Dutch symphonic metallers DELAIN have spent the last year celebrating their tenth anniversary — from the release of their fifth full-length album, "Moonbathers", and an anniversary edition of their debut disc, "Lucidity", to extensive headline tours across Europe and North America to gracing some of the world's biggest festival stages — and are about to cap it off with the release of their first-ever live DVD/Blu-ray package. Due on October 27, "A Decade Of Delain: Live At Paradiso" was filmed at a sold-out gig at Amsterdam's legendary Paradiso on December 10, 2016. DELAIN was joined on stage throughout the evening by Alissa White-Gluz (ARCH ENEMY), Liv Kristine, Burton C. Bell (FEAR FACTORY), and many other special guests and collaborators. The setlist for the evening showcased songs spanning DELAIN's entire decade-long existence, including everything from the sing-along singles to cuts from the band's vault that are rarely played live. On top of the full live concert, the package includes an exclusive documentary about the band, titled "We Are The Others - A Decade of Delain", a bonus live performance of "We Are the Others" from Masters Of Rock 2015, and the "Suckerpunch" music video. CD / DVD / Blu-ray:

01. Intro (The Monarch)02. Hands Of Gold (featuring Alissa White-Gluz)03. Suckerpunch04. The Glory And The Scum05. Get The Devil Out Of Me06. Army Of Dolls07. The Hurricane08. April Rain09. Where Is The Blood (featuring Burton C. Bell)10. Here Come The Vultures11. Fire With Fire12. The Tragedy Of The Commons (featuring Alissa White-Gluz)13. Danse Macabre14. Sleepwalkers Dream (featuring Rob van der Loo, Sander Zoer, and Guus Eikens)15. Your Body Is A Battleground (featuring Marco Hietala)16. Stay Forever17. See Me In Shadow (featuring Liv Kristine and Elianne Anemaat)18. The Gathering19. Pristine (featuring George Oosthoek)20. Mother Machine21. Sing To Me (featuring Marco Hietala)22. Don't Let Go23. We Are The Others DVD/Blu-ray bonus content:

01. We Are The Others - A Decade Of Delain (documentary)02. We Are The Others (live at Masters Of Rock 2015)03. Suckerpunch (official music video) "A Decade Of Delain" is available for pre-order in a 2-CD/DVD/Blu-ray combination package or on silver vinyl via PledgeMusic.

In late October, DELAIN will embark on the "Danse Macabre" tour, featuring special guest and frequent collaborator Marco Hietala from NIGHTWISH on all dates. SERENITY and CELLAR DARLING will provide support. DELAIN will follow the "Danse Macabre" tour with a string of dates in South America in late 2017 and a full North American tour with KAMELOT and BATTLE BEAST in the spring of 2018.

STRYPER has denied that Tim Gaines's recent divorce was the reason for his exit from the band.

After months of rumors, the bassist confirmed his departure from the openly Christian group late last month, telling KNAC.COM: "I am officially no longer a member of the band. It's been out there for about a year now that things have been going sour. It hasn't been officially said by either myself or the band, but, yeah, I'm no longer working with them."

Tim claimed that "all hell broke loose" after he "ended up getting a divorce, which is taboo as far as Christianity, I guess." He added: "I'm not the only guy in STRYPER to have gotten a divorce. Everybody in the band is married to divorced people. And I'm the bad guy, but everybody else has done it too, so? Whatever. Live in glass houses and everything will be exposed at some point or another."

Earlier today, STRYPER frontman Michael Sweet posted a message on the band's official Facebook page indicating that he, guitarist Oz Fox and drummer Robert Sweet are "so excited to move forward and make the best album" of their thirty-four-year career. He added: "God is good and positivity prevails. We'll stay faithful and keep moving forward no matter what. The best is yet to come."

While answering questions from fans in the comments section below his original post, Sweet confirmed that Gaines is "no longer in the band" and revealed that Tim's replacement will be "someone who is grateful, respectful, courteous, honest, hard-working, talented and blessed to be a part of the team."

Sweet also said that Gaines's divorce was "not the reason" for his departure from STRYPER, claiming that it was a "private matter" which will remain "between the members of the band and not anyone else." He added: "We didn't push Tim out as if he wasn't part of God's plan. His contributions to the band will never be forgotten or ignored. We're going to live life, be happy and answer to our calling. We're also going to record our best album in November."

Michael told the WSOU radio station at the end of last year that STRYPER had "no plans of stopping," despite the latest setback. He explained: "I mean, we had considered it and thought, well, maybe we should, but then we realized, well, that's just fair to us, that's not fair to the fans. So we're gonna continue on for sure."

Sweet also said at the time that it was "probable" that STRYPER would carry on without Gaines, explaining that "if we were to disband or dissolve or stop, it really wouldn't be fair to the fans, it wouldn't be fair to the other guys, and it's important to keep that in mind as well."

Symphonic death metal unit The Convalescence have released their new album, This Is Hell, via Unique Leader Records. Order the album here, and find a full album stream below.  

The ten-track offering was produced by John Burke (Forever In Terror, Captain Kid, etc.), at Vibe Studios, mixed and mastered by Christian Donaldson (Cryptopsy, Despised Icon, Beyond Creation, etc.) at The Grid and comes wrapped in the macabre cover art of Coki Greenway.

This Is Hell tracklisting:

“Scum”
“No Way Out”
“I Won't Survive”
“Murder Machine”
“Burn”
“There Will Be Blood”
“Alone”
“This Is Hell”
“With No Hope”
“The World Infested”

“This Is Hell”:

Album stream:

This is Hell by The Convalescence

In conjunction with the release of This Is Hell, the band will join The Blood Stained Earth North American tour featuring UK-based metal icons Venom Inc., New Orleans' blackened death thrash legion Goatwhore, and Portland punk thrashers Toxic Holocaust. The trek will commence today in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and run through October 2nd in Baltimore, Maryland. From there, The Convalescence will close the year with a headlining tour through October and mid-November. Support will be provided by Wings Denied, Shaping The Legacy, Dead Eyes Always Dreaming, and Death Rattle. See all confirmed dates below.

"We are beyond exciting to bring our twisted vision of reality to the United States on the This Is Hell headlining tour," says keyboardist/vocalist Katie McCrimmon. "We can't wait to see everyone, hit the road with our friend and tear it up nightly!

September (with Venom Inc., Goatwhore, Toxic Holocaust)
1 - Voltage - Philadelphia, PA
2 - Gramercy Theater - New York, NY
3 - Brighton Music Hall - Boston, MA
4 - The Low Beat - Albany, NY *
5 - Bungalow Bar - Manchester, NH *
6 - Harpo's - Detroit, MI
7 - Agora Ballroom - Cleveland, OH
8 - Reggies - Chicago, IL
9 - Full Terror Metal Fest - Cave In Rock, IL
10 - Riot Room - Kansas City, MO
11 - Marquis Theater - Denver, CO
13 - The Pin - Spokane, WA
14 - Studio 7 - Seattle, WA
16 - Hawthorne Theater - Portland, OR
18 - Slim's - San Francisco, CA
19 - The Roxy Theatre - Los Angeles, CA
20 - Brick By Brick - San Diego, CA
21 - Club Red - Phoenix, AZ
22 - Tricky Falls - El Paso, TX
23 - Gas Monkey - Dallas, TX
24 - Grizzly Hall - Austin, TX
25 - White Oak Music Hall - Houston, TX
26 - Parish at HOB - New Orleans, LA
28 - Churchill's - Miami, FL
29 - Orpheum - Tampa, FL
30 - The Haven - Orlando, FL

October (with Venom Inc., Goatwhore, Toxic Holocaust)
1 - Masquerade - Atlanta, GA
2 - Soundstage - Baltimore, MD

* The Convalescence only

October (with Wings Denied, Shaping The Legacy, Dead Eyes Always Dreaming, Death Rattle)
6 - The Odeon - Cleveland, OH
7 - Frankie's Inner City - Toledo, OH
9 - Bada Brew - Crest Hill, IL
11 - Opinion Brewing Company - Newport, MN
12 - Lefty's Live Music - Des Moines, IA
14 - Ernie November - Cheyenne, WY
15 - Your Mom's House - Denver, CO
16 - Monk's Bar - Missoula, MT
18 - The Pin - Spokane, WA
19 - The Funhouse - Seattle, WA
20 - Shasta Grange Hall - Klamath Falls, OR
21 - PJs Roadhouse - Placerville, CA
22 - Five Star Bar - Los Angeles, CA
24 - Joe's Grotto - Phoenix, AZ
25 - Blu Phoenix Venue - Albuquerque, NM
26 - Rockhouse Bar & Grill - El Paso, TX
27 - Jack's Patio Bar - San Antonio, TX
28 - The Brown Plaza - Del Rio, TX
29 - Diamond Jim's - Arlington, TX
30 - White Swan Live - Houston, TX
31 - The Handlebar - Pensacola, FL

November (with Wings Denied, Shaping The Legacy, Dead Eyes Always Dreaming, Death Rattle)
1 - Jack Rabbit's - Jacksonville, FL
2 - The Dungeon Tavern - Panama City, FL
3 - The Brass Mug - Tampa, FL
4 - The Haven - Winter Park, FL
5 - Piper's Sports Bar - Greenacres, FL
6 - The Maywood - Raleigh, NC
8 - Championship Bar - Trenton, NJ
9 - Patterson's Creations - Attleboro, MA
10 - Bungalow Bar - Manchester, NH
11 - The Low Beat - Albany, NY
12 - Kingsland - Brooklyn, NY
13 - Mohawk Place - Buffalo, NY
14 - Smiling Moose - Pittsburgh, PA
15 - Carl's Tavern - New Haven, IN
16 - The Ritz - Warren, MI
17 - Papa Pete's - Kalamazoo, MI
18 - The Courtyard - Englewood, OH

Dirty Thrills are a young, exciting and charismatic London-based hard rock quartet who play bluesy rock 'n' roll with an appealing filthy edge, churning out endless crowd pleasers that make guitar music sound sexy again. With lung-busting, powerful vocals from front man Louis James, killer guitar riffs from Jack Fawdry and solid low-end grooves from the rhythm section of Aaron Plows and Steve Corrigan, each member's wide-ranging influences also combine to produce a pool of sound similar to current rock icons such as Queens Of The Stone Age, The Black Keys and Rival Sons.

Dirty Thrills are set to release their new album, Heavy Living, on September 15th. The album cut “Rabbit Hole” is available for streaming below.

Dirty Thrills formed after a drunken night of jamming in a quiet village pub in Wiltshire, but what started out as an inconspicuous session swiftly birthed an ambitious group with the drive and determination to bring the glory days back to the rock scene. Having released and toured a self-titled debut record in 2014, the band recently signed to Frontiers Music Srl and played the UK's Camden Rocks and Wildfire Festivals in June as part of the build-up to their new single, “Law Man”, which Louis James describes as a song "about one man's fight for freedom, only to be struck down by a figure of austerity." They will also be performing at Ramblin' Man Fair in late July, while a full UK tour will follow the mid-September release of their brand new album, Heavy Living, which was recorded at Monnow Valley Studio in Rockfield, Monmouth and produced/mixed by James Loughrey (The Darkness, Skindred, Sumo Cyco).

Heavy Living tracklisting:

“I'll Be With You”
“Go Slow”
“Law Man”
“Hanging Around”
“Lonely Soul”
“No Resolve”
“Interlude”
“The Brave”
“Rabbit Hole”
“Drunk Words”
“Get Loose”

“Rabbit Hole”:

“I'll Be With You” video:

“Drunk Words”:

“Law Man” video:

Dirty Thrills lineup:

Louis James - Lead Vocals, Harmonica
Jack Fawdry - Guitar, Backing Vocals
Steve Corrigan - Drums
Aaron Plows - Bass

Denver death dealers, Bloodstrike, have announced the October 13th release of their sophomore album, Execution Of Violence, via Redefining Darkness Records. The album's first single, "Creeper”, is now available for streaming below.

Execution Of Violence takes the ferocious old school death metal of the 2015 debut In Death We Rot (released on Redefining Darkness Records) and ups the annihilation ante. Armed with 10 new tracks of focused brutality, on Execution Of Violence, Bloodstrike is prepared to spread their reign of terror to more unexplored territories at home and abroad.

The album was produced by Bloodstrike and recorded by Jeff Alexis.Mixing was done by John Bart Van Der Wal and mastering by the mighty Dan Swanö.

Tracklisting:

“Procreating For Death”
“Creeper”
“Emptiness Of Life”
“Ministry Of Hate”
“Corpses For Dissection”
“Execution Of Violence”
“Detest Mortality”
“Whoremonger”
“Iron Rations”
“Hell's Wasteland”

“Creeper”:

Execution of Violence by Bloodstrike

To celebrate the 10th anniversary of their debut album, Eden's Curse have released Revisited - a two disc set featuring the debut album re-recorded in it's entirety and a bonus DVD, Live In Glasgow - The Official Bootleg, available worldwide via AFM Records. Watch “Trinity” from the release below:

The debut re-recordings were mixed by Pete Newdeck (Eden's Curse, Tainted Nation, Grim Reaper) and Mastered by Harry Hess (Harem Scarem).

Coupled with the re-recorded debut album is the Live In Glasgow - Official Bootleg DVD which is the Live With The Curse live album recording show in it's entirety. Filmed at The Classic Grand in Glasgow on November 28th, 2014, the release mark's the band first official live DVD release, albeit in a bootleg form.

"The footage is absolutely excellent,” states bassist Paul Logue. "We did not intend to film a DVD, but the audio recording company brought two cameras along to capture the show and when we saw the results we were really surprised! We put out four videos on You Tube to promote the live album and the fans kept asking to see the full show on DVD. So, here it is! We've called it a 'bootleg' because it wasn't recorded on 6 cameras, e.g one above the drummer and one on the keyboard player - like we would do for a proper DVD release. However, beyond that is looks and sounds great! We WILL do a DVD in the future but in the meantime this give our fans across the world something to enjoy time and time again and it makes 'Revisited' a very special package indeed,” he adds.

Revisited is the ultimate package for Eden's Curse fans old and new and a fantastic introduction to the band's music. It's a true celebration of the record that started it all, from the guys who carry the legacy forward. Over 60 mins of music and 100 mins of film make Revisited a must have for all Eden's Curse and melodic metal fans.

Check out a video trailer below, and order yours today from AFM Records.

Eden's Curse dedicated their re-recording of the Steelheart classic, “We All Die Young” - made famous by the fictional band Steel Dragon in the Mark Wahlberg and Jennifer Anniston movie Rock Star - to the band's late guitarist, Kenny Kanowski.

Bassist Paul Logue commented: "Kenny and I talked online around ten years ago when we first recorded the song. He loved our version and I was very fortunate to meet him in person this past April in Milan at the Frontiers Rock Festival. When I introduced myself to him, he immediately knew who I was and the name of the band and gave me a big kiss for recording the song - he was quite a character! I told him we had re-recorded the song for the tenth anniversary and he was really looking forward to hearing the new version. Sadly he never will. Our thoughts and prayers go to Kenny's family and band mates in Steelheart. RIP brother.”

“Fly Away”:

“Fallen King”:

Alter Bridge is set to release their new album, Live At The O2 Arena + Rarities next week. To shorten the waiting time the band premieres a live version for the title track of their world acclaimed second album! Watch the lyric video for “Blackbird” below:

Alter Bridge have released an unboxing video for the 4LP picture vinyl edition of their upcoming Live At The O2 Arena + Rarities album, scheduled for release on September 8th worldwide via Napalm Records. The 30-track collection is available via all digital retailers and can be ordered via iTunes and is also available via Amazon.

Live at the O2 Arena + Rarities that captures one of the biggest moments of the band's career, when they played their monumental show at London's famous O2 Arena on November 24th, 2016.

One of the biggest moments of the band’s career was the monumental show at London's famous O2 Arena on November 26th, 2016. That landmark performance was captured in its entirety. The 2-CD 19-track recording documents what an enormous presence Alter Bridge have become on concert stages around the world. The album can be pre-ordered at this location, and via PledgeMusic.

Myles Kennedy, Mark Tremonti, Brian Marshall, and Scott Phillips tear through hits like "Farther Than The Sun", "Show Me A Leader," "Rise Today", and their masterpiece "Isolation", showcasing a band at the top of their game. Other highlights include the Tremonti sung "Waters Rising," the acoustic-driven “Watch Over You” and their signature anthem "Blackbird”.

In addition, this latest release includes an exclusive full-length Rarities CD sure to excite fans everywhere. This disc features the never-before released tracks "Cruel Sun" and "Solace” that were recorded during the One Day Remains sessions, as well as the song “Breathe” from the same time which has only ever been available as a US retail exclusive via Best Buy. These tracks join seven other songs that have only been released in Japan until this collection.

This incredible selection of Alter Bridge gems will be released in multiple formats. In addition to a standard 3-CD audio version, fans can also pick up one of the limited deluxe editions (including a 4-LP set and a CD/DVD Earbook) which also include an exclusive Alter Bridge documentary featuring extensive interviews with the band, their crew, and family, giving an amazing glimpse behind the scenes of this legendary show at London's O2 Arena! Check out a trailer below.

Tracklisting:

CD1:
“The Writing On The Wall”
“Come To Life”
“Addicted To Pain”
“Ghost Of Days Gone By”
“Cry Of Achilles”
“The Other Side”
“Farther Than The Sun”
“Ties That Blind”
“Water Rising”
“Crows On A Wire”
“Watch Over You” (solo acoustic)

CD2:
“Isolation”
“Blackbird”
“Metalingus”
“Open Your Eyes”
“Show Me A Leader”
“Rise Today”
“Poison In Your Veins”
“My Champion”

CD3:
“Breathe”
“Cruel Sun”
“Solace”
“New Way To Live”
“The Damage Done”
“We Don't Care At All”
“Zero”
“Home”
“Never Borne To Follow”
“Never Say Die (Outright)”
“Symphony Of Agony (The Last of Our Kind)”

Teaser:

“Metalingus”:

“The Other Side” video:

Trailer:

Alter Bridge recently announced their special Royal Albert Hall shows for early October, which sold out extremely fast, followed by additional UK and Ireland shows subsequently. Due to the great demand to get them back to Europe's mainland as well, the band now announce The Last Hero tour all across Europe.

Starting in Paris at the Elysee Montmartre, the tour leads Alter Bridge from France to the Netherlands, from Germany over Austria to Poland, Hungary, Switzerland all the way down to sunny Spain and Portugal, where they also ended their last tour just a couple of days ago. In case you saw Alter Bridge live on this past tour run or somewhere on the summer festivals: don't think they won't add anything new to the set list. Quite the contrary. They will play a totally different set that differs very much to the shows they recently played over the summer. So don't miss out on another amazing live experience with these incredibly talented musicians and get your tickets now.

Tour dates:

October
2  - London, England - Royal Albert Hall (Sold Out)
3 - London, England - Royal Albert Hall (Sold Out)
5  - Edinburgh, Scotland - Usher Hall
7 - Dublin, Ireland - Olympia
8  - Belfast, Ireland - Ulster Hall
10 - Paris, France - Elysee Montmartre                                 
11 - Groningen, Netherlands - Oosterpoort                                   
12 - Stuttgart, Germany - Porsche Arena                                                                                  
15 - Hannover, Germany - Swiss Life Hall                                  
16 - Oberhausen, Germany - Turbinenhalle                                                             
18 - Vienna, Austria - Gasometer                                                                            
20 - Warsaw, Poland - Progresja                                                                               
22 - Budapest, Hungary - Sport Arena                                                      
24 - Zurich, Switzerland - Samsung Hall                                                            
26 - Barcelona, Spain - Razzmatazz 1                    
27 - Madrid, Spain - La Riviera                                                                                 
29 - Lisbon, Portugal - Coliseu

"Last Ride", the new video from DANZIG, can be seen below. The track is taken from the band's latest album, "Black Laden Crown", which came out in May via Evilive Records/Nuclear Blast Entertainment.

The "Last Ride" clip, which features an appearance by Diane Foster, was directed by Glenn Danzig, produced by Glenn Danzig and Christopher M. Jimenez and edited by Brian Cox of Flarelight Films.

"Black Laden Crown" track listing:

01. Black Laden Crown02. Eyes Ripping Fire03. Devil On Hwy 904. Last Ride05. The Witching Hour06. But A Nightmare07. Skulls & Daisies09. Blackness Falls09. Pull The Sun In a 2015 interview with Noisey, Glenn Danzig was asked what it is that keeps him coming back to the creative well. He responded: "It's so many different things. There's always stuff to write about, but I think that the whole punk thing helped a lot. If it gets boring, change it, fix it, make it exciting, make it relevant again, and that's what I did without sacrificing the music. That's what I try to do. I try to do stuff where first thing is I'm excited about the record, and then I hope that the people who listen to my music are gonna dig it too. That's pretty much how I go into doing a record, and I don't do a new record until I have stuff to write about it. I don't force myself to do a record. Someone doesn't come to me and say, 'Hey, it's been a year or two since your last record. You've gotta write a record and put one out in a couple of months.' No one comes to me and says that to me."

Asked if that attitude of not forcing the creative process is something that's always been there for him, Danzig said: "Yeah. I mean, I used to do it on a more frequent basis. [Laughs] But I think even back in the MISFITS and SAMHAIN days, I put out a record every two years, I think. The same thing with DANZIG, too, where I put out a record every two years. Later on it became further and further apart, but that's just the way it worked out. I think in between 'Danzig IV' and 'V' was probably a two-year period, and then between 'V' and 'VI' was probably a three-year period. It seems to be now it's gone to four or five. I think one of the things also was for 'Deth Red' we toured a lot over those years. Not two or three months at a time, but we just kept getting offers to go to Europe and then back to America. The record did pretty well for me, especially the way it was received."

Sarke releases their fifth full-length, Viige Urh, on October 13th via Indie Recordings. Well known members of this band include Nocturno Culto (Darkthrone), Sarke (Khold, Tulus), Ander Hunstad (El Caco) and Steinar Gundersen (Satyricon).

A lyric video for “Dagger Entombed”, created by Costin Chioreanu, is available for streaming below. You can also buy the track of stream it via the options here.

Says the band: "'Dagger Entombed' will be the first taste from our new album Viige Urh. This track has a thumb up guarantee. True spirit of metal, dark and heavy. 'Viige Urh' is on fire and it will be on fire for a long time. We feel we have taken Sarke up to a new level. With the songwriting, the sound and the heaviness of the album."

Tracklisting:

“Viige Urh”
“Dagger Entombed”
“Age Of Sail”
“Upir”
“Jutul”
“Punishment To Confessions”
“Knifehall”
“Evolution And Fate”

“Dagger Entombed” lyric video:

Pre-order the new album at via the following links:

- Digital
- Physical

"Repent My Sins", the new video from Swedish melodic metal masters NOCTURNAL RITES, can be seen below. The song is taken from the band's long-awaited comeback album, "Phoenix", whch will be released on September 29 via AFM. The effort will be made available as a CD, digipak, on clear/blue/black marbled vinyl (limited to 250 units) and clear orange vinyl (limited to 250 units).

"Phoenix" track listing:

01. A Heart As Black As Coal02. Before We Waste Away03. The Poisonous Seed04. Repent My Sins05. What's Killing Me06. A Song For You07. The Ghost Inside Me08. Nothing Can Break Me09. Flames10. Used To Be God *11. Welcome To The End

* bonus track on limited digipak and vinyl (digipak also comes with a NOCTURNAL RITES patch)

NOCTURNAL RITES previously announced plans to enter the studio in 2011 to record the follow-up to 2007's "The 8th Sin" album.

Guitarist Nils Norberg left NOCTURNAL RITES in June 2008 and was later replaced by Christoffer Rörland. As of 2012, Rörland became the new guitarist in SABATON, while his spot in NOCTURNAL RITES was taken over by Per Nilsson.

"The 8th Sin" in 2007 landed on the Japanese album chart at position No. 68 (No. 28 on "international" chart).

NOCTURNAL RITES 2017 is:

Jonny Lindqvist - VocalsNils Eriksson - BassPer Nilsson - Lead GuitarFredrik Mannberg - GuitarOwe Lingvall - Drums

The official video for "Get Off Your Ass", the title track of the new album from veteran Los Angeles hard rockers AUTOGRAPH, can be seen below. The disc will be released on October 6 via EMP Label Group, the U.S.-based label of MEGADETH bassist David Ellefson. It will be issued on CD and digital, with a limited-edition vinyl LP version available in November.

"Get Off Your Ass" is the first official studio LP from the revamped quartet, featuring original/founding members guitarist Steve Lynch and bassist Randy Rand, alongside new vocalist/rhythm guitarist Simon Daniels and drummer Marc Wieland.

Lynch, an iconic guitarist, revered worldwide as a bona fide guitar hero (known for his signature eight-finger hammer-on technique), reactivated the band in 2013 with bassist Randy Rand after reconnecting at the NAMM show. After approaching original vocalist Steve Plunkett, who was unavailable for the reunion due to other business interests, with his blessing, the newly resurrected AUTOGRAPH recruited former JAILHOUSE vocalist Simon Daniels, the rest, as they say, is history.

"Get Off Your Ass" features an updated, hard-edged (and keyboard free) sound for the band, featuring down-tuned guitars, and the fiery, blues-soaked delivery of Daniels, as evidenced on tracks like "Every Generation", "I Lost My Mind In America", and the first single, edgy title track "Get Off Your Ass". The album also features an updated live version of the band's classic rock staple "Turn Up The Radio", performed by the current lineup.

Says Lynch: "'Get Off Your Ass' definitely sets a new direction for the band, with an updated, heavier sound, while still retaining the signature melodic hooks people have come to expect from AUTOGRAPH. This record is bound to get the attention of old AUTOGRAPH fans as well as the new. So put your ears on and turn this one up!!"

Adds Daniels: "We are so excited about this record! This is a lineup of brothers with a vision and the perfect chemistry. We wanted the record to be musically timeless, and translate a heavier sound featuring the melodies and harmonies, but with heavier guitars and a more 'in-your-face' attitude. The lyrics come from the heart and are directed to people of our current era, with uplifting messages and positive energy. It's AUTOGRAPH on steroids."

On their partnership with EMP, Daniels adds: "EMP is the perfect match for us. They understand what we're doing, they have the same vision and we are grateful to work with such great experienced humble focused achieving people!" Drummer Marc Wieland concurs: "EMP shares and supports the same vision we had for our new album, 'Get Off Your Ass'. We are stoked to be part of their family!"

Ellefson expresses a mutual admiration. "When I first moved to L.A. to go to MI (then known as GIT), Steve Lynch was the guy everybody went there to learn from. As far as guitar players in L.A. went, he was the guy. I never did end up at GIT, we formed MEGADETH and obviously went down an extremely different path, but Steve truly is an iconic guitar hero of the highest caliber, and I am so proud for EMP to be able to partner with him and the re-imagined AUTOGRAPH to release this killer album."

Forming in 1983, AUTOGRAPH gave the world the perpetual rock anthem "Turn Up the Radio", which still commands nearly constant airplay on classic rock stations around the world, and has become an iconic piece of pop culture, making appearances in mass media classics like "Grand Theft Auto: Vice City" and more recently in the film "Hot Tub Time Machine".

With seminal albums "Sign In Please" (1984), "That's The Stuff" (1985) and "Loud And Clear" (1987), as well as years of touring alongside legendary artists, including MÖTLEY CRÜE, DIO, VAN HALEN and AEROSMITH, AUTOGRAPH left an everlasting imprint on rock 'n' roll. Now this undeniable rock legacy is reclaimed with "Get Off Your Ass".

The Unity, the new band founded by drummer Michael Ehré and guitarist Henjo Richter (both Gamma Ray), release their third digital single and video for the song "Never Forget" today.

Drummer Michael Ehre about the single: "We are extremely happy to present our third single ‘Never Forget’ shortly before our tour with Edguy starts. It will be released as download and 7" vinyl-single with an exclusive, unpublished bonus track. We also produced a brand new videoclip for this song. See you on tour in September, October!"

"Never Forget" will also be released as a 7" vinyl single, limited to 500 units worldwide, on September 15th. The b-side is an unreleased track called "Nowhereland".

The Unity will be supporting Edguy on their Monuments Tour 2017.

Says The Unity: “Now this is really the juicy, sweet cherry on top of a delicious heavy metal cake, isn’t it !?? We are extremely excited and proud to announce that The Unity will support Edguy on their anniversary tour in autumn 2017! The Monuments Tour is going to be a rocking celebration of 25 glorious and extremely successful years of Edguy’s career. A best of on stage, as far as songs and musicians are concerned!”

Tour dates:

September
15 - Bremen, Germany - Aladin
16 - Hamburg, Germany - Markthalle
17 - Bochum, Germany - Zeche
19 - Frankfurt, Germany - Batschkapp
20 - Saarbrücken, Germany - Garage
22 - Cologne, Germany - Essigfabrik
23 - Stuttgart, Germany - LKA Longhorn
24 - Munich, Germany - Backstage
26 - Erlangen, Germany - E-Werk
27 - Berlin, Germany - C-Club
29 - Pratteln, Switzerland - Z7
30 - Memmingen, Germany - Kaminwerk

October
2 - Praha, Czech Republic - Meet Factory
3 - Fulda, Germany - Wartenberg-Oval

The Unity’s debut album was produced by the musicians themselves, mostly at Ehré’s own B Castle Studio and mixed and mastered by Spain’s Miquel A. Riutort at the Psychosomatic Recording Studio. The impressive cover artwork, penned by Alexander Mertsch who has worked for the likes of Deep Purple, Gamma Ray, Status Quo and Europe, also deserves a mention.

Tracklisting:

“Rise And Fall”
“No More Lies”
“God Of Temptation”
“Firesign”
“Always Just You”
“Close To Crazy”
“The Wishing Well”
“Edens Fall”
“Redeemer”
“Super Distortion”
“Killer Instinct”
“Never Forget”

“Rise And Fall” lyric video:

"No More Lies" video:

Finnish winter metal band, Wolfheart, has just released a new single via Spotify and other digital medias. “The Black Light” is the first acoustic release from Wolfheart and with this single the band draws a totally new line on their winter-frosted path.

Listen to “The Black Light” on Spotify, Deezer, iTunes, Apple Music, etc.

The band’s upcoming live dates are listed on the poster below:

(Photo - Valtteri Hirvonen)

Swedish heavy metal band LION'S SHARE has been rejoined by co-founder and original keyboardist Kay Backlund for its latest single, "The Lion's Trial". The track is the follow-up to "Another Desire", which was released in June and marked the group's first new music since 2009's "Dark Hours" album.

"I've been working with Kay on a couple of albums I've produced the last couple of years, so when we needed keyboards on 'The Lion's Trial', he was the natural choice," LION'S SHARE guitarist Lars Chriss says. "I'm sure it's pretty cool for our fans as well that we have three-fifths of the debut album lineup together again on this track."

The official lyric video for "The Lion's Trial" can be seen below.

More than twenty new LION'S SHARE songs have been written and about half of them have been partially recorded, with original member Andy Loos handling the bass duties on the first batch of tracks. The plan is to release a couple of lyric videos — one at a time — a few months apart, and to take it from there, depending on the response from fans.

LION'S SHARE lead singer Nils Patrik Johansson says: "Lars and I agree that at this point it feels the most natural to keep LION'S SHARE as a duo, with friends helping out wherever needed."

POISON has released a "Nothin' But A Good Time" "fan video," featuring photos that were submitted by fans who attended the band's recently completed first U.S. tour in more than four years, dubbed "XXX".

Says POISON: "We love our loyal fans and wanted to take the time to say THANK YOU for coming to support us on tour this year! We had the best time and loved seeing you all again.

"In celebration of the tour, we asked fans to send in their #NothinButAGoodTime photos, and vote on their favorites to make it into our video. The top 100 fan-voted photos were included here — plus three bonus photos! It was truly #NothinButAGoodTime"

In an interview with the "Drummer Nation" show, POISON drummer Rikki Rockett spoke about what it has been like reuniting with his bandmates for the trek. "It's been a lot of fun so far," he said. "It's kind of crazy. I mean, I was out there with [my side project] DEVIL CITY ANGELS, doing stuff, but not POISON. We had a few corporate gigs here and there, but not a full-blown tour."

He continued: "It felt great [getting back up on stage with the guys]. I mean, after the first two days, I felt at home. The first day, I was, like, 'Woah! Can I do this?' And now, I get up on stage and it's like home, you know what I mean? It really is. A lot of people say, 'Oh, another day at the office at the drum kit.' It's, like, no — another day at home."

POISON's reunited original lineup — Rockett, Bret Michaels, Bobby Dall and C.C. DeVille — kicked off its North American tour with DEF LEPPARD on April 8 at the SNHU Arena in Manchester, New Hampshire. The trek wrapped on June 25 in Indianapolis, Indiana.

POISON and DEF LEPPARD first hit the road together back in 2009, and then again three years later.

POISON appeared at the 2013 Indy 500 Miller Lite Carb Day, but had otherwise been mostly playing private shows, including one in January 2015.

The band hadn't done any major touring since taking part in the 2012 "Rock Of Ages" trek with DEF LEPPARD and LITA FORD.

Rockett was recently declared cancer free after undergoing an experimental treatment. He was diagnosed with oral cancer back in 2015.

"Portrait Of A Headless Man", the new video from Greek masters of symphonic death metal SEPTICFLESH, can be seen below. The song is taken from the band's tenth full-length album, "Codex Omega", will is being released today (Friday, September 1) via Prosthetic Records. The disc was produced by Jens Bogren, who has previously worked with OPETH, DIMMU BORGIR, KREATOR and SEPULTURA, among others.

SEPTICFLESH bassist/vocalist Spiros "Seth" Antoniou (a.k.a. Seth Siro Anton) recently told WSOU 89.5 FM about "Codex Omega": "This time, every time that we are thinking [about] and we are writing and start pre-recording then composing a new [album] with SEPTICFLESH, it's a great challenge. I mean, after 'Communion', [2008] we wanted to create something different from the previous albums that we made in the past. Regarding 'Codex Omega', I think this album is much different than 'Titan' [2014] or even 'The Great Mass' [2011] or even 'Communion'. The basis is the same; for sure we have a formula that we really like and we'll still use it, but on 'Codex Omega', we have some new elements, some new elements that I could say we found the 'great spot' to combine the extreme sound with the orchestra and the guitars."

Regarding how the band's sound has evolved over the years, Spiros said: "SEPTICFLESH, it's a team production. It's a production of a team. It's not the music of one person only. So that means, the main composers of the band, which is me, Chris and Sotiris [Vayenas, guitar], we have our own home studios, so before a new album, we are composing our own tracks in our studio and later, we exchange ideas and we start to combine all the elements together. I would say me and Sotiris, we are most responsible for the 'metal' part of SEPTICFLESH, about the guitar riffs, about the extreme sound. Chris is exclusively working with the orchestra. Even sometimes with his tracks, he composes them with a piano or with some instruments of samples of the orchestra before going to the real orchestra. As you understand, SEPTICFLESH is working as a whole team and this is something that gives to the band, a multi-color of sound. I'm really happy about this cooperation."

On the topic of the lyrical direction behind "Codex Omega", Spiros said: "Sotiris is actually the guy behind the lyrics. He's the brain of SEPTICFLESH, but I made the artwork and the whole visual style of SEPTICFLESH, we work together a lot. This time, we wanted to create and to move in a different approach than our previous albums. Most of the lyrical concepts of SEPTICFLESH, we are always talking about ancient traditions of many cultures and many countries, from Sumerians, Egypt, even from Incas. Every tradition that has something really interesting. This time, it was an idea from Sotiris. He said, 'Why don't we write a new concept about a third testament? About a new book that talks about humans?'"

"Codex Omega" track listing:

CD 1:

01. Dante's Inferno02. 3rd Testament (Codex Omega)03. Portrait Of A Headless Man04. Martyr05. Enemy Of Truth06. Dark Art07. Our Church, Below The Sea08. Faceless Queen09. The Gospels Of Fear10. Trinity

Cd 2:

01. Martyr Of Truth02. Dark Testament03. Portrait Of A Headless Man (Orchestral Version)

To coincide with the TEN YEARS AFTER's eponymous debut release in 1967, Chrysalis Records presents a fiftieth-anniversary ten-CD box set.

Due in November, the limited-edition set gathers, for the first time, albums from both the Chrysalis and Deram periods from 1967 to 1974 and includes a disc of previously unreleased material.

"1967 - 1974", limited to one and a half thousand copies worldwide, contains LPs which have been remastered from the original quarter-inch production master tapes along with the bonus disc titled "The Cap Ferrat Sessions", which consists of never-before-heard recordings from 1972, newly mixed by acclaimed record producer Chris Kimsey. The package comes in a luxury hardback format with slipcase and an accompanying book which includes newly commissioned in-depth ten-thousand-word sleeve notes written by legendary Melody Maker journalist and early champion of the band Chris Welch, charting the band's progress from their early beginnings in Nottingham, through iconic appearances at the Woodstock and the Isle Of Wight festivals, right up to their eventual split in 1974. There are extensive interviews with the remaining band members plus members of Alvin Lee's family, and additional recording notes by Chris Kimsey.

"I'm genuinely excited about the new TEN YEARS AFTER box set that we've been working on with Chrysalis due for release in November to celebrate the band's fiftieth anniversary," says TEN YEARS AFTER's founding drummer Ric Lee.

"The box includes nine studio albums and a bonus CD that features the previously unreleased live album 'The Cap Ferrat Sessions'.

"Originally recorded in 1972 in the south of France using THE ROLLING STONES mobile recording truck, the session tracks were gathering dust until now.

"I remember we recorded the live tracks in a villa in Cap Ferrat, south of France. Each of the instruments were recorded in a different room — drums in the ballroom.

"Between Chris Kimsey, our recording engineer and I, we managed to get one of the best drum sounds on any TEN YEARS AFTER recording. Natural ambience from the villa's acoustics helped tremendously.

"The session tracks were originally planned for the 'Rock N Roll Music To The World' album, but due to vinyl restrictions of the time, the tracks were not included in the final album release.

"More details are on the sleeve notes written for us by Chris Kimsey, who kindly agreed to mix the tracks for this boxed set release forty-five years after they were recorded.

"This is a must-have collection for any avid TEN YEARS AFTER fan, and any new fans that want to soak up the band's recorded history."

Storming the stages of rock, TEN YEARS AFTER created a sensation that stunned audiences and quickly won them a coveted place among the pantheon of great British groups. Alvin Lee — one of the most charismatic and admired guitar players to emerge from the British blues boom of the era and deservedly ranked alongside his contemporaries Eric Clapton, Jeff Beck, Jimmy Page and Jimi Hendrix — headed a powerful team of talented musicians, Leo Lyons, Chick Churchill and Ric Lee.

During an intense seven-year period, they embarked on marathon tours, conquering America, enjoying success round the world, while also unleashing a succession of ground breaking albums. Their 1967 debut, "Ten Years After", was swiftly followed by pioneering live album "Undead" (1968) through the critically acclaimed "A Space In Time" (1971), featuring one of their finest songs, "I'd Love To Change The World", which is very apt in today's world, ending with 1974's "Positive Vibrations".

"The Cap Ferrat Sessions" came as a result of a discovery by Alvin Lee's wife, who found a box of recordings deep in the vaults of the studio in their house they shared in Spain. They originate from the "Rock N Roll Music To The World" album sessions, which were recorded at a seaside villa in Cap Ferrat, south of France and Olympic Studios in London. Chrysalis Records turned to world renowned producer Chris Kimsey (whose credits include THE ROLLING STONES, BAD COMPANY and Peter Frampton), who recorded and engineered the original sessions, to mix these tracks for the first time.

Revisiting the tapes, some forty-five years later, Kimsey added, "Alvin and the band were incredibly creative and abundant during this period. These re-discovered recordings were not rough demos, not rehearsals, but completed masters that did not make the album due to the time limitations of vinyl at the time. So these gems were left off. Mixing this in 2017 I began to study the parts, the playing, the response of each musician. It was amazing! It is what all great recordings are made of."

CDs included in box set: 01. Ten Years After [Mono, 1967]02. Undead [Stereo, 1968]03. Stonedhenge [Stereo, 1969]04. Ssssh [Stereo, 1969]05. Cricklewood Green [Stereo, 1970]06. Watt [Stereo, 1970]07. A Space In Time [Stereo, 1971]08, Rock & Music To The World [Stereo, 1972]09. Positive Vibrations [Stereo, 1974]10. The Cap Ferrat Sessions [recorded in 1972, mixed in 2017]

Canadian extreme metallers KATAKLYSM are celebrating their twenty-fifth anniversary in 2017 by embarking on a massive headline tour across Europe in the fall. To immortalize this event, the band has picked the last show of the tour — on October 21 in Munich, Germany at the famous Backstage club — to film the concert for future release. Longtime friend and American director Tommy Jones (SLAYER, DEATH ANGEL, IMMOLATION) will capture the entire gig. Tommy previously worked on KATAKLYSM's "Iron Will" documentary and the multiple video releases from the band's latest album, "Of Ghosts And Gods".

KATAKLYSM states: "Hard to imagine so many years have passed already, but at the same time, we can't help but feel accomplished as a band. Twenty-five years later amongst multiple storms in our career, we stand tall and defined as a band. To mark this historic time in our lives, we have selected to go back to Europe, the place that embraced KATAKLYSM first, and do a series of shows commemorating the band's milestone anniversary. The band will be playing in their entirety two of our career-defining albums, 'Shadows & Dust' (which marks its fifteen-year anniversary) and 'Serenity In Fire', two back-to-back albums that became classics in the bands vast repertoire."

Tommy adds: "I've done a lot of work with KATAKLYSM over the past several years. Seems like just yesterday we were shooting the twenty-year-anniversary DVD, 'Iron Will'! Looking forward to hitting Europe again with the guys for another go-round!"

"Of Ghosts And Gods" was released in July 2015 via Nuclear Blast.

Atlanta progressive metallers MASTODON will release a new EP featuring four previously unreleased tracks. "Cold Dark Place" will be made available digitally and on CD on September 22 via Reprise Records, followed by the release of a limited-edition ten-inch vinyl picture disc on October 27.

Three of the songs on "Cold Dark Place" — "North Side Star", "Blue Walsh" and "Cold Dark Place" — were recorded during the sessions for MASTODON's 2014 album "Once More 'Round The Sun" and were produced by Nick Raskulinecz. A fourth track, "Toe To Toes", was recorded during the sessions for the band's most recent album, 2017's "Emperor Of Sand", and was produced by Brendan O'Brien.

Those who pre-order "Cold Dark Place" will receive an instant download of the track "Toe To Toes" on September 1.

"Toe to Toes" is now available for streaming below.

Also, next month MASTODON will appear on the cover of the newly relaunched Revolver magazine. The issue, which hits newsstands on September 12, will be available withfour different covers, each featuring a member of MASTODON. When all four covers are placed together side by side, a single image of the full band, which is Brann Dailor, Brent Hinds, Bill Kelliher and Troy Sanders, is created. As an added bonus, Revolver subscribers will receive an exclusive and very limited-edition seven-inch vinyl single with their paid order. The A-side is the version of "Toe To Toes" that appears on "Cold Dark Place", and the B-side is a previously unreleased instrumental version of the track. The single will be housed in a picture sleeve featuring exclusive artwork by Richey Beckett, who also created the cover image of the "Cold Dark Place" EP.

A behind-the-scenes mini-doc on Beckett and the making of the "Cold Dark Place" cover art can be seen below.

"Cold Dark Place" track listing:

01. North Side Star02. Blue Walsh03. Toe To Toes04. Cold Dark Place

MASTODON will spend the remainder of 2017 on the road in North America and Europe in support of "Emperor Of Sand", which debuted at No. 7 on the Billboard 200 album chart. The follow-up to 2014's "Once More 'Round The Sun" was recorded at The Quarry Recording Studio in Kennesaw, just outside MASTODON's hometown, with producer Brendan O'Brien (PEARL JAM, NEIL YOUNG, AC/DC, RAGE AGAINST THE MACHINE), who first worked with MASTODON on their seminal 2009 album "Crack The Skye".

Fan-filmed video footage of FOREIGNER's August 30 performance at The Greek Theatre in Los Angeles, California can be seen below.

The band — Mick Jones (lead guitar), Kelly Hansen (lead vocals), Jeff Pilson (bass, vocals), Tom Gimbel (rhythm guitar, sax, vocals), Michael Bluestein (keyboards), Bruce Watson (guitar) and Chris Frazier (drums) — is promoting a new career-spanning compilation titled "40" that features forty hits from forty years. Rhino released "40" on May 26 as a double-CD set that includes forty songs recorded between 1977 and 2017. A double-vinyl version that features twenty-three songs was made available on June 2. "40" brings together the best songs from Foreigner's nine studio albums, including all sixteen of its Top 30 hits: "Feels Like The First Time", "Urgent", "Waiting For A Girl Like You" and more. The collection features "Too Late" from the group's 2008 retrospective "No End In Sight" and "The Flame Still Burns", the title track from a vinyl EP released just last year, making its debut on CD in this collection. All prior recordings have been remastered and the album features two new tracks recorded especially for this release, "Give My Life For Love" and a new version of "I Don't Want To Live Without You".

Four of the five surviving original members of FOREIGNER reunited for a three-song encore during the band's concert on July 20 at the Nikon at Jones Beach Theatre in Wantagh, New York. Singer Lou Gramm, keyboardist Al Greenwood and multi-instrumentalist Ian McDonald joined Mick Jones to perform "Long, Long Way From Home", "I Want To Know What Love Is" and "Hot Blooded". This marked the first time Jones, Gramm, Greenwood and McDonald had all shared a stage together since 1980.

FOREIGNER's fortieth-anniversary tour — with support from CHEAP TRICK and JASON BONHAM'S LED ZEPPELIN EXPERIENCE — runs through through September 9 in Auburn, Washington.

ANTHRAX singer Joey Belladonna joined CHEAP TRICK on stage on July 11 at Lakeview Amphitheater in Syracuse, New York to perform the classic CHEAP TRICK song "Surrender". Fan-filmed video footage of his appearance can be seen below.

Joey is not the first ANTHRAX member to play with CHEAP TRICK. Last October, ANTHRAX guitarist Scott Ian got to live out a dream when he joined the legendary rockers on stage at the at the Louder Than Life festival in Lousville, Kentucky to perform the track "Auf Wiedersehen".

ANTHRAX recorded a version of "Auf Wiedersehen" in 1992 during the sessions for the "Sound Of White Noise" album. They also covered CHEAP TRICK's "Big Eyes" on the "Anthems" EP, which came out in 2013.

"We were toying around with the idea of doing a CHEAP TRICK song, and 'Big Eyes' was one of our favorites," ANTHRAX drummer Charlie Benante stated at the time of the EP's release. "We recorded it, but then got busy with other things, so we never finished it. What happened was, Joey was out in L.A. doing vocals for the EP and Jay Ruston [co-producer] pulled 'Big Eyes' up and had Joey do the vocals, something we didn't know he was going to do. But it turned out so great. Joey's vocals are so amazing, so we knew we wanted the song on the EP. After Joey's vocals, all the song needed was a guitar lead, and I did that in my Chicago studio. I think the song turned out to be one of the best songs on the EP.

"Everyone in the band is a huge CHEAP TRICK fan. They were one of the first concerts I went to, probably in 1978 when I was living in New York. I saw them at the Palladium."

ANTHRAX is continuing to tour in support of its latest album, 2016's "For All Kings", which sold 34,000 copies in the United States in its first week of release to land at position No. 9 on The Billboard 200 chart.

BEAST IN BLACK, the Helsinki, Finland-based metal band led by former BATTLE BEAST guitarist and main songwriter Anton Kabanen, will release its debut album, titled "Berserker", in November via Nuclear Blast. The disc was produced by Kabanen and recorded primarily at his studio, Sound Quest Studio. The cover artwork is a collaboration between Anton and Roman Ismailov, who was the original illustrator and graphic artist for BATTLE BEAST.

Kabanen states: "Our wildest dreams came true when we made a deal with Nuclear Blast, the biggest and the best heavy metal label in the world!

"We are thrilled about our debut album release in November and besides the massive anthem-like heavy metal songs, we'll promise unforgettable live shows all around the world as we unleash the 'Berserker' album!"

BEAST IN BLACK was formed by Kabanen shortly after he exited BATTLE BEAST in early 2015. By the end of that year, his new group had played its first gig as opening act for NIGHTWISH.

The recording process for "Berserker" took more than a year and was completed this summer. The Nuclear Blast deal was inked almost immediately after BEAST IN BLACK put the finishing touches on the album.

According to a press release, "Berserker" "continues in the style of Anton's previously composed works which include the first three BATTLE BEAST albums. One of the essential themes on this debut album is the Japanese manga and anime Berserk."

Kabanen was dismissed from BATTLE BEAST in February 2015 due to what was described at the time as "insurmountable disagreements" with the other members of the band.

In a 2016 interview with Hungary's Hard Rock Magazin, Anton stated about his split with BATTLE BEAST: "To be honest, I'd prefer not to go into the truth how I see it, because probably it would only start an ugly and endless war of words. But at least to squeeze it into minimum without going into details, I can tell that hypocrisy, lying, opportunism and blackmailing was the name of the game. The whole thing was just wrong and twisted and there is no more BATTLE BEAST, if you ask me."

Kabanen admitted that it was "hard at first" to move forward after his departure from BATTLE BEAST "but the only solution was just to keep going." He added: "I got support from many dear people; fans, friends, colleagues, family and etc. I'm grateful to everyone who stood by my side. My passion is to create music and I always do it with full heart and uncompromised. So I kept writing new songs and tried to focus in forming a new band/project that would consist of people whose musical professionalism matches — or surpasses — my expectations and of people who would be honest and loyal friends."

Regarding why he chose to keep the word "beast" in the name of his new band, Anton said: "I want to continue my vision which I originally started with BATTLE BEAST. Basically, it means writing my own songs with freedom, and the beast has already become an essential part of my life. It's something like Eddie of IRON MAIDEN."

Asked how he would compare the music and the overall vibe of his new band to that of BATTLE BEAST, Anton said: "The feeling in this group is totally different. And only in a good way. Everyone can be themselves and we enjoy each other's company and I believe people will feel and see it. In BEAST IN BLACK, the level of musicianship is much higher than in BATTLE BEAST. The band rehearsals, the album recordings and the communication is so much smoother. The music itself is not gonna be so different, but it's gonna be more powerful and heavy."

Video footage of BEAST IN BLACK performing a new song called "Go To Hell" at last year's Tuska festival in Helsinki, Finland can be seen below.

BATTLE BEAST singer Noora Louhimo told Metal Assault earlier this year that the band parted ways with Anton because he "wanted to do all the songs and make decisions on everything, and we weren't willing to do that. We wanted this band to be involved, and have everyone write songs if they want to."

BEAST IN BLACK is:

Anton Kabanen (BATTLE BEAST) - Guitar, VocalsYannis Papadopoulos (WARDRUM) - Lead VocalsKasperi Heikkinen (U.D.O.) - GuitarMáté Molnar (WISDOM) - BassSami Hänninen (BRYMIR) - Drums

In a brand new interview with Billboard, MOTÖRHEAD drummer Mikkey Dee offered his opinion as to what the band's late mainman Ian "Lemmy" Kilmister might have said about the recent events that took place in Charlottesville, Virginia, where an August 12 white supremacist protest against the removal of a statue of Confederate General Robert E. Lee descended into violence that culminated in the death of activist Heather Heyer and injuries to almost two dozen others after a car rammed into a group of counter-protestors.

"Oh, he would have fucking hated it. I can totally speak for him there: He hated that shit," Dee said. "A lot of people judged him on the fact that he collected war stuff. A lot of people did not look behind the curtain. He hated fucking Nazis. He hated stupidity and he was fascinated by the stupidity of the human race. He would probably write some incredible lyrics about it — he thought it was so ridiculous."

Lemmy had an extensive collection of military and particularly Nazi paraphernalia from World War II, and he had been known to wear Iron Crosses and hats from the German air force. He publicly condemned racism, claiming he "only collected the stuff" and "didn't collect the ideas." He explained: "I've got friends of all colors and religious persuasions. I ain't got a racist bone in my body."

MOTÖRHEAD will release a covers compilation album, "Under Cöver" — a collection of some of the band's best covers — on September 1.

"Outback Incest Clan", the new video from death metal veterans BROKEN HOPE, can be seen below. The song is taken from the band's seventh studio album, "Mutilated And Assimilated", which was released in June via Century Media Records.

BROKEN HOPE guitarist Jeremy Wagner commented: "What's in a name? Our song titles usually say a lot, and 'Outback Incest Clan' should tell you what's in store.

"I got the idea for the subject matter straight from our sick vocalist, Damian Leski, who has can given me a few lyrical ideas. This song is based on true events!

"I'll give you the Wikipedia lowdown: It's about the 'Colt family incest case,' dubbed by media as the 'Colt incest clan,' an Australian family discovered in 2012 to have been engaging in four generations of incest beginning with 'Tim and June Colt,' a brother and sister who emigrated from New Zealand in the 1970s. The family grew to nearly forty members ranging from grandparents to mothers, fathers, sons, daughters, aunts, uncles, nephews, brothers and sisters all engaging in various forms of incest. Many of the children suffered from deformities and medical problems.

"The video was another collaboration between director Tommy Jones and BROKEN HOPE and we love the way this one played out with Tommy's cool camera angles and the creepiness he injected into it."

"Mutilated And Assimilated" was produced by Scott Creekmore and features artwork by Wes Benscoter

"Mutilated and Assimilated" track listing:

01. The Meek Shall Inherit Shit (02:48)02. The Bunker (03:28)03. Mutilated And Assimilated (03:31)04. Outback Incest Clan (02:31)05. Malicious Meatholes (03:50)06. Blast Frozen (01:58)07. The Necropants (03:14)08. The Carrion Eaters (03:07)09. Russian Sleep Experiment (03:15)10. Hell's Handpuppets (02:48)11. Beneath Antarctic Ice (01:25)12. Swamped-In Gorehog (06:21)

BROKEN HOPE in 2015 overhauled its lineup by adding bassist Diego Soria (DISGORGE) and guitarist Matt Szlachta (DIRGE WITHIN, CHIMAIRA).

BROKEN HOPE is:

Damian Leski - VocalsJeremy Wagner - GuitarsMike Miczek - DrumsMatt Szlachta - Lead GuitarsDiego Soria – Bass Regarding the follow-up to 2013's "Omen Of Disease", Wagner said: "BROKEN HOPE studio album number seven?! Un-fucking-believable! I'm floored at how amazing our new album turned out. The songs are relentless and violent and dark and heavy — and all from a fresh and ferocious place we haven't shared before. Moreover, thanks to my new studio and the stellar work of engineering/producing Jedi — Scott Creekmore — the production is on a sonic level like we've never had in our career.

"For me personally, I feel 'Mutilated And Assimilated' is my own finest hour as a guitarist and lyricist since I formed this band as teenager. I've never felt this inspired before. The album has my strongest riffage to date, it also has Leski riffage on a few songs, it has my best friends on it, and in a crazy twist, I used Jeff Hanneman's guitars to write the album with and used them to track with in honor of his influence on myself and the world of metal."

Earlier this summer, Volbeat played the prestigious Wacken Open Air Festival in Wacken, Germany. The band has just shared professionally filmed footage of their performance of "Slaytan" / "Dead But Rising" from that unforgettable gig:

Catch Volbeat live in concert:

September
1 - Messe Graz - Graz, Austria
3 - Willy-Sachs-Stadion - Schweinfurt, Germany
5 - Strijp-S - Eindhoven, The Netherlands
7 - Telenor Arena - Oslo, Norway
9 - Friends Arena - Stockholm, Sweden