In a brand new interview with Forbes, Lars Ulrich was asked which drummer he would hypothetically want to play in METALLICA while he watched. "That would probably have to be Phil Rudd from AC/DC," Lars responded. "If I could hear Phil Rudd play 'Enter Sandman' or something like that in his pocket, his groove, that would be awesome."

Ulrich's latest comments echo those he made back in May when he told Baltimore radio station 98 Rock that he would pick Rudd to take over behind the kit for METALLICA if he was no longer able to play drums in the band. "He's been probably my main, biggest source of inspiration when we did the turn-away from the super-progressive stuff, the crazy stuff after 'Justice', when we got into the 'black album' and the 'Load' stuff, when it got a little more about the bounce and the riffs and the feel and the groove and all that," Lars said. "Phil Rudd, he's the top of that pyramid. Hearing Phil Rudd play behind James [Hetfield], that'd be pretty cool."

Asked by 98 Rock if he could imagine a scenario where one member of METALLICA could no longer go on and the other three had to decide whether to continue with a replacement, Ulrich answered: "I think a lot of it would have to be under what the circumstances were… If somebody leaves, it's hard for me to imagine that we would not go, 'You know, we've had a great ride for thirty-five years.' But if somebody encourages the other three guys to continue, or there's an injury... I'm just saying you never know what the circumstances are."

METALLICA has had relatively few personnel changes in its 36-year career. The band replaced guitarist Dave Mustaine and bassist Ron McGovney with Kirk Hammett and Cliff Burton in its early days, while Burton's death in 1986 led to the hiring of Jason Newsted.

That lineup remained stable until Newsted's exit in 2001, but with the addition of Robert Trujillo in 2003 the band roster has been the same for fourteen years and counting.

As for Ulrich's hand-picked replacement, Rudd was ousted from AC/DC in late 2014 after being arrested in his adopted home of New Zealand on charges of drug possession and threatening to kill.

He has since gone through therapy and rehab and has expressed interest in returning to AC/DC, but has been recently touring behind his solo debut, "Head Job".

The North American leg of METALLICA's "WorldWired" trek will hit stadiums in nine more cities before ending in mid-August.

The next stop on the tour is Montreal, Quebec, Canada on Wednesday, July 19.

Former CANDLEMASS singer Messiah Marcolin joined AMON AMARTH on stage at the Gefle Metal Festival in Gävle, Sweden this past Friday, July 14 to perform the AMON AMARTH song "Hel". Fan-filmed video footage of his appearance can be seen below.

The studio version of "Hel" appears on AMON AMARTH's "Deceiver Of The Gods" album, which came out in 2013.

Asked by Metal Discovery how the Messiah collaboration came about, now-former AMON AMARTH drummer Fredrik Andersson said: "I think he and our singer [Johan Hegg] met many years ago and just became friends, so he came up to one of our shows in Stockholm and we ended up on the bus, drinking all night and talking about doing a duet with him and Johan. And nothing really happened about it but, when we wrote the music for this song, it has this doomy feeling and we felt that would be the perfect opportunity to call him in. And he was still up for it."

AMON AMARTH is continuing to tour in support of its tenth studio album, "Jomsviking", which debuted at No. 19 on The Billboard 200, having shifted 21,000 equivalent album units in the week ending March 31, 2016.

"Jomsviking" was released on March 25, 2016 via Metal Blade in North America and Sony Music internationally. The first concept record in AMON AMARTH's storied career tells a tragic tale of love and revenge, backed by the Swedes' trademark melodic, anthemic metal, which was produced and mixed once again by Andy Sneap (MEGADETH, TESTAMENT, ACCEPT). The epic original story is set in the world of the Jomsvikings, the legendary order of mercenary Vikings.

Jocke Wallgren was named AMON AMARTH's new permanent drummer last September. Jocke had been sitting behind the kit for all shows on the group's current "Jomsviking" world tour.

"The Raven Eyes", the new video from Montreal, Quebec, Canada-based melodic death metallers THE AGONIST, can be seen below. The song is taken from the band's latest album, "Five", which was released last September via Napalm Records. The CD was recorded with producer Mike Plotnikoff, who has previously worked with BUCKCHERRY, OTEP, HALESTORM, DROWNING POOL, THEORY OF A DEADMAN, 3 DOORS DOWN, FEAR FACTORY, FLYLEAF and SKILLET, among others.

Commented THE AGONIST guitarist Danny Marino: "Writing this was a departure for Vicky [Psarkis, vocals] and I but it may have been one of the most rewarding as songwriters. It allowed us to explore sounds and emotions we've always wanted to but could never quite get to in a metal setting. Also, working with Igor Khoroshev (YES) really helped bring out the full depth of Vicky's piano and string arrangements. The lyrics were originally inspired by stories of the renaissance plague doctors. FTB Visuals was able to take these themes and create a modern world storyline with an equally dark overtone that captured the painful emotions in the song."

Marino previously stated about "Five": "This album represents another shift in the evolution of THE AGONIST!

"Vicky and I went even deeper into what makes a song really connect.

"I'm very proud of everyone's hard work making this the most diverse and interesting record for us to date!

"It was a great learning experience working with Mike Plotnikoff and fully immersing ourselves in the recording process 24/7."

Psarkis added: "Being in THE AGONIST for over two years now and after releasing my debut album with the band and numerous tours, I can say that 'Five' is the record where I believe that we finally found our sound!

"There's a certain confidence that comes with experience and there's something about being fully comfortable that can take your approach towards songwriting to a whole other level.

"Working on the lyrics and vocals on this album was an incredibly natural process.

"Halfway into the pre-production, we realized that a lot of our songs seemed to be telling a story and hearing the album in its entirety is like escaping into our world."

Norway's Vreid have released a video for “Sólverv”, the title track of the band’s seventh album, released through Indie Recordings back in October 2015. Watch the clip below.

Tracklisting:

“Haust”
“Sólverv”
“Geitaskadl”
“Ætti sitt Fjedl”
“Når Byane Brenn”
“Storm frå Vest”
“Fridom med daudens klang”

“Sólverv” video:

“Når Byane Brenn” video:

“Haust”:

Sony Music Entertainment and legendary heavy metal band JUDAS PRIEST have announced that "Judas Priest: Road To Valhalla", a new mobile game for iPhone, iPad and iPod touch is now available in the App Store.

The app features stunning new visuals and gameplay set to the iconic songs "Halls Of Valhalla", "Breaking The Law", "Turbo Lover", "Electric Eye", "Painkiller" and "You've Got Another Thing Coming".

"Judas Priest: Road To Valhalla" innovates by making isolated song stems (drums, vocals, guitar) from the 2016 "Battle Cry" album available to players exclusively within the game.

Using an innovative visual mechanic, players must fill "stem meters" to construct the full song and progress through each level of the game.

"When we set out to make this game, we wanted to give fans a new kind of visual listening experience," said JUDAS PRIEST singer Rob Halford, who also appears in a series of exclusive video clips throughout the game.

"For the first time, we are making individual stems of our songs available to fans to give them a new and interactive way to engage with some of the best songs from our catalog."

"Judas Priest: Road To Valhalla" is a joint collaboration between Judas Priest, Sony Music Entertainment, Trinifold Management LLC UK and Babaroga, a leading mobile game studio. Says JUDAS PRIEST: "Metal maniacs, are you ready to join JUDAS PRIEST on the Road To Valhalla? We are excited to have you take charge and lead the way on the bike and the tour bus! Let the molten metal mayhem begin with the thrill of the ride! Can you claim victory on this perilous journey that leads you into Valhalla?"

As previously reported, JUDAS PRIEST is putting the finishing touches on its long-awaited follow-up to 2014's "Redeemer Of Souls" album. Helming the sessions for the new disc are the band's longtime producer Tom Allom, acclaimed British knob-twiddler Andy Sneap (MEGADETH, EXODUS, TESTAMENT, ACCEPT) and engineer Mike Exeter (BLACK SABBATH).

Swedish hard rockers, Eclipse, have released a lyric video for “The Downfall Of Eden”, a track from the band’s fifth studio album, Monumentum, out now. The new clip is available for streaming below.

Monumentum tracklisting:

“Vertigo”
“Never Look Back”
“Killing Me”
“The Downfall Of Eden”
“Hurt”
“Jaded”
“Born To Lead”
“For Better Or For Worse”
“No Way Back”
“Night Comes Crawling”
“Black Rain”

“The Downfall Of Eden” lyric video:

“Hurt” video:

“Jaded”:

“Never Look Back” video:

“Vertigo”:

Eclipse lineup:

Erik Mårtensson - lead vocals, guitars
Magnus Henriksson - guitars
Philip Crusner - drums
Magnus Ulfstedt - bass

The second trailer for "Medusa", the new album from cult U.K. metallers PARADISE LOST, can be seen below. The disc will be released on September 1 via Nuclear Blast.

You can pre-order "Medusa" in several formats: standard jewelcase CD digibook including two bonus tracks; various colored 180-gram LP (black, clear, copper, gray+red bi-colored, gold and NB anniversary green); collector's box including the digibook, gatefold picture disc, the seven-inch single of "Blood & Chaos", a candle, poster, band photo card and poster flag; mailorder edition collector's box, including the digibook, gatefold picture disc, a seven-inch single featuring the tracks "Shrines" and "Symbolic Virtue", a candle, poster, band photo card, poster flag and exclusive cover artwork.

Pre-order the physical editions of the new album, including special merchandise, at this location.

"Medusa" track listing:

01. Fearless Sky (8:30)02. Gods Of Ancient (5:50)03. From The Gallows (3:42)04. The Longest Winter (4:31)05. Medusa (6:20)06. No Passage For The Dead (4:16)07. Blood & Chaos (3:51)08. Until The Grave (5:41)

Bonus tracks:

09. Frozen Illusion (5:45)10. Shrines (3:59)11. Symbolic Virtue (4:38)

The artwork was created by Branca Studio and shows the infamous Gorgone Medusa from Greek mythology, carrying venomous snakes as hair and turning anyone into stone who would dare to look into her eyes.

PARADISE LOST guitarist Greg Mackintosh states about the artwork: "Whilst we were writing 'Medusa' and realizing what the new songs were becoming, we had to find an artist to reflect this direction. After searching around for a while, I found Branca Studios. They have a keen eye for design and their modern take on retro artwork really fit the bill. What they have come up with is a blending of colorful-yet-retro styling, whilst maintaining the classic PARADISE LOST feel."

About the choice to make her the figurehead of this new album, singer Nick Holmes adds: "I was intrigued about a greater meaning and thinking more along the lines of what Medusa represents metaphorically. 'Medusa' as a title works in many ways. From a nihilist perspective, when I read the description of 'Medusa' on the Wikipedia page: 'Attempts to avoid looking into Medusa's eyes represents avoiding the ostensibly depressing reality that the universe is meaningless.' The title was pretty much in the bag!"

PARADISE LOST has announced a very special release show that will take place in Stuttgart at the iconic LKA Longhorn. Only on this night of September 1, PARADISE LOST will perform its entire new album. A short time later, PARADISE LOST will embark for an extensive European journey and bring their label mates and U.S. doomsters PALLBEARER, as well as SINISTRO from Portugal.

Regarding the sound of "Medusa", Nick told Italy's Linea Rock: "I would say if you've ever heard every album by PARADISE LOST, it's closest to the 'Shades Of God' album, our third album. It's an album carrying on from that, but hopefully it's a lot more sophisticated and it's better produced and better played than that album." Gregor added: "Style-wise, it's more between 'Gothic' and 'Shades Of God' era, with modern touches to it as well."

TERROR UNIVERSAL, the "horror metal" band featuring ILL NIÑO members Dave Chavarri (drums; who also previously played with SOULFLY) and Ahrue Luster (guitar; formerly of MACHINE HEAD), has inked a deal with Minus Head Records. The group will release its debut full-length album, titled "Make Them Bleed", on October 13. "It is both an honor and a pleasure to sign with Minus Head Records," says Chavarri. "Label owner and CEO Brad Hardie has a strong passion for heavy metal and understands the elements needed to break a band like TERROR UNIVERSAL in the marketplace. It is very seldom in this industry that a label cares that much about their bands. We are ready, and we are here to dominate." Hardie adds: "Very excited to add TERROR UNIVERSAL to the roster. Their combination of metal with horror lyrics and imagery is exactly the kind of thing we look for! Can't wait to unleash this beast of a record!" "Make Them Bleed" track listing:

01. Welcome To Hell02. Passage Of Pain03. Dig You A Hole04. Dead On Arrival05. Through The Mirrors06. Your Time Has Come07. Make Them Bleed08. Into Darkness09. Spines10. Piece By Piece TERROR UNIVERSAL are no strangers to being on the road, as they have shared many stages with international acts such as KORN, ASKING ALEXANDRIA, HELLYEAH, PAPA ROACH and FEAR FACTORY. The band is on tour right now in the States with rotating openers and labelmates INCITE. TERROR UNIVERSAL is:

Vocals: PlagueDrums: MassacreGuitars: ThraxBass: Diabolus

DREAM THEATER guitarist John Petrucci spoke to Germany's Gitarre & Bass about the twenty-fifth anniversary of the band's breakthrough album "Images And Words", which the group is performing in its entirety on the "Images, Words & Beyond" tour. You can now watch the chat below.

Asked if he and his bandmates had a feeling during the recording process that "Images And Words" would turn out to be such an important album for them, Petrucci said: "Well, we had no idea that it would end up doing what it did for us — basically launch our touring and international career as a band. That's really what it did. We had no idea, no. In fact, we didn't even write songs, really, that had that potential in that atmosphere, because all the things that were being played on the radio sounded nothing like DREAM THEATER, so we didn't really think we had a chance. They were playing NIRVANA and PEARL JAM. There was still some kind of '80-ish bands around and stuff. Even the band that David Prater, the producer, had done right before us was this band FIREHOUSE, and they were like a big pop-metal ballad band. So we didn't think we had any place. But we did feel really good about how the album came out. We felt very proud of it. We knew that it sounded good. I remember feeling really proud anytime I would play it for somebody. Like, 'Oh, you have to hear this. Check it out.' And the reaction was always, 'Wow! That sounds really good.' So we knew there was something there, but we had no idea what it would do for us."

Buoyed by the success of the album's first single, "Pull Me Under", "Images And Words" eventually went gold in the U.S. and established the band as a standard-bearer for complex-yet-melodic progressive metal. The song and accompanying video received airtime on radio and MTV and expanded DREAM THEATER's audience.

"'Pull Me Under' was a surprise to everyone, 'cause 'Pull Me Under' is… it's over eight minutes long, never meant to be a single," Petrucci told Gitarre & Bass. "Again, the songs being played on the radio were nothing like DREAM THEATER, but, for some reason, it must have stuck out to where people were calling the radio stations: 'What is that band? Oh my God! I wanna hear that song again.' And that kind of snowballed and grew, and 'Pull Me Under' became a rock radio hit. And I remember at the time I was living in New Jersey, on the East Coast of the U.S., and I'd turn on the radio and I'd hear it all the time. It was a cool feeling."

Asked if "Pull Me Under" is the most important song of DREAM THEATER's career, John said: "Yeah. Probably. Yeah. If you think about what it did for us as far as the future is concerned, it really put up on the map. It enabled us to go from local guys driving around in a van, playing to a few people in clubs to an international touring band with this whole long and very busy and productive career. And who knows? Without that kind of initial spark, we may never have been able to be as successful as we have. I mean, who knows? Maybe we would have. I don't know. But it certainly, certainly helped. Big time."

DREAM THEATER is planning to bring the "Images, Words & Beyond" tour to North America in the fall. Each performance will see the iconic progressive rock band delivering a live set of "Images And Words" in its entirety along with fan favorites from their renowned catalogue.

Metal legends Venom - the 2017 lineup guided by Cronos along with guitarist Rage and drummer Dante - landed at Sweden Rock to offer a black metal outburst in an old school way. Metal-Rules.com had a unique opportunity to sit down with the whole band and discuss several interesting and fascinating topics, including forthcoming new music. An excerpt follows:

Metal-Rules: From The Very Depths, the album. It was two years ago, almost three soon. So you have any plans for the next one?

Cronos: “Yeah, yeah. We’re always writing.”

Metal-Rules: Are you still signed with Spinefarm records?

Cronos: “Yeah, yeah. No, no. We don’t want to go. The sister company is Universal. We’re just sitting behind it all. That’s where we get the backing from, and it took me a long time, to get a big label to actually to have the confidence in a metal band. Because yes, we got ignored and things were coming out on independent labels everywhere. We were never getting the backing. We’re doing alright with Universal at the moment. Because they’re a fucking massive company and they’re getting behind the band named Venom. Which I just I think is fucking very special. Now you can just go and make a quick phone call, and then get off a train. Walk into the Universal building. Get your tag and go upstairs and go and sit with the fucking manager, that’s a special thing. That’s fucking cool. Those guys are happy to have you there, and that’s great. Because once upon a time, you’ve seen the EMI thing that put out there? That’s what it used to be like, and that letter came back with a tape that I had sent. And EMI didn’t even play it.”

Metal-Rules: Somebody lied then…

Cronos: “Yeah. It took the time to write that FFFFFFFFFFFF YOU YOU YOU YOU YOU “fuck off.” Now to also see EMI being bought out, hahaha.”

Metal-Rules: But going back to the original question, you have plans for the next Venom album?

Cronos: “Plans are put into each other. They’re all like a progression, as this band grows, the albums grow. The songs get more complex, they get deeper and heavier, and production gets better. We’ve already put three songs together for the EP, which was only delayed because there is a backload of vinyl now. Everybody is buying fucking vinyl, and it’s really hard to get the pressings. The label was doing one, but we couldn’t get in. So, we kind of just put it back a bit. But the EP will get released this year, and then the album gets released in 2018. So, you’ll hear from the EP the direction, about is pretty much where we are now.”

Read the full interview at Metal-Rules.com.

(Photo - Marko Syrjala)

The Gainesville Sun reported on July 14th that Adrenaline Mob was involved in a fatal accident in Florida on the way to a show. One person died and six others were injured when a tractor-trailer veered off Interstate 75 near Micanopy and struck the group’s RV that had pulled off the highway with a flat tire. Out of the nine people who were in the vehicles, one died, six were taken to area hospitals, and the other two declined medical treatment. Of the six injured, three were listed in critical condition and the other three in stable condition.

It was confirmed later that Adrenaline Mob / Trans-Siberian Orchestra bassist David Z. was the one fatality. TSO violinist Mark Wood has posted the following tribute:

"This is how I will always remember Dave Z. His feet never seemed to touch the ground. He was such a great upbeat positive person and adored our family as much as we adored his. I'll never forget the first day we met Dave... he joined us on our 2nd or 3rd tour with Trans-Siberian Orchestra... a pimply faced wide-eyed kid filming every moment of his first experience on a tour bus in a big band and he could not wipe the grin off his face. We couldn't help but laugh with him as he literally shouted his excitement from one end of the bus to the other. Those early days in TSO... everyone worked really hard to build the band up to be successful. And Dave, without question, was part of the team of great musicians that made TSO so successful. We shared so many laughs over the years and so many cherished moments: ZO2 performing at our annual Kaye Woodstock parties at our house, to playing at the NAMM Show with us and eating pies at Bakers Square, to Dave being in my band in the very early days of Electrify Your Strings!, to performing his heart out in my Turbow video. I will miss you forever, my brother..."

Adrenaline Mob guitarist Mike Orlando has issued the following statement with regards to the accident that took David Z.'s life:

"I cannot begin to thank you all for all the prayers and thoughts. I'm trying to process and deal with this, physically and mentally... so I'm sorry for being vague. We've literally experienced hell on earth. I'm absolutely broken, both physical and mental. I love you Dave, I will miss you more then words can say. You were one of the sweetest souls I've ever known."

Drummer Jordan Cannata comments:

"I don't even know where to begin so I will start by saying thank you for all of the love and support from everyone. We are all devastated and will need some time to physically and mentally cope but the outpouring of love has been nothing short of inspiring. David Z... I love you, I miss you, and send my heartfelt condolences to your family and friends. To the rest of my bandmates and crew, I love you all. Please keep everyone involved in your thoughts and prayers. Thank you everyone. RIP David Z."

Frontman Russell Allen previously posted the following statement:

"Yesterday I was involved in an accident that took the life of my dear friend and bandmate, David Z, and left three of our crew in critical condition. I'm overwhelmed with sorrow. I am so grateful for the outpouring of love we have received from around the world. Please continue to pray for David's family during this difficult time. And those in critical condition.

I want to personally thank Marine Lance Cpl. Patrick Dumon for his bravery in assisting me pull our driver Jason from the wreckage and for attending to his wounds. And for helping me to secure and attend to Jane once I was able to get her free from the fire. Without his selfless act of courage I would not have been able to get them clear of the RV before it was engulfed in flames. On behalf of my band and crew I thank you."

Check out Adrenaline Mob's latest album, We The People, featuring David Z's recording debut with the band.

Bassist David Zablidowsky - better known as David Z in metal circles for his work with the Trans-Siberian Orchestra, Adrenaline Mob and ZO2 - was killed in a three-car accident on a Florida highway over the weekend that injured seven others. The Florida Highway Patrol reports that Zablidowsky died when a tractor-trailer veered off the highway on Friday, July 14th into the Adrenaline Mob RV, which had pulled over to repair a flat tire.

TSO bandmate and longtime friend Chris Caffery has posted the following tribute to David Z.

"Hello friends,

Lying here sleepless with an aching heart and soul. Still finding it impossible to believe the news about my little brother David Z.

I'm praying hard for my dear friend Jane Train right now. I truly hope she will be ok. 
The Lord works in mysterious ways. There are so many evil and twisted people on this planet. David was a beautiful and gentle soul. The world is not a better place with him gone. The heavens are a better place with him there.

I remember 1999 like it was yesterday. Of course sometimes I can't remember yesterday but that is another story. Sava-con was a very special time for all of us in Savatage. However the most special part to me was getting to meet and discover this beam of light and talent named David Z.

I watched him play with his band that day and he totally blew me away. Insane chops on the bass and a brilliant stage presence. His hair was very long then and it is naturally very curly. He reminded me of Hal Patino from King Diamonds band. Just an amazingly cool b
bassist.

I told him that one day I'd get to play with him. He was so thrilled by the idea. His love for Savatage was so, for a lack of a better word...cute.

I knew at the time that TSO was considering the idea of East and West. I wanted to get him a shot at the gig. The audition process was a lot different back then because TSO was still developing. There were no tapes or videos involved. It was like "Hey Paul I think you will really love this bassist! I bragged about his playing and Paul asked about his look. I told him he looked really cool. Super long hair, in great shape. Paul was excited to see him. The long hair was a favorite part of a stage image for Paul. Old fashioned rock star!

We had audition days in the city for all of the positions available and David came down to meet Paul. When he wandered into SIR studios I almost had a heart attack. He had cut all of his hair off. This kid went from looking like Hal Patino to looking like Skippy from the tv show Family Ties!

Those of you who have been around us know that I started calling him Skippy at that point and it was a nickname that stuck with him til his very last seconds on earth and will continue to stick with him for eternity. He's Dave Z to most of you...he's Skippy to a lot of us in TSO land.

I was a lil nervous about his fate at that point. However this is where the magic of David Z took over. His personality and talent dwarfed the hair test. He played for Paul and blew him away. I can't remember exactly when they told him...but he got the gig! I was excited for him.

Over the years I got to watch him develop from this kinda awkward, geeky kid from Brooklyn into one of the most dynamic stage performers on the planet. The women loved him, the show had an energy that was addicting.

A few years later we had dealt with the tragic loss of Daryl Pediford during tour rehearsals. That tour was so sad and haunting because Daryl was my big brother on the road.

This tour will be sad and haunting as well. Every song will have stage moments that remind me of David. Every city will have a silly story that will remind me of him. Every time we eat or watch tv or soundcheck or wander the halls there will be something that reminds us of David.

He had an incredible energy. An unrelenting desire to entertain. He was onstage 24-7. Not in image or acting like a rock star. In the sense where he always loved entertaining us as much as the audience. He was far from shy and he let us know it constantly!

There were backstage jams, push up competitions, eating competitions, unexpected costumes, all night photoshop jokes on photos of all of us. The list goes on and on.
I was the person who called David to tell him about Paul's passing and I just remember the crying in his voice and the cries of Why Paul?

My heart is crying that same cry again. Why Skippy?

I know all of us have lost a dear friend and the fans have lost a beloved band member.
The thing that destroys me the most about this is his family. The Z brothers have a bond that is so beautiful. It's so rare and so precious. That bond goes through his entire family. My heart bleeds for Mom Z. My mom and his mom would always get together and I would listen to each of them brag and tell embarrassing stories about us both. My mom still hasn't stopped crying since she heard about Dave. Many of those tears are for his beautiful mother.

I'm praying so hard for that family right now. People keep saying to me "sorry for your loss". Yes I lost a dear friend and a little brother. But this loss is far from mine. It starts with his family and extends to the rest of the world.

Accidents like this are so hard to come to terms with. I remember when I got the call about Criss Oliva's passing. It took a long time for me to even accept that it was true. It's the same here now with David.

People keep asking me how I am. I'm numb. I'm shattered, I'm confused and yes shocked. Paul O'Neill , David Z, Kyle my tech, Gary Muchmore Savatages sound engineer, Jan Savatages monitor engineer, my Dad...the last 16 months have been non stop. Many other friends and acquaintances as well.

Life unfortunately ends with the passing from this world. I'm praying for all of these beautiful souls. My legion of angels that one day I will meet again. In the meantime I'll be strong and use my love for all of them as inspiration to carry on.

I'm gonna miss you Skippy you goofy little kid. I'm proud to have shared the stage with you for all of these years and no one will ever replace you. You don't replace a one of a kind. It just doesn't happen.

RIP David Z. I love you my little brother in heaven."

Chris

STONE SOUR frontman Corey Taylor was greeted by a "Fuck NICKELBACK" chant during his band's performance at the Chicago Open Air festival appearance this past weekend.

The dispute between STONE SOUR and NICKELBACK started when the latter group's frontman, Chad Kroeger, blasted STONE SOUR as "NICKELBACK Lite" and called out Taylor for alleging saying that it was "easy" to write a hit song.

STONE SOUR opened its July 16 set with one new song and three older tracks before Taylor and his bandmates walked off stage for a moment. As the singer was making his way back on stage to sing the hit STONE SOUR ballad "Bother", fans began chanting "Fuck NICKELBACK!", prompting Corey to break into a huge smile. "You guys are fucking insane," he laughed (see video below). "Come on! Get it out of your fucking system. Make some fucking noise out there. Beautiful, crazy bitches."

He continued: "I'll tell you what: we're going to play you a non-hit song," adding air quotes to the word "non-hit."

Corey then apparently threw some shade at Kroeger, saying, "What a dick."

In an interview posted last month with Sweden's Metal Covenant, Kroeger said that STONE SOUR was "trying to be NICKELBACK," adding, "Corey Taylor has said some really nasty things about me before in the press. He talks about how easy it is to write a hit song. Well, show me. Show me. Write one. I have yet to hear one. They're okay. But they're not as good as NICKELBACK. They sound like 'NICKELBACK Lite.'"

NICKELBACK released its ninth album, "Feed The Machine", on June 16, while STONE SOUR's new LP, "Hydrograd", arrived on June 30.

BODY COUNT, the metal band fronted by hip-hop legend, actor and director Ice-T, has released the official music video for its cover of the SLAYER classic "Raining Blood". The clip, which was directed by Ice-T and Treach, also features the end of another SLAYER song, "Postmortem".

BODY COUNT's version of "Raining Blood" is featured on the band's latest album, "Bloodlust", which was released at the end of March. The follow-up to 2014's "Manslaughter" includes contributions from MEGADETH's Dave Mustaine, SOULFLY and CAVALERA CONSPIRACY's Max Cavalera and LAMB OF GOD's Randy Blythe.

BODY COUNT bassist Vincent Price recently spoke about how he approached recording "Raining Blood" in the studio. He said: "I got this phone call from Ice-T at the same time he told me about trying to find people to be on this record. He goes, 'Vince, I want to cover 'Raining Blood'. I'm thinking, 'Wait a minute, 'Raining Blood' starts with the end of 'Postmortem'. I was, like, 'You know what? Let's put a twist on it — start our 'Raining Blood' and then end with 'Postmortem', which I do vocals on."

Ice-T previously said of the decision to release a new BODY COUNT album: "Music happens in climates. Groups like RAGE AGAINST THE MACHINE and KORN were born when the world was in turmoil, then music went into this delusional period where hip-hop became about nothing more than poppin' bottles. Now we have impending doom again, racism is at an all-time high and it's our season again. This is the optimal time for a BODY COUNT record."

CAVALERA CONSPIRACY, the band led by brothers and founding SEPULTURA members Max (also of SOULFLY) and Igor Cavalera, recently completed work on its its fourth album at a studio in Phoenix, Arizona. The disc, which was produced by longtime friend Arthur Rizk, will tentatively be released in October via Napalm Records.

Speaking to Australia's The Rockpit, Max stated about the follow-up to 2014's "Pandemonium": "It's a beast of a record. I think it's got a really cool mix of death and thrash metal. It's a really well-put-together album and we have Justin [Broadrick] from GODFLESH singing on one song.

"I put it neck to neck with anything we did in the past — by far my favorite of all the CAVALERA albums," he continued. "I think it's going to surprise a lot of people. I think we did a great job on the production. Igor's drums sound huge. The guitar sounds super crispy, super catchy and crunchy. Our friend Arthur Rizk, he produced the last POWER TRIP record and INQUISITION album, so he's kind of an underground up-and-coming producer, he was really excited and motivated to work with us, and I really think he got some stuff out of me and Igor that wouldn't come out normally. He managed to get it out of us. That was great, so I'm very excited for people to hear it."

Regarding the songwriting process for the new CAVALERA CONSPIRACY album, Max said: "I started with riffs. I worked for two months only on the riffs, and I went crazy writing riffs all day long. [Then] we separated the best riffs out of those two months and out of those riffs, we could make the best songs from it. Then once the music was all done, it was time to work on the vocals. We worked very closely on the vocals, and it was cool because he was showing me a way of singing that I haven't sung since [SEPULTURA's] 'Morbid Visions'. He would play pieces of 'Morbid Visions' for me and would say, 'What do you think when you sung that?' I was, like, 'I wasn't thinking.' 'Do the same with this song — just don't think about it.' I would do something crazy, and it was fantastic. It was kind of a liberating experience when you have that no-hope-no-fear-type feeling you know? So we just went for it. We have an instrumental song that's amazing, we have the GODFLESH song and great thrash songs like 'Impalement Execution' and 'Judas Pariah'. I think people will really love this one."

Igor told HeavyMetal.dk last month that it was "good" for him and Max to have Rizk involved with the new CAVALERA CONSPIRACY album because Arthur "is super passionate about music, the same way we are. So to have someone like him coming in and helping us with ideas and things like that, I think it's gonna surprise a lot of people, 'cause he understands a lot about what's going on today in music, and that's pretty cool — that exchange with us, with the old-school ideas with also someone that understands music right now. I'm far more excited than I've been in many years to put out a record like this. So I have to say I'm quite into it, what we're doing right now."

Max concurred, telling HeavyMetal.dk: "[Arthur] captured the classic Max and Igor in a way that's never really quite been captured before. It was always his objective from the beginning — he wanted to capture the soul of the brothers, and I think he did. I think it's quite amazing, looking back, that somebody can get that out of you after twenty-five years, man. That's awesome. But, like Igor said, there's a lot of noise also — between songs we're gonna hear all this kind of crazy just pure noise and heaviness, which is unheard of. So I'm very excited."

"Pandemonium" sold around 2,600 copies in the United States in its first week of release to debut at position No. 177 on The Billboard 200 chart.

CAVALERA CONSPIRACY's previous CD, 2011's "Blunt Force Trauma" opened with around 5,000 units to land at No. 122.

The band's first CD, 2008's "Inflikted", registered a first-week tally of 9,000 copies to enter the chart at No. 72.

"Pandemonium" was produced by John Gray, who has previously worked with SOULFLY.

Max and Igor have spent the last year celebrating the twentieth anniversary of SEPULTURA's classic album "Roots" by performing the LP in its entirety.

GUNS N' ROSES' "Not In This Lifetime" tour is the most popular and highest-grossing global tour of 2017 so far, according to the mid-year report from live entertainment trade Pollstar.

Grossing $151.5 million, GUNS N' ROSES was the only group to sell more than one million tickets so far this year, says Pollstar president Gary Bongiovanni.

With an average ticket price of $108.98, GUNS' two shows at London Stadium on June 16 and June 17 generated the largest individual box office gross anywhere on the planet, raking in $17.3 million.

On tour in North America, U2 had a better average gross of $7.38 million on 19 shows, compared to GN'R's $5.61 million on 30 shows.

METALLICA was seen by 688,909 people at a gross of $88 million.

Other rock acts who appear in the Top 20 include RED HOT CHILI PEPPERS, BON JOVI, BRUCE SPRINGSTEEN & THE E STREET BAND and GREEN DAY.

Pollstar reports that the Top 50 Worldwide Tours grossed a combined $1.97 billion, just short of last year's record $1.98 billion.

GUNS kicked off its long-rumored and long-awaited reunion tour in April 2016 with a club show in Hollywood and appearances in Las Vegas and at California's Coachella festival.

The "Not In This Lifetime" tour features classic lineup members Slash (guitar), Duff McKagan (bass) and Axl Rose (vocals) backed by guitarist Richard Fortus, drummer Fank Ferrer, keyboardist Dizzy Reed and new second keyboardist Melissa Reese.

GUNS N' ROSES, with this same lineup, will come back to North America for at least another 15 stadium dates this summer, starting on July 27 in St. Louis and ending on September 8 in San Antonio. "The hard work hasn't even started yet," said the band's booking agent, UTA's Ken Fermaglich.

NINE INCH NAILS will release a new five-song EP titled "Add Violence" on Friday, July 21. The outfit, which consists primarily of founder Trent Reznor and longtime collaborator Atticus Ross, has issued the second track from the set, called "This Isn't The Place". Check it out below.

"Add Violence" is the second of three EPs that NINE INCH NAILS is releasing at roughly six-month intervals. The first one, "Not The Actual Events", came out last December. No release date or title has been announced yet for the third and final EP.

Speaking about the EPs on Beats 1 Radio on Thursday (July 13), Reznor said: "I love the format of an album. I like having forty minutes to ninety minutes to communicate a grand suite of songs that relate to each other and have something to say beyond the single song serving."

He continued: "But we were thinking about the amount of time it takes to do that and a bit of awareness about what it's like as a fan with so much choice… We thought it might be interesting to split the record up into three parts that come out and have their own moment of attention — each of which are stylistically a bit different."

Reznor added that when all three EPs are out, they will tell a "singular story."

"Add Violence" track listing:

01. Less Than 02. The Lovers03. This Isn't The Place04. Not Anymore05. The Background World

The last full-length NIN album, "Hesitation Marks", came out in 2013.

NINE INCH NAILS will begin a string of live shows on July 23 at the FYF Fest in Los Angeles, with Reznor saying that the band's new live show will be "anti-technology."

Fans that have seen METAL CHURCH live at their recent shows in the United States and Europe may have noticed a new face on stage. The guy behind the kit has been none other than Stet Howland, and now that the transitionary process is complete, METAL CHURCH is happy to announce the addition of Howland as the band's permanent new drummer. METAL CHURCH vocalist Mike Howe commented: "I am overwhelmed and grateful that Stet has found his way into the fold and I look forward to many successful and joyful performances together." METAL CHURCH guitarist Kurdt Vanderhoof added: "We are extremely happy to have Stet as our new engine. He is a fantastic drummer and a great guy to work with. But the hazing shall continue relentlessly!" Howland shared his excitement about joining METAL CHURCH: "After being home for only a few days from possibly the best tour of my life, I received a conference call from Kurdt and Mike, for a split second I thought to myself 'Oh shit, what did I do?' But my concern quickly turned to an unremovable smile when they asked if I would be interested in being a permanent member of METAL CHURCH. "It's no secret that METAL CHURCH have always been one of my favorite metal bands and that, in my opinion, they are on the strongest ascent of any band in their genre! And given that the band kicks ass live, has an incredible record label, a rabid fan base, relevant new music, recent Billboard chart positions and first-week CD sales that rival multi-platinum acts, my answer was an unwavering 'YES'! "On my maiden journey I was blown away by Mike Howe's consistent crowd destruction, Kurdt's ridiculously heavy riffs, Rick Van Zandt's refusal to make even one mistake and my glue-like bond with Steve (it's a well-known fact that METAL CHURCH bass player Steve Unger is one of my closest friends and it was Steve who initially suggested me to the band). "There is understanding, mutual respect and camaraderie present here that is missing in so many 'famous' acts. I am honoured to be a member of such a group of people and will do my best to deliver strong performances both live and in the studio."

METAL CHURCH's latest studio album, "XI", was released on March 25, 2016 via Rat Pak Records. Produced by Vanderhoof and co-produced by Chris "The Wizard" Collier, the band's eleventh studio release marked the return of Howe.

METAL CHURCH released "Classic Live" via Rat Pak Records on April 28. Produced by Vanderhoof, this special-edition release features nine classic METAL CHURCH songs recorded live on the band's 2016 tour and also includes a special bonus track, a powerful new studio version of "Fake Healer" that features a duet with QUEENSRŸCHE vocalist Todd La Torre.

Photo credit: Markus Wiedenmann Photography

According to Times Leader, ADRENALINE MOB's tour manager, Jane Train, remains in critical condition in a Gainesville, Florida hospital, four days after a crash that killed the band's bassist and injured several others.

A close associate of Train, whose real name is Janet Rains, told the Times Leader: "She is not in a coma; however, she is not fully conscious. She had surgery (Monday) morning and did very well. She is in very good hands. Please pray for her and the entire ADRENALINE MOB family."

The 48-year-old Train is best known as lead singer of '80s cover band M80.

The accident occurred near Micanopy early Friday afternoon when a tractor-trailer veered off Interstate 75 and struck the group's RV, which had pulled off the highway with a flat tire. ADRENALINE MOB was traveling in the RV and a van that was pulling a covered trailer.

According to Gainesville.com, a total of nine people were in the vehicles. One died, six were taken to area hospitals, and the other two declined medical treatment. The majority of those injured were listed in serious condition and one was in critical condition. Those injured were taken to UF Health Shands Hospital and North Florida Regional Medical Center.

ADRENALINE MOB bassist David "Z" Zablidowsky was killed in the crash.

Robert Dressler, 45, of Plains, who was the band's soundman on the tour; and Jason McCole, 41, of Wilkes-Barre, who was driving the RV, were also injured.

ADRENALINE MOB singer Russell Allen posted a message over the weekend in which he revealed that he helped pull Train and McCole from the wreckage before the RV became engulfed in flames. Allen sent special thanks to passer-by and Marine Lance Cpl. Patrick Dumon for his "bravery in assisting me."

ADRENALINE MOB was scheduled to play Friday night in St. Petersburg.

The band was touring in support of its third studio album, "We The People", which was released on June 2 via Century Media. The follow-up to 2014's "Men Of Honor" was the first ADRENALINE MOB release to feature Zablidowsky and drummer Jordan Cannata.

Ozzy Osbourne played his second solo concert since the completion of BLACK SABBATH's "The End" tour this past Sunday night (July 16) at the Chicago Open Air festival in Bridgeview, Illinois.

Ozzy is joined on the current run of dates by guitarist Zakk Wylde, who was the SABBATH frontman's regular axeman from 1988 to 2007, although they've often performed together since then. Osbourne's touring lineup also includes Rob "Blasko" Nicholson on bass, Tommy Clufetos on drums and Adam Wakeman on keyboards.

Ozzy currently has only six more dates scheduled between now and early November. Next month will see the singer play Buffalo Chip in Sturgis, South Dakota, Treasure Island Resort & Casino in Welch, Minnestoa and the Moonstock festival in Cartersville, Illinois. More shows will follow in September and October, with the final date take place at this year's edition of the Ozzfest Meets Knotfest on November 4 in San Bernadino, California.

Speaking to the Chicago Tribune about the possibility of collaborating with Ozzy on a new studio album, Zakk said: "My relationship with Ozzy and Mrs. O [Ozzy's wife and manager, Sharon Osbourne] is if they call me up and say, 'Bring eggs and milk over and clean the dog run,' I do it. If Oz wants to do another record, then we knock it out. We haven't spoken yet about a record. Basically, right now it's about the shows."

Wylde originally joined Osbourne's band three decades ago and backed the legendary frontman from 1987 to 1995, then again in 1998, from 2001 to 2004 and also from 2006 to 2009. His guitar playing can be heard on Osbourne's studio albums "No Rest For The Wicked", "No More Tears", "Ozzmosis", "Down To Earth", "Under Cover" and "Black Rain". The first album with Wylde went double platinum and "No More Tears" remains Ozzy's most successful album, going four times platinum in the United States with four Top 10 songs on the U.S. Billboard chart. Wylde also appeared with Ozzy on three live albums.

GUNS N' ROSES appears to be teasing a celebration of the thirtieth anniversary of its iconic debut album, "Appetite For Destruction", by placing ads around New York City featuring the record's artwork with the hashtag #APPETITE30TH.

"Appetite" will officially turn thirty this Friday (July 21), and the band is scheduled to perform an intimate show one day earlier at New York City's famed Apollo Theater.

Among the "Appetite" anniversary ads popping up around town is a particularly notable one in Times Square, which longtime GN'R associate Del James took a picture of and posted on his Instagram account. An anniversary poster has also surfaced right outside the Apollo, which has previously partnered with SiriusXM for similar concerts with Paul McCartney in 2010, Bruce Springsteen in 2012, METALLICA in 2013 and James Taylor in 2015.

GN'R's invitation-only performance for SiriusXM subscribers will air live nationwide on SiriusXM's Guns N' Roses Radio and Howard Stern's Howard 101 channel. Guns N' Roses Radio launched on Thursday, July 13 and will air through Saturday, July 22.

Former GUNS drummer Steven Adler told the "Trunk Nation" show earlier this year that Fernando Lebeis, who is part of GN'R's management team, had "some good ideas" for the thirtieth-anniversary celebration of "Appetite For Destruction".

Adler appeared with GUNS onstage last November in Buenos Aires, Argentina, as well as on three separate occasions during the U.S. leg of the "Not In This Lifetime" tour last summer.

It was rumored in September that former GUNS N' ROSES guitarist Izzy Stradlin turned down a five-figure fee to play with the band at their April 2016 reunion shows.

Stradlin tweeted about the dispute, writing that the group didn't want to "split the loot equally."

GUNS N' ROSES' "Not In This Lifetime" tour features three members of the classic GUNS N' ROSES lineup — guitarist Slash, bassist Duff McKagan and singer Axl Rose — backed by drummer Frank Ferrer, guitarist Richard Fortus, and keyboardists Dizzy Reed and Melissa Reese.

According to The Pulse Of Radio, GUNS N' ROSES guitarist Slash, METALLICA axeman Kirk Hammett and Rob Zombie all reacted online to the death of filmmaker George A. Romero, who changed the horror genre in 1968 with his classic "Night Of The Living Dead" and invented the modern concept of the zombie. Romero, who died on Sunday (July 16) at age 77 after a brief battle with lung cancer, also directed the zombie masterpieces "Dawn Of The Dead" and "Day Of The Dead", while collaborating with Stephen King on 1982's "Creepshow".

Romero told The Pulse Of Radio years ago that he tried to break away from the horror genre but that was where he had his greatest success. "The times that I've gone out away from the genre, the things that I did didn't make a lot of money," he said. "You know, I don't mind it. I was reflecting back to right after 'Night Of The Living Dead': I was reluctant, and the second film we did didn't even get distribution. Actually, the next three films weren't horror films. I tried for a number of years to resist it and none of those things went out and made any money 'cause everybody wanted me to do 'Night Of The Living Dead' again. So we did 'Dawn Of The Dead', and I guess that really sealed my fate 'cause it was the most successful of the three."

All three musicians are massive horror fans, with Slash also a producer of one thriller and Rob Zombie a writer, producer and director of seven genre films.

Slash wrote online about Romero, "Trailblazer is an understatement. We will miss you."

Slash told Rolling Stone a while back, "'Night Of The Living Dead' was a very ominous, haunting and brutal movie, and I remember specific scenes that have stayed with me all these years."

Hammett, who has a vast horror collection and has also published a book and staged a genre convention, called Romero the "founding father of the modern zombie movie" in his own Twitter post, adding, "long live Romero!"

Rob Zombie chimed in, "I can't believe George Romero has died. All the zombies owe him everything! He was the master."

Romero's other movies included "Martin", "The Crazies", "The Dark Half" and three more installments of his "Dead" franchise. He was set to produce a seventh at the time of his death.

SEPULTURA broadened its musical horizons with "Chaos A.D." and "Roots", a pair of acclaimed albums that took the Brazilian band's hard-rocking sound in bold and exciting new directions. This fall, Rhino will revisit those back-to-back classics with remastered versions that are expanded with rare and unreleased studio and live recordings.

"Chaos A.D.: Expanded Edition" will be available on October 6 and "Roots: Expanded Edition" will be available on November 3, both as double-disc sets for $19.98 each. Double-LP versions, with similar track listings, will also be available for $31.98 each.

SEPULTURA was founded in 1983 by the brothers Max and Igor Cavalera with Wagner Lamounier and Jairo Guedes. Paulo Xisto Pinto Jr. joined just a few short months later and in 1987, with the departure of Jairo and addition of guitarist Andreas Kisser, the solid lineup of SEPULTURA was final. The band quickly became an influential force in heavy metal music thanks to its dynamic studio recordings and intense live performances.

The band was in the midst of a creative and commercial peak in 1993 when it released "Chaos A.D." with Max Cavalera on vocals and guitar, Andreas Kisser on guitar, Paulo Xisto Pinto Jr. on bass, and Igor Cavalera on drums. The record ushered in a more groove-based sound on songs like the singles "Refuse/Resist", "Territory" and "Slave New World".

"Chaos A.D.: Expanded Edition" includes a newly remastered version of the original album along with 17 bonus tracks. Among the highlights are a cover of BLACK SABBATH's "Symptom Of The Universe" that was originally issued as a B-side, plus nine scorching live versions of album tracks like "Territory" and "Biotech Is Godzilla". Also featured are several unreleased instrumental tracks that the band used during rehearsals for "Clenched Fist" and "Propaganda".

Three years after "Chaos A.D.", the band returned with "Roots", an album that was deeply influenced by Brazilian rhythms, which were incorporated into tracks like "Itsári" and "Ratamahatta". Since its release in 1996, the album has sold more than two million copies worldwide.

"Roots: Expanded Edition" features a newly remastered version of the original album, plus 17 bonus tracks. Standouts include demos for "Dusted" and "Roots Bloody Roots", instrumental versions of "Dictatorshit" and "Cutthroat", a version of "Attitude" recorded live at Ozzfest, and the unreleased first take of "Kaiowas".

SEPULTURA has sold nearly 20 million albums worldwide, including more than three million in the United States.

"Chaos A.D.: Expanded Edition"

CD track listing:

Disc One

01. Refuse/Resist02. Territory03. Slave New World04. Amen05. Kaiowas06. Propaganda07. Biotech Is Godzilla08. Nomad09. We Who Are Not As Others10. Manifest11. The Hunt12. Clenched Fist

Disc Two

01. Chaos B.C.02. Symptom Of The Universe03. Inhuman Nature04. Policia05. Crucificados Pelo Sistema06. Clenched Fist - Instrumental Version 1 07. Propaganda - Instrumental 08. Clenched Fist - Instrumental Version 2 09. Refuse/Resist - Live10. Slave New World - Live11. Propaganda - Live12. Beneath The Remains/Escape To The Void - Live13. Kaiowa - Live14. Clenched Fist - Live15. Biotech Is Godzilla - Live16. Territory - Live17. Amen/Inner Self - Live

LP track listing:

Side One

01. Refuse/Resist02. Territory03. Slave New World04. Amen05. Kaiowas06. Propaganda

Side Two

01. Biotech Is Godzilla02. Nomad03. We Who Are Not As Others04. Manifest05. The Hunt06. Clenched Fist

Side Three

01. Chaos B.C.02. Symptom Of The Universe03. Inhuman Nature04. Policia05. Crucificados Pelo Sistema06. Propaganda - Instrumental 07. Clenched Fist - Instrumental Version 2

Side Four

01. Refuse/Resist - Live02. Slave New World - Live03. Propaganda - Live04. Kaiowas - Live05. Clenched Fist - Live06. Biotech Is Godzilla - Live07. Territory - Live

"Roots: Expanded Edition"

CD track listing:

Disc One

01. Roots Bloody Roots02. Attitude03. Cut-Throat04. Ratamahatta05. Breed Apart06. Straighthate07. Spit08. Lookaway09. Dusted10. Born Stubborn11. Jasco12. Itsári13. Ambush14. Endangered Species15. Dictatorshit

Disc Two

01. Ratamahatta - 2 Meter Sessions02. Roots Bloody Roots - 2 Meter Sessions03. Attitude - 2 Meter Sessions04. Kaiowas - Take One 05. Procreation (Of The Wicked)06. Roots Bloody Roots - Demo07. Attitude - Instrumental08. Cutthroat - Instrumental09. Dictatorshit - Instrumental10. Untitled - Demo11. R.D.P. - Demo12. Dusted - Demo13. War14. Mine15. Lookaway - Master Vibe Mix16. Roots Bloody Roots - Megawatt Mix17. Attitude - Live at Ozzfest

LP track listing:

Side One

01. Roots Bloody Roots02. Attitude03. Cut-Throat04. Ratamahatta05. Breed Apart06. Straighthate07. Spit08. Lookaway

Side Two

01. Dusted02. Born Stubborn03. Jasco04. Itsári05. Ambush06. Endangered Species07. Dictatorshit

Side Three

01. Ratamahatta - 2 Meter Sessions02. Roots Bloody Roots - 2 Meter Sessions03. Attitude - 2 Meter Sessions04. Kaiowas - Take One 05. Procreation (Of The Wicked)

Side Four

01. Roots Bloody Roots - Demo02. Attitude - Instrumental03. Cutthroat - Instrumental04. Dictatorshit - Instrumental05. Untitled - Demo06. R.D.P. - Demo07. Dusted - Demo

An EPK (Electronic Press Kit) for the self-titled debut album from KEE OF HEARTS, the project featuring singer Tommy Heart (FAIR WARNING) and guitarist Kee Marcello (ex-EUROPE), can be found below. The disc will be released on September 15 via Frontiers Music Srl. With a lineup rounded out by Ken Sandin (ex-ALIEN) on bass and Italian drummer Marco Di Salvia (PINO SCOTTO), the guys started working on the album in late 2016. With their songwriting strongly focused on melodic rock songs, the album came to completion under the direction of producer Alessandro Del Vecchio and covers a wide spectrum of styles with a lot of attention given to crafting great hooks delivered by musicians that know how to deliver the goods. Musically, the band operates in a territory defined by Scandinavian AOR meeting German melodic hard rock with influences from the classic U.S. AOR giants (think GIANT, JOURNEY, etc.).

"Kee Of Hearts" track listing:

01. The Storm02. A New Dimension03. Crimson Dawn04. Bridge To Heaven05. Stranded06. Mama Don't Cry07. Invincible08. S.O.S.09. Edge Of Paradise10. Twist Of Fate11. Learn To Love Again

Brazilian metallers SHADOWSIDE, who feature in their ranks Swedish bass player Magnus Rosén (ex-HAMMERFALL), have released the official music video for the song "Alive". The track is the first single from the new SHADOWSIDE album, "Shades Of Humanity", which was recorded and produced in Sweden by Fredrik Nordström (ARCH ENEMY, HAMMERFALL, EVERGREY) and Henrik Udd (ARCHITECTS, ARCH ENEMY, DREAM EVIL).

The "Alive" clip was produced and shot at Adrenaline Studios in Orlando, Florida by director of photography Daniel Stilling, known for his works in "The Martian" film and "Criminal Minds" series.

"Alive" is not only a music video, it is a short film that features the power of resilience represented by the four elements of nature, where the band members Dani Nolden (Air), Magnus Rosén (Earth), Raphael Mattos (fire) and Fabio Buitvidas (water) experience situations of life and death, at the edge of impending disasters. Will they be able to fight for their lives?

"Shades of Humanity" explores deep subjects such as depression, abortion, the Mariana Dam disaster in Brazil and mankind's moral values, branching out in musical ways nobody expected while still keeping their heavy guitar riffs and catchy melodies.

"Shades of Humanity" will be released on July 26 in Japan via Spiritual Beast, July 28 in North America/Europe via EMP Label Group (the U.S.-based label of MEGADETH bass player David Ellefson) and September 4 in Brazil via Furia Music Records.

"Shades Of Humanity" track listing:

01. The Fall02. Beast Inside03. What If04. Make My Fate05. Insidious Me06. The Crossing07. Stream Of Shame08. Parade The Sacrifice09. Drifter10. Unreality11. Alive12. Haunted (Japanese bonus track)

According to CBC News, IRON MAIDEN singer Bruce Dickinson flew the Canadian Warplane Heritage Museum's prized Lancaster Bomber plane before the band's sold-out Toronto show Saturday night (July 15).

Canadian Warplane Heritage Museum museum CEO and pilot David Rohrer said that the storied aircraft, nicknamed Vera because of its VRA flight initials, holds a special place in the heart of the British musician.

"The first model airplane he ever built as a young lad was a Lancaster," Rohrer told CBC News.

The 72-year-old aircraft Dickinson flew is said to be Canada's only operational Second World War-era Lancaster bomber plane.

During the war, the Lancaster was able to carry 22,000 pounds of bombs.

Rohrer said a total of 7,377 Lancaster planes were built in both the U.K. and Canada.

Following the war, more than 200 Lancaster planes remained in service for Arctic reconnaissance and patrol. The Royal Canadian Air Force discontinued the Lancaster in 1964.

Dickinson, a registered commercial pilot who owns Cardiff Aviation, told Wales Online in a recent interview that he still gets a thrill out of flying, but that it's a totally different sensation to playing live.

"The satisfaction flying airplanes is getting the job done, but the satisfaction with playing live is external, looking out at all the people looking at you," he said. "With an airliner, it's all internal. If you've got passengers, nobody goes, 'Wow! Wasn't that great?' They're thinking about the rest of their day. Your job as an airline pilot is to deliver them safely and be invisible. That's quite nice for me because it's completely the opposite to what I do when I sing."

Dickinson flew his band around the world in their plane dubbed Ed Force One, named after IRON MAIDEN's iconic mascot Eddie.

He gained a commercial pilot's license after learning to fly in the 1990s. In 2012 he set up Cardiff Aviation, an aircraft maintenance company which has signed an agreement with the Djibouti government to help re-launch their national airline.




Yesterday Bruce Dickinson, pilot and singer for Iron Maiden, joined us as a crew member for a Lancaster flight. What a...

Posted by Canadian Warplane Heritage Museum on Sunday, July 16, 2017

California death metal horde Acephalix - featuring members of Vastum, Necrot, Depressor, and more - has completed their third LP, and is preparing to unleash Decreation upon the public masses on September 22nd. New label home 20 Buck Spin has unloaded a YouTube stream of the album's pummeling second track, "Suffer (Life In Fragments)," along with early pre-orders for the record.

The rotten corpse of Acephalix, the Bay Area's beast of barbarism, has been re-animated. Abnormally deceased since the band's Southern Lord debut, Deathless Master, the crushing return of Decreation leaves no bone unbroken and no skull intact, the album was recorded and mixed by Greg Wilkinson at Earhammer Studios (Vastum, Necrot, Ghoul), mastered by Brad Boatright at Audiosiege (Nails, Obituary, Black Breath), and completed with artwork by Adam Burke (Occultation, Loss, Gatecreeper, Artificial Brain).

Foul American death metal maggotry eating back to life coagulated remains of hardcore's guts. Opener "Upon This Altar" rages with d-beat ferocity morphing into a slithering puzzle of pierced flesh. Primitive savagery pervades on "Suffer (Life In Fragments)" through to the cro-magnon battering of "Excremental Offerings." All the while an obscure weirdness that characterized the idiosyncratic deformities of certain Cannibal Corpse, Nocturnus, and Death moments arises out of the Acephalix tomb.

With each release, the Acephalix horde grows more intense, vicious and bestial. Decreation is the culmination of five years of dormancy, letting loose upon the Earth the calamitous consequence of pent-up wrath.

Tracklisting:

"Upon This Altar"
"Suffer (Life In Fragments)"
"Mnemonic Death"
"God Is Laughing"
"Excremental Offerings"
"Egoic Skin"
"Decreation"

 

Death metal veterans MORBID ANGEL have been forced to cancel their European summer festival appearances slated for late July and August due to "unfortunate and last minute, unforeseen problems with a passport for one of the members of the band."

MORBID ANGEL's management, World Management, said in a statement: "In well over thirty years, we have never had an incident like this, nor have we ever canceled shows in our past. We have been advised by the U.S. State Department / passport agency that a new passport will not be forthcoming in time for any of the upcoming festivals.

"MORBID ANGEL are extremely unhappy about this loss of shows and want to apologize to all the fans, promoters, and vendors in Europe! We are working to have this issue remedied for the future and are looking forward to coming back to Europe and playing for all of our fans in November!"

MORBID ANGEL recently completed work on a new studio album, tentatively due in the fall via UDR Music. The disc was recorded at Mana Recording in St. Petersburg, Florida with producer — and former MORBID ANGEL guitarist — Erik Rutan. The LP will mark the band's first release with drummer Scott Fuller (ANNIHILATED, ex-ABYSMAL DAWN) who joined MORBID ANGEL last year following the departure of Tim Yeung. It will also be MORBID ANGEL's first album to feature bassist/vocalist Steve Tucker since 2003's "Heretic".

Tucker told "The Metal Magdalene With Jet" show about MORBID ANGEL's approach on the upcoming album: "It was really just about writing music — it was just about writing a MORBID ANGEL album. Nobody said, 'Hey, we wanna go in this direction,' nobody said anything. I mean, there's obvious things there. I've said it before — I'm a death metal guy, so, for me, it's gonna be a death metal album; if I'm on it, it's death metal. So it was just about making a MORBID ANGEL album. It was really about coming in with something new, something fresh, but yet it still being MORBID ANGEL. Really, honestly, we didn't approach this any differently than any of the other albums I was involved in except for maybe [1998's] 'Formulas Fatal To The Flesh', which 'Formulas', Trey wrote all the music, all the lyrics and things like that. But this was done more similar to maybe [2000's] 'Gateways To Annihilation', where everybody had their contribution. Trey wrote a bunch of songs, I wrote songs, Scotty contributed some ideas. There was a lot of back-and-forth. In the end, it has to become a MORBID ANGEL song. And at this point, I feel that it's very much a MORBID ANGEL album."

MORBID ANGEL in January announced the addition of Dan Vadim Von (guitarist/frontman of the American death metal band VADIMVON) to the band's lineup on second guitar. He joined the group as the replacement for Norwegian guitarist Destructhor (a.k.a. Thor Anders Myhren), who left the band a year and a half ago.

Regina, SK titans of brutality Planet Eater return from the flat lands of Western Canada's prairies to offer their latest assault to the masses with their first full length Blackness From The Stars, to follow their 2015 self-titled debut EP. 

Blending thrash and death metal with crushing grooves and devastating vocals, Planet Eater demonstrate hints of Morbid Angel, Converge and Bolt Thrower with elements of Sepultura, Strapping Young Lad and Gojira embedded at the core of their sound.

The band's first single "The Boats" off Blackness From The Stars due out August 4th is now streaming via the YouTube clip below.

The band comments: "This track tells a tale of the brutal Persian torture tactic known as The Boats. 'The Boats' exemplifies the evolution of the Planet Eater sound and gives the listener a taste of what's to come in our first full length release, Blackness From The Stars."

Album pre-order available at this location.

Tracklisting:

"The Boats"    
"Pile Of Bones"
"Cold Confines"
"Lies Evolution"
"Suffer What They Must"
"Kill On Sight"
"A Fault To Fix"
"The Spoil"
"Blackness From The Stars"

Planet Eater's intense and heavy live set can be seen this summer as the quintet will be bludgeoning for the third consecutive year Loud As Hell Fest in Drumheller, AB on August 5th with Battlecross, Aggression, Black Wizard and more, plus a hometown CD release show on July 28th at The Exchange in Regina, SK.

Planet Eater is:

Troy Bleich - bass / backing vocals
Luc Hart - guitar
Devin Ubell - guitar 
Nick Eichhorst - drums
Donovon Turner - lead vocals

For further details, visit Planet Eater on Facebook.