During an appearance on Eddie Trunk's SiriusXM show "Trunk Nation" earlier this week, Sebastian Bach was asked if there have been any updates on his long-rumored reunion with other members of the classic lineup of SKID ROW. He responded: "All I can say is that [my manager] Rick [Sales] is talking to [SKID ROW's early manager] Doc [McGhee]. That's all I can say. That is what is happening, and I don't have anything else to tell you. All I can tell you is we're not getting any younger, folks. [Laughs] Let's put the hair band back together while we've got hair. [Laughs]"

SKID ROW has played a number of shows in recent months with the South African-born, British-based singer ZP Theart (DRAGONFORCE, TANK, I AM I), but he has not been officially named the band's new frontman. Theart stepped into the group following the departure of Tony Harnell, the TNT vocalist who joined SKID ROW in April 2015 as the replacement for Johnny Solinger, the band's singer for fifteen years.

Despite the fact that fans have been clamoring for a reunion of SKID ROW's most popular lineup for nearly twenty years, guitarist Dave "Snake" Sabo told The Aquarian Weekly a few months ago that the band had no intention of reconnecting with Bach. "Happiness, to me, is my spirit and my soul is more important to me than having dollars in my wallet," he explained. "People may [not] believe that and that's okay. Anybody who knows me knows that to be true. I don't think you can place a price on happiness. We've been hit repeatedly over the years with, 'Why don't you do a reunion tour?' And you know what? I understand the question and I get it. I really do, and if I were on the outside, I'd be asking the same question, but no one feels comfortable with that idea."

Bach has consistently expressed his desire to reunite with his former bandmates, telling Loudwire earlier in the year: "I don't have any reason why not to do that. I have no animosity towards anybody in SKID ROW, and the fact that we're all, five of us, still alive in this world is a pretty amazing feat. So I would someday definitely like to hear the five guys who made those records play live together again. Yes, I would. 'Cause I'm a fan too." He added: "I'm up for it, if they are."

After touring for a year and a half throughout almost every corner of the world and leaving fans of all nationalities breathless, the time has come for NIGHTWISH to immortalize their "Endless Forms Most Beautiful" tour on DVD. Therefore, the symphonic metal visionaries are set to release their new live milestone, "Vehicle Of Spirit", in Europe on December 16 (U.S. release to follow on January 6), featuring not only two full concerts, but also plenty of bonus material.

The third trailer for "Vehicle Of Spirit" is available below.

"The title 'Vehicle Of Spirit' came from a friend of Troy's [Donockley, multi-instrumentalist], who after seeing our show a few years ago defined NIGHTWISH as 'a vehicle of spirit that defies category.' That beautiful description has followed us ever since, and felt like a perfect match as the DVD title," states NIGHTWISH keyboardist and songwriter Tuomas Holopainen.

"Vehicle Of Spirit" will be made available in the following formats:* 2BluRay-Digibook (feat. Live @ Wembley Arena London & Live @ Ratina Stadion Tampere + extras)* 3DVD-Digibook (feat. Live @ Wembley Arena London & Live @ Ratina Stadion Tampere + extras)* 2BD+3DVD+2CD-Earbook (limited edition, content as above + 2CDs (feat. The Wembley Show)* Exclusive NB Mailorder BOX (Earbook + 3LP vinyl (black, white, red vinyl) + 12” poster + 12” photo card)

DVD1 (The Wembley Show)

01. Shudder Before The Beautiful02. Yours Is An Empty Hope03. Ever Dream04. Storytime05. My Walden06. While Your Lips Are Still Red07. Élan08. Weak Fantasy09. 7 Days To The Wolves10. Alpenglow11. The Poet And The Pendulum12. Nemo13. I Want My Tears Back14. Stargazers15. Ghost Love Score16. Last Ride Of The Day17. The Greatest Show On Earth DVD2 (The Tampere Show)

01. Shudder Before The Beautiful02. Yours Is An Empty Hope03. Amaranth04. She Is My Sin05. Dark Chest Of Wonders06. My Walden07. The Islander08. Élan09. Weak Fantasy10. Storytime11. Endless Forms Most Beautiful12. Alpenglow13. Stargazers14. Sleeping Sun15. Ghost Love Score16. Last Ride Of The Day17. The Greatest Show On Earth DVD3 (Extras)

01. Weak Fantasy (Vancouver)02. Nemo (Buenos Aires)03. The Poet And The Pendulum (Mexico City)04. Yours Is An Empty Hope (Joensuu)05. 7 Days To The Wolves (Espoo, Barona Arena)06. Sleeping Sun (Masters Of Rock)07. Sahara (Tampa Bay)08. Edemah Ruh acoustic (Nightwish Cruise)09. Last Ride Of The Day (Rock In Rio feat. Tony Kakko)10. Élan (Sydney)11. Richard Dawkins Interview From Wembley

Sold-out arenas and spectacular shows with never before seen pyro effects, wind machines, video screens and of course NIGHTWISH's incomparable melodies are the elements that made their latest tour so unique. Special highlights for the band have been two particular shows though: The one in London, where they not only played their hymns such as "Élan" and the majestic "The Greatest Show On Earth" to more than 12,000 fans, but also welcomed the world famous scientist Richard Dawkins live on stage with them. Richard Dawkins's works had a massive impact on the thematical orientation of their latest studio album ”Endless Forms Most Beautiful". Finland's Tampere show however was a home run for the band and never before NIGHTWISH had such an immense stage production with them:

"I would say the main part of the DVD are those two shows, both Wembley and Tampere," says Tuomas. "Wembley is mentioned first due to its recognizability and legendary status. I remember the show being very special, both a goal achieved, and a starting point. The crowd was heartwarming. The presence of Richard Dawkins on stage was just mind-blowing. The overall experience was a once-in-a-lifetime thrill ride! The show in Ratina Stadion, Tampere, was a home crowd specialty (for four-sixths of the band) with the biggest stage production we've ever had. A lovely atmosphere throughout the concert, with many same faces in the front row as there were 15 years ago. Heartfelt."

When it comes to the fine artwork of the DVD, NIGHTWISH decided to walk different paths this time and come up with a little alternative idea, as Tuomas explains. "We didn't want to include a traditional band shot for the cover, as on the previous DVD release 'Showtime, Storytime'," he says. "So we started brainstorming on different options and the idea of a classic silent movie era Hollywood visuals quickly came up. With those classic slogans the cover has a little tongue-in-cheek-touch to it, but it's still classy and eye catching in its simplicity and originality."

German thrash titans KREATOR have released the first video trailer for their upcoming album, "Gods Of Violence". Watch KREATOR mainman Mille Petrozza talk about the album's title, its creation and the band's musical evolution since the 2012's "Phantom Antichrist".

"Gods Of Violence" will be released on January 27, 2017 via Nuclear Blast Records. The cover artwork for the disc was created by renowned artist Jan Meininghaus, who also made the limited-edition artwork for KREATOR's last album, 2012's "Phantom Antichrist", and has lent his talents to bands like BOLT THROWER, ACCEPT and OVERKILL in the past.

The exclusive North American cover was created by renowned artist Marcelo Vasco, who has previously worked with SLAYER, MACHINE HEAD, SOULFLY and HATEBREED.

The track listing is as follows: 01. Apocalypticon02. World War Now03. Satan Is Real04. Totalitarian Terror05. Gods Of Violence06. Army Of Storms07. Hail To The Hordes08. Lion With Eagle Wings09. Fallen Brother10. Side By Side11. Death Becomes My Light

The video for the "Gods Of Violence" title track can be seen below. The clip was filmed with renowned video production company Grupa13, which has previously worked with AMON AMARTH, BEHEMOTH and ELUVEITIE.

Mille commented: "We have prepared an amazing video trilogy with Grupa13 for our new album. We believe that they are among the most creative artists when it comes to surreal video art. The storyline is linked to our album concept and the first clip visualizes the birth of the KREATOR demon."

Regarding the "Gods Of Violence" title track, Petrozza said: "'Gods Of Violence' was the first song I wrote for this album and it stuck to me as the title track. It contains everything KREATOR is known for and it will blow your minds. Promise!" He added about the album artwork: "The cover of is a perfect reflection of my lyrical vision. I think this is Jan Meininghaus's best work so far."

KREATOR will tour Europe in support of the new CD beginning in early February. Petrozza and his crew will be accompanied by a varied as well as iconic billing. Brazilian-American extreme metal pioneers SEPULTURA are direct support to the headliners, followed by visionary Swedish melodic death metallers SOILWORK and Belgium's finest death/grind outfit ABORTED.

Speaking about the five-year gap between 2012's "Phantom Antichrist" album and the upcoming "Gods Of Violence", Mille told Metal Wani: "It didn't seem that long, to be honest, because we have been touring so much. And I think in order to come up with something relevant and something exciting, it's definitely important to take some time off, and hat's what we did. After the extensive touring cycle for 'Phantom Antichrist', we just took almost… not two years off — we played a couple of festivals — but, basically, we didn't do much in '15 and until now [in] '16; those two years were free of any long touring. And so, yeah, being able to do this was a luxury, but was also necessary in order to come up with something great."

Mille also talked about the songwriting process for "Gods Of Violence", explaining: "We just wanted to write new songs that are just, 'Wow!' I think that's basically what we had in mind. One thing that we were all conscious about was that we needed to come up with an album that blows everyone away. So whatever it takes, we do. That's the only conscious decision that we made — to come up with something exciting; that's the key."

Regarding KREATOR's decision to return to Fascination Street Studios in Örebro, Sweden to record "Gods Of Violence" with producer Jens Bogren (OPETH, AMON AMARTH, KATATONIA), Mille said: "It was fantastic. We had a great time. We knew the location, we knew the studio, and it was really cool. And it was summertime this time, so it was a lot easier, really. It was nice."

KREATOR will headline next year's edition of the annual Decibel Magazine Tour. Support on the trek will come from Florida death metal legends OBITUARY, old-school Ohio brutalizers MIDNIGHT and celebrated progressive death prodigies HORRENDOUS (with regional openers in select markets to be announced next year).



North American cover (by Marcelo Vasco):



International cover (by Jan Meininghaus):

Ahead of their performance at this year's Revolver Music Awards on December 13, Italian heavy rockers LACUNA COIL have an early and very special Christmas gift for their fans — a new song called "Naughty Christmas". You can buy and/or stream "Naughty Christmas" on all digital platforms. The front cover and font were all created by bassist Marco "Maki" Coti-Zelati. LACUNA COIL just wrapped up a successful European tour, which was sold out in various cities, including London, Birmingham, Bristol, Southampton and Tilburg. The band is set to do another run of dates in 2017.

LACUNA COIL's latest album, "Delirium", entered The Billboard 200 chart at position No. 33 with first-week sales of just over 13,000 units — nearly all from pure album sales. The set follows the No. 27-peaking "Broken Crown Halo", which also opened with around 13,000 copies back in 2014.

"Delirium" was released on May 27 through Century Media. The CD was recorded at BRX Studio in Milan between December 2015 and February 2016. The effort was produced by LACUNA COIL bassist and main songwriter Marco "Maki" Coti-Zelati, with engineering by Marco Barusso and additional assistance from Dario Valentini. Coti-Zelati also created the artwork for "Delirium", which is based on an atmospheric session captured by Italian photographer Alessandro Olgiati.

LACUNA COIL has recruited Diego Cavallotti as a fill-in guitarist for the band following the recent departure of Marco "Maus" Biazzi.

Biazzi left LACUNA COIL in January, explaining in a statement: "I felt I couldn't add more in this project any longer so I decided to leave my second family, LACUNA COIL, to take a different path for a new challenge in my life.

German/American metallers ACCEPT will release a new live set titled "Restless And Live" on January 13, 2017 via Nuclear Blast. This package will include the entire show ACCEPT played at 2015's Bang Your Head!!! festival in Balingen, Germany on Blu-ray/DVD plus two CDs.

A performance clip of the song "Pandemic" — taken from "Restless And Live" — is available below.

ACCEPT guitarist Wolf Hoffmann explains: "It was actually never really planned; it sort of just happened. At Bang Your Head!!!, they always record their shows, so we just thought, 'Yeah, let them film it!'" After Andy praises their stage show as being crucial for the great atmosphere, Wolf continues: "Yes, as well as the crowd. We've been there before so it felt familiar to film it and see what happens. Then we got the footage and we thought, 'Wow, it's pretty good!'"

"Restless And Live" track listing:

Blu-ray / DVD:

01. Stampede02. Stalingrad03. London Leatherboys04. Restless And Wild05. Dying Breed06. Final Journey07. Shadow Soldiers08. Losers And Winners09. 200 Years10. Midnight Mover11. No Shelter12. Princess Of The Dawn13. Dark Side Of My Heart14. Pandemic15. Fast As A Shark16. Metal Heart17. Teutonic Terror18. Balls To The Wall

CD1:

01. Stampede02. Stalingrad03. Hellfire04. London Leatherboys05. Living For Tonite06. 200 Years07. Demon's Night08. Dying Breed09. Final Journey10. From The Ashes We Rise11. Losers And Winners12. No Shelter13. Shadow Soldiers14. Midnight Mover

CD2:

01. Starlight02. Restless And Wild03. Son Of A Bitch04. Pandemic05. Dark Side Of My Heart06. The Curse07. Flash Rockin' Man08. Bulletproof09. Fall Of The Empire10. Fast As A Shark11. Metal Heart12. Teutonic Terror13. Balls To The Wall

Commented Hoffmann: "We didn't know exactly what would happen back in 2010, what happens if... But this was six years ago and we've released three records since then. With 'Blind Rage', we had our first No. 1 chart record! There can be nothing nicer!"

The package's title, chosen by the band couldn't be more suitable: "'Restless And Live' simply fits what we experienced at Bang Your Head!!! and for what we stand for until today!" Wolf says. "It goes on and on and on! We're already working on a new production. The thought of being on the road again soon gets our blood flowing: And it is possible to overcome everything that happened before."

Asked why it's so important for ACCEPT to still make new music after all this time, Wolf recently told Canadian rock journalist Mitch Lafon: "For us, it was very important, especially since we got [singer] Mark [Tornillo], and when we had our reunion with Mark, the new singer, we really wanted to show to the fans and to us that we still can write relevant new songs, and so that's why we really did three albums in five or six years — really banged them out, one after the other. And those three albums are, in a lot of fans' views, as strong as most of the stuff we've done in the eighties, if not stronger. So I think it's very important for us to come up with new songs, 'cause, you know, once you stop trying, or you're just living on the past, I think that's no good. We're trying to stay relevant, and the fans really appreciate that."

Regarding what Mark Tornillo has added to ACCEPT's sound, Wolf said: "He very much inspired us to write songs, because all of a sudden, he can pretty much sing anything we want him to do. With Udo [Dirkschneider, former ACCEPT singer], it was much more limited, what worked and what didn't work. And Mark, man, anything Peter [Baltes, bass] and I come up with, he can perform, and so that opened a lot of doors, musically, for us, and that inspired us totally. But, like I said before, we always try to stay close to what ACCEPT fans are wanting to hear from us, 'cause we could write a bunch of stuff that was left and right, genre-wise, but I'm not sure if fans would really appreciate it that much. And that's also where [producer] Andy Sneap came in, especially during the 'Blood Of The Nations' [2010] recording. He really, sort of, forced us more to stay true to the course. 'Cause he grew up being an ACCEPT fan and listening to the old albums, and he came in with an expectation, 'All right, we're gonna make a great new ACCEPT album, but it'd better sound like I want it to sound as an ACCEPT fan.'"

RED DRAGON CARTEL, the band led by former OZZY OSBOURNE and BADLANDS guitarist Jake E. Lee, has begun writing material for its second album, tentatively due next year.

Back in September 2015, RED DRAGON CARTEL was rejoined by singer Darren James Smith after a period of several months during which the band played shows with a number of other vocalists, including former JONES STREET frontman Shawn Crosby, Canadian singer Paul D'Eath (CITIZENS UNITE, MUSHROOM TRAIL), Chas West (Jason Bonham, LYNCH MOB, 3 LEGGED DOGG) and Michael Beck.

RED DRAGON CARTEL in March 2015 announced the departure of bassist Greg Chaisson, who exited the group because he could "no longer take any more time away from [his] regular job."

RED DRAGON CARTEL's debut CD sold around 5,000 copies in the United States in its first week of release to debut at position No. 69 on The Billboard 200 chart.

RED DRAGON CARTEL's setlist includes original material like the singles "Feeder" and "Deceived", as well as major hits from Jake E. Lee's glorious past: "Bark At The Moon", "The Ultimate Sin" and "Rock 'N' Roll Rebel" (all originally recorded by OZZY OSBOURNE), as well as "Shine On" and "High Wire" (BADLANDS).




We're back in the studio working on our next album.

Posted by Red Dragon Cartel on Wednesday, November 30, 2016

Professional rock photographer Chad Lee has uploaded previously unseen video footage of DAMAGEPLAN rehearsing the PANTERA classic "Becoming" on October 23, 2004. Check out the clip below.

Vinnie Paul Abbott recently said that DAMAGEPLAN would have been in it for the long haul had the band's guitarist "Dimebag" Darrell Abbott not been murdered exactly twelve years ago today.

Dimebag was co-founder and lead guitarist for PANTERA. When PANTERA broke up in 2003, Dimebag and his brother Vinnie Paul formed DAMAGEPLAN. On December 8, 2004, while performing with DAMAGEPLAN at the Alrosa Villa in Columbus, Ohio, Dimebag was shot and killed onstage by Nathan Gale. He was 38 years old.

During an appearance on "Trunk Nation", Eddie Trunk's new show on SiriusXM channel Volume (106), Vinnie Paul was asked if he thought DAMAGEPLAN would have been around for years to come if Dimebag's life hadn't been cut short. He responded: "I do. We were hurt. We didn't know what happened with PANTERA. It wasn't an official breakup; there wasn't anything where we said, 'Well, that's it. We're done.' It's just…. They [vocalist Philip Anselmo and bassist Rex Brown] just quit taking phone calls and [were] off doing their own thing, and so we felt like it was time for us to move on and do our thing."

He continued: "The first [DAMAGEPLAN] record, I think, was pretty diverse. We wanted to do something that didn't sound exactly like PANTERA, and with [the material that was written for] the second record, it was really focused, man. I've got the demos and some day they'll come out. But I really feel like we had turned a corner. We'd been out, the fans had seen us, and they'd accepted the fact that this was our new thing at this point."

According to Vinnie, touring with DAMAGEPLAN was a humbling experience after spending several years playing in mostly arenas with PANTERA.

"You don't get anything easy when you come from a big band and you go and start another one," he said. "You learn real fast that, 'Wow! I went from the top of the mountain to all the way back to the bottom, and I've gotta start over.'"

Since his brother's murder, Vinnie Paul has released several Dimebag-related items through his Big Vin Records label, including DVDs and the paperback book "He Came to Rock". Vinnie later said that the Dimebag-related releases weren't an attempt to cash in on his brother's tragic end but rather a way to keep Dimebag's legacy alive and well.

"It's sad to say, but you just get larger than life when you're gone," Vinnie told "Trunk Nation". "It's just really weird. I really appreciate it, man. The fans have kept his legacy and everything he's done intact and alive, and it's just constantly growing, man. His legend's huge."

DAMAGEPLAN — whose lineup was completed by singer Patrick Lachman and bassist Bob Zilla — released its debut album, "New Found Power", in February of 2004. The group was touring in support of the record at the time of the shootings.

"Mindfight", a brand new song from LOCK UP — the international grindcore "supergroup" featuring Kevin Sharp (BRUTAL TRUTH, PRIMATE, VENOMOUS CONCEPT), Anton Reisenegger (PENTAGRAM, CRIMINAL), Shane Embury (NAPALM DEATH, BRUJERIA, VENOMOUS CONCEPT) and Nick Barker (CRADLE OF FILTH, DIMMU BORGIR) — can be streamed below. The track is taken from LOCK UP's forthcoming album, "Demonization", which will be released in March 2017 via Listenable. The disc was recorded at Parlour Recording Studios in Kettering, U.K. with longtime friend and acclaimed producer Russ Russell (THE EXPLOITED, NAPALM DEATH, EVILE, THE BERZERKER, DIMMU BORGIR).

"Demonization" is the first LOCK UP album to feature "vokillist" Kevin Sharp, who replaced Tomas Lindberg (AT THE GATES) in 2014.

Kevin made his live debut with LOCK UP at Manizales Grita Rock festival in Colombia in October 2014.

Said Sharp: "Barker is an absolute pleasure to follow — hits like an asshole on fire. Anton's tones and riffage are simply metallic and classic. And Shane and myself — well, we've done VENOMOUS CONCEPT for over 10 years now — I know how the man is wired.

"I'm super stoked to see the variables put together… This is gonna be ridiculously heavy."

Russ previously stated about his renewed collaboration with LOCK UP: "I'm absolutely chuffed sick to be back in the studio with my old mates LOCK UP.

"It's been 13 years since we last dipped our toes in the lake of fire. This time we're diving in head first screaming for Satan."

Germany's Lunar Shadow are set to release their debut album, Far From Light, via Cruz Del Sur Music on February 24th in Europe and March 10th in North America. The new song, "Hadrian Carrying Stones”, is streaming below.

Far From Light delivers eight brand new songs with a playing time of over 60 minutes. Epic, melodic, thoughtful, and proudly regressive.

Led by guitarist Max "Savage" Birbaum, Lunar Shadow have worked their way to the debut LP with patience and extreme dedication. After the release of their first EP Triumphator in 2015, the band played a number of select live shows, including the Harder Than Steel Festival and gigs with Atlantean Kodex, Dark Forest, and Argus.

One year later and there are tales of strange sounds in the hills. Chariots are being prepared for war. The women and children are fearful. Lunar Shadow have returned.

In 2015, former Scorpions guitarist Uli Jon Roth and his band once again brought a fascinating guitar performance to the Wacken Open Air festival in Germany, this time with the focus on the Scorpions history. Video of the full performance can now be seen below:

Uli Jon Roth will release a very special live performance from the Nakano Sun Plaza Hall in Tokyo, Japan on December 16th via UDR Music, entitled Tokyo Tapes Revisited - Live In Japan. The performance is a celebration of Roth's classic work with the Scorpions, and was recorded on February 20th, 2015 at the same venue as the band's classic 1978 live album, Tokyo Tapes.

Roth was a founding member of the Scorpions in 1973 before leaving to pursue a solo career in 1978 with his own Electric Sun. As the recognized creative heartbeat of the Scorpions, Roth achieved worldwide fame for his unique guitar and song-writing talents, in turn causing him to influence a plethora of modern guitar giants such as Kirk Hammett of Metallica, Billy Corgan of The Smashing Pumpkins and Steve Vai.

Watch a Tokyo Tapes Revisited - Live In Japan clip of Roth and his band performing "Virgin Killer" below:

Tokyo Tapes Revisited - Live In Japan will be released in four different formats:

1. Video & audio recording of Roth's Tokyo concert in a BluRay digipak containing one BluRay video disc and two audio CDs.

2. The same as Product 1 only in a DVD digipak.

3. A digital audio copy of the Tokyo concert.

4. A super-deluxe boxset, limited to 800 copies. It will be a proper, lid-off shell box containing 4 heavyweight vinyl LPs of Roth's 2015 Scorpions Revisited release which has never been released on vinyl. There will also be an 80-page, gatefold, hardcover 12" book which will house 8 discs - 1 BluRay concert main-feature, 1 bonus BluRay disc (which will contain the original footage from the first Japanese Scorpions Tour 1978, shot personally by Roth on his Super 8 Camera), 2 audio CDs of the main Tokyo concert and 4 bonus audio CDs of Roth's Osaka and Nagoya dates on the same Japanese tour. The set will also include an ULI JON ROTH replica guitar key-ring, a t-shirt, and a signed certificate of authenticity, numbered and signed by Roth himself.

Pre-orders for Tokyo Tapes Revisited - Live In Japan CD/DVD and CD/BluRay versions are available via Amazon (widgets below), and digital is available via iTunes with “Virgin Killer” instant grat.

See below for an image of everything included in the super-deluxe box set, which is available exclusively via UDR Music's web store here.

 

 

 

 

 

 

In January, New York City's Black Anvil returns with As Was, the staggering fifty-minute follow-up to 2014's Hail Death. The new album’s title track is now available for streaming below.

Atmospheric and melodic without relenting on any of the ferocity Black Anvil has always been known for, As Was seamlessly weaves through eight monumental passages of extreme metal art. More diverse, complex, and thought-provoking than anything they've released previously, As Was is a stellar representation of modern black metal, and of Black Anvil's continuous progression and songcraft.

As Was was recorded at Menegroth by Colin Marston (Krallice, Gorguts, Panopticon) with mixing and mastering done by Tore Stjerna at Necromorbus Studio (Tribulation, Funeral Mist, Watain), and features cover art by Metastazis (Behemoth, Watain, Morbid Angel).

January 13th marks the worldwide release of As Was via Relapse Records on CD, 2xLP, and digital formats. Physical pre-orders and bundles are available via Relapse.com here and digital downloads can be preordered via Bandcamp at this location.

Stream the band's new song "May Her Wrath Be Just" below.

As Was tracklisting:

“On Forgotten Ways”
“May Her Wrath Be Just”
“As Was”
“Nothing”
“As An Elder Learned Anew”
“Two Keys-Heres The Lock”
“The Way Of All Flesh”
“Ultra”

“As Was”:

“May Her Wrath Be Just”:

Black Anvil will tour North America throughout January and February 2017 in support of their new album with black metal legends Mayhem and Inquisition. A full list of dates can be seen below.
 
January
20 - Club Solda - Montreal, QC
21 - Phoenix Theater - Toronto, ON
22 - Agora Ballroom - Cleveland, OH
23 - Agora Ballroom - Chicago, IL
24 - Turner Hall Ballroom - Milwaukee, WI
25 - Mill City Nights - Minneapolis, MN        
27 - Gothic Theater - Denver, CO
28 - The Complex - Salt Lake City, UT
30 - Marquee - Calgary, AB
31 - Starlite Room - Edmonton, AB

February
2 - El Corazon - Seattle, WA
3 - Rickshaw Theatre - Vancouver, BC
4 - Hawthorne Theater - Portland, OR
6 - Social Hall SF - San Francisco, CA
7 - The Observatory - Santa Ana, CA
8 - Club Red - Phoenix, AZ
10 - Alamo Music Hall - San Antonio, TX
11 - Trees - Dallas, TX
13 - Masquerade - Atlanta, GA
14 - Throne Theater - Wilmington, NC
15 - The Howard Theater - Washington, DC
16 - Theatre Of The Living Arts - Philadelphia, PA
17 - The Chance - Poughkeepsie, NY
18 - Royale - Boston, MA
19 - Gramercy Theatre - New York, NY

(Photo - Lani Lee)

Hillbilly metal band, Fearless, is now signed by Rehn Music Group, and their new single, ”Blood Sweat & Shine”, will be released early-2017, followed up by their first album. Rehn Music Group is a label/management company founded by Tommy Rehn, former member of Moahni Moahna, Angtoria, and Corroded.

Fearless, from Vagnhärad, Sweden, was founded by the brothers Andy Forssander (drums) and Tobias Forssander (guitar) in 2012. The band also features Michel Kolic (vocals) and Martin Åberg (bass).

After spending some time with the brothers relatives in the deep south of Louisiana bayou, and taught how to make moonshine, fix old rusty cars, fishing and of course playing some music with the locals, they went back home to deliver a heavy mix of hard rock, metal, hardcore and a twist of blues, or as they say “Hillbilly metal”.

Their debut single, “Hillbilly For Life”, was self-released in 2015, produced by Kristoffer Folin at Purple Skull Media in Stockholm, followed by a music video (streaming below). Since then they have been touring around Sweden and played at some of the biggest rock festivals such at Sweden Rock and Skogsröjet. They also did a US tour in 2015, travelling from east to west and through, of course, the south.

(Photo - Åsa Edling)

From the ashes of the old rises the spirit of the new, Ryder, a 4-piece hard rock/metal band based out of Queens, NY.

June 26th, 2016 was the day that it all started for Ryder. If you enjoy the sounds of Twisted Sister, Dokken or Black Sabbath Ryder might just be what you're looking for. It took no time at all for them to be asked to perform at the world-renowned Whisky A Go Go and the Chance Theater. They have been asked to open for Ted Poley, Ross The Boss, Dope, Motorgrator, One Eyed Doll, Wednesday 13, LA Guns, Faster Pussycat, Tracii Guns, Flotsam And Jetsam and Joe Lynn Turner, just to name a few.

Ryder delivers a powerful style of music that is still appreciated by the masses and can really get the crowd going. The group consists of James Ryder (vocals/guitar), Andrew Bloch (guitar), Dennis Torrent (bass guitar), and Matt Hass (drums). Together they deliver a pulse pounding, adrenaline-fuelled performance that will leave you wanting more.

Ryder has announced the release of their IV EP on January 1st. The EP was engineered and produced by Anthony Esposito (founding member of Lynch Mob, former Ace Frehley bassist, and current bassist for Jake E. Lee’s Red Dragon Cartel). The EP features four songs drawing influence from the likes of Thin Lizzy, Guns N’ Roses, Aerosmith, Black Sabbath and Led Zeppelin, but still producing their own sound.

Pre-order the EP at this location.

Occult doom supergroup, Dead Witches, have unveiled the artwork and release date for their debut, Ouija, due out in the winter of 2017 via Heavy Psych Sounds.

Drummer Mark Greening (former Electric Wizard, also of Ramesses and With The Dead) and vocalist Virginia Monti (Psychedelic Witchcraft) joined forces to found the heaviest occult psych superbeast to see the light this year: Dead Witches. Coming as a nice surprise for fans of the aforementioned bands and more generally, of crushing psychotropic doom, the formation of this supergroup led to the high anticipation of their debut album, which details were just revealed today.

Ouija will be issued on February 10th through Heavy Psych Sounds. The album will be available on black vinyl, limited purple vinyl, CD and digital. A video for "Mind Funeral" can be found below.

Tracklisting:

“Intro”
“Dead”
“Drowning Down The Moon”
“Ouija”
“Mind Funeral”
“Sometimes Dead Is Better”

“Mind Funeral” video:

Dead Witches lineup:

Virginia Monti - Vocals
Mark Greening - Drums
Carl Geary - Bass
Greg Elk - Guitar

(Photo - Viki Crandon)

In the new video footage below from Sick Drummer, drum legend Dave Lombardo (Slayer, Misfits, Dead Cross) performs “War Inside My Head” with Suicidal Tendencies on October 1st at the 1st Bank Center in Broomfield, CO.

Lombardo will be performing next week (December 12th - 15th) on late night talk show, Late Night With Seth Meyers. Lombardo will be sitting in with The 8G band, Monday through Thursday.

Says Dave: “Very excited to perform on Late Night with Seth Meyers next week in New York City. You can catch me on the show Dec 12 thru 15th.”

Megadeth have confirmed that they will perform on Late Night With Seth Meyers next Thursday, December 15th. The show airs at 12:35 / 11:35 Central, on NBC.

Bruce Kulick played 10 KISS songs on Tuesday night (December 6th) at Ultimate Jam Night's tribute to KISS at the world famous Whisky A Go Go in West Hollywood, California.

Live video footage shot by Johnny Angel of “I Still Love You“ with Bruce Kulick, Debby Holiday, Matt Starr, Jorgan Carlsson and Alex Kane can be seen below, along with more footage from the night.

Kulick, also known for his membership in Grand Funk Railroad, was a member of KISS from 1984 – 1996 during its so-called “no makeup” era. His performance of 10 KISS songs at Ultimate Jam Night was the most played in one show since his inclusion in the band.

Over 50 artists including Ace Frehley bassist Chris Wyse, LA Guns guitarist Michael Grant, Gov’t Mule bassist Jorgen Carlsson, Autograph vocalist Simon Daniels, drummer Jason Sutter of Marilyn Manson, guitarist Nikki Stringfield of the Iron Maidens and Ira Black of Westfield Massacre performed tunes from KISS’ entire career.

After almost three years from the release of their last album, The Attraction Of Opposites (May 2014), Ravenscry have announced the release date for their third studio album, The Invisible. The Concept album will be released on February 24th. The Invisible will be distributed on all the digital platforms worldwide (except for Japan) by Audioglobe, and the physical format will be available worldwide (except for Japan) thanks to the brand new agreement signed with Plastic Head.

The new album was recorded between June and September 2016 at the Ravenstudio (instrumental parts) and at the Big Bang Studio (vocal parts), it is now through the mixing process, which is being done by Roberto Laghi (In Flames, Diablo Swing Orchestra, Entombed), who already worked on the mix of The Attraction Of Opposites. The master will be done by Jacob Hansen (Amaranthe, Delain, Epica, Primal Fear) at the Hansen Studios in January.

The Invisible is the first Ravenscry concept album. Unlikely the previous ones the composing process has been very different, as the band stated: “Creating a story and giving it a soul with music is an extraordinary job and it is fascinating, but also very hard. We got through a lot of issues and deep human emotions, digging inside every single one of us in search for the right sensations in order to translate them into music. We had an incredible amount of material to work on; we had to take some hard decisions, mainly based on the emotions we wanted to give to the listener, song by song, guided by the story. This way of working got us very deeply into what we were doing. These months have been extremely hard, but we are very satisfied about the results and we can’t wait for you to listen to it!”

The Invisible talks about a young library assistant, Coral, who lives and works in a small town in Colorado; but she is not born there, she grew up in an orphanage. Coral spends all her day between books and archives, that is probably because it is her passion, but also because she is not that great in communicating with other people. One day she finds a book with a peculiar picture, which reminds her of distant memories. From this moment on her life changes, because she starts a journey, inside and outside herself, without knowing where this will bring her and without knowing what she will find at the end of it. A risky trip, which could lead to nothing… or to everything.

It is a complex journey, as you can see also from the tracklisting below, which takes place among full songs (in parentheses), interludes and words written by the characters of the story. It is a plot that has to be listened in its fullness to be completely understood.

The artwork of The Invisible was designed by Mario Sànchez Nevado, also known as Aègis Strife. He is an illustrator and a storyteller, he has in his curriculum exhibitions at the MoMa and at the New York Guggenheim, but also many other international rewards of his work.

Tracklisting:

“The Entanglement”
Whispered Intro
“Hypermnesia”
Coral (as seen by others) - The librarian talks about Coral
“The Mission”
Monsters Inside - The director of the institute talks about Coral
“The Invisible Revolution”
The teacher talks about Coral part 1
“The Deepest Lake”
The grandmother talks about Coral
“More Than Anything”
The teacher talks about Coral part 2
“Nothing But A Shade”
Nora talks about Martin
“Oscillation”
In Collision
“The Magic Circle” - Martin talks with Coral part 1
“Flux Density”
“Overload” - Martin talks with Coral part 2

Musically speaking, Ravenscry renewed its style again, accepting the challenges due to the composition of a concept album, but without renouncing to their distinctive sound. There are a lot of heavy riffs and peculiar vocal line, but be ready to listen to something different, showing clearly that the band is always up to going through the creative research.

The single extracted from the new album will be “Oscillation”; it will come with an official video, which will be shot in mid-December with Max Valerio, eclectic and visionary director and photographer.

Progressive black metallers Code are streaming their new song, "Brass Dogs". It is the first song to be revealed from the band's upcoming Lost Signal EP. The EP is set to be released on January 25th via Agonia Records, on vinyl and digital formats. Listen to the song below.

In the summer of 2015, Code spent some time in a studio in England to experiment with tracks from their back catalogue of four albums. The idea was to re-visit past works from a different angle and Lost Signal is the result.

The EP features three songs from their most recent album Mut (2015), performed with a strong metallic approach. It also features three further songs, one from each of the first three albums performed in a more subtle and introspective style similar to that seen on the Mut album. The result is a release that alternatively emphasizes the subtlety and heaviness of the band's sound and provides a chance to hear these songs in a completely new way.

The songs featured on the EP are:

"On Blinding Larks" (from Mut)
"Cocoon" (from Mut)
"Affliction" (from Mut)
"The Rattle of Black Teeth" (from Resplendent Grotesque)
"The Lazarus Cord" (from Augur Nox)
"Brass Dogs" (from Nouveau Gloaming)

“Brass Dogs”:

Trailer:

Produced and mixed by the band themselves, this is the sound of Code exploring the dichotomy within their music and producing a release of rich power, melody and dynamics.

Available formats:

- Transparent 12" LP limited to 389 copies
- Transparent 12" LP with black splatter limited to 111 copies
- Digital

Pre-orders: vinyl / digital

Code lineup:

Aort - Guitars
Andras - Guitars
LORDt - Drums
Syhr - Bass
Wacian - Vocals

US hard rockers Cage9 have released a video for "Oscuro", a track from their new album, Illuminator, out now worldwide via David Ellefson's EMP Label Group. The new video can be viewed below.

Panama to LA transplants Illuminator have long been an underground favorite, touring America repeatedly both as Cage9, and as the backing band for Powerman 5000, and releasing numerous independent albums that found huge success in Japan and South America.

Illuminator was produced by vocalist/guitarist Evan Rodaniche, who is also responsible for producing new albums for Powerman 5000 and Lacey Sturm.

Tracklisting:

“Open The Sky”
“Gallows”
“Starry Eyes”
“Everything You Love Will Someday Die”
“Oscuro”
“Black Horse”
“Death Of A Dragon”
“Aleatoricsism”
“Birds Of Prey”
“Martyr”
“Ghost”
“Illuminator”
“Take Back Tomorrow”

“Oscuro” video:

Cage9 is:

Evan Rodaniche - vocals / guitar
Brian Sumwalt - drums
Leslie Wyatt - bass
Matt Borowski - guitar

Asia's new live album, Symfonia - Live In Bulgaria 2013, will be released on February 24th. Available on 2CD/DVD, Blu-Ray, and MP3 (audio only) the album was recorded during a special show on September 21st, 2013 during the Sounds Of The Ages Festival at the magnificent Second Century Roman Theater in Plovdiv, Bulgaria. On some of the songs during the band's set, Asia was joined by The Plovdiv Philharmonic Orchestra, conducted by Levon Manukian.

The show was then aired on Bulgarian National TV the following December 30th, 2013 and it is now presented in its entirety to the fans as a powerful witness of the line-up featuring original members John Wetton, Carl Palmer, Geoff Downes along with Sam Coulson on guitar.

Says John Wetton: "The show in the glorious Roman Theater of Plovdiv, with orchestra, along with the massive Sweden Rock Festival and the shows in the UK and the show European tour thereafter, were the first dates of the new chapter of Asia-and in my opinion, the band has never sounded better."

The album tracklisting includes:

CD1:
“Sole Survivor”
“Time Again”
“Face On The Bridge”
“My Own Time”
“Holy War”
“An Extraordinary Life”
“Days Like These”
“Open Your Eyes”
 
CD2:
“Only Time Will Tell”*
“Don't Cry”*
“Heroine”*
“The Smile Has Left Your Eyes”*
“Wildest Dreams”*
“Heat Of The Moment”*

*Performed with the Plovdiv Philharmonic Orchestra
 
DVD / Blu-Ray:
“Sole Survivor”
“Time Again”
“Face On The Bridge”
“My Own Time”
“Holy War”
“An Extraordinary Life”
“Days Like These”
“Open Your Eyes”
“Only Time Will Tell”*
“Don't Cry”*
“Heroine”*
“The Smile Has Left Your Eyes”*
“Wildest Dreams”*
“Heat Of The Moment”*
Interview Segment

*Performed with the Plovdiv Philharmonic Orchestra

Asia lineup:

John Wetton - Lead Vocal and Bass
Geoff Downes - Keyboards and Backing Vocals
Carl Palmer - Drums
Sam Coulson - Guitars

 

 

Journey and Asia are joining forces for a string of live dates in 2017. With 12 shows currently scheduled, the trek is set to launch on March 5th at Yakima Valley SunDome in Yakima, WA, and wrap up on April 4th at Nutter Centre in Dayton, OH.

“Asia is honoured to be asked to share the stage with Journey,” says Asia lead singer and bassist John Wetton, who has been fighting cancer since 2015 after the band finished its last US tour. “On a personal note, this couldn’t have come at a better time for me; I remain determined and my road to a full recovery continues.  I look forward to seeing everyone on the tour next year.”

Tour dates:

March
5 - Yakima, WA - Yakima Valley SunDome
16 - Spokane, WA - Spokane Arena
18 - Eugene, OR - Matthew Knight Arena
20 - Boise, ID - Taco Bell Arena
21 - Bozeman, MT - Brick Breeden Fieldhouse
24 - Fargo, ND - Fargodome
27 - Green Bay, WI - Resch Center
28 - Madison, WI - Alliant Energy Center
31 - Fort Wayne, IN - Allen County War Memorial Coliseum

April
1 - Evansville, IN - Ford Center
3 - Moline, IL - iWireless Center
4 - Dayton, OH - Nutter Center

In a brand new interview with Ireland's Overdrive, AVENGED SEVENFOLD guitarist Synyster Gates was asked what he thought of METALLICA's idea to produce and release a video for every track on the band's latest album, "Hardwired… To Self-Destruct". He said: "Yeah, that was a stroke of genius. There's nothing like having some healthy competition. We really strive to think outside the box, by taking the standard approach the then twisting it a little all the while trying something new. Then METALLICA comes along and just up the bar again with their promo. We're a little jealous. [Laughs]"

He continued: "To be honest, I personally feel that this is a great time within the music industry as it's forcing people to try unorthodox approaches to what is traditionally a tired model. The business model of the past simply does not apply to the way things are conducted these days. Just take bands like METALLICA and us also — we are really excited about approaching things from a different angle and not afraid to try different things."

AVENGED SEVENFOLD's latest album, "The Stage", came out less than two months ago. The group made the album available at midnight on October 27 with almost no promotion beforehand, save for the arrival of a new song one week earlier.

The surprise release of the disc, which was announced the night it went on sale, earned the lowest sales of an AVENGED SEVENFOLD album in eleven years — less than half the tally of its previous two efforts.

"The Stage" is a 71-minute, 11-song concept album centered around the theme of artificial intelligence and inspired by the work of Carl Sagan and Elon Musk. Instead of a science fiction storyline, however, "The Stage" takes what a press statement called "a futurist's look at the accelerated rate at which technology's intelligence is expanding and what that means — good and bad — for the future."

The album's epic 15-minute-plus closing track, "Exist", features a guest appearance by award-winning astrophysicist Neil deGrasse Tyson, giving a spoken-word performance he penned specifically for the album.

The marketing plan and launch of the album, the band's first for Capitol Records, was months in the making, starting with the projection of the band's logo, the Deathbat, on buildings in cities around the world. The campaign even included some misdirection, as the group had its friend Chris Jericho "accidentally" leak a fake album title and release date.

Former MEGADETH guitarist Marty Friedman has finished laying down his guitar tracks on the follow-up to his 2014 album "Inferno" for a tentative early 2017 release via Prosthetic. The new disc is currently being mixed by Swedish producer Jens Bogren, who performed the same duties on "Inferno" and has also worked with such acts as KREATOR, SEPULTURA, DRAGONFORCE and PARADISE LOST.

Marty says: "So far five songs are done. Jens is knocking them out of the park. He is super fast and knows my sound, as you can hear on 'Inferno'."

Regarding the musical direction of Friedman's new album, the guitarist states: "This time it's even more ambitious than that album was, a bit more dense, and, with any luck, more exciting for those of you who will hear it."

He adds: "There will be 11 or 12 songs in total. Sometimes a song you really love doesn't make it to the album because it doesn't fit nicely in the sequencing. Either way, we're pushing 60 minutes, so it won't be a short album."

Marty's new CD was recorded in part at Dave Grohl's Studio 606 in California with engineer Paul Fig (ALICE IN CHAINS, RUSH, DEFTONES) and was previously described by Friedman as "a way more intense version" of its predecessor: "deeper, sadder, happier and more aggressive."

Like "Inferno", Friedman's upcoming album will feature several guests, including prog-thrashers MUTOID MAN, Jørgen Munkeby of the Norwegian avant-garde jazz-metal outfit SHINING and Jinxx of Los Angeles theatrical rockers BLACK VEIL BRIDES.

Regarding how the collaboration with Jinxx came about, Friedman told Guitar World: "I'm a big fan of Jinxx and BLACK VEIL BRIDES. He came to my show in L.A. in 2015. Right after that, I was told that he plays violin. I didn't even know that! Then light bulbs went off. I thought now's the chance to really turn some heads by doing something that's a little bit, well, a lot, unexpected to my fans and his fans."

DIO DISCIPLES singer Tim "Ripper" Owens has responded to Vivian Campbell's recent claim that the band has "zero credibility" as a Ronnie James Dio tribute project despite the fact that the group is fully supported by Ronnie's widow/manager, Wendy.

Cambell, along with drummer Vinny Appice and bassist Jimmy Bain, was part of the original DIO lineup, which reunited in 2012 alongside singer Andrew Freeman to form LAST IN LINE.

When LAST IN LINE formed, the intent was to celebrate Ronnie James Dio's early work by reuniting the members of the original DIO lineup. After playing shows that featured a setlist composed exclusively of material from the first three DIO albums, the band decided to move forward and create new music in a similar vein.

Asked by Eric Blair of "The Blairing Out With Eric Blair Show" at last month's Bowl 4 Ronnie bowling party in Studio City, California why he thinks Vivian seems to have such an issue with DIO DISCIPLES, Owens said (see video below): "I've gotta be honest, I really don't give a shit what he does. I don't know how much money they [LAST IN LINE] donate to the cancer foundation — I imagine they do, because [Vivian] had cancer; I would hope he does — but the main reason we're [DIO DISCIPLES] doing it is... I mean, listen, [DIO DISCIPLES is] the least-paying thing that I do. We do it to raise money and do this and to keep Ronnie's fans happy and keep him out there. If that's why they're [LAST IN LINE] doing it, if they're all not really taking money from it and if they're all putting money into the cancer foundations and raising awareness, that's fantastic [and] it's good for 'em."

He added: "Listen, I don't care. I think the more people that celebrate Ronnie James Dio, the better. I don't know much about Vivian, and I knew nothing about Vivian before [his involvement with] Ronnie, so… You know what I mean? Listen, he's fantastic, and those [early DIO] records are amazing. But let's all just celebrate Ronnie."

DIO DISCIPLES guitarist Craig Goldy told Blair at the same event that he didn't understand why Vivian was still so bitter three decades after his exit from DIO. "I don't know what happened between those two [Ronnie and Vivian], but I can't imagine that it was that vile for [Vivian] to hang on to that," Craig said. "I mean, some people just hold a grudge. And I love Vivian Campbell's music. And I don't know… For all I know, Vivian Campbell might be a wonderful human being who just happens to be one of those guys who holds on to a grudge. That's all it seems like — he just seems determined to hold on to a grudge."

Campbell, who was diagnosed with Hodgkin's lymphoma in 2013, recently dismissed persistent Internet speculation that his decision to launch LAST IN LINE was somehow financially motivated. He explained: "It's so difficult to get the economics of it to work. I'm not even talking about making money — I'm talking about not losing money.

"We are not doing this for money, believe me! There's fuck-all money in this. [Laughs] I get plenty of money in my day job with DEF LEPPARD. This is a passion project, this is very much a labor of love, and I'm very excited to do it."

In addition to Goldy, Owens, Oni Logan (LYNCH MOB) and Joe Retta (SWEET, HEAVEN & EARTH) on vocals, DIO DISCIPLES features former DIO members Simon Wright on drums and Scott Warren on keyboards. They are joined by Bjorn Englen (YNGWIE MALMSTEEN) on bass.

DIO DISCIPLES is billed as a "celebration of the music and legacy of the greatest singer in the world, Ronnie James Dio." The band also notes that "we could NEVER replace Ronnie and that is NOT our intention. There will only ever be one Ronnie James Dio!"

Campbell was fired from DIO in 1986 after a contentious business disagreement with Ronnie James Dio and band management.

Ronnie James Dio died on May 16, 2010 from gastric cancer at the age of 67.

Bobby Blotzer has refuted Warren DeMartini's claim that the drummer has been expelled from the RATT partnership and therefore no longer has an interest in the band's name.

At the end of last month, three members of RATT's classic lineup — DeMartini, singer Stephen Pearcy and bassist Juan Croucier — issued a press release claiming that they had taken control of the band's name after a judge ruled against Blotzer with respect to whether Croucier had committed trademark infringement by using the RATT name and logo to advertise his band RATT'S JUAN CROUCIER back in the fall 2015. The judge furthermore decided that the corporation WBS, Inc., of which Blotzer and DeMartini were thought to be the sole shareholders, and which Blotzer had claimed owns the RATT name and brand, 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: Pearcy, Croucier, DeMartini and Blotzer.

Under a 1985 written Ratt Partnership Agreement, the name/trademarks are the property of the partnership and can only be transferred with the unanimous approval of all partners. Thus, the judge ruled that in 1997 when Blotzer, DeMartini and Pearcy purported to transfer the trademarks to WBS, the transfer was invalid since Croucier, who was still a partner, was never advised of, and therefore did not consent to, the transfer. Therefore, the judge said, the partnership still owned the RATT name.

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

On December 3, Blotzer — who has been touring the U.S. for the last year with his own version of RATT, featuring a rotating cast of musicians, including vocalist Josh Alan (ex-SIN CITY SINNERS) — and his attorney Drew Sherman addressed the latest legal developments in the RATT camp during an interview with Canadian journalist Mitch Lafon.

Despite the fact that a judge ruled that the four-way RATT partnership — and not WBS — still owned the band name, Sherman says that no judgment has been entered either against or in favor of Blotzer. "Essentially, WBS owns the name," the attorney said. "They — meaning Stephen, Juan, Warren — whatever they're going out as, they do not have permission to [go out as RATT]. So right now they're infringing the trademarks of RATT owned by WBS.

"The ruling that we have, there are many legal strategies that will be employed in order to change and bring to the court's attention various other pieces of evidence as well as prior rulings," he continued. "So it's a long time before this is done. We're not even at the appeals part yet, because there's no judgment to appeal. So there's a lot of time. Status quo will remain, and WBS owns the marks."

Insisting that his current band is still called RATT because "there is nothing else to call it," Blotzer said that he "made the decision as half owner of the [RATT] name" to start playing live shows as RATT without any other members of the band's classic lineup. He explained: "WBS owns the name. I'm 50% of WBS, Inc. and still am. WBS, Inc. still owns that name right this moment. That's not changed.

"We've had tremendous, great success with this band out here," Blotzer said, referring to his current version of RATT. "I mean, we're headlining big gigs. It's doing really well. I'm very proud of that. So I think [Warren, Juan and Stephen] seeing this kind of success, now all of a sudden, from not liking each other or talking, [they're now in] collusion together and they decide that they're gonna do this at this point, and there you have it. They're making their move, and they don't have the name RATT."

Asked if his decision to change the name of his new band from BOBBY BLOTZER'S RATT EXPERIENCE to simply RATT was an attempt to boost the group's marquee value or something else, the drummer said: "Well, there's a little bit of both of that in there. The band was so good that I wanted to bring it to bigger venues to people. And the way to do that was, obviously, to use what was mine. And that was half of that name. I called Warren, and, of course, he wouldn't answer the phone; I can't e-mail him. We have this corporation, but yet I can't even get in touch with him, so I was getting in touch with him through our old manager. And I'm saying, 'Listen, dude, have you heard this thing that I'm doing? Because I'm gonna take it out. I wanna play bigger gigs, and I'm taking it out as RATT. And I want you to come with me and do this.' And he wanted no part of it. I don't think he even wanted to go on the road. His reasoning was he's not going unless it's the original band. But the problem with that is all you do is complain about how bad Stephen is, and how hard he is to work with and deal with, and [how difficult it is] to even get [Stephen] into a freaking van to get to the gig. I think he was using that [excuse] knowing that they were not going to rejoin unless they got [ownership of] the name [back]. So it was completely stalemated by both of those sides — Warren and those two guys."

Sherman also addressed the fact that Pearcy, Croucier and DeMartini recently announced that they will perform — as RATT — at next year's edition of the M3 Rock Festival, set to take place on Friday, April 28, 2017 and Saturday, April 29, 2017 at Merriweather Post Pavilion in Columbia, Maryland. He said: "They do not have permission to play the M3 [as RATT], they do not have permission to advertise is as such. And I'll just say this: right now, to throw that out there, to make these announcements, these press releases, without having a [court] judgment, I would say is very ill-advised. And I'll leave it that for now."

Before wrapping up the interview, Blotzer spoke about the fact that his new lineup of RATT has already gone through several changes since it was first announced more than a year ago, with Alan as the sole other remaining member of the original September 2015 group. "Well, listen, I wanted to say this straight up," he explained. "This is the reality, and it's the truth. You know what the star of this band is? [It's] not me, and it's not Warren, and it's not Stephen. The star of this band is the RATT catalog, 'cause that's what people wanna hear. These guys all… There's no plans for anybody to go anywhere, but if anybody has to go, they've gotta go. But everybody's having a good time. I mean, tonight is like the 68th show. We've been busting balls this year, and we've got a lot of shows booked for next year. We plan to keep going, and that's all I can say at this point. People are just loving it, and I'm appreciative that people are behind it."

Blotzer's version of RATT recently announced the addition of Mitch Perry (TALAS, HEAVEN, STEELER, MSG, LITA FORD) and Stacey Blades (L.A. GUNS) on guitar and Brad Lang (Y&T) on bass.

In should be noted that DeMartini's September 2015 lawsuit against Blotzer — in which the guitarist claimed that the drummer was falsely advertising his RATT "tribute band" as the real thing — is still pending in California state court.


Listen to "1on1 Mitch Lafon - 282 Bobby Blotzer" on Spreaker.

According to a new tweet from SKID ROW bassist Rachel Bolan, the band is several days into a writing and demoing session with the group's current touring lineup, which includes the South African-born, British-based singer ZP Theart (DRAGONFORCE, TANK, I AM I). Bolan says: "Things are going amazing!"

Even though SKID ROW has been playing shows with Theart since the beginning of this year, guitarist Dave "Snake" Sabo recently stopped short of calling him the band's official new frontman.

"We haven't even discussed it yet," Sabo told News-Press.com this past October. "We just said, 'This feels really good and let's just do it.' It's who we are right now."

Theart's involvement with SKID ROW was exclusively reported by BLABBERMOUTH.NET on December 31, 2015. He stepped into the group following the departure of Tony Harnell, the TNT frontman who joined SKID ROW in April 2015 as the replacement for Johnny Solinger, the band's singer for fifteen years.

Sabo told News-Press.com that, Theart has been doing a great job on the road.

"He's come in," the guitarist said, "and he's a really great source of positive energy. He knew all of our songs coming in, and he knew them well. He started singing the crap out of all of them, and we were all very impressed."

Despite the fact that fans have been clamoring for a reunion of SKID ROW's most popular lineup for nearly twenty years, Sabo told The Aquarian Weekly a few months ago that SKID ROW had no intention of reconnecting with vocalist Sebastian Bach. "Happiness, to me, is my spirit and my soul is more important to me than having dollars in my wallet," he explained. "People may [not] believe that and that's okay. Anybody who knows me knows that to be true. I don't think you can place a price on happiness. We've been hit repeatedly over the years with, 'Why don't you do a reunion tour?' And you know what? I understand the question and I get it. I really do, and if I were on the outside, I'd be asking the same question, but no one feels comfortable with that idea."

Bach has publicly expressed his desire to reunite with his former bandmates, telling Loudwire earlier in the year: "I don't have any reason why not to do that. I have no animosity towards anybody in SKID ROW, and the fact that we're all, five of us, still alive in this world is a pretty amazing feat. So I would someday definitely like to hear the five guys who made those records play live together again. Yes, I would. 'Cause I'm a fan too." He added: "I'm up for it, if they are."

Day 4- writing/demos. Things are going amazing! @OfficialSkidRow @sNAKEsABO @ScottiHill @RobHammersmith @ZPTofficial #batsstudio #newmusic

— Rachel Bolan (@rbolanbass) December 3, 2016

SOUNDGARDEN frontman Chris Cornell has confirmed that the band hopes to record the follow-up to 2012's comeback album, "King Animal", early in 2017 with the goal of releasing the disc later in the year.

During a December 5 appearance on "Whiplash", the KLOS radio show hosted by Full Metal Jackie, Cornell was asked if there are any plans for the band to tour and release new music anytime soon. He responded (hear audio below): "Well, it'll be in 2017 — both those things, hopefully, will happen — barring any, sort of, unforeseen thing, which I don't… I don't see any reason why those two things won't happen. The next thing that I am committing myself to concentrating on a hundred percent is the next SOUNDGARDEN album."

SOUNDGARDEN guitarist Kim Thayil told The Pulse Of Radio that the band has come up with a lot of material but still wants more. "We've gotten together at least three times for these weeklong sessions of songwriting and jamming and rehearsing, so we've probably got a good dozen or so songs that are sort of demoed," he said. "And once we get maybe another eight or nine songs and we have a good body of work there, we'll start kind of going through it to see what we really enjoy playing. Then we'll get into the studio to make that record. We hope to do that sometime soon in 2017."

Work on a new record started in 2015, but SOUNDGARDEN took breaks while Cornell toured his "Higher Truth" solo effort and drummer Matt Cameron hit the road with PEARL JAM.

SOUNDGARDEN reunited in 2010 after a 13-year layoff, touring and then eventually writing new material that became the basis for "King Animal", its first new studio album in 16 years.

Meanwhile, released last month was a deluxe 25th anniversary edition of SOUNDGARDEN's third studio album, 1991's "Badmotorfinger". Thayil told The Pulse Of Radio that working on the reissue has given him a newfound appreciation for the LP. "This is a loaded album," he said. "Everything here is great. Almost everything on the album, we continue to play live because it's fun to play and they're audience favorites. So it was always perhaps my third or fourth favorite SOUNDGARDEN album, but right now it's occupied a space at the top, you know, followed by perhaps 'Superunknown'."

The limited-edition seven-disc Super Deluxe edition consists of four CDs, two DVDs, and one Blu-ray audio disc, featuring 79 previously unreleased tracks, videos and mixes. Among those are 15 previously unreleased studio outtakes and "Live At The Paramount", SOUNDGARDEN's first-ever complete concert album recorded at the Paramount Theatre in Seattle on March 6,1992.

Released on October 8, 1991, "Badmotorfinger" spawned three singles, "Jesus Christ Pose", "Outshined" and "Rusty Cage", and became SOUNDGARDEN's first million-selling LP.

According to The Pulse Of Radio, METALLICA frontman James Hetfield says that the band is frustrated with the current state of ticket scalping — or the more legitimate "secondary market" sales — and would like to see more action taken to curb it. Speaking with The Canadian Press, Hetfield remarked: "There's always going to be someone who has an agenda. They're going to scoop up as many as they can. Technology can help for sure. It's hard to believe something more can't be done."

Hetfield added in a reference to ticket resellers: "There's legal scalping out there too, which is frustrating. 'Hey, wow, we just sold 10,000 tickets — and where did they go? To one place? Interesting.'"

METALLICA has just released its tenth album, "Hardwired… To Self-Destruct", and plans to spend the next two years touring the world, so ticket scalping will be an issue.

Hetfield said about the problem: "We're aware of it and doing what we can. At the end of the day, the fans get screwed and we get screwed. It shouldn't happen. I would just say, 'Fans, beware. Be smart about it.'"

Hetfield told The Pulse Of Radio a while back that the business side of touring has gotten harder for the acts too. "For some reason, touring is really difficult, and that was the answer to, you know, 'everyone just download, you'll make your money on tour!'" he said. "And now, well, guess what, you don't. Groups are gonna, they have to join together as packages to go out, and it's a struggle, and I'm really grateful that I'm not a band starting out right now. It'd be very difficult."

"Hardwired... To Self-Destruct" went to No. 1 in 57 countries around the world after it was released on November 18.

METALLICA plans to tour extensively behind the new disc starting in early 2017.

BLACK SABBATH guitarist Tony Iommi spoke to The Irish Times about his health, four months after revealing that his cancer was finally in remission.

"I went for a check four weeks ago and the doctor said that at the moment there is no activity where I had the cancer before, but there is activity in the throat," he said. "When I get back to England, I have to have an operation to remove this thing at the back of my nose. The doctors found a lump there and we don't know if it is cancer or what, but I feel okay at the moment."

Asked how his cancer diagnosis has changed his perspective on life, Iommi said: "I was knocked for six when the doctors told me that it was, that it was stage III cancer. It really did change my life as far as what I have to do now. I have to live what life I've got because I have been on the road nearly 50 years. I need to be at home more and I need to pay more attention to my friends and family."

Iommi went on to say that "the lowest moment" for him was being diagnosed. He explained: "You automatically wind yourself up saying, 'That's it then,' but that is not always the case. When they tell you, you think, 'Oh God.' That was a low time. I have had a few low times in my life like everybody has, but that was one that stuck in the head.

BLACK SABBATH will bring its storied career to a close in its native England, with seven shows booked there in January and February. The last two, on February 2 and February 4, will take place in SABBATH's hometown of Birmingham and will likely be their final shows.

"It is very sad that we are going to finish touring, but I hope that we will do something else," Iommi told The Irish Times. "I'm not going to tour the world again, but it would be nice even if we did the occasional one-off show or an album."

Pressed on where there is a possibility of a new album, Iommi said: "We haven't talked about it. This is my view thinking it would be nice. At the moment, I think there is a call for a bit of time off, really. I think anything is possible. It is down to how everyone feels and if people want to do it."

Iommi recently told Ultimate Classic Rock that he plans to stay busy with music even after SABBATH plays its final shows. He said, "I'm not going to leave the music business. I still want to write and play and I'll be doing some TV for something over here in England called 'Guitar Star'. But I love the playing, I love gigs, I just can't travel anymore."

SABBATH played the last U.S. shows of its career last month, on November 8 in Tulsa, Oklahoma, November 10 in Houston, Texas and November 12 in San Antonio.

Thrash metal pioneers MEGADETH have been nominated for a 2017 Grammy Award for "Best Metal Performance" for the title track from their new album, "Dystopia". MEGADETH mainman Dave Mustaine stated about the latest nod: "Last time we were nominated, I was at the awards talking with Kenny G and I said how we'd been nominated a lot, but hadn't won it yet. He said, 'Don't feel bad — it took me 21 times to win my first one!'

"This has been such an incredible year for MEGADETH. With so many milestones, and so many individual and group awards, to now have this honor of being nominated again is the grand finale to the most perfect campaign.

"We are very appreciative and thankful to all of our peers and contemporaries that are voting for the 2017 Grammys." Also nominated in the "Best Metal Performance" category are BARONESS ("Shock Me"), GOJIRA ("Slivera"), KORN ("Rotting In Vain") and PERIPHERY ("The Price Is Wrong").

The 59th annual Grammy Awards will be held on February 12, 2017 at Staples Center in Los Angeles and broadcast on CBS at 8 p.m. ET.

The Grammys are voted on by approximately 13,000 Recording Academy members, who are comprised of artists, songwriters, producers and engineers. More than 21,700 recordings were submitted for Grammys consideration this year. For 2017 awards, music must have been released between October 1, 2015, and September 30, 2016, in order to be eligible.

Holland's FaceCulture recently conducted an interview with guitarist/vocalist Mikael Åkerfeldt of Swedish progressive metallers OPETH. You can watch the full chat below. A few excerpts follow (transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET).

On attempting to balance the creative aspect of OPETH with touring demands:

Mikael: "I don't necessarily like that there's no equilibrium between the creative work and touring. Even in the middle of a creative process, there's always tours and plans, like, 'How are we going to present this live?' It's disturbing to me. I've changed a lot, I think, but it takes a long time for yourself to discover that. You do things just out of routine. You do the record, then you go on tour. I'm one of those guys who listens to signals, like if I start disliking something, there's a chance I walk away, not saying I'm going to split up or leave the band, but re-arrange the priorities. For me, of course, my private life has become more of a priority. It's always been a priority, but more so that I want to spend more time at home, and spend more time writing. The touring part gets in the way of that."

On having a "fearless" attitude toward songwriting:

Mikael: "Once the 'Heritage' record was done, we were excited about it. We're always excited about a new record, but that was a step sideways, or something completely different to what we've done before. We were excited to see how that would go down. I guess we still wanted some type of gratification that we can do these things and still maintain our crowd. Yes, we did, but we also got a lot of people who didn't like it. Then, it becomes a priority. It's about proving them that yes, it does work and proving it's still OPETH. It's always been difficult for me ever since I had my children to leave and go away on tour and come back home. When the kids are really young, you come back and they are shy and don't recognize you, which as you could imagine, is horrible. Now my kids are older, but still, when we went on the U.S. tour and I explained to them, 'I'll be away for quite a long time,' and they are holding the tears back, even when they are 12 and 9, like they are now. Besides, I wasn't fully convinced that I wanted to go. There was a lot of things working against that decision, but I went out and did my job."

On if his children understand what he does for a living:

Mikael: "Yes, but they're indifferent. I think they're indifferent to what I do. They're not indifferent to the fact that I'm away. With time, they'll probably understand that I did this not for my own ego — part of it is for my ego and what I want to do — but I also do it for them. There is a big paradox, a massive paradox about doing something for someone that you love so much. You love your children, which also means you're going to be away from them. But they understand to a certain extent, they're used to it, but it's still horrible. I can't put it any other way. It's still horrible going away from them. I hate it."

On how making a new album means he'll have to leave his children to go on tour:

Mikael: "It almost stops me from wanting to get on with the creative side because I know the toll that comes with the press trips and the pressure, and you have to get everything done within time, and you have to work on a deadline, then you have to go on tour. So yes, it's bittersweet to come up with what you think is great music knowing that with this music, there's a chance it might make you even more in demand and popular. There's bigger demands and offers you can't refuse and that kind of stuff. It's weird. But like I said, I listen to what I feel inside. I've become better at saying 'No,' much to the agony of our management and perhaps the record label and the people we work with, who are also doing this for a living, who are also supporting their families by being away and working. I'm not so afraid, like an offer that comes up might be great, but I can turn it down now knowing it's not the end of the world, even that exact same offer might come back at a time where it's more convenient to go out. I also stopped the long touring cycles. We tried to keep it around three weeks. With that said, the first tour was five and that was one of the offers I couldn't say no because BLACK SABBATH were playing their last show in Los Angeles and we were asked to support them. It's like, 'You can't say no to that.' They're my favorite band; they're the reason why I started. The money was also good and we were going to be there anyway a week or two later, so I said yes. That ended up being a long tour. It's very easy to be manipulated to thinking you're doing the right thing or doing what you decided on, but then, it's like oh my God, you're back on the same old tracks. If I'm going to do this, it's part of the job, simple as that. I just want to scale it down a little bit and do less shows."

On how he felt once the band's new "Sorceress" album was completed:

Mikael: "I noticed two things: First, I was really happy with my vocals for two reasons: One, because I thought they sounded great. Secondly, because I managed to detach myself from the vocalist. I didn't listen to me, I listened to a singer. That's important for me. I don't want to hear myself in the mix, but I think I did a good job singing on the record. The songs, like I love change, but it doesn't have to be a massive change on each record or song, but there was change on this record. There was a couple of songs that I felt I've never done before, I've never done anything similar to that before. We can also jump between genres of music and make it sound genuine, like if we're trying to play something that's supposed to sound a bit jazzy, for instance, we can do it. It doesn't sound like a bunch of metal guys trying to play jazz, not that we have full-on jazz anyway. If it's psychedelic rock, it sounds like a psychedelic rock song, and if it's heavy, it sounds heavy, and it sounds real as far as I'm concerned. I don't think a lot of bands have the strength that we do; we can jump between genres and make it sound genuine."

"Sorceress" was released on September 30 via Nuclear Blast and the band's imprint label Moderbolaget Records.