former IRON MAIDEN guitarist Dennis Stratton in which he reveals how the band's debut could have ended up sounding like QUEEN.

Stratton told Rock Candy that the first IRON MAIDEN album could easily have been a much more sophisticated recording than the warts-and-all, New Wave Of British Heavy Metal classic we all know and love. And Stratton also reveals that it was only the band's manager, Rod Smallwood, who put a stop to the plan.

Released in April of 1980, "Iron Maiden" became a benchmark recording for a new style of metal that was harder, leaner and faster than the music being made by the stadium filling rockers of the '70s. Songs like "Phantom Of The Opera", "Running Free" and the title track have since achieved legendary status. But Stratton, now performing with LIONHEART, told Rock Candy that it could all have been very different.

"I took 'Phantom of The Opera', which was always a great song at its core, and added a load of harmony guitars and falsetto vocals to our basic recording," he explains. "The engineer helped me layer the sounds, adding track after track, and when we played it back it sounded like QUEEN. I thought it was fantastic. But when we were listening back to the track Rod Smallwood came up behind me in the control room. I didn't know he was there and at the end of the song he said, 'You can get rid of all that. It sounds like fucking QUEEN.' So it never made the cut. I'd still love to do a big, massive production of that song one day. I know it would be great."

Stratton was a member of MAIDEN for less than a year, but he nonetheless made a vital contribution to that classic first album.

"Rod didn't like the music I was listening to," says Stratton. "I'd be in my hotel room on tour listening to some David Coverdale or a bit of EAGLES or some George Benson and Rod would go potty. He said, 'If anyone heard you listening to that kind of music…' But how can you listen to MOTÖRHEAD twenty-four hours a day? You'd be deaf!"

Read the whole of this revealing article in Issue 4 of Rock Candy, available for purchase online at this location.

MANOWAR singer Eric Adams says that he "will miss the big stage" after the band completes its upcoming farewell tour.

The New York-based veteran metal act announced in May 2016 that it would call it quits after one last tour, explaining that its most recent trek — "Gods And Kings" — was a groundbreaking moment in the band's career and the group aimed to go out on a high.

Adams, whose real name is Lou Marullo, spoke about MANOWAR's final trek in a recent interview with "Outdoor Adventures With Jayson". He said: "This is it. We've got one last tour coming up. As far as I know, it starts in November in Scandinavia. And then we head down to Germany in December. I fly home for Christmas around December 18, somewhere in there. And then I don't know where we go after that. But it will continue for a little while after that; I just don't know where yet. So I'm looking forward to that."

The 63-year-old singer admitted that it was "kind of a Catch-22 thing" knowing that he would never perform with MANOWAR again. "I'm gonna miss the big stage — of course I am — but all good things have to come to an end at some point," he said.

As for his future plans, Adams said: "MANOWAR has decided to call it a day, and who knows what's gonna happen after that? I might continue to sing. I might just grab my bow and get out in the woods a little more often than I did before. But we'll see. The future's still yet to be told."

Eric, who describes himself as "a big-time bow hunter," has been a hunting-safety instructor for the state of New York where he teaches new hunters about the game laws in New York. He is also the hunting editor for Texas Fish & Game magazine.

MANOWAR's most recent studio effort was 2014's re-recording of the band's 1988 album "Kings Of Metal".

Rob Halford says that JUDAS PRIEST's long-awaited new album is "sounding monumental."

The British heavy metal legends have spent the last few months in the studio recording the follow-up to 2014's "Redeemer Of Souls" with the band's longtime collaborator Tom Allom, acclaimed British knob-twiddler Andy Sneap (MEGADETH, EXODUS, TESTAMENT, ACCEPT) and engineer Mike Exeter (BLACK SABBATH).

During an October 5 appearance on the "Trunk Nation" show on SiriusXM channel Volume, Halford stated about the progress of the recording sessions for PRIEST's new disc: "We're almost done. We're in that final hurdle before we get to the finishing line. It is sounding monumental. It's gonna blow your socks off. We're thrilled. We've got this big metal monster looming in the background, about to drop early next year, with a world tour to coincide."

Asked what it has been like collaborating again with Allom, who produced every PRIEST release from "Unleashed In The East" (1979) through "Ram It Down" (1988), along with several live records since then, Halford said: "Brilliant. Absolutely fantastic. Tom has a rich history with PRIEST, particularly those great moments with 'Screaming For Vengeance', 'Defenders Of The Faith' [and] 'British Steel'. My God — he's the man in that respect. So I thought it was really great for Andy Sneap and Mike Exeter to accept that this was gonna be like a three-man job, with Andy mostly holding the reins, but with Tom by his side and Mike there [as well].

"It's an unusual way to make this kind of record for PRIEST, because it's generally the producer and the band," Halford admitted. "We just had so much faith in Andy and in Tom and Mike that we said, 'Guys, you go for it. You tell us what to do.' And if Andy Sneap said, 'Do another take, Rob. Do another take, Rob. Do another take, Rob. '… I've never sung so much in the studio behind a mic in all my life. But he got the results that we needed, and I think I can say the same for Glenn [Tipton, guitar] and for Richie [Faulkner, guitar] and for Scott [Travis, drums] and for Ian [Hill, bass]. So he got something out of us — they all did — but they got something out of us truly remarkable, and you're gonna be hearing it very soon."

Sneap, who plays guitar in the reactivated British occult metal act HELL, recently told Serbia's Hardwired magazine that PRIEST had "about twenty-six ideas" in the early stage of the production process for the new album. "We've whittled [that] down to fourteen or fifteen," he said, adding that "we haven't decided on which songs [will make the final cut] or a running order for the album yet."

Andy went on to say that PRIEST's new album will contain "a really good energy and some real classic moments." He said "Rob did great" during the album's final recording sessions. "I'll tell you what: for someone who's got that much experience, there's no ego there at all," he said. "We'd do, like, six or seven passes, and I'd ask him to try something a bit [different] on this part, and he was, like, 'No problem.' And he'd give me another four takes with a slightly different vibe. And then me and Tom Allom would sit there and we'd comp it, and we pretty much agreed on everything."

It was announced on Wednesday (October 4) that PRIEST was nominated for induction into the 2018 Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame, part of a list of nineteen potential candidates.

Inductees into the 2018 Rock Hall will be voted on by a group of more than nine hundred artists, historians and music-industry professionals.

Speaking to "Trunk Nation", Halford stated about PRIEST's nomination: "No matter what your opinions and feelings about the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame, it's a great institution. It's in the same caliber as the Baseball Hall Of Fame and Basketball and NFL, the Grammy [Awards], the [Oscars]. Some people might think it's superfluous; it’s not, really. What it is for the musicians, or the artists, whatever you wanna call us, it's just a recognition of the work that you have been making in your years in the music world, and for PRIEST, it's been over forty years of blood, sweat and tears. And we've been slugging away — and I don't mean that in a bad way; I mean in a loving way. You know how much we love heavy metal music. We've had the great joy and pleasure of almost now making our eighteenth studio album over four decades and loving every minute of it. So [for this] to come along now, it's a boost, it's a real boost, it makes you feel good — within the band, within the fans that look after PRIEST around the world, and for heavy metal music more than anything else."

He added: "The Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame is more than rock and roll. It kind of ventured off into other language besides rock and roll — which, in my opinion, I think it should because it's the only body that represents music in this broad spectrum. So to have another heavy metal act potentially inducted is important."

The 2018 inductees will be announced in December and the induction ceremony will be held at Cleveland's Public Auditorium on April 14, 2018.

Sebastian Bach has once again slammed Christian rockers STRYPER, saying that their music "sucks."

The feud beween the former SKID ROW singer and STRYPER frontman Michael Sweet began in November 2016 when Sweet shared a video on Facebook of 16-year-old emerging artist Moriah Formica perfoming the SKID ROW track "I Remember You", along with the caption: "Moriah Formica kills this and in my humble opinion, smokes the original singer." He also proceeded to call Bach a "tool" in the comments section after being questioned about the caption by a fan.

After being alerted to Sweet's post by a fan, Sebastian fired back, writing in a tweet: "Michael Sweet has a big fucking mouth. Behind a keyboard that is. Can't wait to see this pussy in person again someday."

While speaking to "The Blairing Out With Eric Blair Show" at last Friday's (October 6) "Bowl For Ronnie" event in Studio City, California, Bach was asked about his war or words with Sweet. He said (see video below): "All I know is that when I see a headline on Blabbermouth and it says, 'Bach Slams 'Pussy' Sweet,' you've just kind of gotta do a double take on that one."

Pressed about whether he likes Sweet on a personal level, Sebastian said: "I don't, actually. I think STRYPER sucks. I've always thought that — since I was a little kid. I think their songs suck, I think their fucking clothes suck. Should I go on? What are they gonna [do] — whip a Bible at me? [Laughs]"

After clarifying that his opinion of STRYPER doesn't have anything to do with the Christian messages in the band's lyrics, Bach said: "I think they just make bad records. And I don't think they ever did make good records."

Sweet last November released a statement in response to Bach's "pussy" comment, saying that "anyone who knows me knows that I express my opinion and I'm more than willing to back it up. I do my best to be honest yet not to be mean-spirited or destructive. I'm also no pussy. Obviously, Sebastian doesn't know me, because if he did, he'd know that as fact."

He added: "Unfortunately, I think because I'm a Christian, some people think that I'm supposed to 'turn the other cheek' and let people say and do whatever they want. I guess the 'pussy' in me won't let me do that."

Formica is featured on Sweet's latest solo album "One Sided War", singing a duet with Michael on a different version of the song "Can't Take This Life".

In a brand new interview with the Long Island Pulse, Tom Keifer was asked if he would ever consider reactivating CINDERELLA again. "There's really no talk of that at all at this point," he responded. "I'm really happy with what I'm doing and I think everyone else is, too. Everyone else is off doing their own thing. I have put a lot of time into this new project, and it's been going really well. I'm really enjoying it. I'm happy where I am."

Although CINDERELLA hasn't released a new studio album since 1994's "Still Climbing", the band started playing sporadic shows again in 2010 but has been largely inactive for the last few years while Keifer focuses on his solo career.

Keifer told RockRevolt Magazine that "some issues" within CINDERELLA — "going back decades" — have effectively sidelined the group for the past four years. He explained: "We took some pretty extreme measures to right the ship and fix things, and we made a pact as a band in 2012 that we would not do anything as a band until the issues were resolved. That's how much it came to a head. The issues are unresolved, so that's all I can say about that."

CINDERELLA guitarist Jeff LaBar last year accepted blame for the group's prolonged period of inactivity, explaining that his "drinking problem" caused a rift between him and his bandmates. He told "Another FN Podcast With Izzy Presley": "I can only speculate, but I believe it's all my fault. It's no secret that I've had a drinking problem. And it showed its ugly face on one of those [cruises that CINDERELLA played]. I guess that's what caused a rift… When I fell out on one of those cruise ships in front of everybody — like, basically O.D.'d — that's when the band, and mostly Tom, took notice and was, like, 'What the fuck?'"

Asked if he is sober now, LaBar said: "No, I'm not. Which is the problem. Which is probably the problem. Like I said, I can only speculate, because I don't talk to the other guys anymore. I talk to Fred [Coury drums] every now and then. Eric [Brittingham, bass] lives twenty minutes from me. We haven't talked lately, but Eric and I have been the most consistent of all my bandmates throughout the past thirty-two years. It's just Tom and I that don't talk anymore. And I can only speculate that he's very disappointed and doesn't wanna see me die. He doesn't wanna witness me dying."

"The Way Life Goes - Deluxe Edition", an expanded compilation of Keifer's critically acclaimed solo debut album, "The Way Life Goes", will be made available on October 20 via Cleopatra Records.

Photo credit: Tammy Vega

A previously unreleased video of METALLICA performing the song "Battery" can be seen below. The clip was filmed at at Aichi Kinro Kaikan, Nagoya, Japan on November 17, 1986 and is taken from the upcoming reissue of METALLICA's seminal third album, "Master Of Puppets".

The "Master Of Puppets" reissue will arrive on November 10 via METALLICA's own Blackened Recordings. The LP has been remastered for the most advanced sound quality and will be available in various digital and physical configurations. The reissue is available for pre-order at Metallica.com where fans can see the full package details and track listing. Those who pre-order the standard album will receive an instant download of "Disposable Heroes (Remastered)". Those who pre-order the expanded or deluxe editions will receive an instant download of "Disposable Heroes (Remastered)" and "The Thing That Should Not Be (Live at the Aragon Ballroom, Chicago, IL - May 25th, 1986)" . The "Master Of Puppets" reissue will be available physically as a Standard LP, Standard CD, 3 CD Expanded Edition, and Limited Edition Deluxe Box Set and digitally as a Standard CD (available to stream and download), a 3 CD Expanded Edition (available for download only), and a Digital Deluxe Box Set (available for streaming and download). The Expanded Edition will include previously unreleased demos, rough mixes, interviews, live tracks, and a 28-page booklet. The Limited Edition Deluxe Box Set will include a 108-page hardcover book including never before seen photos, outtakes and previously unreleased interviews, three LPs, ten CDs, a cassette, two DVDs, a lithograph, a folder with handwritten lyrics, and a set of six buttons. Watch James Hetfield unbox the reissue below.

"Master Of Puppets" was released on February 24, 1986 and was the first album METALLICA recorded after signing a major label deal with Elektra Records.

The set only reached No. 29 on the Billboard album chart but has sold over six million copies in the U.S. since.

It is the last record to feature bassist Cliff Burton, who was killed later that year in a tour bus crash.

Several songs from the album are still staples of METALLICA's live set, including "Battery", "Welcome Home (Sanitarium)" and the title track.

Many fans consider it METALLICA's finest album, a fact that the band acknowledged by playing it in its entirety on a European tour in 2006.

"Metallica: Back To The Front", the definitive story of "Master Of Puppets" and the tour that followed its release, hit bookstores and online sellers last September. A very special Collector's Edition of the book was made available two weeks earlier through Metallica.com and MoonriseMedia.net.

"That album, it's interesting, because from the moment it was released, it never went away," METALLICA guitarist Kirk Hammett said last year while promoting the book. "It still has not and there are no signs of it going away at all."

"It was still rebellious," METALLICA frontman James Hetfield said. "Back then, it was still the four of us in a van out to conquer the world."

"I really feel that a lot of the music on 'Master Of Puppets', we pulled it out of a deep place," Hammett added. "A lot of it, it's just so emotional, from the music to the lyrics to the guitar solos to even the arrangements. It's so dramatic."

Due to "severe laryngitis," the remainder of SCORPIONS' U.S. 2017 tour with MEGADETH has been canceled.

According to a statement released by the German hard rock veterans, SCORPIONS singer Klaus Meine has been advised by top throat specialist in Los Angeles to rest his voice. If he continues the tour, he could risk permanent vocal damage.

The band said: "[We] truly hate to disappoint our fans and hope to come back to America soon, but this time we have no choice but to cancel."

Tickets will be refunded at points of purchase.

SCORPIONS were due to be honored on Friday morning by Los Angeles City Council at a ceremony at Van Nuys City Hall, but the event was canceled due to "illness within the band." The award was to celebrate the band's contribution to the city's musical landscape.

SCORPIONS and MEGADETH played Saturday night (October 7) at the Forum in Inglewood, California. Fan-filmed video footage of SCORPIONS' performance can be seen below.

SCORPIONS kicked off their North American tour with MEGADETH on September 14 at Santander Arena in Reading, Pennsylvania. The sixteen-date trek, dubbed the "Crazy World Tour", was celebrating SCORPIONS' 1990 LP of the same name. Two of the SCORPIONS' best-known songs, "Winds Of Change" and "Send Me An Angel", both appear on "Crazy World".

SCORPIONS recently finished recording a couple of new songs for a forthcoming compilation album that will collect the most popular of their ballad-type material.

FIVE FINGER DEATH PUNCH was joined by IN THIS MOMENT singer Maria Brink for a performance of the song "The Bleeding" at the Rock Allegiance festival on October 7 at the BB&T Pavilion in Camden, New Jersey. Fan-filmed video footage of her appearance can be seen below.

In introducing Maria to the crowd, FIVE FINGER DEATH PUNCH singer Ivan Moody said: "Through the years, I got to know somebody on a whole different level, personal. A very, very close friend of mine and one of the most beautiful in the entire fucking metal world: the madam of mayhem… if you will, Maria Brink from IN THIS MOMENT."

As previously reported, FIVE FINGER DEATH PUNCH has already completed its seventh studio effort and is still waiting to get a release date for it, nearly one year after the disc was finished.

FIVE FINGER DEATH PUNCH guitarist Zoltan Bathory gave The Pulse Of Radio an update on where the new album is at. "I think we have about eighteen songs, nineteen songs on deck and right now we are… You know, we will figure out if a greatest-hits [collection] comes first or the record comes first. But we have a lot of songs and there are a couple of massive ones that I'm really proud of, that I know that they will touch a lot of people."

FIVE FINGER DEATH PUNCH guitarist Jason Hook told Detroit radio station WRIF that the set turned out "killer," adding, "Some of the stuff will be right in line with what people want and expect from the band, and then some of it, again, we took some chances, tried to branch out a little bit to see if it would work, and some of that stuff wound up on the record."

The band delivered the new LP to its current label, Prospect Park, several months ago, but a legal battle with the company has delayed its arrival.

The band filed a lawsuit against Prospect Park in April, asking a judge to release them from their contract and order the company to pay over a million dollars in damages.

The label sued FIVE FINGER DEATH PUNCH in 2016 for breach of contract, alleging that the group wanted to rush the recording of a new album. The band signed a new North American recording deal with Rise Records last year.

The group has also dealt with Moody's struggles with substance abuse, which forced him to miss a number of shows last year and this past spring.

The classic self-titled debut album from the New York metal band HITTMAN will be reissued via No Remorse Records on October 31, 2017, on the eve of the thirtieth anniversary of the record's original release in 1988. Also included as bonus material will be the original 1985 HITTMAN demo, remixed and remastered faithfully to the original, making this the first time it will have been released officially in the digital medium — a real treat for fans who have most likely only have heard it as a copied cassette, widely traded through the metal tape trading underground, often duplicated many generations, with tons of tape hiss, and degraded audio quality. The release will boast cleaner, more vivid re-imagined cover art (yet still a hundred percent faithful to the original) and will be accompanied by a generous booklet of twenty-four pages containing never-seen photos, articles and other anecdotes, as well as liner notes by the underground press's first real champion of the band, Kerrang! and Metal Forces journalist Dave Reynolds. Dave took to the band early on, and was always an ardent supporter. HITTMAN is also working on new material for a 2018 album, slated for official release at the the Keep It True festival in Lauda-Königshofen, Germany, where the band will perform its official reunion show, including all four surviving original members: Dirk Kennedy (vocals), Jim Bacchi (previously known as Bachi; guitar), Chuck Khoury (previously known as Kory; drums) and John Inglima (previously known as Kristen; guitars).

HITTMAN bassist Mike Buccellato (previously known as Buccell) passed away tragically in 2013 and the band, still a tight-knit family, decided to reunite, partially, to pay tribute to his honor, but also to commemorate the thirtieth anniversary of the release of "Hittman". The album (and demo), still coveted by many fans of traditional, classic and power metal, has been kept alive by unofficial bootlegs, and social media, and the band decided now was time to do an official re-release and present the best possible result.


Posted by Hittman on Monday, May 8, 2017

Capital Chaos TV has uploaded video footage of EXODUS's October 6 performance at the Ace Of Spades in Sacramento, California. Check it out below.

Although it was originally reported that EXODUS would go into the studio in October to begin recording the new effort, it now appears that fans will have to wait a bit longer to hear new music from the legendary San Francisco Bay Area thrash metal group. "[We're] probably gonna have to put it off," drummer Tom Hunting admitted to Metal Wani. "This ['Battle Of The Bays' North American] tour [with OBITUARY] kind of set back the writing process a little bit. But we're chugging along. We're not gonna rush anything. We just want it to be good. We don't care when it's done, just that it's good."

Tom said that he loves the process of making new albums. "It's like building the perfect sandwich," he explained. "And the drums are the bread that holds it together. The riffs are the meat."

Asked if the writing process has changed at all now that singer Steve "Zetro" Souza is back in the band and is available to contribute, Hunting said: "Not too much. It usually starts… We've been doing it a while now, but it usually starts with a riff, and then guitars and drums jam together and everything else comes later. So that's kind of how we layer it in terms of creating the stuff.

"Some songs are crazy; they take forever," he continued. "Like, I'll be working with Lee [Altus, guitar] one day and we can't even get fifty-eight seconds worth of shit. And then the next day Gary [Holt, guitar] comes over and we jam and we have the makings of a whole song in, like, five minutes."

"Blood In Blood Out" was notable for featuring a guest appearance by former EXODUS guitarist Kirk Hammett, who left the band in 1983 to join METALLICA. Asked if the upcoming EXODUS disc could include another collaboration with Hammett, Hunting said: "We'll bring Kirk back, if he wants to come in and do a solo, for sure. And there might be a Rick Hunolt [former EXODUS guitarist] sighting on the new record too; you never know.

"At this point, we feel like it's good to celebrate the history of the band and all the important people that have been in the band along the way," Tom explained.

"Blood In Blood Out" was EXODUS's first album since the departure of the group's lead singer of nine years, Rob Dukes, and the return of Souza, who previously fronted EXODUS from 1986 to 1993 and from 2002 to 2004.

Holt spoke in a recent interview about the musical direction of EXODUS's next disc. He said: "Of the stuff I've written so far, I think the songs are shorter, but I think they're also at the same time more progressive than the last album. It's a little outside the box. It's really super crushing, but I think people will be surprised."

He added: "It's an EXODUS album, but as of now, the stuff Tom and I have been putting together is a bit different. It's got those subtle changes that make for a departure, but it will still stay true to the core of the band's sound."

When HAMMERFALL released its debut album, "Glory To The Brave", twenty years ago, the five Swedes launched a true heavy metal revival overnight. While the mainstream still concentrated on grunge and the metal scene was dominated by especially black and gothic acts, this traditional metal record was like a godsend and heralded a new era. "For us, the immense success was a real shock in the beginning," singer Joacim Cans remembers, because suddenly, HAMMERFALL were considered to be the saviors of true metal. They received countless rave reviews from magazines, Wacken Open Air booked the band at prime time on the main stage, Kai Hansen invited the band personally to join as support on the GAMMA RAY tour and the CD entered the German album chart at the amazing position of No. 38 — an unbelievable achievement during this time.

"Our advantage was that no one has expected us and our album. We only did what we wanted and felt compelled to do," Cans says.

This passion was not least influenced by German metal acts like ACCEPT, HELLOWEEN and STORMWITCH but also by other underdogs like WARLORD and PICTURE.

"I'm still very proud of this album; it has turned our lives upside down," the vocalist sums up, and is equally proud of the extensive re-release of the cult album, which will be madea available on December 1. The re-release includes the completely remastered version of "Glory To The Brave", a radio edit of the legendary title track as well as the great cover version of the STORMWITCH classic "Ravenlord". The bonus CD will include six live versions of "The Metal Age", "Steel Meets Steel", "Stone Cold", "Glory To The Brave", "Hammerfall" and "The Dragon Lies Bleeding", as well as a medley from numerous tracks off of their first-class debut album, which was recorded live this year at a show in Berlin. In addition to this, the double CD will also be enhanced by a bonus DVD containing the first chapters of their "The First Crusade" documentary, which was originally published on VHS, as well as four new, historically edited interview chapters plus a live recording of their Dynamo Open Air show at Eindhoven in 1998. It will be available as a digipak in an attractive box set, including a booklet containing detailed liner notes, many photos from the private archives of the musicians as well as magazine reports, flyers, posters and much more. Besides the 2-CD/DVD, you can also purchase the audio part separately, which includes bonus tracks as a double-vinyl in various colors.

There has been no other album that was quite as important for the development of heavy metal in the nineties and now, the milestone will be published in a comprehensive deluxe edition that leaves no wish unfulfilled! "Glory To The Brave - 20 Year Anniversary Edition" will be released with brand-new cover artwork and is now available for pre-order.

"Glory To The Brave - 20 Year Anniversary Edition" track listing:

Digi, Album Tracks Remastered

CD1

01. The Dragon Lies Bleeding02. The Metal Age03. HammerFall04. I Believe05. Child Of The Damned06. Steel Meets Steel07. Stone Cold08. Unchained09. Glory To The BraveBonus:10. Ravenlord11. Glory To The Brave (radio edit) CD2 (bonus) – Live

01. The Metal Age (1998)02. Steel Meets Steel (1998)03. Stone Cold (1998)04. Glory To The Brave (2012)05. Hammerfall (2012)06. The Dragon Lies Bleeding (2012)07. Glory To The Brave Medley (2017) Bonus DVD The First Crusade:01. Introduction 02. Steel Meets Steel - First Live Show03. Glory To The Brave - Clip 104. HammerFall 05. Steel Meets Steel - Live 06. Glory To The Brave - Clip 2 07. The Making Of "Glory To The Brave" 08. Ravenlord - Live (STORMWITCH cover) 09. The Metal Age - Live 10. Nominated For The Swedish Grammis Award 11. Stone Cold - Live 12. Interview Interview 2017:

13. Chapter I: The Early Days14. Chapter II: The Rockslaget Festival15. Chapter III: The Album 16. Chapter IV: New Members, Wacken & Touring Live: Dynamo Festival 1998

17. Child Of The Damned18. The Metal Age19. Steel Meets Steel20. Eternal Dark21. The Dragon Lies Bleeding22. Stone Cold23. HammerFall

2LP (140g, 33 RPM) Album Tracks Remastered

Side A

01. The Dragon Lies Bleeding 02. The Metal Age 03. HammerFall 04. I Believe 05. Child Of The Damned

Side B

01. Steel Meets Steel 02. Stone Cold 03. Unchained 04. Glory To The Brave

Side C (Bonus)

01. Ravenlord02. The Metal Age (live 1998)03. Steel Meets Steel (live 1998)04. Stone Cold (live 1998)

Side D (Bonus)

01. Glory To The Brave (live 2012)02. Hammerfall (live 2012)03. The Dragon Lies Bleeding (live 2012)04. Glory To The Brave - Medley (live 2017)

AVENGED SEVENFOLD has announced a December 15 release date for the deluxe version of its critically acclaimed album "The Stage" (Capitol). This new edition features seven additional studio songs plus four previously unreleased live tracks recorded during the band's recent shows at The O2 arena in London. Among the seven bonus tracks is the band's stunning cover of the PINK FLOYD classic "Wish You Were Here", which was released today. Both the digital and physical deluxe versions of "The Stage" can be pre-ordered here (note: the CD and vinyl versions of the album will include a special lenticular cover). About AVENGED SEVENFOLD's version of "Wish You Were Here", lead singer M. Shadows says: "This is the song that started us down the rabbit hole with our recent cover recordings. I've always loved this song and though I felt it would be impossible to capture the somberness of the original, we approached it with another purpose. There's a poignancy to the song that seems appropriate with everything going on in the world today. We put a bit of a modern twist on it to reintroduce it at a time when it might help capture what some of us are feeling."

The deluxe edition is the latest chapter in an innovative album cycle that began twelve months ago when AVENGED SEVENFOLD "surprise-released" "The Stage", becoming the first-ever rock band to drop an unannounced album in digital and physical form. The band (vocalist M. Shadows, guitarists Synyster Gates and Zacky Vengeance, bassist Johnny Christ and drummer Brooks Wackerman) announced the album's release to millions of surprised fans who had been watching their live-streamed set from the rooftop of the Capitol Records Tower in Hollywood, California. That groundbreaking event saw the quintet give a 3D/360-degree virtual reality performance that enabled fans around the globe to experience AVENGED SEVENFOLD's electrifying show as if they were there for the first-of-its-kind immersive event.

Months later, the forward-thinking band announced plans to transform "The Stage" into an evolving body of work by adding a series of new tracks over the course of several months.

Those songs — which began with a scintillating rendition of Mexican folk song "Malagueña Salerosa" —have been previously unavailable for purchase, but fan demand for the tracks brings the album to its current stage as a deluxe release.

In addition to the album's original eleven tracks, the deluxe version features A7X's reimagining of MR. BUNGLE's "Retrovertigo", original track "Dose", a cover of Del Shannon's 1961 No. 1 hit "Runaway" (featuring a guest appearance by VANDALS guitarist Warren Fitzgerald and lead vocals by AVENGED SEVENFOLD guitarist Zacky Vengeance), the band's version of the BEACH BOYS' 1966 hit "God Only Knows" and most recently, their rendition of THE ROLLING STONES' "As Tears Go By". The four concert recordings included on the album are title track "The Stage", "Paradigm", "Sunny Disposition" and "God Damn". Tickets also go on sale today for AVENGED SEVENFOLD's 2018 North American arena headlining tour, set to kick off January 12 at the Bridgestone Arena in Nashville with special guests BREAKING BENJAMIN and BULLET FOR MY VALENTINE. The band has partnered with CID Entertainment to offer VIP Tour Experiences, including access to a VIP-only viewing area, an official signed show setlist, an invitation to the pre-show lounge featuring AVENGED SEVENFOLD memorabilia and an exclusive A7X tour book including never-before-seen photos. The tour will be North America's introduction to the electrifying "Stage" spectacle that drew rave reviews in Europe. After the recent 02 Arena shows, the London Evening Standard lauded AVENGED SEVENFOLD as "a global phenomenon" and wrote that the band "specialized in preposterous fun," calling the show "royally entertaining." The Guardian ran a four-star review of the show in Glasgow, writing, "Underneath retina-scorching screens and giant cosmic cube broadcasting spiraling starfields, the five-piece methodically discharge booming, arena-filling songs…these industrial assemblages of growing riffs and fret-melting solos have a default minor-key menace, yet the overall atmosphere is surprisingly joyous." But Kerrang! best summed up AVENGED SEVENFOLD's new live show: "You've never seen anything like it." Photo credit: Jeff Forney