Four years on from the release of their Anomalia album, Norwegian prog/black metal band, Khonsu, are set to release their new album, The Xun Protectorate, on November 18th.

The band have released a video for “Visions Of Nehaya”, to be included on the new album. The clip was directed by S. Gronbech and Christian Falch, and produced by Gammaglimt Video Productions.

In regards to the new album, the band states: “Hundreds of hours of work, resulting in 10 new experimental, progressive, and industrial tracks. And it sounds incredible!”

The album will feature guest appearances from members of Keep Of Kalessin and Manes. Check out the trailer below and stay tuned for updates.

Between Waves, the new album from The Album Leaf, is out today, August 26th, via Relapse Records on CD/LP/DLX 2xLP/Digital. A full album stream can be found below. Physical orders can be placed at this location, and digital orders are available via The Album Leaf's Bandcamp page here. “New Soul” is also available on white 7" vinyl via The Album Leaf's store at this location.

The band, led by Jimmy LaValle, has been a major influential force across many disparate genres of music over the last twenty years, and joins a long line of experimental musicians that have helped shape and define Relapse history. Now twenty years into a career that has seen LaValle exercising his creativity across the realms of film scoring, sound collage, and rock music, via instrumental and vocal-driven compositions alike, LaValle and The Album Leaf’s newly solidified lineup are poised to deliver yet another sonic triumph with 2016’s Between Waves.

The album was born out of a thorough reinvention of LaValle's creative process and approach: Between Waves is The Album Leaf's first full-length record to be recorded with the band's current lineup, and was written with greater emphasis on the group dynamic (the album was also entirely recorded and produced by LaValle and the band). The album's eight tracks were winnowed down from thirty, and it shows: each song is memorable and unique, all speaking in The Album Leaf's singular voice while expressing themselves through a wide variety of different sounds and emotions.

The band's thorough, unified approach is evident on nearly every aspect of Between Waves: the album displays multifaceted, meticulous sound design, a keen ear for balancing disparate influences, and the strongest senses of dynamics, rhythm, and composition The Album Leaf has displayed to date. From the moody evolution of "Glimmering Lights" to the wistful hip-hop stylings of "A New Soul" and beyond, Between Waves is The Album Leaf at its most inventive, most confident, and most impressive.

Between Waves tracklisting:

“False Dawn”
“Glimmering Lights”
“New Soul”
“Back To The Start”
“Wandering Still”
“Never Far”
“Lost In The Fog”
“Between Waves”

Album stream:

“New Soul” video:

The self-titled debut album from Swedish AOR band, Cruzh, is out today, August 26th. A video for the album cut “Aim For The Head” can be found below.

Cruzh was put together after the demise of Swedish glam rockers TrashQueen, in which both Anton Joensson and Dennis Butabi Borg played. They shared a love for melodic rock and AOR and joined forces with Tony Andersson, who previously worked as a studio musician on the never released TrashQueen record.

It all started in March 2013 when Cruzh was announced online. The only things shown to the public were an image of the silhouette of the three band members, the debut song "In A Blink Of An Eye”, information that the band was Swedish, and the text "Get ready for the Cruzh". The song quickly spread on the internet and both Swedish and international websites and radio stations played it and speculated about the identities of the band members. In May came the sequel "Stay", which continued in the same melodic rock spirit. Meanwhile, the band spread various clues on social media regarding their whereabouts. In the fall of 2013 Cruzh had reached a point where they chose to “unmask” and take it all to the next level and reach out to the masses together with the release of the Hard To Get EP, the first of two very successful self-produced demos. Hard To Get and its successor, the darker Aim For The Head got great reviews worldwide.

By late spring of 2015, just when Cruzh was about to release a new EP, they were approached by Frontiers Music Srl who wanted to sign the band, so Cruzh started the recording process by the end of summer 2015. The result is truly an awesome debut, in the spirit of Def Leppard, Danger Danger, H.E.A.T, Winger, Firehouse and Bryan Adams.

“We all share the love for Melodic Rock,” says bassist Dennis Butabi Borg, “but in the meantime we all have very different musical background and inspirations. This shows in our songs”. “When we started out, almost immediately I felt this synergy in the band,” adds Tony Andersson, “and despite our musical backgrounds and differences, we all head in the same direction.” “When a piece of music is coming to me and I am developing someone else’s work, I am filled with some sort of emotion that I want to convey,” concludes guitarist Anton Joensson, “it’s easy to do this in a natural way with Cruzh because I could not feel more at home with our band and the music we create. This is also true with Tony and Dennis. This is who we are!”

Tracklisting:

“In N' Out Of Love”
“First Cruzh”
“Aim For The Head”
“Anything For You”
“Survive”
“Stay”
“Hard To Get”
“You”
“Set Me Free”
“Before I Walk Alone”
“Straight From My Heart”

“Aim For The Head” video:

“Set Me Free”:

“Hard To Get”:

“First Cruzh” video:

EPK:

Cruzh lineup:

Dennis Butabi Borg – bass
Anton Joensson – rhythm, lead and acoustic guitars on all tracks, backing vocals
Tony Andersson – lead vocals on all tracks, keyboards

With:

Erik Wiss – piano on “Anything For You”, intro on “In N’ Out Of Love”
Louisian Boltner – drums on all tracks
Mattias Silfver – backing vocals on all tracks
Martin Johansson – backing vocals on “Anything For You”
Patrik Norén – backing vocals on “Aim For The Head”

German dark metal trio Valborg have announced a new EP, titled Werwolf, due out on September 23rd via Temple Of Torturous.

Recorded, mixed and mastered by Marius Costache at Studio 148 in Bucharest, Romania, Werwolf follows up their fifth album Romantik, released last year through Temple Of Torturous, and sees the German trio fulfilling their fans’ wishes who were constantly requesting the recordings of two of the most acclaimed songs from their live set, “Werwolf” and “Ich Bin Total”.

Originating from the pre-Romantik era those songs represent the best of what Valborg stands for and also offer a glimpse of what is about to follow on the sixth full-length record, which is already in the making. Pre-orders are available here.

“Ich Bin Total”, one of the two songs from the new EP, is streaming below:

 

New England-based melodic doom outfit, Onera, the band featuring musicians hailing from the likes of Morgion, Keen Of The Crow, Cortez, December Wolves, Watchmaker, and others are streaming the new lyric video created by Dan Blomquist (Conclave) for the track "Cold Hand's Caress," culled from Onera's recently self-released debut EP, Olde.

Though the entity of Onera is very new, the outfit unites a team of veterans from a wide array of revered acts including Morgion, Keen Of The Crow, Cortez, December Wolves, Watchmaker, and others who have been active in the scene for several decades. In September 2015, Onera entered Amps vs Ohms in Cambridge, Massachusetts to capture their debut recordings. The members' cumulative resumes and influences intertwine and carve out a unique sound for the band. Mastered at New Alliance East, the three-song Olde EP presents just under thirty minutes of glorious doom metal rapture, rife with heavy, melodic, dynamic, and progressive elements which help create an intense, organic, and primeval aura.

(Photo by: Bruce Bettis)

Brooklyn's musical alchemists Candiria, long-known for fusing metal, hardcore, jazz, and hip-hop in a unique, inimitable blend, will release their new album, While They Were Sleeping, via Metal Blade on October 7th. It was recorded at Spaceman Sound in Brooklyn by Tom Tierney and Alex Mead-Fox, and produced by Candiria. It's the band's first album since 2009's Kiss The Lie.

While They Were Sleeping is a concept album conceived by the band’s lead vocalist Carley Coma. It tells the tale of a failed musician who rises up against a monarchy in New York City. The album is now available for pre-order, with the first track "Mereya" available as an instant grat track.

Listen to "Mereya" below:

Also, While They Were Sleeping will be available in CD and limited edition colored vinyl. The vinyl will be available in two marble color options, with only 250 copies printed in the US for each option. Option #1, "The Wounded Heart," will be available along with the album pre-order. Option #2, "The Veil," will be available at select retail outlets. Limited supplies of both options will also be available at select upcoming Candiria shows.

To celebrate the release of the much-anticipated album, Candiria will embark on the NYC Five-Borough "World Tour," playing shows in intimate venues in each of the city's five boroughs during the week of release. Limited edition posters will be made for all of NYC Five-Borough "World Tour" shows. Each poster will be available only at the corresponding show. Tickets to the 5 Borough shows can be purchased here.

Candiria NYC Five-Borough Record "World Tour" dates:
 
October
7 - Manhattan, NY - Arlene's Grocery (support from Cavallo)
8 - Queens, NY - Blackthorne 51 (support from Car Bomb, The Last Stand)
9 - Staten Island, NY - Mother Pugs Saloon (support from Tombs, Meek Is Murder)
11 - Bronx, NY - Alfie's Place (support from Billy Club Sandwich, Circuit of Suns)
12 - Brooklyn, NY - Black Bear (support from Dalek, Husbandry)
 
A full US tour will follow, with dates to be revealed soon.

Just like founding member and guitarist David Lowy joked the other day: "You wanted the best, and you got us as well!" So, The Dead Daisies are on tour with KISS in The United States. "Week 2 is a wrap, and it was a blast as well," says the band. "We even hit two state fairs and had a look around. But more importantly, it was all rock 'n' roll and good fun!"

Parts 1 and 2 of The Dead Daisies' US Summer Tour Video Recap can be enjoyed below.

In other news, The Dead Daisies played Woodstock Festival Poland, the biggest Open Air Festival in Europe, this July. With an average attendance of over 625,000 people over the last four years, the festival is truly massive and the Daisies were welcomed by the giant crowd with open arms and left to thunderous applause.

“Join Together” connected with the crowd in an explosive fashion and this video showcases some of the energy that was created that day. Vocalist John Corabi stated, “We wanted to do ‘Join Together’ cause it's obviously a classic Who song. I just love the power of the guitar and bass when it kicks in with the heavy riff on the second verse... always have. The vocals are pretty easy to get the audience involved, and it's been a crowd favorite when we play it live. We knew the minute we started jamming, it was going to sound great! It's our tip of the hat to a legendary classic band... you may think of us as 'rockers' but, at the end of the day we're just huge music fans... just like our audience!”

"Join Together" is one of the singles from the The Dead Daisies' new album Make Some Noise, which was released on August 5th. To check it out in all stores and on all streams, click here.

The Dead Daisies are currently on tour, opening for KISS across The United States; remaining shows are as listed:

August
26 - Youngstown, OH - Covelli Centre
27 - Erie, PA - Erie Insurance Arena
29 - Rochester, NY - Blue Cross Arena
30 - State College, PA - Bryce Jordan Center

September
1 - Allentown, PA - The Great Allentown Fair
3 - Worcester, MA - DCU Center
4 - Portland, ME - Cross Insurance Arena
7 - Bridgeport, CT - Webster Bank Arena
9 - Richmond, VA - Richmond Coliseum
10 - Huntington, WV - Big Sandy Arena

"Long Way To Go” video:

After 15 months of non-stop touring, Sons Of Texas are hitting the road again for another three months in support of their successful debut album Baptized In The Rio Grande. The final leg of the tour will cover The US, Japan, Europe, and The UK. Leading up to the shows, the band has released a video for “September”.

Singer Mark Morales comments, “With ‘September’, I wanted to try and write from a different perspective, so I chose to write about a single mother. As a lyricist, I wanted to broaden the playing field as far as subject matter goes.  I wanted to pay homage to the hardest working people of our generation, the unsung heroes of the world, the epitome of love, ambition, and tenacity – the single parent.”

The fall tour kicks off September 12th with two weeks of US shows supporting Buckcherry and Candlebox. Following the US dates, the band is set to perform at Japan’s legendary Loudpark Festival. The tour cycle then closes out with a month of dates in Europe and The UK supporting Soil and Saliva. Dates for the entire fall tour are below.

Sons Of Texas Tour Dates

with Buckcherry
September
12 – Denver CO – The Summit Music Hall
13 – Omaha, NE – Shamrocks Pub
14 – Saint Charles, IL – The Arcada Theatre
16 – Poughkeepsie, NY – The Chance
17 – Asbury Park, NJ – Wonder Bar
18 – Hampton, NH – Wally’s Pub
20 – New York, NY – Playstation Theater
21 – Huntington, NY – Paramount Theatre
22 – Huntington, WV – V Club
24 – Houston, TX – Houston Open Air Festival
25 – Harrah, OK – Kickapoo Casino

October
8 – Tokyo, Japan – Japan Loud Park Festival

with Soil and Saliva
October
27 – Utrecht, Netherlands – Helling
28 – Jena, Germany – F-Haus
29 – Zurich, Switzerland – Tbd
30 – Borgo Priolo, Italy – Dagda Club

November
1 – Vienna, Austria – Szene Wien
2 – Munich, Germany – Backstage Halle
3 – Stuttgart, Germany – Universum
4 – Sittard, Netherlands – Volt
5 – Bochum, Germany – Zeche
7 – Southampton, United Kingdom – Engine Rooms
8 – Brighton, United Kingdom – Concorde 2
9 – Bristol, United Kingdom – The Fleece
10 – Reading, United Kingdom – Sub 89
11 – Plymouth, United Kingdom – The Hub
12 – Barnstaple, United Kingdom – The Factory
13 – Cardiff, United Kingdom – The Globe
15 – London, United Kingdom – O2 Academy Islington
16 – Norwich, United Kingdom – Waterfront
17 – Manchester, United Kingdom – Sound Control
18 – Sheffield, United Kingdom – Corporation
19 – Birmingham, United Kingdom – O2 Institute 2
20 – Newcastle, United Kingdom – Riverside
22 – Glasgow, United Kingdom – Cathouse
23 – Hull, United Kingdom – The Welly
24 – York, United Kingdom – Fibbers
25 – Chester, United Kingdom – The Live Rooms
26 – Milton Keynes, United Kingdom – Crauford Arms

 

 

Ahead of TesseracT’s US tour beginning in September, the band have taken a look back over their summer 2016 festival season. Fans get the chance to go behind the scenes at festivals like: Graspop, Rock Am Ring, Rock Am Park, and Download with Dan, Amos, Jay, Acle, James and sound engineer Aidan O’Brien. They chat about how they prepare for these huge shows; how the new Polaris tracks have been gone down with festival crowds; what it feels like to play in front of a home crowd on their first appearance at the UK’s legendary Download; and find out which band member aspires to have his own beer tech.

To coincide with TesseracT touring the US with Gojira in September, Kscope will be releasing a 2-disc tour edition of their studio album Polaris on September 16th.

The new 2016 edition of Polaris will be released with a bonus second disc Errai which features four re-worked tracks from Polaris – “Survival”, “Cages”, “Tourniquet” and “Seven Names”. The tracks have been re-imagined by the band’s long time live producer and sound engineer Aidan O’Brien. Along with the new song interpretations the cover art of new edition of Polaris has been given a 2016 make-over by artist Dan Mumford. “Survival” (Re-imagined) is streaming below.

He says on being asked to work on the project, "I've been lucky enough to contribute to various bits of TesseracT material since the Perspective EP back in 2012, but it was a thrill and an honour to be asked to have a much more involved role in working on reimagining four of the tracks from Polaris. Being given the chance to offer my interpretations of the songs at the core of these wonderfully nuanced and complex arrangements, as well as the chance to work closely with such talented musicians, was hugely exciting and I'm extremely proud of the results. It's still unmistakably TesseracT, but from an angle I think a lot of people won't have heard before."

TessaracT vocalist Dan Tompkins comments, “It's been fantastic to re-visit & re-work the vocals to some of the Polaris tracks from a different angle and with the benefit of time and space. The normal process of writing TesseracT songs starts with the creation of the music followed by the lyrical content; this time Acle and Aidan have stripped away the music and re-created the songs based around the vocals. As a result this has allowed much more breathing space between both and also highlighted much more detail in the performance.”

Tracklisting:

Disc 1
“Dystopia”
“Hexes”
“Survival”
“Tourniquet”
“Utopia”
“Phoenix ”
“Messenger”
“Cages”
“Seven Names”

Disc 2 – Errai EP
“Survival” (Re-imagined)
“Cages” (Re-imagined)
“Tourniquet” (Re-imagined)
“Seven Names” (Re-imagined)

“Survival” (Re-imagined):

The Polaris Tour Edition will be released as a 2 CD set, with Errai being released as a stand-alone 180g heavyweight clear vinyl with enclosed download code.

TesseracT dates with Gojira:

September
21 - Silver Spring, MD - The Fillmore Silver Spring
22 - Philadelphia, PA - Electric Factory
24 - Asheville, NC - The Orange Peel
25 - Atlanta, GA - The Tabernacle
26 - Orlando, FL - Plaza Live
27 - Tampa, FL - Ritz Ybor
29 - Austin, TX - Emo’s
30 - Houston, TX - House of Blues

October
1 - Dallas, TX - Gas Monkey Live!
3 - Albuquerque, NM - Sunshine Theatre
4 - Phoenix, AZ - Marquee Theatre
6 - Los Angeles, CA - The Wiltern
7 - San Francisco, CA - The Warfield
9 - Vancouver, BC - Vogue Theatre
10 - Portland, OR - Roseland Theater
11 - Seattle, WA - Showbox SoDo
13 - Salt Lake City, UT - The Complex
14 - Denver, CO - Gothic Theatre
16 - Minneapolis, MN - Myth Live
17 - Milwaukee, WI - Turner Ballroom
19 - Detroit, MI - The Fillmore Detroit
20 - Toronto, ON - Sound Academy
21 - Montreal, QC - Metropolis
22 - Worcester, MA - The Palladium
23 - New York, NY - Terminal 5

Professionally filmed video footage of FEAR FACTORY's entire performance at this year's edition of the Bloodstock Open Air festival, which was held August 11-14 at Catton Hall, Walton-On-Trent, West Midlands, United Kingdom, can be seen below.

FEAR FACTORY guitarist Dino Cazares recently confirmed that the band will celebrate the 20th anniversary of its 1998 album "Obsolete" by performing the LP in its entirety. The plans follow on from the band's recent "Demanufacture" shows, which saw FEAR FACTORY playing its landmark 1995 release from front to back.

Speaking to EonMusic, Cazares said about the prospect of marking "Obsolete"'s anniversary with a full tour: "For sure, one hundred percent, it will happen." Before then, however, FEAR FACTORY will focus on making a new album, to be released sometime "next year, and then it will be coming up on the 20-year anniversary of 'Obsolete'," he said. "2018 is the anniversary, but we might start a little earlier [with the 'Obsolete' shows] than that. We'll see."

Dino added that he was looking forward to the "Obsolete" performances, stating: "That was out biggest record by far, and I think it's going to draw a lot of people."

"Obsolete" remains the only FEAR FACTORY album to have achieved gold status in the U.S., driven largely by the success of its fourth single, "Cars", a Gary Numan cover that featured Numan himself on vocals.

In an interview with Metal Assault, Cazares talked about the challenges of playing entire records as part of a live show. He said: "Albums are not necessarily made with keeping in mind that they could be played live in their entirety, but you're hoping that you can get a record that flows really well. For instance, SLAYER has 'Reign In Blood'. The album is 28 minutes long. Sometimes when you hear 'Angel Of Death', you want to hear the next song, and the one after that. But, basically, you're hoping that the record is that good from front to back that people want to hear the whole thing. We got lucky with 'Demanufacture', as we felt that this was the case.

"Playing 'Demanufacture' is really cool because it brings us back to the memory we have of when we made that record. It brings back everything we had to go through, whether it was difficult times or happy times.

"Sometimes when we're playing that album from front to back, all these emotions come out, and it's a good feeling. You're happy that people are feeling the same way and they get into it, and they love it."

SLIPKNOT will perform its 2001 album "Iowa" in its entirety at the Ozzfest Meets Knotfest festival on Sunday, September 25 at San Manuel Amphitheater and Festival Grounds in San Bernardino, California.

Says SLIPKNOT in a statement: "Fifteen years ago, something quite extraordinary happened. Nine men from Iowa went in to a studio in California and created one of the most chaotic and destructive albums ever made. It was, and still is, a shockingly physical and ferocious recording.

To this day, it has never been performed in its entirety.

That is about to change.

"On Sept 25, 2016, at Knotfest in San Bernardino, 30,000 people will experience an event that has NEVER been done before. It will be a dense and serious spectacle, both visually and sonically.

"But you'll be able to say 'you were there."

"So... Will you be there?"

"Iowa" went on to become a huge international success, spawning hits including "Disasterpiece", "The Heretic Anthem", "People = Shit" and "Left Behind".

Regarding what SLIPKNOT was trying to achieve with "Iowa", frontman Corey Taylor told Metal Hammer that the band did not want to put out a rehash of its 1999 self-titled debut and the LP's hit single "Wait And Bleed".

"Everyone and their mom was trying to get us to write ten more 'Wait And Bleeds', but fuck you, we've already done that," he said. "Why would we want to do it again?

"For us, it was really about being rabid, being wasted, and still being young enough to back it up. Our whole goal was to go in and make this dense, destructive album. We had no idea how destructive it was going to be."

Taylor believes SLIPKNOT more than accomplished its goal with "Iowa". He told Metal Hammer: "You can hear the bile in it, you can hear the frenetic passion for what we were trying to do. I think we overshot it… I think we bypassed what we were trying to do and achieved something completely different, which was to create the heaviest album that would be picked up by a popular audience who didn’t really know what they were getting themselves into."

Ozzfest Meets Knotfest is a combination of the two hard rock and metal events that will take place on Saturday, September 24 and Sunday, September 25 at San Manuel Amphitheater and Festival Grounds. BLACK SABBATH will top the Ozzfest bill on September 24, while SLIPKNOT will lead the Knotfest lineup the next day. Also on the Ozzfest portion are DISTURBED, OPETH, BLACK LABEL SOCIETY and others, while the Knotfest lineup includes SLAYER, TRIVIUM, ANTHRAX, SUICIDE SILENCE and many more.

Taylor explained how the meeting of the festivals came together. "You know, building our own festival, it just made sense if we could put this together and make the last North American show for BLACK SABBATH absolutely monumental," he said. "So we made some calls and we were able to put it together and once it was done, it was done like that. So I'm very, very, very proud that we could put this together."

Both days will feature three stages, with one of them named after late MOTÖRHEAD frontman Lemmy Kilmister.

The San Manuel Amphitheater and Festival Grounds is where Ozzfest began in 1996 and where Knotfest was staged last year.

Ozzfest, which began in 1996, has not been a traveling festival in the U.S. since 2007's "free" edition. The show morphed into a one-off event in Dallas in 2008, took 2009 off and played just six cities in 2010. Knotfest, meanwhile, staged its third annual event last year and second as a Southern California weekend destination festival.

Heavy Metal Greg has uploaded video footage of DEFTONES' entire August 24 performance at The Greek Theatre in Los Angeles, California. Check out the video below.

The band's setlist was as follows:

01. Rocket Skates02. Geometric Headdress03. Be Quiet and Drive (Far Away)04. Rickets05. Diamond Eyes06. Rosemary07. Swerve City08. Gore09. Kimdracula10. Digital Bath11. Prince12. (L)MIRL13. Knife Prty14. Change (In the House of Flies)15. Passenger

Encore:

16. My Own Summer (Shove It)17. Headup

Encore 2:

18. Bored19. Engine No. 9

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

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

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

DEFTONES singer Chino Moreno told U.K.'s Kerrang! magazine about the new album title: "If you look at the title and the artwork, it's about a juxtaposition that, for me, is very beautiful.

"I think DEFTONES have always flirted with dynamic and that yin-and-yang of things that are provocative and things that are beautiful. Where our last two album titles were a lot more optimistic, I think this title is intentionally different. This record is very different.

"I feel like 'Diamond Eyes' and 'Koi No Yokan' were brother-sister records in a lot of ways. They were both recording in the same way. And even though it was a tough few years we went through while making those records, I think it was important to have their optimistic outlook."

Moreno also spoke in more detail about the making of "Gore". He said: "We recorded this record in a different way. I'm not saying we went in with any preconceived ideas as such, but I do think we went in knowing that we wanted to make this record a little different from the last two. And I feel, definitely, like we did that. It's still a DEFTONES record — we didn't really have any new influences that changed that — but it's an expansion of what we were comfortable with. And it's important to get out of your comfort zone sometimes witch the music — just to be excited. It's got a different look. A different shade of color. I'd say some shade of purple. I don't know why, but I think it sits somewhere between pink, red and purple. Sometimes when I hear music, I see color, and when it came time to work on the artwork for this batch of songs, I knew exactly what I wanted."

Swedish metallers IN FLAMES will release their twelfth studio album, "Battles", on November 11 via via Nuclear Blast in all territories excluding North America and Scandinavia and Eleven Seven Music Group in the U.S. The CD was recorded in Los Angeles with Grammy-nominated producer Howard Benson, who has previously worked with MOTÖRHEAD, BODY COUNT and SEPULTURA, among others.

The first "Battles" making-of webisode can be seen below. Also available is the album's first single, "The End".

IN FLAMES guitarist Björn Gelotte described "The End" as "a fairly straightforward IN FLAMES song. Having said that, it's a really positive vibe [to] the song. It's not a slash-your-wrists kind of vibe; it makes you realize to just make sure you appreciate that moment."

Gelotte also talked about how the recording process for "Battles" compared to that of its predecessor, 2014's "Siren Charms".

"'Siren Charms' had a very dark vibe to it," he explained. "We recorded it at a cold, damp and dark time during the year in Berlin so it gave it a certain melancholy to the record. Now recording in L.A. with the sunshine, it's a different energy. The writing process was different this time, too — that I would like for us to continue to explore. Also, working with Howard and his team was great. I got stressed taking a break for even five minutes because they were always ready to go for the next take and kept my energy up."

"I think being in California really affected this album in the sense that we had a studio in the house that we were staying at and the vibe was really relaxed which lent itself to productivity," added vocalist Anders Fridén. "It really helped having a producer who could make us focus on what we needed to accomplish and keep us on track."

"This was a very new approach for us because we've never let anyone else in the way we did with Howard," said Gelotte.

"Battles" sees the band making the hooks sharper, the riffs tighter and honing the overall attack in a way that parallels their legendary live shows in an unparalleled fashion.

"When people hear this album I think they're going to instantly know that it's the new IN FLAMES without us repeating the same song over and over, and that's something I'm incredibly proud of," Fridén said. He went on to downplay the changes in the band's sound, calling "Battles" "guitar driven, melodic… it's like they know what to expect. It's not like we're coming out with something completely different, but at the same time it's still new. If they already like IN FLAMES, they will like it — and if they don't like IN FLAMES already, they still might like it."

IN FLAMES will release its new concert DVD, "Sounds From The Heart Of Gothenburg", on September 23 via Nuclear Blast. The set was recorded on November 7, 2014 at Scandinavium in Gothenburg, Sweden. IN FLAMES last year inked a new management deal with Tenth Street Entertainment, which also looks after MÖTLEY CRÜE and FIVE FINGER DEATH PUNCH, among others.

The band's last disc, "Siren Charms", sold around 9,000 copies in the United States in its first week of release to debut at position No. 26 on The Billboard 200 chart.

IN FLAMES drummer Daniel Svensson announced last fall that he was leaving the band to focus on his family life. He said in a statement: "It's hard to leave what have become my second family, but now it's time for me to take care and spend more time with the most important people in my life — my wife and my three daughters."

IN FLAMES has not yet named a replacement for Svensson.

IN FLAMES is:

Anders Fridén - VocalsBjörn Gelotte - GuitarPeter Iwers - BassNiclas Engelin - Guitar

Lifting the lid on life inside one of the world's greatest rock bands, on September 30 Eagle Rock Entertainment will release "Forever And A Day" by SCORPIONS on 2DVD, 2Blu-ray, Digital Documentary and Digital Concert. This revealing and compelling film tells the incredible official story of the SCORPIONS — and was made with the full co-operation of the band.

SCORPIONS rock like no others, and this story shows just how. This fascinating documentary contains both archive and never-before-seen new live performance clips from many timeless SCORPIONS classics. "Forever And A Day" is a German-language film with subtitles. The concert film that forms Disc Two of the physical formats includes massive tracks like "Wind Of Change", "Rock You Like A Hurricane", "Send Me An Angel", "Still Loving You", "The Zoo", "Big City Nights", "Is There Anybody There?", "No One Like You", "Sting In The Tail" and many more! "Forever And A Day" tells the story of the SCORPIONS and is set within the context of their triumphant world tour which ran from 2010 to 2012 and at the time was billed as their farewell tour. It follows the SCORPIONS around the globe whilst both past and present band members and other key people who have worked with them across their career tell how the band started, got their early chances and then broke through to international stardom. The film chronicles how the SCORPIONS were often one of the first rock bands to blast through the barriers and play all over the world, especially in the Far East, Eastern Europe and Russia. It tells how they deliberately focused on making it in the USA and also how they initially struggled to reach a wider audience in their home country of Germany, despite huge success in many other parts of the world. It is a fascinating story that will enthrall any SCORPIONS fan. To compliment the documentary there is a bonus disc of the jaw-dropping and emotional final concert on the tour at the Olympiahalle in Munich on December 17, 2012.

"Forever And A Day" is a fascinating look at one of Rock's most engaging, potent and successful acts and the addition of the fantastic live concert film makes this an essential purchase for any SCORPIONS fan! What's life like in one of the world's premier rock acts? "Forever And A Day" will tell you. Track listing (concert disc):

01. Sting In The Tail02. Make It Real03. Is There Anybody There04. The Zoo05. Coast To Coast06. Loving You Sunday Morning07. We'll Burn The Sky08. The Best Is Yet To Come09. Send Me An Angel10. Holiday11. Raised On Rock12. Tease Me Please Me13. Hit Between The Eyes14. Kottak Attack15. Blackout16. Big City Nights17. Still Loving You18. Wind Of Change19. No One Like You20. Rock You Like A Hurricane21. When The Smoke Is Going Down

Video footage of the Dutch all-female death/black metal band SISTERS OF SUFFOCATION performing on July 30 at the Stonehenge festival in Steenwijk, The Netherlands can be seen below.

Founded in 2014 in Eidhoven, SISTERS OF SUFFOCATION managed very quickly to establish an amazing live reputation and got lots of invitations from venues and smaller festivals. This was noticed by Eindhoven Metal Meeting, who gave them a chance to present themselves for a bigger audience.

It has always been a dream of vocalist Els Prins to start an all-female death metal band, but she didn't seem to be able find the right group of girls to make this dream reality — that is, until she met guitarist Simone van Straten. Sharing a love for extreme music, they recruited drummer Amber de Buijzer and bass player Marjolein van den Nieuwenhuizen and started rehearsing. They released their first single, "Boundaries", in July 2014 and played their first show one month later. In May 2015, Marjolein exited the band and was replaced by Puck Wildschut.

Earlier this year, SISTERS OF SUFFOCATION finally went into the studio in Antwerp to record "Brutal Queen", and the first pressing is already sold out. Hammerheart Records will reissue this EP on digi-CD (September) and on LP (November), with slightly different artwork. The band is scheduled to perform as a support act for LEGION OF THE DAMNED this autumn. Meanwhile, SISTERS OF SUFFOCATION will begin work on their debut album, which is scheduled for release in the second half of 2017.

SISTERS OF SUFFOCATION is:

Vocals - Els PrinsGuitar - Simone van StratenDrums - Amber de BuijzerBass - Puck Wildschut

Fan-filmed video footage of MEGADETH's August 23 performance at Estadio Luna Park in Buenos Aires, Argentina can be seen below.

The band's setlist was as follows:

01. Hangar 1802. The Threat Is Real03. Rattlehead04. Poisonous Shadows05. Wake Up Dead06. In My Darkest Hour07. Conquer Or Die!08. Fatal Illusion09. Tornado Of Souls10. She-Wolf11. Dawn Patrol12. Poison Was The Cure13. Sweating Bullets14. A Tout Le Monde15. Trust16. Post American World17. Dystopia18. Symphony Of Destruction19. Peace Sells

Encore:

20. Holy Wars... The Punishment Due

MEGADETH recently announced the addition of Dirk Verbeuren as the band's new drummer. Verbeuren, formerly of Swedish metal band SOILWORK, has been performing with the band for months; his first show was Rock On The Range festival in May, to a crowd of 40,000 concertgoers. Prior to Dirk joining MEGADETH, LAMB OF GOD drummer Chris Adler had performed all the drums on the band's latest album, "Dystopia", and had toured with MEGADETH when not otherwise busy with his band.

Asked if he sees MEGADETH's new lineup as a "new beginning" for the band, MEGADETH leader Dave Mustaine told Chile's Radio Futuro: "Kind of. But I think people make too big of a deal about lineup changes. IRON MAIDEN had a bunch of lineup changes. They've had more than one singer; they've had three singers. We've only had one. SLAYER's had lineup changes, METALLICA's had lineup changes, so I don't really put too much importance on lineup changes. If somebody doesn't wanna be here, then fuck 'em! You know what I mean? But I look at it like this: Kiko Loureiro [guitar] has been a breath of fresh air, and Dirk Verbeuren was recommended by Chris Adler, who played on the 'Dystopia' record and is a great friend of mine and the band. And the record is very exciting. I think that it's really given us a breath of fresh air, going back to what we wanted to do: playing thrash music. After 'Risk', I said something to Marty Friedman. I said, 'We've gotta go back to our roots,' and he quit. So it kind of shows you where he was going — to Japan. And, for me, slowly but surely, we changed the band and got the direction back to where we're at with [MEGADETH's latest album] 'Dystopia'. And I'm excited to see what the next record's gonna be like."

The fall 2016 North American leg of MEGADETH's "Dystopia" world tour kicks off in Casper, Wyoming on September 20 and will take them across the U.S., visiting 16 states with special guests AMON AMARTH, SUICIDAL TENDENCIES and METAL CHURCH.

ANTHRAX has released the official video for "Monster At The End", a song from the band's latest album, "For All Kings".

The original concept was to have four still photographers placed strategically on a Florida set while the five members of ANTHRAX performed song "Monster At The End" live. Each photographer would hold down his camera's shutter button continuously for the near-four minute-long song, capturing a steady stream of hundreds of still images.

"Hey, it might have been a great idea," laughed video director Jack Bennett, "but holding down the shutter button on a still camera for that long a time? All we would have ended up with were four jammed cameras!"

Shooting the entire video with Super Sharp HD video still cameras, Bennett wanted an animated, staccato-feel to the flow of the individual images. "Video shutter speeds are faster and more reliable than anything we could have done manually, and we wanted as big a pool of still images to choose from as we could get."

In post-production, Bennett went through the footage frame by frame and hand-picked the still images he wanted to animate — hundreds of them. Rather than print the video at 24 frames per second, he animated movement of the band members using the still images, creating a jagged, crude motion. "We didn't want fluidity, we wanted the video to have more of a comic book feel to it, like flipbook animation."

This also allowed Bennett to hang on the band members' individual movements to accentuate the power of their playing, such as the strength in Charlie Benante's drum hits, or Scott Ian's strumming or Frank Bello's rhythm.

And then the real fun began.

Bennett and his crew went one step further, taking a cue from the legendary Walt Disney animators of the 1920s and 1930s, who used the technique of rotoscoping, the art of painstakingly hand-painting individual cels to embellish a primary image.

Employing the fundamentals of rotoscope, Bennett has peppered the video with monsters, tattoos that come alive, explosions, popping eyeballs, speech bubbles, morphed images, and nods to the influence of "Creepshow". There's even a frame or two of The Skull King, the evil character from ANTHRAX's "Blood Eagle Wings" music video that Bennett also directed. Actor Justin Michael Terry, who played The Skull King, is The Runner in "Monster At The End".

"We used a lot of stop-motion effects as well as other special and visual effects in the same way as was done in the original 'Exorcist' film," Bennett added. "We even added a little bit of grain, some dust and some scratches just to give it that analog feel."

As the music video unfolds, the frame rate increases, giving the band members more and more fluid movements until the final chorus when the video is full-on 24-frames per second. "You could watch this video one frame at a time," Bennett added, "and probably not find everything we did."

"The 'Monster At The End' video takes us back to our love of comics and horror," said Benante. "We've always loved the 'Creepshow' movies and wanted something like that for this video. Jack is easy to work with, all we did was perform the song, he did the real work with the editing and achieving the look that we wanted."

Bennett wraps the video with one more surprise, an unexpected ending that goes to show that in the end, there's a little bit of the monster in all of us.

The "Monster At The End" vinyl single, which came out last month, is backed by the track "Vice Of The People", which was previously released as a bonus song on the Japanese version of "For All Kings". The single is available in four different colors: Lilac, silver, black and gold (Nuclear Blast mailorder exclusive).

"For All Kings" 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.

ANTHRAX will join forces with SLAYER and DEATH ANGEL this fall for a seven-week North American tour. The dates start in Cleveland on September 9 and will hit both major and secondary markets across the continent.

Finnish melodic metal quintet SONATA ARCTICA will release its ninth album, titled "The Ninth Hour", on October 7 via Nuclear Blast. Once again, the CD was produced by SONATA ARCTICA themselves and mixed by Pasi Kauppinen to create a typical yet refreshing sound that defines the spirit of the band in the year 2016.

The second trailer for "The Ninth Hour" is available below.

"The Ninth Hour" track listing:

01. Closer To An Animal02. Life03. Fairytale04. We Are What We Are05. Till Death's Done Us Apart06. Among The Shooting Stars07. Rise A Night08. Fly, Navigate, Communicate09. Candle Lawns10. White Pearl, Black Oceans Part II – "By The Grace Of The Ocean"11. On The Faultline (Closure To An Animal)

The lyric video for the album's first single, "Closer To An Animal", can be seen below.

"'Closer To An Animal' was a song that our vocalist Tony [Kakko] sent to the studio somewhere around the middle of the sessions with the words: 'This will be the album opener,'" keyboardist Henkka Klingenberg recalls. "After checking out the demo, we all just had to agree.

"I would say that musically this is a 'metal-meets-'80s type of song.

"We wanted this as the first single, since it gives quite a clear picture of what you can expect on the upcoming album, or at least some of it.

"I'm really looking forward to opening the shows on the next world tour with this track!"

After a North American tour with their friends from NIGHTWISH plus many headline shows around the globe, the band was once again able to take a look at the entire world as it is at the moment — on the edge of a possible armageddon. This spirit is reflected in the artwork of "The Ninth Hour". "The artwork of our ninth studio album, 'The Ninth Hour', depicts a future utopian landscape on the background," Tony said. "Nature and human technologies are in balance. In the middle we have an hour glass contraption with a knob for us to meddle with. The right-hand side cup represents the nature side with no humans left, on the left we have the human dystopia after we have destroyed Nature. The idea I had was, that turning the knob will tilt the hour glass in one direction or another, and the other cup will slowly empty and that future will be erased. Biblically we are expected to repent and sacrifice on 'The Ninth Hour'… to dive right back to a more mundane reality, it's a fact that we are currently living in critical, historical times. Our decisions will define the future. Not only ours as a race, but the future of this entire planet. We need to make sacrifices and in many cases we will repent our already made choices."

Right after the summer festival season and the release of "The Ninth Hour", the band will embark on a European tour together with their labelmates TWILIGHT FORCE to present the new songs to their fans.

Twinkle Twinkle Little Rock Star, the company which creates "beautiful lullaby versions of your favorite artists," has just released "Lullaby Versions Of Killswitch Engage" via Roma Music Group.

"Lullaby Versions Of Killswitch Engage " track listing:

01. The End Of Heartache02. Hate By Design03. My Curse04. This Fire05. A Bid Farewell06. Strength Of The Mind07. In Due Time

The song "My Curse" can be streamed in the YouTube clip below.

Check out audio samples at this location.

Twinkle Twinkle Little Rock Star was born for the parent that wants to pass along their biggest passion to their child, music. Twinkle Twinkle Little Rock Star transforms popular music into instrumental lullabies perfect for babies, yoga or just relaxation. Now, parents can enjoy the music from LADY GAGA to METALLICA in soothing lullaby style. With over 135 titles to choose from, Twinkle Twinkle Little Rock Star is the largest line of pop, rock, metal and jamband music lullabies in the world. These aren't novelty recordings. They are cute, they are soft but these are serious recordings. Roma Music Group, which releases Twinkle Twinkle Little Rock Star, is run by two music industry veterans who put the fidelity of these recording at the top of the priority list. Let's face it, much like the brand name clothes you buy for your infant, this music is really for you. Whether you are raising a metal baby, rocker or hippie baby, Twinkle Twinkle Little Rock Star has your music transformed from arena anthems into nursery classics.

The godfathers of American doom SAINT VITUS will release a new live album, "Live Vol. 2", on September 23 via Season Of Mist.

Another track from the effort, "The Bleeding Ground" can now be streamed below.

"Live Vol. 2" track listing:

01. War Is Our Destiny02. Look Behind You03. Let Them Fall04. The Bleeding Ground05. Patra (Petra)06. The Troll07. The Waste Of Time08. White Stallions09. Thirsty And Miserable10. Dying Inside11. Born Too Late

You can pre-order "Live Vol. 2" at this location.

From the very first guitar chords, that unmistakable frying, sizzling, and wailing signature sound of Dave Chandler as well as the trademark deeply resonant vocals of Scott "Wino" Weinrich, any adherent of classic doom metal will immediately know: this is SAINT VITUS.

Despite having been around for more than 35 years, the American heavy legends are only now getting ready to release their second official live album after the 1990 seminal "Live" record.

SAINT VITUS taped "Live Vol. 2" during the tour for their acclaimed comeback album, "Lillie: F-65" (2012), on March 19, 2013 at the Kulturfabrik in Esch-sur-Alzette, Luxembourg. The album and tour marked the return of Weinrich. Out of respect for their vintage heritage, SAINT VITUS chose to preserve the raw and pure live sound without cleaning up and patching with overdubs. As a result, "Live Vol. 2" is a true live document.

Formed in 1979, SAINT VITUS were largely influenced by BLACK SABBATH, whose song "Saint Vitus Dance" obviously inspired the moniker. Since their debut album, "Saint Vitus", came out in 1984, the Americans have released seven more full-lengths and two EPs that are summarily considered to be classics of their genre.

"Live Vol. 2" will also be released as a special digipak edition containing a digisleeve as well as a triple gatefold vinyl, which are both strictly limited and will contain "Marbles In The Moshpit". This live recording from Ontario, Canada in December 1984 was previously available as a bootleg and on limited vinyl, and features the lineup Dave Chandler, Mark Adams, original singer Scott Reagers, and late drummer Armando Acosta, who sadly passed away in 2000.

"Live Vol. 2" recording lineup:

Dave Chandler: guitarScott "Wino" Weinrich: vocalsMark Adams: bassHenry Vasquez: drums

Witchcraft main man Magnus Pelander's solo project, Pelander, has revealed the title and tracklisting for his upcoming debut album, coming soon from Nuclear Blast Records.

Time will contain seven tracks with an approximate running time of 44 minutes.

Ttracklisting:

“Umbrella”
“Family Song”
“The Irony Of Man”
“True Colour”
“Precious Swan”
“Time”
“Rebecka” (Bonus Track)

After his latest journey with Witchcraft, Nucleus, multi instrumentalist and lyricist extraordinaire, Magnus Pelander, returns to his solo career which without a doubt can be recognized as being tied to the cult doom/rock band, still exploring other paths and going full on acoustic.

Magnus Pelander comments: "At last my first solo album is done and soon to be released. I cannot believe this is true."

Commented Nuclear Blast A&R representative Markus Jakob: "We're thrilled to not only work with a gifted artist as Magnus on his main band but now also on his solo career. Both Witchcraft and Pelander have always stood for variety, artistic freedom and development which we're more than happy to support. Prepare yourself for another deep and intense look into the mind and musical vision of a genius!"

More details on the upcoming Time album will be revealed soon.

Relapse Records will release Arizona's death metal newcomers Gatecreeper’s debut full-length, Sonoran Depravation, on October 7th on CD/LP/digital formats. The album was recorded at Homewrecker Studios in Tucson, Arizona by Ryan Bram and mixed by Kurt Ballou at Godcity Studios. A video for the album track “Desperation” is streaming below.

"We chose a robbery-gone-wrong scenario, focusing on the bloody aftermath and suspenseful get-away rather than the initial violenc," elaborates the band of the clip, "The performance footage was filmed with a single camera in hopes of capturing the energy and intensity of our live shows to match the main character's desperation as he tries to escape the horror he has created. In the end, the worlds collide leaving the viewer questioning what was real and what was a hallucination."

Formed in mid-2013 based on their mutual love for bands like Dismember, Entombed, Bolt Thrower and Obituary, Gatecreeper play monstrous, low-end, old-school death metal for a new generation.

Gatecreeper commented on signing with Replase and their new album: "We are very excited to be working with Relapse, a label that we have all been following for many years. It is a dream come true to release our first full-length on such a legendary and trustworthy label."

Tracklisting:

“Craving Flesh”
“Sterilized”
“Desperation”
“Rotting As One”
“Stronghold”
“Patriarchal Grip”
“Lost Forever”
“Flamethrower”
“Grotesque Operations”

“Craving Flesh”:

Gatecreeper lineup:

Sean Mears - Bass
Metal Matt - Drums
Eric Wagner - Guitars
Chase H. Mason - Vocals

MEGADETH bassist David Ellefson spoke to Argentina's Rock & Pop radio station about the band's acoustic performance on Tuesday, August 23 outside the Four Seasons hotel in Buenos Aires.

Regarding how the session came about, Ellefson said: "Dave [Mustaine, MEGADETH leader] sent me a message, a text [Tuesday] morning, and said, 'Do you wanna join me and Kiko [Loureiro, MEGADETH guitarist] in thirty minutes do some acoustic on the lawn?' And I didn't have a bass, and Dirk [Verbeuren, MEGADETH drummer], of course, didn't have drums, so it was very fun, very spur of the moment, very impromptu."

Asked if the members of MEGADETH enjoy taking part in these unusual fan interactions, Ellefson said: "It's better than an autograph [laughs] and better than a photo, 'cause the songs are what brings us all together, and to be able to sit there close and personal like that, and to get some sunshine on us after being in the dark. So it's fun, it's very spur of the moment. So it's not something that's planned, and I think that's what certainly the people of Argentina love these spontaneous moments from us."

MEGADETH fall 2016 North American leg of the "Dystopia" world tour will kick off in Casper, Wyoming on September 20 and take them across the U.S., visiting 16 states with special guests AMON AMARTH, SUICIDAL TENDENCIES and METAL CHURCH.

MEGADETH recently announced the addition of Verbeuren as the band's new drummer. Verbeuren, formerly of Swedish metal band SOILWORK, has been performing with the band for months; his first show was Rock On The Range festival in May, to a crowd of 40,000 concertgoers. Most recently, LAMB OF GOD drummer Chris Adler had performed all the drums on the band's latest album, "Dystopia", and had toured with MEGADETH when not otherwise busy with his band.

"Metallica: Back To The Front", the definitive story of METALLICA's classic 1986 album "Master Of Puppets" and the tour that followed its release, hits bookstores and online sellers on September 13. A very special Collector's Edition of the book will be available two weeks earlier on August 30 through Metallica.com and MoonriseMedia.net.

A new two-minute clip in which the members of METALLICA discuss what the album meant to their careers and to reflect on their original bassist, Cliff Burton, who died while on tour promoting the LP, can be seen below (courtesy of Rolling Stone).

"Metallica: Back To The Front" includes an extensive interview with Ray Burton, father of late METALLICA bassist Cliff Burton, who tragically died in a September 1986 bus accident during the European leg of the "Damage Inc." trek.

A one-minute video clip in which Ray Burton can be seen flipping through his copy of "Metallica: Back To The Front" can be seen below.

Says METALLICA: "Two years in the making, we're beyond excited to finally share it with you.

"To refresh your memories, we teamed up with acclaimed award-winning author Matt Taylor ('Jaws: Memories From Martha's Vineyard') and you all jumped in to assist us in putting the pieces together by sending your photos, videos, stories and mementos. We hit the storage lockers, attics and basements to fill the book with hundreds of never-before-seen images pulled from our personal archives and have been involved every step of the way to bring you the complete story.

"The deluxe edition comes in a sleek case that includes a hardcover, clothbound, limited edition copy of the 276-page book and a portfolio containing a 1.25" x 1.25" piece of an original roadcase used to ship the band's equipment to Denmark for the recording of the album and on the tour that followed its release.

"Matt sat with us for exclusive, intensive interviews and we dug deep in our memory banks for stories, anecdotes, tidbits and tales from the studio, the road and beyond.

"A huge thanks to the people who were a part of our history at that time who sat with Matt, including record producer Flemming Rasmussen and the man who mixed it, Michael Wagener. Matt also tracked down the entire 'Master Of Puppets' road crew, including John Marshall and members of the bands who toured with us, ANTHRAX and ARMORED SAINT. Our booking agent, tour promoters and managers, Cliff Burnstein and Peter Mensch, all were overly generous with their time and recollections. FAITH NO MORE guitarist Jim Martin and drummer Mike Bordin and DIAMOND HEAD's Brian Tatler spoke with Matt about their memories of those crazy times. Of course, you, the fans who were at those shows gave us an amazing view of your memories and experiences. Finally, we're honored that Cliff Burton's dad Ray sat down for an extensive interview.

"As we continue to celebrate 30 years of 'Master Of Puppets', in honor of the release of the book we've teamed up with ESP Guitars to give Fifth Members [members of the METALLICA fan club] a chance to win a very limited-edition 'Master Of Puppets' guitar. Now you can customize Metallica.com with the new 'Master Of Puppets' skin.

"If you're in the mood to hear some live music all eleven shows from the 2006 summer tour (those of you counting note that was the 20th anniversary of the release of the album!) featuring live performances of the entire album are now available on CD in the Met Store.

"Keep watching [Metallica.com] and on social media for sneak peeks of the book, videos with us chatting about the making of and other fun and games as we'll be celebrating all throughout August.

"Oh, one more thing. We're pretty sure that some of you will wonder about the remastered versions of 'Master Of Puppets' we told you were in the works. They still are! As we keep digging in the vaults, we're finding more and more music and video so that we can bring you an even bigger, more comprehensive, no stone-unturned version of the album. As always, [Metallica.com] is the place for more info as we have it!"

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

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

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

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

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

Legendary Twisted Sister frontman Dee Snider will officially release his new solo album, We Are The Ones, on October 28th on Red River Records (distributed by BFD/RED).

Speaking to Billboard about his upcoming “contemporary rock record”, Dee states: “We created an album that is think part Foo Fighters, part Imagine Dragons, part Thirty Seconds To Mars, forget anything from the past. Most of my heavy metal fans are gonna hate it; I’ve abandoned my past to move forward.”

Read more at Billboard.com.

Not wanting to waste any time in getting his legions of fans excited about We Are The Ones, Dee has launched a PledgeMusic campaign that offers a wide selection of exclusive items, as well as a discounted digital download of the full album upon the release date, including signed drumheads, lyric sheets, guitars, guitar pedals, a signed microphone, and even signed and numbered Dee Snider Legos.

Also, a very special dinner with Snider and producer Damon Ranger that includes an early listen of the new album, and having Snider record a fan’s choice of an outgoing voicemail message, “Happy Birthday” or other personalized message as a MP4 digital file. The grand incentive is a full band private performance anywhere in the US.

All pre-orders come with the AccessPass, which will give fans exclusive artist updates and a behind-the scenes look at the making of the record. To pre-order the record, visit this location.

Produced by Grammy, Emmy and Oscar winning songwriter, Damon Ranger, We Are The Ones crackles with modern energy, from the call-to-arms manifesto of “Rule The World”, to the anthemic bonding of “So What” (complete with, yes, a string section) to the intensely synth driven “Close To You”, to the thematically soaring “Superhero” (a song tailor-made for running over the end credits of the next Marvel or DC movie blockbuster if ever there was one). Another significant highlight of the album is a newly re-recorded acoustic version of “We’re Not Gonna Take It” which has also been tapped the official anthem for The Recording Academy’s advocacy efforts, including the Fair Play Fair Pay act. Recently performed in Washington D.C. at the annual Grammys On The Hill event, a video of the song can be viewed below:

Also featured on We Are The Ones is an explosive cover of Nine Inch Nails’ “Head Like A Hole”. “I always thought it was a great song, a powerful song,” Snider explains, “I can’t wait to do that one live. Like “We’re Not Gonna Take It” is iconic, “Head Like a Hole” is iconic for that era.”

Dee is currently working on a fall tour, which will be announced in the coming weeks. Stay tuned for updates.

LED ZEPPELIN will release an expanded version of its 1997 "BBC Sessions" on September 16. The updated set, retitled "The Complete BBC Sessions", was produced by Jimmy Page and features eight previously unreleased tracks — including "I Can't Quit You Baby", "You Shook Me" and the only recorded performance of "Sunshine Woman".

"The Complete BBC Sessions" will be available in multiple formats from Atlantic/Swan Song on September 16: * Deluxe Edition (3CD) – Remastered original album plus a third disc of unreleased audio.* Deluxe Edition Vinyl (5LP) – Remastered original album, plus a fifth LP of unreleased audio, on 180-gram vinyl* Digital Download – Remastered album and unreleased audio will both be available.* Super Deluxe Boxed Set (3CD/5LP)– This collection includes: * Remastered album. 2 CDs, each in a replica sleeve.* Unreleased audio on CD in a separate card sleeve.* Remastered album on 180-gram vinyl.* Unreleased audio on 180-gram vinyl.* High-def audio download card of all content at 96kHz/24 bit.* 48-page book filled with photos of the band, the recording locations, BBC memorabilia, and session information.* High-quality print of the original album cover, the first 20,000 of which will be individually numbered.

"BBC Sessions" was originally released in 1997 and has been certified double platinum by the RIAA. "The Complete BBC Sessions" builds on that collection with a third disc that boasts eight unreleased performances. In addition, the set includes extensive session-by-session liner notes written by Dave Lewis. For the first time ever, it provides accurate details and notes about all of the band's BBC sessions. Musical highlights on this new collection include the debut of a long-lost radio session that has achieved near-mythic status among fans. Originally broadcast in April 1969, the session included three songs: "I Can't Quit You Baby", "You Shook Me" and the only recorded performance of "Sunshine Woman", which can be streamed below. Also included are two unreleased versions of both "Communication Breakdown" and "What Is And What Should Never Be". Separated by two years, the performances vividly demonstrate the young band's rapid evolution over a short period of time. Jimmy Page spoke about the band's growth in an interview with Guitar World. "The 'BBC Sessions' show in graphic detail just how organic the group was," he said. "LED ZEPPELIN was a band that would change things around substantially each time it played…We were becoming tighter and tighter, to the point of telepathy." Speaking with Wall Of Sound, John Paul Jones added: "We'd been on the road a lot by the time those sessions were recorded. The albums were always the starting point of the music, and then we'd take it out and expand it on the road. Then we'd come straight off the road into those BBC studios." Recalling the BBC experience in an interview with Mojo, Robert Plant said: "The whole thing was very quaint: the politeness of the audience, the technicians fumbling about, proper hallowed low-key introductions. Like there was some sort of holy moment about to occur." "The Complete BBC Sessions" CD track listing Disc One

01. You Shook Me02. I Can't Quit You Baby03. Communication Breakdown04. Dazed And Confused05. The Girl I Love She Got Long Black Wavy Hair06. What Is And What Should Never Be07. Communication Breakdown08. Travelling Riverside Blues09. Whole Lotta Love10. Somethin' Else11. Communication Breakdown12. I Can't Quit You Baby13. You Shook Me14. How Many More Times Disc Two

01. Immigrant Song02. Heartbreaker03. Since I've Been Loving You04. Black Dog05. Dazed And Confused06. Stairway To Heaven07. Going To California08. That's The Way09. Whole Lotta Love (Medley: Boogie Chillun/Fixin' To Die/That's Alright Mama/A Mess of Blues)10. Thank You Disc Three

01. Communication Breakdown *02. What Is And What Should Never Be *03. Dazed And Confused *04. White Summer05. What Is And What Should Never Be *06. Communication Breakdown *07. I Can't Quit You Baby *08. You Shook Me *09. Sunshine Woman * * Previously Unreleased

PROPHETS OF RAGE, the supergroup featuring members of RAGE AGAINST THE MACHINE, PUBLIC ENEMY's Chuck D and CYPRESS HILL's B-Real, will release its debut EP, "The Party's Over", on August 26. The five-song effort will include the previously released, eponymous single "Prophets Of Rage" — re-imagination of the PUBLIC ENEMY track of the same name — as well as live versions of RAGE AGAINST THE MACHINE's "Killing In The Name" and PUBLIC ENEMY's "Shut 'Em Down", a Republican National Convention-inspired interpretation of BEASTIE BOYS' "No Sleep 'Till Brooklyn" called "No Sleep 'Till Cleveland", and the new original "The Party's Over". "The Party's Over" debuted on Apple Music's Beats 1 and can now be streamed below.

"The Party's Over" track listing:

01. Prophets Of Rage02. The Party's Over03. Killing In The Name (RAGE AGAINST THE MACHINE cover) (live)04. Shut 'Em Down (PUBLIC ENEMY cover) (live)05. No Sleep 'Till Cleveland (interpretation of BEASTIE BOYS' "No Sleep 'Till Brooklyn") (live)

Even though PROPHETS OF RAGE does not feature RAGE AGAINST THE MACHINE frontman Zack de la Rocha, the group plays classics like "Bulls On Parade" along with tunes by PUBLIC ENEMY and CYPRESS HILL.

"I think the music of RAGE AGAINST THE MACHINE is more relevant today than it was when it was written," Morello told Cleveland.com. "And we give a lot of credit and honor to Zack at every show because his lyrics are brilliant."

Last month, PROPHETS OF RAGE released the "Prophets Of Rage" single through digital download and streaming services. Featuring new music and a new original verse from B-Real, the single was recorded with legendary producer Brendan O'Brien who has done notable work with RAGE AGAINST THE MACHINE and AUDIOSLAVE.

PROPHETS OF RAGE made their live debut in May in Los Angeles.