Adelaide, Australia-based progressive death metal purveyors, Sun Of Gaia, have launched a new video single. Entitled "Peril", the new single follows up the EP Corrode, which was released in March last year. The "Peril" video can be seen below.

"The new single, "Peril", differs from our previous EP Corrode in the sense that it embraces more progressive elements through the use of clean, ambient sections, clean vocals and places a much greater emphasis on the role of keyboards and piano elements in our music," the band commented. "It still retains some of the heaviness and melodic death metal style of Corrode, but overall it offers a more refined, mature and musically confident insight into who we are as a band today.

"We intended for the new single to act as a kind of 'bridge' between our sound on the Corrode EP and how our next release will sound. It retains the heavier, metal elements that fans of Corrode will recognize and enjoy, but listeners can expect to hear many more progressive elements on future releases that we think are previewed quite nicely in "Peril"."

Sun of Gaia are already working on new material; they plan to record and release their full-length debut later this year.

They say, "We’re about two thirds of the way through writing a full-length album, so our goal for the near future will be to complete the writing process and start to demo the new songs with the aim of heading into the studio to record them later on this year. In addition to this, we'll be supporting Melbourne death metal band Hadal Maw for their album launch in Adelaide in late February and expect to play a number of shows locally and interstate before the year comes to an end."

Watch the video for "Peril" below, and download the single from Bandcamp for free.

Sun of Gaia is:

Lachlan Odell - vocals & keyboard
Jack Bolingbroke - guitar
Nathan Churches - bass
Rory Amoy - drums & vocals

Unholy Prophecies has set April 24th as the international release date for Morbid Flesh's second album, Rites Of The Mangled. Proudly Catalonian, this Barcelona-based band is fittingly named, for they are authentically and unequivocally morbid, old-school daeth fuckin' Metal. Which is not all that surprising considering Morbid Flesh's membership includes scene veterans who do time in such hordes as: Insulters, Graveyard, Ósserp, Sheidim, Cuerno, and Tort among others. What results is a mammoth, elephantine bulldozer of disgusting, disease-drenched death metal in a most classic Swedish manner.

Morbid Flesh formed in 2007, and delivered the Dying Lapidation demo in 2009. Two years later came their debut album through Memento Mori, Reborn In Death. Aptly titled, Reborn In Death proved that the classic Swedeath well had not run dry, and the album went on to be become a cherished record among death metal diehards. But in 2014, Morbid Flesh delivered their first strike for Unholy Prophecies, Embedded In The Ossuary. A swift-hitting EP draped in appropriately moody cover art, Embedded In The Ossuary showed that the band could take their rottenly unfresh classicisms and dump more darkness and doom upon them. 

And that's precisely where Rites Of The Mangled comes in. Likewise adorned with classic death metal cover art, Morbid Flesh's second album kicks in with no superfluous adornment and proceeds to bury the listener under bones, entrails, and human ash. Its ever-onward crush simply does not relent, and this patient application of tank-tread terror is the key to the record's success: whereas so many death metal bands are impatient to go nowhere quickly, Morbid Flesh simply slog forward in a most unselfconscious manner, letting their metric shit-tons of riff bury the listener in righteous oblivion while often dragging the listener down  into the bowels of unforgiving doom. Of course, this monumental crush of Rites Of The Mangled is largely thanks to Javi Felez, who recorded, mixed, and mastered the album at his Moontower Studios (Graveyard, Avulsed, Nominon). Featuring guest appearances by Blasphemic Vomitor from Insulters, Xavi of Tort, and Xavier from Ósserp and Crani Septic, Rites Of The Mangled is Morbid Flesh's magnum opus!

You can hear "The Circle Cursed" the first track to be revealed from Rites Of The Mangled , via Unholy Prophecies' BandCamp audio player below. Cover and tracklisting follow.

Rites Of The Mangled (CD / 12" LP) by MORBID FLESH

"The Circle Cursed"
"Burn The Entrails"
"Banished To Oblivion"
"Heretics Hammer"
"Feeding Mallows"
"Incantation"
"Evil Behind You"

 

Hells Headbangers announces the signing of South American band Death Yell for the release of their debut album, Descent Into Hell, later this year.

Death Yell had a very short but intense life in the late '80s until they abruptly split up in 1991. For good or bad reasons, their unique demo Vengeance From Darkness became referent and even influential for many brutal death / black metal bands and 'bangers, raising the band - even after all these years - to the level of an emblematic and even cult name from that time.
 
Death Yell reunited 20 years after they broke up to come back with the recording of Back From The Depths - released in 2013 through Hells Headbangers as a split 7” with Atomic Aggressor - showing they had not lost their eerie occult style. Since then, the band have been busy playing live and regaining the position they deserved, having recently joined the Nuclear War Now! Fest V in Berlin.

Says founding guitarist Andrés "Pollo" Lozano about this release, "Descent Into Hell is actually our first full-length after 30 years! We are very pleased to become part of the Hells Headbangers legion, as we wanted to work with a specialized, serious, and well-known underground metal label in order to materialize this project."

He adds, "It took us quite some time to decide about recording this album. We had to make the decision about either burying the band definitively or take the risk of resurrecting Death Yell… Eventually, we just did it and made all in our hands to keep our original brutality intact. We are quite sure that Death Yell fans will not be disappointed."

Marcelo Vasco designed the album cover, who's also designed the latest album covers of Slayer and Kreator. Cover and tracklisting are as follows:

"Soulless"
"Descent Into Hell"
"Cries Of The Nazarene"
"Bluffer"
"Betrayed Chastity"
"Purging Demons" (acoustic intro)
"Thy Will Be Done"
"Will Never Enjoy"
"Healing By Blood"
"Macabre Fuckfeast"
 
The CD edition will also include a new version of "Back From The Depths" as a bonus track. The current Death Yell lineup includes four of the five original founding members: vocalist Galleta, bassist Guatiu, and guitarists Pollo and Pulga.

Death Yell lineup 2017:

Sergio "Galleta" - vocals
Andres "Pollo" - guitar
Andres "Pulga" - guitar
Alejandro "Guatiu" - bass
Marco "Demon" - drums

 

Righteous Vendetta have revealed the first single off their upcoming full-length record, Cursed. The new song, "Weight Of The World" can be heard below and is also the first instant grat track for those who pr-order the album. The preorder for Cursed is available now at Indie Merch, iTunes, and the Amazon widget below. Cursed is set for release March 17th via Century Media Records.

Speaking on the creative journey behind the making of Cursed, the band states:

"After two years of writing and recording we are beyond excited to finally release this album with Century Media. For anyone that follows us, they know this has been a long process. But patience has paid off, because we feel that we have crafted the best album we possibly can."

“We challenged ourselves and pushed our creative limits,” states frontman Ryan Hayes. From the riffy hard rock bludgeon of opening track, “War Is Killing Us All” to the radio-ready hook-fest of “Weight Of The World”, Cursed is the sound of a band moving from strength to strength. “We wrote 30, 40 songs and really figured out who we are in the process.” Add to that a non-stop itinerary of live shows where the energized five-piece ensnare new fans and followers, Righteous Vendetta are burning rubber on their way to contender status.

In addition to their upcoming record, Righteous Vendetta will hit the road next month on a US tour building up the release of Cursed. In anticipation of these dates, members of the band state:

"Along with the release of our new album we are announcing a bunch of tour dates. We are excited to get back on a heavy touring schedule and return to some of our favorite cities!"

Teaser:

   

Italian death metal collective Hideous Divinity, featuring within its ranks current and former members of Hour Of Penance and Aborted, are preparing to unleash their third full-length via Unique Leader this spring.

Titled Adveniens and scheduled for release on April 28th, the follow-up to the band's Cobra Verde long player was recorded, mixed and mastered at Stefano Morabito's 16th Cellar Studio (Hour Of Penance, Fleshgod Apocalypse etc.) during the fall of 2016, includes a rendition of Sinister's "Embodiment Of Chaos”, and finds Hideous Divinity offering up their darkest material yet.

"It may be pretentious to talk about evolution inside our musical genre, this is what Adveniens truly means for us," elaborates guitarist Enrico Schettino. "Just when we believed that with Cobra Verde we reached a point of no return, our songwriting turned even more dark and monumental. Although we'll never consider ourselves close to Lucyfyre, Adversarial, Deathspell Omega, and Akhlys, the influence of this new wave of obscure metal on us these last years has been massive. The result is our most epic death metal effort ever conceived. "

"Stefano Morabito and his 16th Cellar Studios set up a new standard with the production of Adveniens," he continues. "Never before has our sound reached such a level of uncompromising intensity without sounding forced or overproduced. The maniacal efforts made to perfect every single drum beat, vocal line and guitar chord almost caused a nervous breakdown but it truly paid off."

"The entire album is a reflection on history and time, on the succession of futile ages, on the role of the poet as soothsayer and witness of the winds of time erasing each one of these ages from the face of the earth. A reflection on Walter Benjamin predicting the 'adveniens' of David Cronenberg, on Professor O'Blivion predicting an era when 'all of us will have special names.' Adveniens is a violent reflection on art."

Further info on Adveniens, including teaser tracks and pre-orders, to be unveiled in the coming weeks.

Adveniens tracklisting:

“Ages Die”
“Sub Specie Aeternitatis”
“Passages”
“Angel Of Revolution”
“Feeding Off The Blind”
“When Flesh Unfolds”
“Messianica”
“Future In Red”
“Embodiment Of Chaos” (Sinister cover)

Forged in 2007, Hideous Divinity quickly established itself as one of the strongest rising European death metal acts thanks to their signature brand of technical yet gloomy classic styled death metal. Often compared to the likes of Nile, Hate Eternal, and Immolation, the band's two Unique Leader releases - 2012's Obeisance Rising and 2014's Cobra Verde - led to a successful European tour with Cannibal Corpse and Krisiun in the Spring 2016 as well as appearances at some of the most esteemed European extreme metal fests during the last few years. The band will be playing several festivals this Summer including Colony Open Air in Italy July 23rd and Stonehenge Festival in the Netherlands on July 29th. Additional performance to be announced in the coming weeks.

In an upside-down world being torn at the seams, Tragedy brings us all together by uniting two warring factions - disco and metal. Their new video for “Stayin’ Alive”, from The Joy Of Sex album, can be seen below.

The video stars comedian/musician/author Dave Hill in a role reminiscent of Tony Manero in the classic film, Saturday Night Fever, except with a little less success on the dance floor. He admires a handsome and talented disco-dancer (Nobuya Nagahama) at the club, but every time our Tony takes to the dance floor, he gets caught up in metal mayhem. Eventually, Tony finds salvation in a disco-metal transformation, inspired by his favourite band, Tragedy.

Saturday Night Fever fans will recognize many nods to the 1977 film, including Tony's famous sidewalk strut, the 2001 Odyssey lighted dancefloor, the iconic disco dance moves, the ever-sobbing Annette and the fall off the Verrazano (in this case, Tragedy's idiot towelboy, Lance, being tossed offstage by the band).

The rise of Tragedy has been swift and incident filled. Their heavy metal meets the Bee Gees meets disco has been welcomed into the hearts and minds of people across the globe and now the band are back with the soon to be global smash album, The Joy Of Sex. The album is set for a European release on February 24th, just as the band hit the UK for another extensive run around the country.

The Joy Of Sex features eleven new Tragedy hits, including “Little Red Corvette” (Prince), “Borderline” (Madonna), “Do You Think I’m Sexy” (Rod Stewart), “Never Gonna Give You Up” (Rick Astley) and their stunning re-make of the disco floor filling classic, “Stayin’ Alive”. Much like their acclaimed re-working of the Grease classic “You’re The One That I Want”, Tragedy have taken the Bee Gees disco classic and given it a 2017 update.

Their video for reworked Grease classic “You’re the One That I Want” took the US by storm with 150,000 views in its first week on YouTube.

Tragedy hit the UK for another fun filled tour starting on February 24th, full list of dates below.

How Deep Is Your Mum UK Tour 2017:

February
24 - Manchester, UK - Rebellion
25 - Carlisle, UK - Brickyard
26 - Liverpool, UK - O2 Academy
27 - Edinburgh, UK - Bannermans
28 - Glasgow, UK - Audio

March
1 - Newcastle, UK - Think Tank
2 - Bilston/Wolverhampton, UK - Robin 2
3 - Bristol, UK - The Fleece
4 - London, UK - The Garage
5 - Southampton, UK - 1865
7 - Swansea, UK - Sin City
8 - Milton Keynes, UK - Craufurd Arms
9 - Great Yarmouth, UK - Legends Of Rock Festival
10 - Oxford, UK - Bullingdon
11 - Buxton, UK - Buxton Rocks Festival  

Tragedy is:

Disco Mountain Man - lead vocals, lead back-up vocals, lead keyboards, lead cowbell
Mo'Royce Peterson - lead vocals, lead back-up vocals, lead lead guitar
Andy Gibbous Waning - lead bass, lead vocals, lead back-up vocals
Garry Bibb - lead guitar, lead back-up vocals
The Lord Gibbeth - lead drums, lead vocals
Lance - towel boy, complete idiot

The world needs heroes now more than ever. In the shape of Montreal’s larger-than-life metal warriors Valfreya, it has them! And in their striking vocalist Crook, they have their own Valkyrie!.

In 2009, vocalist Crook wanted to play something akin to folk metal, but even more aggressive and fast paced. Combining Valhalla and the Norse goddess Freya, the band has been creating music and lyrics to revolve around stories inspired by Norse mythology.

Orchestral and death metal with a hint of folk music, the prolific Valfreya have released two EPs (First Chronicles and Acoustic Chronicles), a 2012 debut album entitled Path To Eternity via Maple Metal Records, and have just unleashed their second Promised Land independently on January 13th.

“The album is a journey through a lot of emotions and situations, giving life to a host of varied songs, each with a different sound and personality. The story behind the album is about Eric The Red discovering America and how he defies the Gods, but pays a hefty price for that defiance,” says Valfreya about the release. “It’s a step up in sound quality and has more intricate guitar parts and better-written music that with every listen you can discover parts you hadn’t noticed before. On top of that we have an original sound and songs! We want to give more to people that enjoy good riffs!”

Just as you hear on record, Valfreya promises the fans a unique live experience. What you hear on the album is what you get on stage. All vocals, whether clean or screams, are done by the band members both in studio and live. They dress in a fantasy-like Viking fashion to go with their story-telling, which gives an interesting visual aspect, while delivering the instrument-playing with precision. Valfreya has shared the stage with Arkona, Dark Tranquility, Nekrogoblikon, Necronomicon, Koorpiklaani, Moonsorrow, Tyr and Insomnium.

Promised Land is now streaming in full via the following YouTube clip:

Tracklisting:

"Horizon"
"Odin’s Fury"
"Mortal Supremacy"
"Pandemonium"
"The Icelanding Sagas"
"Shame And Despair"
"Peuple Du Nord"
"Promised Land"
"The Choice"
"Warlords"
"Evolution"
"Undying Tale"

Visit Valfreya's official website for further details.

 

Epic black metal outfit Orm has completed its self-titled debut album, set for release on March 24th via Indisciplinarian.

Orm incorporates epic, melodic black metal, and its Nordic melancholy with a rocking, swinging feel, while thematically conveying a mythical cosmos of ancient times, where magic, gods, and supernatural creatures inhabited the world as naturally as humans, animals, water, and forests.

The album consists of five lengthy tracks of vivid proportions recorded live in the studio by producer Lasse Ballade (Solbrud, Halshug, Slægt) in Copenhagen in their native Denmark with additional choir recordings in the local Stefans Church. The album artwork is an oil painting on canvas created by the masterful Italian artist Paolo Girardi, who is known for his work with bands such as Bell Witch, Inquisition, and Black Breath. Orm now shares the first excerpts from the record along with its unique artwork through an album trailer created by visual artist Morten Grønnegaard.

Tracklisting:

"Blood Of Your Blood"
"Ancient Echoes"
"Temple Of The Deaf"
"Apotheosis"
"A Tree Ablaze / Yggdrasil Brænder"

(Photo by Cecilie Warming)

 

He is undoubtedly one of the boldest rock guitarists of all-time, a pioneering songwriter who fused classic blues with California psychedelia to create some of rock music’s greatest songs including “Love Me Two Times”, “Touch Me”, “Love Her Madly” and more. And, of course, he was a founding member of one of the most critically and commercially adored bands in history, The Doors.

But in the time since his tenure with that iconic outfit, Robby Krieger has not simply rested on his laurels. Instead, he has gone on to release a series of solo albums that found Krieger and his trademark Gibson SG adventuring into the outer reaches of space rock, jazz, classical music and more. Krieger has also collaborated on several studio recordings that reinterpreted classic songs by The Beatles, Pink Floyd, Supertramp and others.

Now, a new collection of these studio sessions, including two exclusive, never-before-released mixes and a bonus live recording available on CD for the first time. In Session features an incredible roster of guest appearances including Jackson Browne, Hawkwind’s Nik Turner, Asia’s John Wetton (R.I.P.), Styx’s Tommy Shaw, and even the Star Trek captain himself, William Shatner. Don’t miss this incredible collection available everywhere February 17th from Purple Pyramid Records.

Tracklisting:

“Across The Universe” feat. Jackson Browne
“Hypernova” feat. Nik Turner (Inner Space Mix)
“Empty Spaces” feat. Billy Sherwood
“Where We Belong” (Prism Mix) feat. Tony Kaye
“Don’t Leave Me Now” feat. Tommy Shaw
“Brain Damage” feat. Geoff Downes
“School” feat. Rod Argent
“Deep Down” feat. William Shatner
“Little Drummer Boy”
“All You Need Is Love” feat. John Wetton

Bonus track:
“Back Door Man” (Live)

Buy the CD here. Buy the digital version here.

Minneapolis, MN-based technical death metallists, Reaping Asmodeia, have released a lyric video (watch below) for their new single, “Defenestration”. The track is featured on the band’s new album,  Impuritize, which will be released on February 24th via Prosthetic Records.

Mixed and mastered by Zach Ohren (Fallujah, First Fragment), Impuritize combines sheer brutality with meticulous technicality to craft one of the finest extreme death metal albums of the year.

The album's artwork was created by Eddie Danger of Unlimited Visual (Born Of Osiris) and can be viewed below.

Tracklisting:

“The Clemency Guise”
“Defenestration”
“Of Talons And Teeth”
“Hidebound”
“Carnal Declivity”
“Irreversible Evolution”
“Virulent Exposure”
“Collage Of Toxins”
“Ritual Of Ignorance”

“Defenestration” lyric video:

“Of Talons And Teeth” video:

Teaser:

Reaping Asmodeia have launched a new video series, entitled R.A. Confidential. Find out more about bassist Roman Pinter in Part 1, streaming below:

Coinciding with the new album release on February 24th, the band will play a hometown record release show at Beaners in Duluth, Minn. before venturing across the US on a headlining jaunt throughout March. Full dates can be found in the below admat:

Reaping Asmodeia linup:

Steven Lane -Vocals
Alex Kelly - Guitar
Daniel Koppy - Drums
Roman Pinter - Bass

On March 10th, Nova Collective (featuring members of Between The Buried And Me, Haken, Trioscapes, Cynic) will release their debut album, The Further Side, via Metal Blade Records.

Nova Collective's music can be described as fusion, weaving progressive rock influences with world music, jazz and classical, to create something entirely new that is pure aural candy for prog/jazz fans. For a preview of The Further Side, a full-band, live performance video for the first single, "Dancing Machines", can be viewed below:

The album can be pre-ordered here in the following formats:

- CD
- Black 180g LP
- Clear-red marble LP (limited to 200 copies)
* digital options are also available

Nova Collective began in 2014 when bassist Dan Briggs (Between the Buried and Me, Trioscapes) and guitarist Richard Henshall (Haken) began exchanging emails about music; before long, a few demos were fleshed out into full arrangements. Drummer Matt Lynch (Trioscapes, Cynic) and keyboardist Pete Jones (ex-Haken) came on board shortly after to finish writing the album. The Further Side was written on both sides of the Atlantic Ocean, with Briggs and Lynch in America and Henshall and Jones in England, sharing session files until the group could get together at the beginning of 2015 to record with engineer Jamie King (Between the Buried and Me, The Contortionist). Mixed by Rich Mouser (Neal Morse, Transatlantic), it is immediately clear that The Further Side is a labor of love for all involved, and that enthusiasm shines throughout.

Nova Collective lineup:

Dan Briggs - Bass
Matt Lynch - Drums
Pete Jones - Keyboards
Richard Henshall - Guitar

On March 31st, three of the finest French black/death metal acts - VI, Temple Of Baal and The Order Of Apollyon - will find their way onto the winter-chilled turntables, thanks to a new split release. Divided into three chapters, the recording will feature one brand new song from each of the bands, with a playing time nearing 25 minutes. The split will be available via Agonia Records.

BST (Aosoth, ex-Aborted, The Order Of Apollyon and VI) can be thought as a link between all three band's. Apart from being an active musician, he served as the producer of the upcoming split. With the exception of drums, all instruments were recorded, mixed and mastered at his own BST Studios. Drums were recorded at Hybreed Studios and Studio Vallet, respectively.

Tracklisting:

- Chapter One: "Trident Of Flesh" (The Order Of Apollyon),
- Caput Secundum: "Non Sum Dignus" (Temple Of Baal),
- Troisème Chapitre: "Aucun d'entre vous ne sera sauvé. Car c'est impossible aux hommes et tout est possible à dieu. Il ne va rien rester de vous, rien de votre nombre, de votre grandeur" (VI).

The split will be available in the following formats:

- regular black LP (with laser etching on side B)
- limited to 200 copies red LP (with similar laser etching)
- limited to 100 copies gold LP (with a patch and similar laser etching)

Pre-orders here.

The new material will see all three bands plunge into their creative potential and will shed some light on what to expect from them in the future. In the words of the band's themselves:

"Being a part of this split along with Temple Of Baal and The Order Of Apollyon was an opportunity for us to release a new single track. We thought we were done for a while with creating new music since the release of De Praestigiis Angelorum, but it appeared that we still had more to do. Expect something slightly different from what we're known for. Expect something unique.” - VI

"Split releases have paved Temple Of Baal’s history through the years as special items in the band’s discography, done with special bands strictly chosen for their common views on Black and Death Metal as sacred works of Left Hand Path dedication. Once more, Temple Of Baal teams up with bearers of the Black Flame to bring a three-fold testimony of Faith.” - Temple Of Baal

"Joining forces with Agonia for a fresh new start for The Order, we deemed appropriate to release something special. We chose to share this one with artists that we respect not only as musicians, but also as genuinely devoted human beings. The song we wrote for this EP is also meant to give you a taste of what's to come on our side in the near future.” - The Order Of Apollyon

A judge has denied drummer Bobby Blotzer's request for reconsideration in connection with his legal dispute with the other three members of RATT's classic lineup over the rights to the band's name.

Back in November, a California judge ruled against Blotzer with respect to whether bassist Juan Croucier had committed trademark infringement by using the RATT name and logo to advertise his band RATT'S JUAN CROUCIER in the fall of 2015. The judge furthermore decided that the corporation WBS, Inc. — of which Blotzer and guitarist Warren DeMartini were thought to be the sole shareholders — did not have ownership interest in the RATT marks and that the name and brand was still owned by the members who were part of the original RATT partnership agreement.

In addition to claiming to have expelled Blotzer from the partnership following the November court ruling, DeMartini, Croucier and singer Stephen Pearcy said that Blotzer could now only refer to himself as a "former member of RATT," as per the partnership agreement.

Blotzer's attorney later filed a request for reconsideration, and a hearing was held on January 23 in a downtown Los Angeles federal courtroom at which point the judge took the matter under submission. Less than two weeks later — on Friday, February 3 — U.S. District Judge Dean D. Pregerson issued an order denying Blotzer's request, writing in part: " Although WBS relied upon a letter purportedly expelling Croucier from the Partnership in early 1997, prior to the assignment, that letter was signed by, and referred to the unanimous vote and consent of, only Blotzer and Pearcy. The Partnership Agreement, however, required the unanimous consent of all partners, other than the partner being expelled. By [Blotzer's] own admission, DeMartini remained a member of the Partnership at all times. Blotzer and Pearcy could not, therefore, have expelled Croucier without DeMartini's consent, of which there was no evidence.

"In addition, Pearcy submitted a declaration stating that he never discussed Croucier's expulsion from the RATT Partnership with Blotzer, never understood Croucier to have been expelled, and had no recollection of seeing the 1997 expulsion letter prior to this litigation. Pearcy's declaration stated that the letter 'is not the product of any agreement I reached with Robert Blotzer or anyone else.'

"[Blotzer] did not file any written objection to the Pearcy declaration. Although [Blotzer's] counsel did, at oral argument, suggest that Pearcy lacked credibility, [Blotzer] submitted no evidence that conflicted with or contradicted Pearcy's statement. Indeed, as the court also noted, Blotzer himself took a position different than that advanced by WBS, stating in a deposition that Croucier voluntarily withdrew from the Partnership, not that the other members of the Partnership unanimously expelled Croucier. Now, on this motion for reconsideration, WBS argues that Croucier submitted evidence in bad faith and committed a fraud on this Court by intentionally ignoring proceedings in an earlier, 2002 state court action between Pearcy and WBS. WBS contends that this Court should have considered documents submitted in those proceedings, which, [Blotzer] asserts, establish that Croucier is collaterally estopped from challenging the validity of the assignment of the RATT marks to WBS.

"[Blotzer's] theory of fraud is not clear to the court. The 2002 judgment [Blotzer] submitted to the court does not discuss the composition of the RATT partnership and makes no mention of the 1997 assignment of the marks to WBS. [Blotzer] nevertheless argues that '[e]ven if the 2002 judgment did not specifically express that the transfer in 1997 was valid, the 2002 Judgment did reference and incorporated (sic) in the state court's ruling. As part of their Rule 11 obligations, Croucier's counsel had a duty . . . to investigate what the ruling and (sic) not present bad law to this Court.' It is not apparent, however, what 'bad law' [Croucier] is alleged to have presented."

The RATT version featuring Pearcy, DeMartini, Croucier and later-period RATT guitarist Carlos Cavazo (ex-QUIET RIOT) is scheduled to make its first official return to the stage on February 11 at the Treasure Island Resort Casino in Welch, Minnesota.

A completely different version of RATT — led by Blotzer and featuring a revolving door of members — has been hitting stages across the country since the fall of 2015.

Blotzer's most recent lineup of RATT included singer Josh Alan alongside guitarists Mitch Perry (TALAS, HEAVEN, STEELER, MSG, LITA FORD) and Stacey Blades (L.A. GUNS) and bassist Brad Lang (Y&T).

Before Blotzer began playing shows with his new version of RATT, he was touring with a project called BOBBY BLOTZER'S RATT EXPERIENCE which performed RATT songs. Stephen Doniger, the attorney representing Pearcy, Croucier and DeMartini in their dispute with Blotzer, told LA Weekly Blotzer changed the name of his project after he realized he could make ten times as much money touring as RATT — $2,500 to $4,900 a night as BOBBY BLOTZER'S RATT EXPERIENCE, versus $25,000 to $45,000 as RATT. The attorney also shot down as untrue the drummer's claim that the trio had no plans to tour again until Bobby resurrected the band with all new members and started playing shows in late 2015. "The guys [Pearcy, Croucier, DeMartini and Blotzer] toured together between 2012 and 2014," Doniger told LA Weekly. "They stopped because Stephen Pearcy's twin sister died and he had to take time off. At that point, DeMartini and Croucier decided not to tour without all partners for the integrity of the band. But within a year, Blotzer was taking steps to usurp control of the trademarks so that he could tour by himself as RATT."

He added: "There's a court order saying WBS has no trademark rights in the name. Thus, WBS has no right to authorize anyone to tour as RATT.

"Blotzer tried to pull a fast one and has now ended up with nothing."

The upcoming SpiteFuel album, Second To None, will be released via MDD Records on April 7th. The band has unveiled the cover art, for which Travis Smith (Nevermore, Iced Earth, Opeth) is responsible.

The album will contain 11 songs of high-class heavy rock with a total playing time of over 45 minutes and will be available in a noble DigiPak edition. The album was recorded and produced in the Troisdorf-based Gernhart Studio (Tankard, Destruction, SuidAkra) under the direction of Martin Buchwalter.

A first pre-taste for the album is already available with the single "Sleeping With Wolves" released in December, which is available with some bonus content as download for only 2 Euro on the Bandcamp page of the quintet (widget below).

Sleeping With Wolves by SpiteFuel

(Photo - Hobbit Hauser, 2016)

Finnish progressive death metal outfit, Barren Earth, is currently preparing to record the follow-up to 2015’s On Lonely Towers at Woodshed Studios in March with producer V. Santura.

Vocalist Jón comments, "We are working towards a darker and more aggressive feel, which we attempt to express both experimentally and with a good dose of blunt force!"

Bassist Oppu adds, “The melodic and melancholic side is naturally still there, but spiced with a touch of anger and groove. I’m also looking forward of working with Victor, since we all appreciate his previous work. It also is the first time Barren Earth works with a proper producer, and are very excited about the idea of bringing somebody else into the mix and seeing where that takes us."

This is how V. Santura comments on the cooperation: “I am really excited about working with Barren Earth! The guys are fantastic musicians and the demo material I’ve heard so far sounds very promising."

Barren Earth recently returned to Finland following a hugely successful European tour with Insomnium to begin finalizing the arrangements for the yet-untitled fourth album.

Barren Earth lineup:

Marko Tarvonen - Drums
Olli-Pekka Laine - Bass
Antti Myllynen - Keyboards
Jón Aldará - Vocals
Sami Yli-Sirniö - Lead guitars
Janne Perttilä - Rhythm guitars

On January 31st, the Devin Townsend Project brought their Transcendence tour to Paris, France and performed at Le Bataclan. Quality fan-filmed video is available below. The setlist on the night was as follows.

"Rejoice"
"Night"
"Stormbending"
"Failure"
"Hyperdrive!"
"Where We Belong"
"Planet of the Apes"
"Ziltoid Goes Home"
"Suicide"
"March of the Poozers"
"Kingdom"
"Grace"

Encore:
"Ih-Ah!"
"Higher"

Remaining tour dates are as follows.

February
5 - Le Moulin - Marseille, France
7 - Live Club - Trezzo Sull'adda, Italy
8 - Z7 - Pratteln, Switzerland
9 - LKA Longhorn - Stuttgart, Germany
10 - Backstage - Munich, Germany
12 - Tvornica Club - Zagreb, Croatia
13 - Barba Negra Music Club - Budapest, Hungary
14 - Arena - Vienna, Austria
16 - The Roxy - Prague, Czech Republic
17 - Täubchenthal - Leipzig, Germany
18 - Kwadrat - Kraków, Poland
19 - Stodola - Warsaw, Poland
21 - Grünspan - Hamburg, Germany
22 - Voxhall - Aarhus, Denmark
23 - Pustervik - Göteborg, Sweden
25 - BlastFest - Bergen, Norway
26 - Sentrum Scene - Oslo, Norway
28 - The Circus - Helsinki, Finland

March
1 - Rytmikorjaamo - Seinajoki, Finland
3 - Berns - Stockholm, Sweden
4 - KB - Malmö, Sweden
5 - Amager Bio - Copenhagen, Denmark
7 - Columbia Theater - Berlin, Germany
8 - FZW - Dortmund, Germany
9 - 013 - Tilburg, Netherlands
10 - De Melkweg - Amsterdam, Netherlands
12 - Colston Hall - Bristol, United Kingdom
13 - Academy - Manchester, United Kingdom
14 - Barrowlands - Glasgow, United Kingdom    
16 - Institute - Birmingham, United Kingdom
17 - Hammersmith Eventim Apollo - London, United Kingdom    
18 - Rock City - Nottingham, United Kingdom

Progressive metalcore quartet, Aerial, has released their new music video, "Foreign Coast”, off their 2016 EP Foresight. Watch below.

After spending six months in the UK writing and recording., the band reached out to Keaton Goldwire, of Invent, Animate and Jesse Cash of Erra to produce the five track EP. Mixed and mastered by Brian Hood (Memphis May Fire, Erra), the group came away with their debut EP which reached over 250,000 streams in a short couple months.

"We've put a lot of work into this EP, and being an independent band makes everything so much more expensive and time consuming," says vocalist, Markus Johnsen. "Getting all this positive feedback means everything!"

Foresight is available to purchase on iTunes and all other online music retailers. Watch "Foreign Coast" below:

Norway’s Dunderbeist will release their new EP, titled Tvilja, on March 10th via Indie Recordings. A video teaser can be seen below.

"We all have our doubts about most things, something the lyrics on this release describes. But there is no doubt about that Tvilja might be the very best stuff we have created with this band ever. I think. Probably." - Dunderbeist

Pre-order the Tvilja EP + CD here.

(Photo - Stian Froysang)

US power/thrash metal act, Wretch, will release their new album, The Hunt, on limited edition vinyl on March 10th via Pure Steel Records. The pre-order phase will start on February 24th.

Wretch are pioneers of their local Cleveland metal scene and have since forged ahead to become an internationally recognized force of powerful melodic metal with festival performances in Germany and Greece. The Hunt is a shredding masterpiece that will appeal to fans of Primal Fear, Iced Earth, Helloween and Iron Maiden.

The first album to feature new singer Juan Ricardo who has a voice reminiscent of the mighty Bruce Dickinson, the new album is 40-minutes of exceptional power/thrash that marks the bands long journey since its 2006 debut, Reborn.

The vinyl version of The Hunt will be limited to 200 black copies with insert.

Tracklisting:

Side A
“Sturmbringer”
“The Hunt”
“Throne Of Poseidon”
“Twilight´s End”
“The Final Stand”
“Fortune’s Fool”
“The King In Red”

Side B
“Straight To Hell”
“Pierce The Veil”
“Once In A Lifetime”
“She Waits”

"The Final Stand" video:

Lineup:

Juan Ricardo – vocals
Nick Giannakos – lead- and rhythm guitar
Michael “Mjölnir” Stephenson – lead- and rhythm guitar
Tim Frederick – bass
Jeff Curenton – drums

After a recording and touring career spanning five decades, heavy metal pioneers BLACK SABBATH brought it to a close in the city where it all began — Birmingham, England — with the final show of "The End" tour having taken place earlier tonight (Saturday, February 4) at the Genting Arena.

Prior to the concert, SABBATH singer Ozzy Osbourne said: "Since I've got to this building, I've been happy, I've been tearful. Let's see what happens."

The band's setlist for tonight's gig was as follows:

01. Black Sabbath02. Fairies Wear Boots03. Under The Sun / Every Day Comes And Goes04. After Forever05. Into The Void06. Snowblind07. War Pigs08. N.I.B.09. Hand Of Doom10. Supernaut / Sabbath Bloody Sabbath / Megalomania (medley)11. Rat Salad12. Iron Man13. Dirty Women14. Children Of The Grave

Encore:

15. Paranoid

Ozzy last week called his life with BLACK SABBATH "the most incredible adventure" and said the band had "run its course."

"One of the proudest things I have in my heart is the fact that BLACK SABBATH wasn't a band that was created by some big mogul," he said. "It was four guys who said, 'Let's have a dream,' and it came true beyond our wildest expectations."

SABBATH guitarist Tony Iommi said that he wouldn't rule out the possibility of doing one-off shows. He explained: "I wouldn't write that off, if one day that came about. That's possible. Or even doing an album, 'cause then, again, you're in one place. But I don't know if that would happen."

SABBATH's "The End" tour was its last because Iommi, who was diagnosed with cancer in 2012 and is currently in remission, can no longer travel for extended amounts of time. He admitted: "It was only when I got ill, that's when I stated getting vulnerable. Before that, I could do anything… And they're going, 'You shouldn't be flying, really.' And, 'You shouldn't be doing this, you shouldn't be doing that.' So that's what brought that about — the end of this, really, because the constant touring does eventually get to you."

SABBATH wrote and recorded its 2013 reunion album, "13", and toured it all over the world while Iommi was going through treatment for his illness, with the guitarist having to fly back to England every six weeks.

Asked what he'll do after SABBATH, Iommi replied, "I'm wondering, because it's gonna be such a weird thing, because BLACK SABBATH's always been my life, ever since day one, and everything's fell by the wayside to BLACK SABBATH — all the marriages and everything — over the band, basically, because I'm always out working and always doing this, always in the studio. So it's gonna be pretty weird, that last show."

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

They regrouped again in late 2011 for a new album and tour, although Ward dropped out after just a few months. SABBATH has used singer Ozzy Osbourne's regular touring drummer Tommy Clufetos since then for live work. RAGE AGAINST THE MACHINE's Brad Wilk laid down the drum tracks on "13", which came out in June 2013.

METALLICA has been forced to reschedule its February 5 concert in Copenhagen, Denmark.

The show has been postponed until September 2 after the band's frontman, James Hetfield, was given "strict doctor's orders to not sing one single note."

Tickets for the original date will be honored for the rescheduled performance.

METALLICA was forced to play an abbreviated set Friday night (February 3) at the first of four scheduled shows at the Royal Arena after Hetfield complained times during the show about being ill, even asking the audience at one point whether they thought METALLICA should continue with the performance.

Earlier today, METALLICA released the following statement regarding Hetfield's condition and status of the remaining Copenhagen shows:

"We're very disappointed to have to share with you that, unfortunately, as Saturday has progressed, James's health, and specifically his throat, is not improving and he is under strict doctor's orders to not sing one single note. So sadly we have to report that we will be postponing tomorrow's show at the Royal Arena until September 2, 2017.

"Our week here in Copenhagen is something we have had circled on the calendar for a very long time as a special event not only for our friends in Denmark but also for us and we were really looking forward to celebrating the new arena with you.

"To those of you who were there yesterday, we appreciate you encouraging us to carry on . . . That meant the world to us! We all felt really bummed that we were unable to give you the maximum METALLICA experience; it was one of the most challenging shows we've ever played, but your love and support got us through.

"We know that many of you made travel plans to spend the weekend with us and we are very sorry for any inconvenience this will cause. We hope that you will be able to come back to Copenhagen in September and we'll do our best to make it up to everyone with something unique for you at the make-up gig, along with a kick-ass show, of course! And to APHYXION, the band who won your votes to be Sunday's opening act, we hope you're available in September.

"Thank you again for all the support and care you've always shown us in Denmark. We will be back!

"The technicalities: If you have already traveled to Denmark and are able to attend either of the shows on February 7th or 9th, please contact Ticketmaster Denmark, who will do their best to help with replacement tickets for one of these shows although they are very limited.

"If you are not able to attend the rescheduled date on September 2nd, please contact them before March 1st for a refund of your tickets. Phone: + 45 7015 6565 or by email servicecenter@ticketmaster.dk. A refund will only apply to the original buyer of the tickets, and you will need to verify your ownership of the tickets by providing Ticketmaster with the last four digits of your credit card number. Face value will be refunded but not service fees.

"P.S.: We are monitoring James's voice on a day-to-day basis so watch this space for updates."

Assuming that Hetfield regains his voice in the next couple of days, METALLICA will play two more shows at the Royal Arena this month — on February 5, February 7 and February 9 — before performing at the 59th annual Grammy Awards on February 12, at the Staples Center in Los Angeles, California. The ceremony will be televised at 8:00 p.m. on CBS.

The band is nominated this year in the "Best Rock Song" category for the track "Hardwired".

The group has plans to hit the rest of Europe, South America and North America in the months ahead, including its first proper U.S. trek in eight years.

Gene Simmons attended Ace Frehley's concert Friday night (February 3) at The Saban in Beverly Hills, California, marking the first time the KISS legends were photographed together since their 2014 induction into the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame.

A picture of Simmons and Frehley was posted on the former KISS guitarist's Facebook page, along with the following caption: "MEANWHILE ~ some guy name 'Eugene' crashed Ace's VIP meet-n-greet last nite in Beverly Hills without rendering payment. If any of you Rock Soldiers can identify this man of mystery, let us know!"

Rumors about Frehley's return to KISS gained strength last year after he teamed up with KISS lead singer Paul Stanley on a cover of FREE's "Fire And Water" in what was their first collaboration since 1998's "Psycho Circus".

Frehley's version of "Fire And Water" appears on his covers collection "Origins, Vol 1", which received great reviews and landed in the Top 25 on the Billboard album chart.

Asked if there is a chance that he will re-team with KISS, Frehley told "Talking Metal" at the Revolver Music Awards in December: "I haven't heard anything from Paul and Gene — although I did get a text from Gene the other day. He wanted to come see me perform this January. So, you know, maybe he'll pop the big question. Who knows? [Laughs]

He added: "Whatever happens, we're all good. It's all good."

Ace's "Talking Metal" comments echoed those he made in November when he told Eddie Trunk of the "Trunk Nation" radio show: "I haven't been contacted [about a reunion]. I'm not ruling it out. It's a possibility, I guess. But the ball's in Paul and Gene's court. If that's something that they would like to do to end off the career of KISS, I think it could be… if it was handled correctly, it could be great. But those guys pretty much run the show these days. And I'm doing my thing, and they're doing their thing. And if it happens, it'd be great, and if it doesn't, I'll be fine and they'll be fine."

Ace told "Trunk Nation" that his relationship with his former bandmates was never bad as it was portrayed by the media. "However the press colors the fact that we don't get along, in reality we do," he said. "You know, we have disagreements and things are said sometimes, taken out of context. But I've always been friends with those guys and they've been friends with me. We may not have agreed about certain things over the years and maybe there were times we didn't talk. I mean, we created something amazing that withstood the test of time."

Asked why Simmons ended up not appearing on "Origins Vol. 1", Ace told the WPDH 101.5 FM radio station: "Well, I tried calling Gene a couple of times and I got his answering machine. So I shot him a few different texts. I even went as far as to get ahold of Doc McGhee [KISS's manager] and tell Doc to let Gene know I wanted to get ahold of him. And I guess either he didn't get the message or he was just too busy. So I said, 'Well, let me reach to Paul.' I had Paul's cell phone [number] in my phone. I gave him a buzz, and he picked up immediately. And from the outset, he thought it was a great idea and would be a lot of fun. It took a while to choose which song we wanted to do. We were originally thinking about DEREK AND THE DOMINOS' [version of Jimi Hendrix's] 'Little Wing', then we were kicking around maybe 'My Generation' [by THE WHO]. But towards the end of the elimination process, I came up with the idea for [FREE's] 'Fire And Water', and he loved it."

Fan-filmed video footage of GUNS N' ROSES' February 4 concert at Western Springs in Auckland, New Zealand can be seen below.

As previously reported, thirteen concerts on the South American leg of GUNS N' ROSES' "Not In This Lifetime" tour yielded a total box office gross of $56.5 million, according to Billboard Boxscore. More than 565,000 tickets were sold for the shows, including 105,000 tickets for the November 4 and November 5 gigs in Buenos Aires, Argentina, and another 93,600 for the November 11 and November 12 dates in São Paulo, Brazil.

The trek's total gross now stands at a whopping $192 million, according to Billboard.

Last summer's North American leg, which consisted of 25 shows in 21 stadiums, grossed $116.8 million with over one million tickets sold.

The band's appearances at MetLife Stadium in the metropolitan New York City market brought in $11.6 million from shows on July 23 and 24.

The tour features classic lineup members Slash on guitar, Duff McKagan on bass and Axl Rose on vocals, backed by drummer Frank Ferrer, guitarist Richard Fortus, and keyboardists Dizzy Reed and Melissa Reese.

GUNS N' ROSES is coming back to North America this summer for at least another 15 stadium dates starting on July 27 in St. Louis.

The band kicked off its reunion trek last April with a club show in Hollywood and appearances in Las Vegas and at California's Coachella festival.

VENOM INC., the new band featuring original VENOM members Jeff "Mantas" Dunn (guitar) and Anthony "Abaddon" Bray (drums) alongside ex-VENOM bassist/vocalist Tony "Demolition Man" Dolan, has inked a deal with Nuclear Blast. The band's debut album is tentatively due later in the year.

VENOM INC. is not to be confused with the Conrad "Cronos" Lant-fronted version of VENOM, which is continuing to tour and make albums under the VENOM moniker. Joining Cronos in that group are Rage (a.k.a. Stuart Dixon) on guitar and Danté (a.k.a. Danny Needham) on drums.

Asked by the Steel Mill web site how the formation of VENOM INC. came about, Dolan said: "Cronos has been doing shows and recording for the last ten years as VENOM. Why does he need to stop? VENOM INC., the name was our old European agent's idea and using the original logo included in the name, which is not owned by Cronos. Oliver Weinsheimer, my friend and producer of the Keep It True festival, invited MPIRE OF EVIL to play [in 2015] and asked if I could fix it to have us play with Abaddon for fans doing a bunch of VENOM classic songs. We did play, and the fans' reaction to it as well as promoters across the planet told us to continue by wanting to book us and see us. So following Keep It True, we kind of had a choice: do we just go and do it or not? We decided yes, why not?"

Regarding what the fan response to VENOM INC. has been like so far, Dolan said: "[The fans have been] more [receptive] than we even thought about. There will always be those who prefer the original lineup of VENOM because that is where they came in and it has meaning for them. Same as those who prefer the VENOM lineup now over others. Some liked when Anton was there best and many love when it was us three. More is always better, so as long as the beast is alive, I think, who cares? We need it to be alive, and good music is good music, full stop. Choice is a great thing, and people prefer what they prefer. Could be coffee, could be tea or they could hate both. But that's the beauty of life: choice. You don't have to, you can want to, it's simple."

He continued: "VENOM INC. has had amazing fans and support from Asia through Europe, South America, North America… everywhere we have played, it has been breathtaking, and the places we have not yet want us bad to go. So [I] can't say anything but good. It's very humbling, and I am totally honored to be received so warmly. Best thing is everyone gets it — what we do, they get it!"

Dunn, Bray and Dolan released three albums as VENOM between 1989 and 1992 — "Prime Evil" (1989), "Temples Of Ice" (1991) and "The Waste Lands" (1992).

The classic lineup of VENOM — Lant, Dunn and Bray — is often credited with kickstarting the whole black metal movement, but is more accurately seen an early example of extreme metal.

VENOM's second album, 1982's "Black Metal", was a major influence on on the early Norwegian black metal scene.

On February 14, MVD Entertainment will release the feature film debut of Geoff Tate, former lead vocalist of the legendary metal band QUEENSRŸCHE. Titled "The Burningmoore Deaths" (formerly "The Burningmoore Incident"), the horror film — written and directed by Jonathan Williams — is inspired by true events surrounding unsolved murders captured on security cameras during a production shoot of a home improvement TV show pilot.

Tate takes on the role of James Parrish, a man who allegedly killed his own wife and three children before disappearing without a trace. With the home now vacated and boarded up, a home-improvement company gets permission to film the renovation process for a test pilot for a TV network, not knowing that Parrish had returned to take up residence once again in the derelict building. Bloody chaos ensues — and it's all captured on camera!

"The Burningmoore Deaths" features an original score by Andrew Kadin with additional music by DAWN OF SOLACE and Geoff Tate.

"I think I've always done it... In our own shows and with the way I present music," said Tate. "It all has a bit of a stage acting bend to it. So this wasn't really a stretch for me. It was just playing to a different audience, to a camera rather than a room full of people, but it's the same thing. You play-act and you make stuff up and you present that like you would in a stage show. "

Filmed in 2010, "The Burningmoore Deaths" will be available on all digital stores for download and also available on DVD in retail stores, the MVD Shop, and on Amazon.

Spinefarm Records has announced the signing of North Carolina's HE IS LEGEND. The band will release its new album on April 28. "We're very excited to start a new relationship with people who truly understand this band as a whole," said HE IS LEGEND frontman Schuylar Croom. "It was really important for us to find the proper home for this record after seeing the tremendous response from our fans during the crowdfunding campaign. We truly believe Spinefarm Records is the best possible partner to help us keep that momentum trending in the right direction. "In our eyes, this is the most important HE IS LEGEND record to date and we're happy that our friends at Spinefarm are going to help us get this album out to the masses." HE IS LEGEND will embark on a slate of headline tour dates in March and will also support NORMA JEAN.

Japanese electro-metal heroes CROSSFAITH have dropped a video stream for "Revolution - The Bloody Beetroots Remix", the first single to be taken from the band's "New Age Warriors Remix" EP, which will be released on February 10. The EP contains remixes from The Bloody Beetroots, Shikari Soundsystem, KSUKE, The Qemists and more. CROSSFAITH vocalist Kenta Koie says: "We believe there's no border between rock and dance music, and so our new singles on 'New Age Warriors' have been reconstructed by amazing artists who share this understanding with us. You guys will find new possibilities through these remixes. This is another side of New Age Warriors. Don't miss it!" "New Age Warriors Remix" EP track listing: 01. Rx Overdrive (Zardonic Remix)02. Rx Overdrive (TeddyLoid Remix)03. Kill 'Em All (The Qemists Remix)04. Kill 'Em All (Shikari Sound System Remix)05. Revolution (The Bloody Beetroots Remix)06. Revolution (Ksuke Remix) CROSSFAITH's latest album, "Xeno", was released in September 2015 in North America via Razor & Tie. The album has a story of hope, failure, love, betrayal and death woven into its fabric so skillfully it's impossible to tell where truth ends and fiction begins. It's both an escape from and examination of reality that reveals more and more truths the further it delves. Produced by Josh Wilbur (AVENGED SEVENFOLD, LAMB OF GOD, HATEBREED) and mastered by Ted Jensen, "Xeno" takes the groundwork laid by 2013's "Apocalyze" and 2012's "Zion" EP as well as the band's vast touring history and catapults them into a whole new league.

METALLICA was forced to play an abbreviated set Friday night (February 3) at Royal Arena in Copenhagen, Denmark.

The band's frontman, James Hetfield, complained times during the show about being ill and even asked the audience at one point whether they thought METALLICA should continue with the performance.

"It's not fair to you guys, man," Hetfield told the crowd (see video below). "You paid a lot of good money to come and see your favorite band, and we don't sound good.

"I'm gonna leave it up to you, man. Would you rather hear us sound better another time?

"I wanna stop. What do you say?"

After the 15,500-strong audience responded with a resounding "No!", Hetfield added: "Okay. You asked for it. All right. I'll keep doing my best, all right? I appreciate you guys so much, man. Thank you for your support."

METALLICA was reportedly planning on including the songs "Halo On Fire" and "Sad But True" in setlist for the Copenhagen concert, but decided to drop them at the last minute as a result of Hetfield's illness. The band still managed to play sixteen tracks at the show — including no less than five cuts from their latest album, "Hardwired… To Self-Destruct": "Hardwired", "Atlas, Rise!" , "Now That We're Dead", "Moth Into Flame" and "Confusion" — before calling it a night.

METALLICA has three more shows scheduled for the Royal Arena — on February 5, February 7 and February 9 — before performing at the 59th annual Grammy Awards on February 12, at the Staples Center in Los Angeles, California. The ceremony will be televised at 8:00 p.m. on CBS.

The band is nominated this year in the "Best Rock Song" category for the track "Hardwired".

The group has plans to hit the rest of Europe, South America and North America in the months ahead, including its first proper U.S. trek in eight years.

The Jamie Brown-directed video for "Breakout", a brand new song from KXM, the project featuring drummer Ray Luzier (KORN), bassist/vocalist Doug Pinnick (KING'S X) and guitarist George Lynch (LYNCH MOB, DOKKEN), can be seen below. The track is taken from the band's sophomore album, "Scatterbrain", which will be released on March 17 via Rat Pak Records.

The follow-up to KXM's 2014 self-titled debut is currently available for pre-order via the Rat Pak web site in various bundles, including signed CDs and t-shirts. "Scatterbrain" was recorded at the Steakhouse studio in North Hollywood, California. The 13-track effort was helmed by Chris "The Wizard" Collier (FLOTSAM AND JETSAM, PRONG, LAST IN LINE), who also produced KXM's debut. From the infectious riff of the album opener "Scatterbrain" to the outro of "Angel", KXM has created something truly special and musically diverse. Songs like "Breakout", "Calypso" and "True Deceivers" are sonically different from each other, taking the listener on a musical journey.

"Scatterbrain" is thematically a darker record than the debut. The album builds upon the developed KXM rock sound but this time includes some different dynamics drawing inspiration from prog, ska, punk and metal. Through it all, it remains undeniably KXM. Recorded over the span of ten days, every song on "Scatterbrain" was the result of a musical jam from all three members playing together in the same room. Luzier explains: "We wanted to use the same formula as the first KXM record: book studio time, come in fresh every day with a new idea and run with it and not overthink anything." Lynch describes the sessions as record-topia: "We showed up in the studio, camped out with a bunch of gear and let the tape roll! Just like the first album — no pre-production, no rehearsal, no pre-written songs." Pinnick adds: "The vibe was like a bunch of old friends having fun creating music like the previous record — nothing but fun!" "Scatterbrain" track listing: 01. Scatterbrain02. Breakout03. Big Sky Country04. Calypso05. Not A Single Word06. Obsession07. Noises In The Sky08. Panic Attack09. It's Never Enough10. True Deceivers11. Stand12. Together13. Angel KXM takes its name from the combination of the members' other projects: K from KORN, X from KING'S X and M from LYNCH MOB.

In an interview with Revolver magazine, Luzier, Lynch and Pinnick spoke about how KXM came together.

"I had a birthday party for my son and invited a bunch of friends and musicians," Ray said. "Doug and George ended up in my home studio picking up my guitars and jamming around a bit. George said, 'We should all do a record together sometime,' and I said, 'That would be a dream come true!'

"I've been a huge KING'S X fan for decades and have been following George and had respected his playing for decades. We just tried to figure out everyone's schedules to make it happen. I give it up for George for being so persistent in getting this going. KORN tours all year, every year, and with Doug and George's crazy schedules, it's just awesome that we made it happen. I'm very pleased with the result."

Pinnick added: "George was the instigator. Ray and I have known each other for quite a while and always talked about doing something together, but George brought it up at Ray's party and we agreed. George got after it and Ray did the same! Before I knew it, we were in a studio in the mountains, got a record deal, a video and a CD. As they say in Texas, 'You gotta get after it!' George has an incredible amount of energy and humor, and he gets things done. I've learned a lot from him. He's a true genius with the heart of a saint — and he comes up with some crazy guitar parts."

Lynch said: "When you're working as a pro musician in L.A., you're frequently running into other players who you know and respect. A lot of times, the 'dream band' conversation comes up. It's fun to talk about. A lot of times, it's the alcohol talking. But the reality for most of us is that we're locked into other commitments and obligations that in the cold light of day don't really afford us the time or flexibility to pull off these projects that look great on paper.

"I'm not trying to take credit here, but I gotta honestly say I was determined to follow through and at least push hard enough to see if we could get any momentum going. Ray jumped right in and was obviously really excited about making it happen, despite his insanely busy schedule with KORN. I think for Doug, it was sort of like, 'Well, yeah, sure, I'll invest some time and energy into this,' but I don't think he realized how profound and potentially musically rewarding and even important KXM could become. But as the writing and recording started to happen and evolve, he became like a little kid in a candy store!"