On March 4, Century Media will release the two only studio recordings from the cult Chicago thrash/death metal act SINDROME — the acclaimed "Into The Halls Of Extermination" (1987) and its successor, "Vault Of Inner Conscience" (1991). As both demos have been bootlegged numerous times, it’s now time to offer all fans of timeless thrash/death metal these two legendary recordings as an official release, fully supported by the band and done in close co-operation with SINDROME vocalist Troy Dixler.

"Resurrection - The Complete Collection" will be released as a noble two-CD digipak with slipcase and 36-page booklet as well as an LP with a 16-page LP size booklet and bonus CD. The entire audio material has been carefully remastered from original sources to guarantee an optimal listening experience. Metalion (Slayer magazine) has written an introduction to the release and Laurent Ramadier (Snakepit magazine) has conducted an extensive interview with Troy Dixler giving you a deep insight into the band's history. The cover artwork and additional design was done by Gustavo Sazes (MORBID ANGEL, ARCH ENEMY). As a special bonus, SINDROME has unearthed the lost track "Brought To The End" from the recording session of "Into The Halls Of Extermination" — an awesome track that now finally can be offered to the fans.

Besides the two demos and the bonus track, "Resurrection - The Complete Collection" includes a full bootleg live show from Chicago, recorded in 1988, when SINDROME supported DEATH on their "Scream Bloody Gore" tour. The show is unedited and has a pretty raw sound, but it captures the intensity of SINDROME's live shows very well. It also includes the tracks "Surround The Prisoner" and "Psychic Warfare", two songs from the very early days that were never properly recorded in the studio.

"Resurrection - The Complete Collection" offers over 88 minutes of relentlessly raging thrash/death metal and is a mandatory purchase for every fan of U.S. thrash metal and especially for the worshippers of the glorious heydays of the Chicago metal scene that brought up bands like DEVASTATION, TERMINAL DEATH, DEATH STRIKE, ZOETROPE, FUNERAL NATION, CYCLONE TEMPLE, ZNÖWHITE, NUM SKULL, FUNERAL BITCH and MASTER.

Said Chris Reifert (AUTOPSY, ex-DEATH): "This stuff still sounds kick-ass! I was ready for it way back when, as I had already been into DEVASTATION and TERMINAL DEATH. SINDROME did not disappoint and I'm glad it's finally getting the proper treatment all these years later. I have a soft spot in my rotten soul for the good ol' demo days, when everything hadn't already been done and SINDROME was definitely part of that movement. I am very much looking forward to cranking this release up loud!"

Added Lars Petrov (ENTOMBED A.D., NIHILIST, MORBID, FIRESPAWN): "It's great news that Century Media are releasing old stuff with my favorites SINDROME! People need to hear this legendary underground band with my personal influence Troy Dixler on vocals! Check it out!"

The pre-sale of "Resurrection - The Complete Collection" has started! Head here and order your copy now.

For those still unfamiliar with SINDROME, check out the track "Cathedral Of Ice" below.

"Tears I Will Be", a brand new song from melodic progressive metal masters LORDS OF BLACK, can be streamed below. The song is taken from the band's second album, "II", which will be released on March 18 via Frontiers Music Srl.

LORDS OF BLACK is the band formed by world-class singer Ronnie Romero, renowned guitarist Tony Hernando and monster drummer Andy C. Their vision was to form a metal band with a modern approach blended with catchy, melodic and progressive elements.

After months of intense and hard work on the songs, LORDS OF BLACK independently released its acclaimed self-titled debut which was co-produced by Roland Grapow (MASTERPLAN, ex-HELLOWEEN). Metal Hammer Spain deemed it "the best metal album released in Spain this year."

LORDS OF BLACK supported the release with a series of very successful live shows, some of them as "very special guest" for high-profile international acts. Then the news of Ronnie Romero joining the new incarnation of RAINBOW broke out. This brought the band to the attention of the international media, with RAINBOW legend Ritchie Blackmore describing Romero's voice as "a cross between Ronnie James Dio and Freddie Mercury."

However, now LORDS OF BLACK are ready to conquer the world with "II", an album which will blow the minds of fans of modern melodic metal. Once again co-produced, mixed and mastered by Roland Grapow, the disc is not only the follow-up to LORDS OF BLACK's outstanding and acclaimed debut album, but is an album with superbly crafted songs that will instantly become absolute metal classics.

"The new album, being the follow-up to a first record that was so greatly received, had to get to a higher place," says Tony Hernando. "After an intense year of writing and producing, along with the live performances, we came up with songs that are still deep and complicated in some arrangements, but have been written with the live performance in mind… The quest was to come up with something that artistically was meaningful for us as musicians and at the same time could catch the attention of the listeners. We really hope you enjoy this new album and come with us for a great ride!"

Tracks like "Merciless", "Everything You're Not", "Insane", "New World's Coming" and "Shadows Of War" showcase the heavy and complex yet very melodic style of the band. The song "The Art of Illusions Part III: The Wasteland" is the conclusion to the trilogy that commenced on the debut album, while the song "Cry No More" is inspired and dedicated to the late, great, Phil Lynott.

"II" track listing:

01. Malevolently Beautiful (Intro)02. Merciless03. Only One Life Away04. Everything You're Not05. New World's Comin'06. Cry No More07. Tears I Will Be08. Insane09. Live By The Lie10. Die By The Truth11. Ghost Of You12. The Art Of Illusions Part III: The Wasteland13. Shadows Of War14. Lady Of The Lake (RAINBOW cover, bonus track CD edition)15. Innuendo (QUEEN cover, bonus track digital edition)

Regarding how he landed the RAINBOW gig, the Chilean-born Romero told Rafabasa.com: "I don't know from how long they had me on their list, but they contacted me some months ago, at the beginning of summer, to tell me about a chance to an audition . I deeply remember that 'day one' and that first 'hi,' been doing your daily activities and receive an email from Ritchie Blackmore himself is quite hard to assimilate, after a few days days, even weeks."

Romero also talked about Ritchie's recent description of his vocal style as "a cross between Ronnie James Dio and Freddie Mercury." He said: "I just think about how lucky I feel, not just to get the gig, but how the hell they found me. Having so many good singers worldwide. From the first contact, I just tried to give my best to get it. I always believed in myself, and with the support of my family and close friends, even more. About his words, I just can be thankful, he put the bar quite high with his description. [Laughs] But I'm also glad with his confidence on me to this huge task."

THE UNGUIDED — the Swedish band featuring former SONIC SYNDICATE members Richard Sjunnesson (vocals), Roland Johansson (vocals) and Roger Sjunnesson (guitar; Richard's brother) — will release its new album, "Lust And Loathing", on February 26 via Napalm Records.

Audio samples of all the tracks that are set to appear on "Lust And Loathing" can be streamed in the YouTube clip below.

Once you get past the harsh melodic death metal exterior, epic clean vocals and catchy keyboard tones await. Dynamic and strong songwriting with that special Scandinavian massive production and delicate guitar solos turn "Lust And Loathing" into the best gem the band's discography has to offer.

Comments Richard Sjunnesson: "Sitting on the new songs for what felt like a lifetime and finally get[ting] to shed some light on what's to come from camp THE UNGUIDED is a sensation on its own.

"This is the last part of an album trilogy that's been in the making for six years, and what a climax it is indeed. Expect the unexpected! We poured everything and more into this one."

"Lust And Loathing" track listing:

01. Enraged02. The Worst Day (Revisited) 03. King Of Clubs04. Heartseeker05. Photobs Grip06. Black Eyed Angel07. Operation: E.A.E.08. Boneyard09. Hate (And Other Triumphs)10. Mercy (bonus track)11. Judgment (bonus track)12. Betrayer Of The Code (live)

Photo credit: Patric Ullaeus

Finnish death metal legion, Gloria Morti, will release their fifth album, titled Kuebiko, on March 18th, their first for Willowtip Records. The album track, ”Josef Fritzl," is streaming below.

Offers drummer Kauko Kuusisalo about the track, "'“Josef Fritzl” is one of the shorter songs on Kuebiko, and after short 'intro', it gets to the point right away. It is about three minutes of pure aggression with all the 'classic Gloria Morti elements' - fast blast beats, melodic chorus riff, and relentless vocals. The morbid story behind the lyrics is should also wake some unpleasant feelings in the listener. This song does not let the listener to rest until it is finished."

Adds guitarist Juho Räihä, "The idea for the song is lifted from a public debate on religion featuring the late great Christopher Hitchens. The premise of the lyrics being that there is a problem when trying to reconcile the existence of evil in the world with the (supposed) existence of an all-knowing, all-powerful and good god. The co-existence of evil and such a god is not logically valid. The Fritzl case is, to me, one of the most blatant underlinings of this in recent history."

With Kuebiko, Gloria Morti is back with another solid slice of confrontational Finnish death metal, the band expertly blending thrash, melodic, and black metal, and surreal atmospheric elements into their sound making for a sonic wrecking-ball reminiscent of such bands as At The Gates, Carcass and Fleshgod Apocalypse. Gloria Morti's fifth studio effort, Kuebiko finds the unit traversing grimmer and dirtier grounds than ever before, both musically and thematically.

Tracklisting:

“Syntymä”
“The Foul Stench Of Vomiting Blood”
“Josef Fritzl”
“Chimeral Form”
“Death By A Thousand Cuts (Lingchi)”
“Case No. 1102162”
“Gallows Built In Rows”
“Executioner”
“The Termination Of All Bonds”
    
“Josef Fritzl”:

Pre-orders here.

 



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Greek metallers, Poem, will release their second album, Skein Syndrome, on March 18th via Swedish label ViciSolum Productions. The video for the track “Passive Observer” can be seen below.

Skein Syndrome tracklisting:

“Passive Observer”
“Fragments”
“The End Justifies The Means”
“Bound Insanity”
“Weakness”
“Desire”
“Remission Of Breath”

“Passive Observer” video:

Poem is a four-piece progressive rock/metal group based in Athens, Greece, formed in 2006. With their wonderful amalgam of progressive metal, hard hitting riffs and intricate atmospheres, Poem will find a home with any fan of such eclectic bands as Tool, Anathema, Porcupine Tree, Pain Of Salvation, Katatonia and Karnivool.

Poem lineup:

Giorgos Prokopiou - Vocals/Guitars
Laurence Bergström - Lead Guitars
Stratos Chaidos - Bass
Stavros Rigos - Drums

 



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Having released two critically acclaimed albums last year (debut full-length, Duende, and EP, Echoes), Sweden's The Great Discord is now launching a drum play-through for "Panasonic Youth", originally recorded by The Dillinger Escape Plan. Watch Aksel Holmgren's cover version of this Dillinger classic, below:

The band previously released a drum play-through for the track "L'homme Mauvais", taken from Duende. Watch Holmgren's performance of this progressive, technical masterpiece, below:

The group previously released a bass play-through for the track "A Discordant Call", taken from Duende. Watch Rasmus Carlson's performance below:

Transcending genre labels and lazy classification, The Great Discord is a musical enigma. Their layered, textured music is inspired by the likes of Genesis, King Crimson, Meshuggah and The Dillinger Escape Plan - but at the same time, individually they look up to an array of musicians beyond the confines of progressive music.

The quintet have left both media and fans awestruck at the talent and originality found on their two releases: Duende and Echoes. Duende, being The Great Discord's debut full-length,; the recently released Echoes EP expanded on their sound even further, with the band putting their spin on classics by The Mars Volta and The Deftones.

 



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Pride & Joy Music has announced the signing of Italian bass player and composer, Alberto Rigoni. Bassorama is his fifth solo album and once again combines the finest elements from the genres funk, electro, pop, rock and experimental.

The album will be released on April 15th through Edel Music and Come Back Media distribution. Video clips for the tracks “Bass Guy” and “Future Funk“ can be seen below. This album features guest appearances by bassists Doug Wimbish (Living Colour), Divinity Roxx (Beyoncé), Stu Hamm (Joe Satriani), Nik West (Prince), Steve Lawson, Anna Sentina, Lars Lehmann (UFO, Vinnie Moore) and Remco Hendrix.

Tracklisting:

“Bass Guy”
“Bassorama”
“Mad Tex”
“Doctor Who”
“Free Your Mind”
“The Alien”
“Elements”
“Dressed To Kill”
“Future Funk”
“Funk Me Fender”
“Wanna B.”

“Bass Guy” video:

“Future Funk” video:



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Greek progressive metal band, Sunburst, will release their debut album, Fragments Of Creation, on February 26th in Europe and North America via Inner Wound Recordings. The music video for the song “Out Of The World” is streaming below.

The sound of Sunburst can be described as Dream Theater meets Nevermore and Conception, and with Fragments Of Creation they show that they are a force to be reckoned with.

Fragments Of Creation tracklisting:

“Out Of The World”
“Dementia”
“Symbol Of Life”
“Reincarnation”
“Lullaby”
“End Of The Game”
“Beyond The Darkest Sun”
“Forevermore”
“Break The Core”
“Remedy Of My Heart”

“Out Of The World” video:

“Dementia” video:

Fragments Of Creation (CD + shirt bundle available) can be pre-ordered at this location.

Sunburst are:

Vasilis Georgiou (Black Fate, Innosense) - Vocals
Gus Drax (Biomechanical, Paradox, Black Fate, Suicidal Angels) - Guitars
Kostas Milonas (Blacklegs, N.U.R.V, G.K Group) - Drums
Nick Grey (End Of Innocense, Jailcat) - Bass

 



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German hard rockers Bonfire, who are celebrating their 30th Anniversary in 2016, will release a new double album, Pearls, on March 18th. The CDs will be available as single CDs and also as double CD/LP. The Rock Pearls CD features Bonfire rockers that were not played so much in the past. The Classic Pearls CD features all new recorded Bonfire classic ballads together with an Orchestra. A new music video for the track “Strike Back” can be seen below.

Tracklisting:

CD1 - Classic Pearls
“Strike Back” “Under Blue Skies”
“Diamonds In The Rough” “Proud Of My Country” “Sweet Home Alabama” “Don’t Go Changing Me” “Sweet Obsession”
“American Nights” “Good Time Rock ‘N’ Roll” “Heat In The Glow”
“Can't Stop Rockin’” “Down To Atlanta” “Remember” “Nothing At All”
“Loaded Gun”

CD2 - Rock Pearls
“You Make Me Feel” “Give It A Try” “Who’s Foolin’ Who” “I Need You” “Good Night Amanda” “Southern Winds” “If It Wasn’t For You” “Why Is It Never Enough”
“Let's Fly Away”

“Strike Back” video:

Find Bonfire’s live itinerary at this location.

Bonfire is:

Hans Ziller- guitars/backing vocals
David Reece (ex-Accept)- lead vocals
Harry Reischmann- drums
Ronnie Parkes- bass/backing vocals
Frank Pane'- guitars/backing vocals

 



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Raleigh, NC modern progressive metal group, Valleys, have been gearing up to release their debut full length concept album, Experiment One: Asylum, which is set to hit stores on February 12th. On February 5th, just a week prior to their scheduled release, the band received a phone call from the local fire department that a vehicle matching the description of the car owned by one of their vocalists, 23-year-old Mikey Clement, had been found wrecked. It wasn't long after that they received the news that Mikey had passed in the accident.

As a group, Valleys made the decision that while they could put a halt on the entire album release, that is not what Mikey would have wanted them to do. He would have wanted the show to go on and for them to release the music that he and the band worked so hard on.

A launch of the track "Choices" had been planned for release today, and Valleys decided to remain steadfast and release the track, dedicated to the memory of Mikey Clement. The track is one of Mikey's favourite songs on the album - resonating, soaring and heartfelt - a perfect tribute. Listen to the track below:

“We have seen the outpour of support and love from all of our friends and fans, and we thank you. All of your comments have been extremely touching and have helped us to stay strong in our time of need.

“On February 12th, we will have our Experiment One: Asylum CD release party. This show will also be a big tribute show for Mikey. We need all of our fans and friends to come out and show love for not just Valleys but for Mikey. At this show, Valleys will be joined by many of our closest musical friends to part take in guest vocals on stage. We will continue to move forward, that's what Mikey would want. We will see you on February 12th.  

“And to Mikey, in death, you will see the light. Keep that flame alive up there buddy. Until we meet again!"

Valleys' new album Experiment One: Asylum tells the story of main character Asylum, who battles with multiple-personality disorder stemming from a dark personal tragedy. Each track on the album explores a different personality, weaving the listener through a mind of severe mental illness with a dynamic, heavy soundtrack. "Choices" depicts Asylum's struggle over what he could have done and the choices he could have made that would have impacted his situation differently.

Preview more of Asylum's story with the band's first single "Finding Solace", which depicts his struggle with overcoming multiple-personality disorder, and via the short film music video for "The Death of Me" (directed by Jaiden Frost of Jaiden Frost Presents), which transports the viewer back to the beginning of the story.

Experiment One: Asylum was recorded during the summer and fall of 2015 and is produced by Paul Barton of 415 Recording, with mixing and mastering duties handled by Todd Borland of Borland Studios.

In support of Experiment One: Asylum, Valleys will launch an upcoming U.S. spring tour - more details are set to be announced regarding the tour in the coming weeks.

“The Death Of Me” video:

“Finding Solace”:

(Photo - Will Page Photography)



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Swiss groove metal deviants, The Erkonauts, have released a video for “Machine”, a track from their  energetically eclectic debut, I Did Something Bad, which is streming in its entirety via the SoundCloud audio player below.

The Erkonauts signed with Kaotoxin Records in August 2015 for the worldwide release of I Did Something Bad, which was originally debuted as a DIY effort a year ago. The album was mixed and mastered by Samael's Drop, who lent his little-known ukulele skills to the recording. The demand for the album was so high, the band had to repress it twice. The band, which features two ex-members of Sybreed, has toured across Europe, the U.S. and Asia.

The Kaotoxin Records reissue of I Did Something Bad features two brand new tracks not included on the original release and drops February 12th.

The Erkonauts bring something fresh to the table with a sound that lies somewhere between mid-'90s Suicidal Tendencies, early System Of A Down, and Primus, with a smart, progressive, alt-rock / metal / punk fusion of their very own.

 

 

Tracklisting:

"The Great Ass Poopery"
"Tony 5"
"All The Girls Should Die"
"Nola"
"Dominium Mundi"
"Hamster's Ghosthouse"
"Gog"
"Your Wife"
"9 Is Better Than 8"
"Machine"
"Culbutos"

"Machine" video:

Album stream:

 

 

 



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Argonauta Records has announced the signing of French psych prog doom rockers, Frank Sabbath.

Frank Sabbath is a psychedelic / progressive doom rock band created in Paris in 2013 by Guillaume Jankowski (bass), Baptiste Reig (drums, vocals) and Jude Mas (guitar, vocals). The initial goal of the band was to blend various elements from their musical background (Frank Zappa and Black Sabbath heritage, stoner/desert rock, jazz rock) into a coherent whole, while focusing on transcribing spiritual psychedelic experiences.

After a first self-released album recorded in 2014 and out in 2015, the band worked to expand into a heavier sound, more influenced by progressive rock and doom metal, to bring its kind of psychedelia into full flavour. They isolated themselves in a small village in Aveyron, southern France, to record their second album, Telluric Wanderers, with their much trusted sound engineer Léo Minart.
 
About signing with Argonauta, the band says: “We are very glad to join the Argonauta family for some new adventures among a lot of other interesting bands from all over the world! It’s an important step for us to be signed on a such eclectic and quality label!”



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Mindwars (featuring former Holy Terror guitarist Mike Alvord), have unveiled the cover art for their upcoming Sworn To Secrecy album, slated to hit the streets in April via Punishment 18 Records.

Mindwars and legendary metal producer Bill Metoyer have been working on Sworn To Secrecy. Metoyer, who has worked with such greats as (Agent Steel, Armored Saint, COC, DRI, Dark Angel, Fates Warning, Flotsam And Jetsam, Sacred Reich, Slayer, W.A.S.P.), has finished mixing and is in the process of mastering the final tracks at Skull Seven Studio in North Hollywood (Los Angeles), California.

Sworn To Secrecy studio vlog #3 is now streaming. Check out all three clips below:

Part 1:

Part 2:

Part 3:

(Photo - Robert Orsa Photography)



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Black metal has long been a vehicle of choice for an individual to express oneself independently and solitarily, albeit with differing degrees of success depending on the quality of the artist’s songwriting ability and musicianship. When these two attributes are of a higher caliber, a one-man entity completely devoid of the potential need to compromise his vision with those of a group of collaborators can flourish. Perhaps it is for this very reason that IV, the lone member of Ill Omen, has again succeeded in creating some of the most resonant black metal of recent times with Æ.Thy.Rift, the band’s third full-length album and its fourth release on Nuclear War Now! Productions, set for international release on March 31st.

As with Ill Omen’s previous output, Æ.Thy.Rift exudes an organic continuity within each song and across all tracks on the album, which is an outcome often not realized when multiple songwriters and musicians are employed. This consistency is achieved by the implementation throughout of dual bass guitar layers (one clean and one distorted), notably skeletal percussion, the churning, choir-like atmosphere of tremolo-picked guitars, and a blend of chanted, whispered, and traditional black metal vocals. The singularity of this release is further cemented by the lack of distinction in track titles, a characteristic which serves to present the album as a sum of inseparable parts. In other words, and especially given the ritual-like quality of the record in its entirety, it is safe to interpret each track as a necessary component of a collective opus whose individual pieces were not created with the ability to sustain themselves independently of the work as a whole.  

What most readily sets this particular release apart from previous Ill Omen recordings is a more dedicated adherence to slower, more doom-oriented tempos, which are very well suited to this ceremonial variety of black metal. The listener may very well be left with the impression that this is the soundtrack in the mind of a disease-ridden being on its deathbed, at times feeling an almost celestial bliss at peace with the impending end of suffering, but at other times tormented by the physical and spiritual decay that will inevitably lead to its ruin...

Æ.Thy.Rift tracklisting:

“I. Æ.Thy.Rift”
“II. Æ.Thy.Rift”
“III. Æ.Thy.Rift”
“IV. Æ.Thy.Rift”



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Queen have uploaded Part 1 of their Days Of Our Lives documentary, streaming below.

According to a press release: “Relive the triumphant legacy of Queen in this comprehensive documentary of the band’s career from the late 1960s to today. Packed full of rare archival footage of the band hashing out their signature overdub sound in the recording studio, mind-blowing live performances, and Brian May, Roger Taylor, and John Deacon’s candid reflections on their career and the last days of Freddie Mercury.”

Check out Part 1 below, and stay tuned for more:

Queen’s A Night At The Odeon, Live At Hammersmith ’75, is out now on CD (Hollywood Records), and DVD & Blu-Ray (Eagle Rock Entertainment). This show was a culmination of the 26-date Queen Invite You To A Night At The Opera UK tour and the first tour that they had ever performed “Bohemian Rhapsody” on.

An unboxing video for the Super Deluxe Box Set edition can be seen below:

 
The CD, DVD & Blu-Ray package features the band’s full live show, complete with a never heard before ‘second encore’ of “Seven Seas Of Rhye” and “See What A Fool I've Been”. The DVD and SD Blu-Ray versions also contain two special bonus features – Looking Back At The Odeon, a brand new 22-minute documentary featuring a previously unseen interview with Brian May and Roger Taylor by Old Grey Whistle Test presenter Bob Harris about the 1975 Hammersmith Odeon show, plus the rarely seen Live At The Budokan – Japan 1975 footage, featuring three songs (“Now I'm Here”, “Killer Queen” and “In The Lap Of The Gods… Revisited”) recorded during their legendary tour of the Far East.

 
Spirits were high within the band for this show; "Bohemian Rhapsody" - universally hailed as one of the most ground-breaking ‘pop’ songs ever released – was in the middle of its record-breaking nine week run at Number One in the UK charts. Their fourth album, A Night At The Opera (the most expensive record ever made to that point) was climbing the album charts on its way to No 1, which it achieved three days after this concert.
 
With over 6.5 million copies sold worldwide, "Bohemian Rhapsody" is one of the world’s most well known and well loved songs. To this day, it continues to top ‘favorite song’ opinion polls and be discovered by new generations of music fans over and over again. Freddie wrote the whole song – including the composite harmonies – on telephone books and scraps of paper.
 
Brian May recalled recording "Bohemian Rhapsody”” “That was a great moment, but the biggest thrill for us was actually creating the music in the first place. I remember Freddie coming in with loads of bits of paper from his dad's work, like Post-it notes, and pounding on the piano. He played the piano like most people play the drums. And this song he had was full of gaps where he explained that something operatic would happen here and so on. He'd worked out the harmonies in his head."
 
Queen spent days overdubbing the vocals in the studio using a 24 track tape machine. By the time they were done, about 120 vocal tracks were layered together. The opera parts alone took longer than 70 hours to complete. At the time, it was the most expensive single ever made and upon presenting it to their record label, they were told by various executives that 5 minutes 55 seconds was too long and the song would never be a hit. But after the song was played by DJ and friend of Freddie, Kenny Everett, 14 times in two days before its official release, the song was only ever destined to be a hit. Hordes of fans attempted to buy the single only to be told by record stores that it had not yet been released. Over in the US, it was the same. American radio RKO managed to get a copy of the tape and started to play it in across their network, which forced the hand of Queen's US label to release the song in its entirety.
 
"Bohemian Rhapsody" was Queen's first ever number 1 single and the 1975 UK Christmas number one, holding the top position for nine weeks. It is the first song ever to get to number one in the UK twice with the same version, and is also the only single to have been Christmas number one twice with the same version. The second was upon its re-release (as a double A-side single with “These Are the Days of Our Lives”) in 1991 following Mercury's death, staying at number one for five weeks, eventually becoming the UK's third best-selling single of all time.
 
The single has sold in excess of 6.5 million copies worldwide and has been covered by everyone from Kayne West during his 2015 controversial Glastonbury headline slot, Axl Rose, Elton John and Pink to The Flaming Lips and Elaine Paige and forever immortalized again by Mike Myers and Dana Carvey in the smash hit 90’s film, Wayne’s World.
 

Tracklisting (CD/Vinyl/Digital):

“Now I'm Here”
“Ogre Battle”
“White Queen (As It Began)”
“Bohemian Rhapsody”
“Killer Queen”
“The March Of The Black Queen”
“Bohemian Rhapsody” (Reprise)
“Bring Back That Leroy Brown”
“Brighton Rock”
Guitar Solo
“Son And Daughter”
“Keep Yourself Alive”
“Liar”
“In The Lap Of The Gods... Revisited”
“Big Spender”
“Jailhouse Rock” Medley
“Seven Seas Of Rhye”
“See What A Fool I've Been”
“God Save The Queen”
 
DVD and SD Blu-ray formats do not include “Seven Seas Of Rhye” or “See What A Fool I've Been”.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 



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BLOODCLOT, the band led by CRO-MAGS frontman John Joseph, has inked a deal with Metal Blade Records. Joining Joseph in BLOODCLOT's current lineup are Todd Youth (DANZIG) on guitar, Joey Castillo (QUEENS OF THE STONE AGE) on drums and Phil Caivano (MONSTER MAGNET) on bass.

A different lineup of BLOODCLOT — then called BLOODCLOT! — released an album called "Burn Babylon Burn" in 2008. At that time, the group featured Joseph alongside BIOHAZARD drummer Danny Schuler, former SPUDMONSTERS/BIOHAZARD guitarist Scott Roberts, ex-PRO-PAIN guitarist Eric Klinger, and former MERAUDER bassist Rick Lopez.

Joseph previously described BLOODCLOT's sound this way: "I don't want to lock it into any categories. There are hardcore and metal qualities, punk rock qualities, even some fusion in certain parts. It's just heavy music with a heavy message."

Regarding the band’s name, Joseph said. "In Jamaican, the word 'bloodclot' is a curse that describes everything being fucked up. It's a 'bloodclot' situation, what's happening on the planet, who's running things through deception and lies, and we need to fix it."

Patryk Pigeon of MusikUniverse.mu recently conducted an interview with MEGADETH mainman Dave Mustaine. You can now listen to the chat in the YouTube clip below.

On who will sit behind the kit for MEGADETH when Chris Adler (LAMB OF GOD) is unable to make the shows:

Mustaine: "Well, I think Chris would tell you he wants to play every show, so that's what we're trying to do. If there are shows that he can't play, he's already recommended a protégé of his… not protégé, but somebody who he picked, a handpicked selection. It's a guy named Tony Laureano, who played with NILE and DIMMU BORGIR; he's one of the top ten extreme-metal drummers. So, yeah, it'll be equally as exciting. I think Chris brings something a little different than Tony does, but the songs are the songs."

On whether he has asked Chris Adler to quit LAMB OF GOD and join MEGADETH full-time:

Mustaine: "Well, I think that's what I want, but I don't want to cause any problems with LAMB OF GOD at all, because I respect the band; that's his band. And it's working out right now. So I think the best thing is to kind of let the chips fall where they may. You know, there may be a time where they take a break for a little while, maybe, and he has more time to work with us. A good thing for us being in MEGADETH right now is that we don't have to tour all the time. We're fortunately… By the grace of the fans' support, we can be a little bit more selective with the tours that we do and so on, and that, to me, it makes it all worthwhile. Because you wanna work your ass off and play everywhere that you can, but you wanna make sure that you're not being peddled around like a piece of meat out there. There were some tours we did that were so bad for the band, and so bad for the fans, because it was… I mean, in the very beginning, it was really, really fun, but that kind of stuff, the places that we were playing didn't feel good during the years after 'Risk', when we were doing 'The World Needs A Hero' and stuff like that; those were some hard years. After the period where [bassists] James MacDonough was around and James Lomenzo, yeah, those were difficult times. Not because of them at all — they're great guys — but it was just hard."

On the possibility of re-recording MEGADETH's debut album, "Killing Is My Business... And Business Is Good!", with the current lineup:

Mustaine: "See, that's the funny thing. I shake my head sometimes. Because I'll say stuff… Like if you and I were sitting down having a beer and some poutine or something, and we were talking, and I say, 'You know, it would be interesting to hear what some of those old songs would be like to record 'em with Kiko [Loureiro, guitar] and Chris,' and somebody is sitting next to me in another booth, and they go, 'Yeah, I just heard Dave Mustaine say they're gonna re-record 'Killing Is My Business'.' Yeah, I said it. Did I mean it? Well, there's a lot involved with doing something like that. So I don't know that I would wanna go back in time and do that. If I did go back and record any old songs, it would probably be like a brand new interpretation of our greatest hits, because I think that focusing on any one record and showing an interpretation of all of our great songs by a new lineup would be more exciting. You never know. We might do that."

MEGADETH's new album, "Dystopia", debuted at No. 3 on The Billboard 200, having shifted 49,000 equivalent album units in the week ending January 28.

In terms of pure album sales, "Dystopia" opened with 48,000 copies, marking MEGADETH's highest-charting album since 1992's "Countdown To Extinction" debuted and peaked at No. 2 on the chart dated August 1 of that year. "Dystopia" also logged the group's best sales week since 2007, when "United Abominations" landed at No. 8 with first-week sales of 54,000.

After releasing their new album, "Abysmal", last year and headlining both part I and part II of the massive IndieMerch Tour, THE BLACK DAHLIA MURDER has announced another headlining trek — this time taking the show back to their roots. With FALLUJAH and DISENTOMB as support, the band plans to play its first full-length album, "Unhallowed" (2003), in its entirety during the run, performing at intimate venues across the U.S. that haven't seen THE BLACK DAHLIA MURDER since the debut was released.

Trevor Strnad (vocals) comments: "We are very excited to unleash this absolutely crushing line-up upon you all and to play the much-requested 'Unhallowed' album in its entirety. The songs are sounding better than ever before, and we can't wait for you to feast your ears on our debut album as it was meant to be heard. We will also be playing some bangers from our new album, 'Abysmal', and the rest of the catalog... Come out and bring your friends!"

Brandon Ellis will join THE BLACK DAHLIA MURDER on the road as the band's touring guitarist and replacement for Ryan Knight, who amicably parted ways with the group. In regards to his departure, Knight comments: "After nearly seven years with THE BLACK DAHLIA MURDER, I feel the time has come for me to step down and focus on other aspects of my life. The decision to leave was very difficult, yet necessary I feel for me to ultimately be happy and keep moving forward. I feel very lucky to have had the best band-mates/crew (past and present) to traverse the world, guzzle beers, and bring the rock with every night...Thank you guys.”

Trevor Strnad (vocals) adds: "When Ryan first joined the band, he drove from the hospital where his first child had just been born to begin practicing and writing with us, on the eve of the recording of our 'Deflorate' album. In his years with the band, he made a lot of sacrifices to be with us and uphold our insanely demanding touring and recording schedule...He always gave us 100 percent, and for that I thank him. He is an incredible musician and creative force... It was exciting to make new material with him, and his wealth of knowledge has left its stamp on the band's music forever. I always knew that his time in the band would be limited, and it has now come time for him to go home and be with his family. Ryan, being the stand-up dude that he is, told us of his plans to leave the band more than a year ago, and with heavy hearts we began to plan for THE BLACK DAHLIA MURDER's future. We admire that Ryan went to such lengths to make his departure as easy on the band as possible, even going as far as to help us find a talented leadsman in Brandon Ellis — who has been lending us his tremendous guitar skills on the current THE BLACK DAHLIA MURDER tour... Knight is one of my best friends and I wish him the best in everything he does. He will always have a place here in the THE BLACK DAHLIA MURDER family. I look back at our time together with nothing but gratitude."

Tour dates:

Apr. 8 - Dayton, OH - Oddbody's Music RoomApr. 09 - Morgantown, WV - 123 Pleasant StreetApr. 10 - Lemoyne, PA - The ChampApr. 12 - Poughkeepsie, NY - The LoftApr. 13 - Burlington, VT - Higher Ground (Side Room)Apr. 14 - Amityville, NY - Amity Music HallApr. 15 - Worcester, MA - The Palladium **New England Metal & Hardcore Fest**Apr. 16 - Brooklyn, NY - Knitting FactoryApr. 17 - Philadelphia, PA - The Voltage LoungeApr. 18 - Virginia Beach, VA - Shaka's LiveApr. 19 - Chapel Hill, NC - Local 506Apr. 20 - Spartanburg, SC - Ground ZeroApr. 21 - Atlanta, GA - The MasqueradeApr. 22 - Jacksonville, FL - Jack RabbitsApr. 23 - Orlando, FL - The SocialApr. 24 - Gainesville, FL - High DiveApr. 26 - Tallahassee, FL - 926 Lounge (formally Pug's)Apr. 27 - Birmingham, AL - ZydecoApr. 28 - Pensacola, FL - VinylApr. 29 - Houston, TX - EastdownApr. 30 - Austin, TX - MohawkMay 01 - Lubbock, TX - Jake's Sports CafeMay 03 - Albuquerque, NM - Blu Phoenix VenueMay 04 - Tucson, AZ - Club XSMay 05 - Phoenix, AZ - Rebel LoungeMay 06 - Las Vegas, NV - DivebarMay 07 - Anaheim, CA - Chain ReactionMay 08 - Glendale, CA - The ComplexMay 09 - Bakersfield, CA - Jerry's PizzaMay 10 - Fresno, CA - StrummersMay 11 - San Francisco, CA - Brick and Mortar Music HallMay 12 - Sacramento, CA - BoardwalkMay 13 - Portland, OR - The Analog Cafe and TheatreMay 14 - Spokane, WA - The Big DipperMay 15 - Boise, ID - Mardi GrasMay 16 - Salt Lake City, UT - Kilby CourtMay 18 - Grand Junction, CO - Mesa TheatreMay 20 - Sioux Falls, SD - The DistrictMay 21 - Des Moines, IA - Vaudeville MewsMay 22 - Madison, WI - FrequencyMay 23 - Chicago, IL - Beat KitchenMay 24 - St. Louis, MO - FubarMay 25 - Indianapolis, IN - Emerson TheaterMay 26 - Grand Rapids, MI - Pyramid SchemeMay 27 - Kent, OH - The OutpostMay 28 - Howell, MI - Bled Fest

Trailight mastermind Omer Cordell has checked in with the following message:

"It is not too often that we are aware that we live in a time when a monumental piece of music has been released, so monumental in fact that it will become an inseparable part of the timeline of Rock / Prog Rock history. 

One of those albums that in my opinion will in fact go down in such history is Devin Townsend's Ocean Machine which was written and released in the mid '90s. If you haven't made yourself intimately familiar with it yet, pause your life and do so now. And so, to the people who are familiar with such work (or to those who are now becoming familiar with it) it is time to give back some of that inspirational energy.

John "Squid" Harder, who played bass on Ocean Machine (as well as Punky Brüster) has been struggling with MS (Multiple Sclerosis) and is in need of help. His friends and family have started a GoFundMe campaign in his name which you can visit here.

If you can donate anything, or even share the link it would be greatly appreciated!"

A benefit show for Squiderson has been announced for February 17th in Vancouver, BC at The Fox. Townsend will perform an acoustic set on the night, other acts on the bil include Hot Panda, Catlow, Library, and the sexy sounds of DJ Jason Corbett, More acts may be announced soon. Watch the event page here for updates.

Squiderson has posted the following update on the GoFundMe page.

"I've been dealing with MS for many years and it's progressed to the point of me not being able to work my job. I require special equipment and I hope to go to school to earn a living again but I'm struggling to meet simplest daily needs and I need help. Anything helps and despite my pride I'm asking for a bit 'o help."

Check out the GoFundMe campaign here.



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According to California Rock News, Los Angeles-based artist Travis Moore has been selected to create a realistic depiction of Ian "Lemmy" Kilmister for a statue that will be built in front of the late MOTÖRHEAD frontman's favorite haunt, the legendary Rainbow Bar & Grill on Sunset Boulevard in West Hollywood, California. The life-size cast bronze statue will stand at just over six feet tall and will be permanently housed in a special shrine that is currently being constructed in the patio bar area at the Rainbow.

Travis is initially sculpting the likeness as an 18-inch maquette that will then be transferred to a life-size sculpture, which will be molded in wax and ultimately poured and cast in bronze.

A native of Texas, Travis is doing his part for free, but there are considerable costs associated with the actual process that will ultimately make the statute a reality. A funding campaign was launched by Katon De Pena from classic underground thrash-metal band HIRAX, who has raised about $16,000 so far to support the building of the statue (which he estimates will cost around $20,000).

Lemmy passed away at his home in Los Angeles on December 28, only four days after his 70th birthday. A memorial in his honor was held on January 9 at the Rainbow Bar & Grill, and it extended across much of the Sunset Strip.

Avantasia, the metal opera project launched by Edguy frontman Tobias Sammet, spoke to Metal Blast about Ghostlights and being in Eurovision.

An excerpt below:

Speaking about things that don’t make sense. How did you end up in the Eurovision contest?!

Tobi: “We’ve just been asked to take part in the preliminary for the Eurovision song contest. It’s a very big thing and a lot of people thought ‘What the fuck are you doing!? Why are you doing it? How can you make a commercial show like that?!’ I have one life, I have one career, and I haven’t done anything like that before. If I can expose my music to so many people doing what I do… I mean, I don’t have to play music that I hate, I can play the music I want, the music I believe in, do exactly what I want, and expose it to people who’ve never heard about me (some may have). Why not do it?  I’m excited about it, let me do it, give me that stage. It’s just a normal stage, there’s nothing wrong with it. There are a couple of TV cameras, sure, but, so what? I’ve done TV things before!”

It’s great that suddenly you have the opportunity to have this music there, and that you’ll be able to expose it to more people, instead of just not going because it’s not “true”. On the contrary, trying to bring more people to enjoy this kind of music is the greatest thing that you can do!

Tobi: “Absolutely; I see myself not on a mission for my country, like some people go there with their flags and all that. The heavy metal and the hard rock world are a secret society anyway, so… well, first and foremost, I’m on a mission for myself [laughs] I don’t wanna say that it’s a mission for my wallet [laughs]”

Tobias Sammet's Avantasia is internationally one of the most successful German music acts. With his new album, Ghostlights, Tobias enters the German charts directly at number #2. But this is not enough, in the UK the album reached #3 on the national rock charts.

This is the best starting position, when Avantasia compete for the German preliminary decision of the Eurovision Songcontest in Stockholm, taking place on February 25 in Cologne. The giant rock concept doesn't fit in a certain category, mystic, magic, metal and bombast unite with epic melodies and create a spectacular firework. No surprise that many medias consider Avantasia as the most promising candidate for the contest.

"I am more than happy about this huge success of Ghostlights and the acceptance from our fans", Tobias comments.

Sammet discusses the concept behind Ghostlights - "It's scary, it's eerie... but the overall outcome is very positive." Learn more in the video below.

The new opus features guest appearances of Dee Snider (Twisted Sister), Geoff Tate (Queensryche, Operation: Mindcrime), Marco Hietala (Nightwish), Sharon Den Adel (Within Temptation), Michael Kiske (Unisonic, Helloween), Ronnie Atkins (Pretty Maids), Bob Catley (Magnum), Jorn Lande, Bruce Kulick (KISS), Robert Mason (Warrant), Herbie Langhans, Oliver Hartmann and Sascha Paeth.

The record contains twelve songs and was produced by Tobias and Sascha Paeth in Gatestudio Wolfsburg, Germany. Paeth is responsible for engineering and mixing Ghostlights, too. Mastering was done by Michael Rodenberg.

The instrumentalists on Ghostlights are the following:

Sascha Paeth - rhythm guitars, lead guitars, bass, additional keys
Michael Rodenberg - orchestration, keys
Tobias Sammet - additional keys and bass
Bruce Kulick - lead guitars
Oliver Hartmann - lead guitars
Felix Bohnke – drums

Tracklistings:

CD
“Mystery Of A Blood Red Rose”
“Let The Storm Descend Upon You”
“The Haunting”
“Seduction Of Decay”
“Ghostlights”
“Draconian Love”
“Master Of The Pendulum”
“Isle Of Evermore”
“Babylon Vampyres”
“Lucifer”
“Unchain The Light”
“A Restless Heart And Obsidian Skies”

2CD Digibook:
“Mystery Of A Blood Red Rose”
“Let The Storm Descend Upon You”
“The Haunting”
“Seduction Of Decay”
“Ghostlights”
“Draconian Love”
“Master Of The Pendulum”
“Isle Of Evermore”
“Babylon Vampyres”
“Lucifer”
“Unchain The Light”
“A Restless Heart And Obsidian Skies”
“Wake Up To The Moon” (bonus track)

CD2 (Avantasia live)
“Spectres”
“Invoke The Machine”
“The Story Ain’t Over”
“Prelude”
“Reach Out For The Light”
“Avantasia”
“What’s Left Of Me”
“Dying For An Angel”
“Twisted Mind”
“The Watchmaker’s Dream”
“Another Angel Down”

3CD Deluxe Edition Book (includes 68 page photo book plus karaoke version of CD1 with bonus track).

Check out the new BraveWords Avantasia feature here.

 

 



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Roxx Records is extremely excited to be re-releasing one of classic Christian metal’s most celebrated artists, Recon. This March the label will deliver a special 25th anniversary Limited Edition pressing of Behind Enemy Lines on both CD and vinyl.

Recon burst on to the metal scene in 1988 with a 4-track cassette-only demo, which was the norm back when file sharing was mix tapes sent through the mail to and from tape traders. The band soon followed this up with two classic tracks that were released on the Regency Records compilation, California Metal 2. Then, in 1990, Intense/Frontline Records released the band’s full-length debut, Behind Enemy Lines.

Recon was originally launched by Deliverance axe master, George Ochoa, who also produced the melodic power metal album. The album was originally released on CD and cassette tape, both of which are extremely rare and hard to find today. There was even a one-time CD reissue from M8 records, which is equally as rare to find. Collectors might have been lucky enough to get their hands on a copy of a small run of a European-only release on vinyl. Traders in rare Christian metal will tell you that this vinyl release is “next to impossible to find” today. All that changes with this Limited Edition re-release on Roxx Records.

This special one-time Limited Edition vinyl reissue of this classic metal album features all the original tracks completely remastered for vinyl on both coloured and black vinyl. The album is set to feature the original album art, completely restored and enhanced for this special pressing. This one-time pressing features 100 copies on orange vinyl and 200 on black vinyl, for a total pressing of only 300 pieces.

There will also be a very special Limited Edition CD pressing of only 300 copies, which is set to feature all of the original tracks from the album completely restored and remastered. The CD will also include 4 additional bonus tracks. These tracks will be both tracks from the original California Metal 2 compilation and 2 of the original 4 demo tracks that helped launch Recon.

These bonus tracks also get a special re-release treatment. George Ochoa located the original master reels of these demos and had the tapes baked, digitized and completely restored and re-mastered for this special release. These recently found and restored demos sound crisper and better than ever before. No one has ever heard these demos like this before.

Recon Behind Enemy Lines is scheduled to be released on March 18th. This coming year is set to be an excellent year for Christian metal fans and Roxx Records are just getting started. “We have much more in store for you as this year goes on,” promises Bill Bafford, “so stay tuned!”



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Former Giuffria and Dio guitarist Craig Goldy guested on the Friday NI Rocks Show recently; an excerpt follows.

Craig talks Dio Disciples:

"We have some more tour plans coming up and we’re also going to do an original album this year. We’ve already been writing for that and recording."

"We’ll be releasing new material and a song that Ronnie (James Dio) and I wrote prior to his passing that will eventually be released as well."

"It’s a special song. Not only is it the last song that he wrote and recorded, it’s the lyrics! When people do hear it, guard your hearts because it’s going to hurt. Parts of it where he talks about what he’s going through are just wow! It’s one of the proudest and saddest things that exists in my life." 

Craig talks Resurrection Kings:

"Now, the global marketplace is smiling upon '80s based music and guys like us who were only paid as side men can now actually create stuff and maybe be part of something. At the time it was Richie Blackmore’s time to call the shots in Rainbow, it was Ronnie’s time to call the shots in Dio and it was Tony Iommi’s time to call the shots during certain eras of Black Sabbath. Hopefully now there will be time for us to be able to enjoy the piece of pie they enjoyed. And at the same time, do it the same way they did. They didn’t do it for the money, they did it for the love of the music and money came with it. It wasn’t the ultimate goal. The bullseye that we aim for is to put together a great band and a great album. Then what comes will happen."

Check out the complete interview at this location.

"Livin' Out Loud", a video for the track from the self-titled debut album from Resurrection Kings, is streaming below. The album was released on January 29th.

Resurrection Kings is a new band centred around the talents of former Dio and Giuffria guitar player, Craig Goldy. Everything started with a set of demos he recorded with singer Chas West, a guy with an unbelievable set of pipes, who has worked with such bands as the Jason Bonham Band, Foreigner, Lynch Mob, Tribe Of Gypsies, and 3 Legged Dogg.

"It all started five years ago when Craig Goldy asked me to write together," says Chas. Out of those demo sessions, the song "Livin' Out Loud" strongly impressed Frontiers' President, Serafino Perugino. He then asked Craig to build up a project/band around that musical concept. He also suggested Sean McNabb for bass (Lynch Mob, Dokken , Quiet Riot ), while Craig brought in later former Dio band mate Vinny Appice on drums.

"Serafino wanted to make an album with famous musicians from the 80's and I was flabbergasted when he asked me to participate" says Craig Goldy. "We've all known each other for a long time and it was a pleasure to work with everyone - my God with Chas, Sean and Vinny that's a killer lineup!"

Frontiers in-house writer and producer Alessandro Del Vecchio (Revolution Saints, Hardline, Rated X) offered his services to the band and wrote (or co-wrote with Goldy) a few tracks to round out the material that was available. "He is a great songwriter, producer, musician and singer," says Goldy. "Some of the demo versions already had vocals and everything else, so all we did was learn the songs and then did them our way. When Sean and Vinny got a hold of these songs they really came alive and gave me automatic inspiration to write and perform on top of what was already written".

The resulting album is an impressive example of classic hard rock with a contemporary production and edge. Think Whitesnake 1987 mixed with Dio’s Dream Evil, with a touch of classic Led Zeppelin and Rainbow and you will not be far from the end result. This truly is an extremely strong record where the musicians were able to stretch their wings and their numerous fans will be incredibly pleased with the results.

 

 

  



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Steven Wilson of Porcupine Tree fame recently spoke with Greg Prato at Songfacts. An excerpt from the interview is available below:

Songfacts: What are the differences between your latest releases, Hand. Cannot. Erase. and 4 ½?

Steven: "One of them is a grand conceptual album, and the other one is just a bunch of pop songs. Hand. Cannot. Erase. was a big project that involved basically a story. It has a musical narrative, it has a lyrical narrative, and it has a very strong theme that runs through it. Whereas the 4 ½ album is what they called an 'interim release' - the title implies that it is neither my fourth album or a fifth album. It's kind of in between the two. 

It's some songs that really didn't belong to any of my more grand conceptual pieces. And in a way, that's its own challenge, because I still like albums to feel like they have a flow and they have a satisfying arc to them. So I did work very hard still on sequencing that record, but the bottom line is that record doesn't have a thematic strand that runs through it. Whereas Hand. Cannot. Erase. definitely does have a very strong thematic structure."

Songfacts: Which album from your entire career are you most proud of from a songwriting perspective?

Steven: "Well, most artists if you ask them that are always going to tell you their last one. I guess I'm no exception. In a way, it makes sense to say the most recent one, because the album you've just made usually reflects the person you are at that point in your life. And that is of course true of Hand. Cannot. Erase. But even beyond that, I think it did represent for me a new level of not just songwriting, but also arrangement, about creating the music and the lyrics around this story of this concept, which span off into many different areas, too." 

"There was a book version of the album, there was an online blog, there were all these different elements that kind of dovetailed into the songwriting, and for me, it's very hard to think of the things separately. For me, artwork, music, lyrics, songwriting, production, the website, the live presentation - all of these things come from the same initial germ of an idea, which can be the song or the theme."

"So I'm very proud of this record. I'm proud of all my solo records, because in a way I think they're all distinctly different. And I also have an aversion to repeating myself, so I like the fact that each album was a kind of reinvention and approaching things from a different perspective."

Go to this location for the complete interview.

January 22nd saw the release of a new Steven Wilson album, 4 ½, so titled because it forms an interim release between Steven's recently released fourth album Hand. Cannot. Erase. and the next studio album.

4 ½ comprises six tracks with a total running time of 37 minutes. Four of the songs originated during the sessions for Hand. Cannot. Erase., and one from the recording sessions for the previous album The Raven that Refused To Sing. The final track is a version of “Don't Hate Me”, a song originally recorded by Porcupine Tree in 1998, and is based on a live recording made on the recent tour of Europe with additional recording later done in the studio. The vocals on this new version are sung as a duet between Steven and Ninet Tayeb.

Also appearing on the album are members of Steven's band over the last few years; Adam Holzman, Nick Beggs, Guthrie Govan, Dave Kilminster, Craig Blundell, Marco Minnemann, Chad Wackerman, and Theo Travis.

4 ½ was released by Kscope on CD, 180 gram vinyl, and blu-ray, with all formats housed in a beautiful die-cut sleeve photographed by Lasse Hoile and designed by Carl Glover. The blu-ray (audio only) edition includes high res stereo, a 5.1 mix of the album, and a bonus 5.1 mix of the new version of Lazarus (recently included on the Transience vinyl compilation). The vinyl edition includes a download code for the album in a choice of FLAC or mp3. Pre-order here. The album is also be available digitally from iTunes, Amazon, Google Play and Apple Music.

4 ½ tracklisting:

“My Book Of Regrets”
“Year Of The Plague”
“Happiness 3”
“Sunday Rain Sets In”
“Vermillioncore”
“Don’t Hate Me”

After the success of Steven Wilson’s Hand. Cannot. Erase. tour of North America earlier this year, he has announced that he will be returning for more live shows in March 2016.

Dates:

March
1 - Toronto, ON - Massey Hall
2 - Montreal, QC - St-Denis Theatre
3 - Albany, NY - The Egg
4 - Boston, MA - Orpheum Theatre
5 - New York, NY - Beacon Theatre
7 - Chicago, IL - Vic Theatre
8 - Chicago, IL - Vic Theatre

More details here.



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"Whilst we’re saddened to say Motörhead will no longer be performing at this year’s Download Festival, we will honour a true rock ‘n’ roll icon who inspired so many others on the bill, Lemmy Kilmister," state the organizers. "For one year only, Download Festival’s Main Stage will be named ‘The Lemmy Stage’ in tribute to a much loved and missed legend. We are working with Motörhead’s management on a tribute to the great man during the slot he would have performed on, more information to follow."

Download is The UK's premier rock festival, running June 10th to 12th at Donnington Park; complete details can be found here.

In addition to headliners Rammstein, Black Sabbath, and Iron Maiden, a truckload of new bands have just been added to the festival including: Amon Amarth, Danko Jones, Deftones, Disturbed, Down, Ghost, Halestorm, Jane's Addiction, Killswitch Engage, Korn, Megadeth, Monster Truck, Municipal Waste, Nightwish, Saxon, Shinedown, Sixx: A.M., Tremonti, and many more.   

 

 



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SICK PUPPIES has announced the addition of Houston-based singer-guitarist Bryan Scott to the group's ranks. Scott previously played with GLASS INTREPID and DEV ELECTRIC and briefly toured as vocalist for EMPHATIC in 2011.

A snippet of a brand new SICK PUPPIES song called "Stick To Your Guns", featuring Scott, is available below. The fill track will be made available in March, to be followed by a new album in the spring.

SICK PUPPIES has stayed relatively low-key since splitting with singer and guitarist Shim Moore in 2014, but is now finally ready to resurface.

Scott told Loudwire: "As soon as I found out about the lineup change, my gut feeling told me to reach out to [bassist] Emma [Anzai] and [drummer] Mark [Goodwin], and we clicked right away. I knew this was a shot that could change the course of my life so I flew out to L.A. to audition the next morning."

Added Anzai and Goodwin: "Before we met Bryan in person, we knew he’d be a great fit. His audition of 'Odd One' and 'You're Going Down' was on point and from there the music progressed naturally."

SICK PUPPIES has booked several festival dates for this year, including Welcome To Rockville on May 1, Carolina Rebellion on May 6 and Rock On The Range on the weekend of May 20.

Chris Fehn of SLIPKNOT has recorded some drums for MOTÖRHEAD guitarist Phil Campbell's forthcoming solo album. Also scheduled to appear are JUDAS PRIEST frontman Rob Halford and UGLY KID JOE vocalist Whitfield Crane.

Asked by Headbangers Lifestyle's Lilo at the end of last year if there are any plans for him to write and an autobiography or have a film made about his life, Campbell responded: "I don't want a film about my life; no way. I'm working on a book of the funny stuff. I don't want a life story; I just want the funny stuff. [It's] gotta be documented, 'cause some of it's pretty bizarre and unbelievable. It's totally funny, though. [It's a book about] my experiences. It's what would normally not happen if you weren't in this band."

Regarding when fans can expect to see his book released, Campbell said: "I'm seriously working on it now in January. It'll be a year or two [before it comes out], but it'll be worth it."

Asked in a 2012 interview if he has ever considered making a solo album, Phil responded: "Yes, I have thought about it a lot. But I shelved it a couple years ago, because I've decided that I want to write a book about all the insane things that happen on tour. So, I'm trying to compile all of those stories and funny situations. So, at this point, I'm working on that. But, I'm a bit lazy, so it's taken a while. But as far as a solo record, I do have a studio at home, it's just hard finding the time. With MOTÖRHEAD, we've been working so hard, for so long."

MOTÖRHEAD was forced to cancel three shows last November after Campbell became ill and required hospitalization.

MOTÖRHEAD frontman Ian "Lemmy" Kilmister, who celebrated his 70th birthday on Christmas Eve (December 24), learned two days later that he was afflicted with an aggressive form of cancer. He died two days later, on December 28, at his home in Los Angeles.

According to South Wales Argus, two women have been arrested following the incident last month which left singer Benji Webbe of the Welsh "ragga metal" act SKINDRED needing 24 stitches.

A 40-year-old woman from Newport has been arrested for assault (wounding with intent) and a 29-year-old woman from Newport has been arrested for affray and criminal damage.

Both are out on bail.

Webbe and his girlfriend were attacked while on their way home after a party on January 29. "I went outside with my girlfriend, Julie, and I saw about three or four girls arguing," Webbe told Wales Online. "As we went past them, I tried to calm them down and said, 'Calm down, will you?' jokingly. One of the women turned to me and came within four inches of my face, screaming and shouting." He said the woman had fallen over and her glass had smashed and added: “She got up and all hell broke loose. I thought she had slapped me in the face."

Webbe uploaded a couple of pictures of his injuries to his Facebook page, saying he will live with the scars for the rest of his life.

SKINDRED's latest album, "Volume", came out last October via Napalm Records.

"Moonlit Night", the new video from SINBREED, the German power metal band featuring BLIND GUARDIAN drummer Frederik Ehmke, can be seen below. The song is taken from SINBREED's new album, "Master Creator", which will be released on February 26 via AFM Records.

SINBREED says: "The new album will include all the trademarks we developed on 'When Worlds Collide' and 'Shadows', plus a few things you may not have seen coming (piano, anyone?)."

The track listing for the CD is as follows:

01. Creation Of Reality02. Across The Great Divides03. Behind A Mask04. Moonlit Night05. Master Creator06. Last Survivor07. At The Gate08. The Riddle09. The Voice10. On The Run

BLIND GUARDIAN guitarist Marcus Siepen recently left SINBREED.

Said SINBREED in a statement: "There has not been — and there is not — any kind of dispute. In fact, since his main band BLIND GUARDIAN is touring that much, it was simply not possible for him to focus 100 percent on SINBREED, like he did the past years.

"We are very thankful for having Marcus as a bandmember in our ranks for the last more than three years and we wish him nothing but the best."

Added Siepen: "Back in 2012 when I joined SINBREED, we had just finished a world tour for BLIND GUARDIAN's 'At The Edge Of Time' album, so the timing was perfect for me. BLIND GUARDIAN would not be active for quite some time, which gave me the freedom to focus on something else without any problems. And I enjoyed every second of it. Suddenly playing with different people was a great experience for me that taught me a lot. At that time, SINBREED has not been signed to any label; we were free to do whatever we wanted so we played all kinds of gigs and at some point just started to work on new songs. This has also been a great experience and we had a lot of fun putting together the 'Shadows' album which even got us a record deal. And all this still happened while BLIND GUARDIAN were not active."

He continued: "At the end of last year, we all met and talked about how to continue with SINBREED. For me, it was obvious that we would have to take a break because for the next two years I would be completely busy with BLIND GUARDIAN, our 'Beyond The Red Mirror' album was about to be released, so the whole promotion machinery was working at full throttle already and we were about to go on tour again, a tour that would (will) keep us on the road until around fall of 2016. I just didn't see any way to fully be there for SINBREED during this period because obviously BLIND GUARDIAN would be my only focus, just as SINBREED has been in the years before.

"Unfortunately, but understandably, taking this break was not what the others had in mind. Of course, they wanted to get ahead with SINBREED and also our label wanted to have a new album, so it was obvious for me that I had to come to a decision about how I wanted to go on.

"I know there are people that can handle being in more than just one band without bigger problems; they can switch between those bands easily. Unfortunately, I am not one of those people. I am not really able to do multitasking when it comes to bands, when my focus is on BLIND GUARDIAN, there is no room in my head for another band, just as there was no room for anything else while I was focusing completely on SINBREED. I knew I wouldn't be able to give 100 percent for SINBREED any time before the end of 2016, no matter if it was about songwriting, recording or playing live, and giving less than 100 percent is not an option for me."

SINBREED's brand of power metal is described as a "blistering combination of speed, melodic and aggressive arrangements combined with high and soaring vocals."