Kansas City technical death metal strategists, Ahtme, formerly known as The Roman Holiday, are the latest addition to Unique Leader Records' expanding roster of brutality. The label will be reissuing the band's 2013-issued The Demonization debut in early 2016.
 
Forged in 2005 in Kansas City, Missouri, the band brings a signature and unique sound to the table. Start with surgically precise but groove-infused guitar riffs, lay them atop a percussion section as sturdy as a field of steel girders and as intricate as a handmade Swiss grandfather clock, throw in a heaping helping of raw, violent vocal incursions, and you have yourself Ahtme. Following a near 3 year hiatus, Ahtme, are indeed back with a proverbial vengeance.
 
Issues the band of their union with Unique Leader, "We are excited to announce that we have signed a deal with Unique Leader. We can't explain how awesome it is to be featured alongside all these incredible bands and such a talented roster of death metal musicians. Our first album as Ahtme is fully written and we are VERY quickly making progress in hammering out every little detail. We can't wait to work with UL for these new releases and we hope to carve out a little home for ourselves here among all these other incredible artists! Thanks to everyone who has been a fan over the years and cheers to the future! Hail Ahtme!"
 
Though the band's The Demonization long-player, recorded under the moniker The Roman Holiday, never had an official release, the 40 minute bruiser was well-received among their extensive local fan base and online community. Originally recorded with Navene Koperweis (Animosity, Animals As Leaders, Entheos) in San Francisco in 2009, the album is set to be reissued during the winter of 2016 by Unique Leader Records. Further info to be announced in the coming weeks.

 



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Canadian hard rock staples Harem Scarem are streaming “Garden Of Eden” (listen below), from the upcoming Live At The Phoenix release, out on December 4th.

Available in 2CD/DVD, Blu-ray and Digital formats, this new release, marks the first proper live album recorded by Harem Scarem in front of their “home” audience. Singer Harry Hess explains: “Canada is where we started touring all those years ago and to be able to invite our friends, family and fans to this show was cool.”

Recorded live on Saturday July 11th, 2015 at the Phoenix Concert Theatre in Toronto, this happened to be the perfect time and venue for the band to capture live recordings of numerous songs from their latest record "Thirteen" and also to revisit their classic early material. It was an honest and raw performance showcasing the repertoire of a band which is at the top of their game.

Hess adds: “It wasn't easy coming up with this set list but I think we got to all the important stuff plus it's always fun to play the new material that you haven't been playing for 20 years. It is definitely the most extensive live recording and video that we have ever done and the quality of both the video and audio are by far the best of anything we have ever done.”

Live At The Phoenix tracklisting includes:

CD1:
“Garden Of Eden”
“Hard To Love”
“Saviors Never Cry”
“Dagger”
“Distant Memory”
“The Midnight Hours”
“Mandy”
“Killing Me”
“Slowly Slipping Away”
“Troubled Times”

CD2:
“Sentimental Blvd.”
“Turn Around”
“Stranger Than Love”
“All I Need”
“Saints And Sinners”
“So Blind”
“Human Nature”
“Voice Of Reason”
“Change Comes Around”
“No Justice”

DVD / Blu Ray:

“Garden Of Eden”
“Hard To Love”
“Saviors Never Cry”
“Dagger”
“Distant Memory”
“The Midnight Hours”
“Mandy”
“Killing Me”
“Slowly Slipping Away”
“Troubled Times”

CD2:
“Sentimental Blvd.”
“Turn Around”
“Stranger Than Love”
“All I Need”
“Saints And Sinners”
“So Blind”
“Human Nature”
“Voice Of Reason”
“Change Comes Around”
“No Justice”

“Garden Of Eden”:

“No Justice”:

Harem Scarem are:
Harry Hess: vocals, guitar
Pete Lesperance; lead guitar, vocals
Stan Miczek: bass guitar
Darren Smith: drums, vocals

 



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Savannah, GA's Black Tusk have established themselves as one of the hardest working bands in rock since their formation over 10 years ago. After four full-lengths, numerous splits and EP's and thousands of shows under their belts, the punk/metal power trio was faced with an immense and unexpected tragedy in late 2014 when founding bassist/vocalist Jonathan Athon passed away after a motorcycle accident in his hometown.

Now, as a testament to his profound and lasting legacy on the heavy music scene, the band are releasing Pillars Of Ash, their final recordings with Athon, on January 29th, 2016 via Relapse Records. Recorded with Toxic Holocaust's Joel Grind behind the boards and featuring gorgeous artwork by Jeremy Hush (Skeletonwitch, Rwake), Pillars Of Ash is the culmination of three brothers-in-arms' blood, sweat and tears, and is Black Tusk's finest accomplishment to date.
 
Formed in 2005 by Athon, guitarist Andrew Fidler and drummer James May, Black Tusk hit the ground running and toured relentlessly on their first EP, When Kingdoms Fall. They kept up a manic pace, recording two more demos (2006’s untitled demo and 2007’s The Fallen Kingdom). Hyperrealist signed on to release their debut LP, 2008’s Passage Through Purgatory, and 2009 saw them churn out a trio of splits with the likes of The Holy Mountain, ASG, and Fight Amp. Soon after, the band signed to Relapse and formed a partnership that lasts to this day, first collaborating on their 2010 breakthrough Taste the Sin and then on their 2011 follow up, Set The Dial. Since then, Black Tusk have released a pair of EP's - 2013’s Tend No Wounds and the digital­-only 2014 EP Vulture’s Eye - and kept pounding the pavement in the United States, Europe, and the UK alongside bands like Red Fang, Kvelertak, Down, Municipal Waste, Fu Manchu, Inter Arma, Intronaut, and so many others, as well as being hand­picked to appear on Metallica’s Orion Festival in 2012.

In 2014, Black Tusk hit the studio with their old friend and accomplished audio engineer, Joel Grind, to work on Pillars Of Ash. Before they could get their new record into stores and jump back up in their big white tour van, though, the band suffered a setback beyond what most could even imagine. In November, mere weeks before the band was due to kick off their biggest tour yet, Athon was seriously injured in a motorcycle accident. Several days later, on November 9th, 2014, he passed away at the age of 31, leaving behind hundreds of friends, family members, and his beloved dog Cutter as well as his brothers in Black Tusk. Support poured in from fans, friends, and fellow musicians from around the world; stunned, Andrew and James laid down their instruments and tried to process the loss. For a few weeks, the band’s future was uncertain, but ultimately, the remaining duo made the difficult decision to soldier on and carry on in Athon’s memory. Athon himself could have chosen no better successor than Corey Barhorst, a longtime friend and veteran musician who heads up his own project, Niche, and previously held down the low end for Kylesa. Barhorst initially joined the band as a live member in time for their European tour with Black Label Society, but after that, was welcomed into the fold as a full­blooded member of Black Tusk.
 
Black Tusk have lived through the kind of hardship and heartbreak that would cripple a lesser band, but it’s that dedication, gumption, and pure bullheaded stubbornness that’s taken them around the world and as far away from the lacey Spanish moss and sweltering streets of Savannah than any of them could’ve dared dream.
 
Look for Pillars Of Ash to be available January 29th, and stay tuned for more news coming soon.

Pillars Of Ash tracklisting:

“God's On Vacation”
“Desolation Of Endless Times”
“Bleed On Your Knees”
“Born Of Strife”
“Damned In The Ground”
“Beyond The Divide”
“Black Tide”
“Still Not Well”
“Walk Among The Sky”
“Punk Out”
“Leveling”

“God’s On Vacation”:

(Photo - Angela Boatwright)



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Deathbound Records has announced the signing of Montreal-based viking horde, Talamyus.

Formed in 2002 by brothers Benoit and Dany St-Jean, the band has vowed to bring the viking metal sound to a Montreal scene where it was all but absent. With three solid albums under their belt, Talamyus combines the epic atmosphere of Amon Amarth, the melody of Iron Maiden and the thrashing power of Kreator. Talamyus infuses old school riffs with modern ferocity and edge.

The band has played support slots and toured alongside the ikes of Moonsorrow, Augury, Kataklysm, Tyr, Destruction and 1349 just to name a few. The band has added depth to their lineup with the addition of Étienne Gallo (Augury, Catuvolcus, Hands of Despair, ex-Aborted) on drums.

With this new solidified personnel, the band is now preparing to release their fourth full-length album, Honour Is Our Pride, Death Is The Reward through Deathbound Records. Mixing in new influences like Dissection and Enslaved, it will carry a stylistic shift from death/thrash metal to melodic black metal, all while retaining the familiar viking flavour.

"We are sure old and new Talamyus fans will be pleased with the direction we have chosen to take for the next album", comments guitarist/vocalist and co-founder Benoît St-Jean. "It will still have the Talamyus feel, but with an altered atmosphere. We are very eager to share it with you all!"

The first single for their upcoming album will be released soon. Stay tuned.

Listen to Talamyus' previous album, streaming below:

Raven's call to annihilation by Talamyus

 



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New England heavy metal outfit, Sees, is gearing up to release its first album in three years, aptly titled, Three Winters, via Rogue Records on November 27th. In anticipation, the band has begun streaming new tracks from the upcoming release - one per day - until it drops next week.

The songs "Acquiesce" and "Growing Down" are streaming below, as well as a lyric video for “Tainted Ones”.

Three Winters can be pre-ordered at this location. All pre-orders will ship by November 23rd and will also include the band's debut album The End and 2012 EP In & Between for free.

Tracklisting:

“Acquiesce”
“Growing Down”
“Tainted Ones”
“My Words Edgewise”
“Turn For The Worse”
“The Error Of Ways”
“Suspended”
“Three Winters”
“Scleroderma”
“Selfless Kin”
“Penny Pincher”
“If I”

“Acquiesce”:

“Growing Down”:

“Tainted Ones” lyric video:

Teaser:

Sees was created by vocalist Bryan Malke as a solo project in early 2001. After cycling through additional band members, Sees finally released its first full-length The End in 2011. The group then went on to release the In & Between EP in 2012. Now, after three long years of writing and recording, Sees will release its sophomore full-length Three Winters on Rogue Records.
 



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Celtic metal band Darkest Era are set to release a new vinyl 7" entitled Gods And Origins, on November 20th via Cruz Del Sur Music. Recorded between the studio session for Severance and spring 2015, Gods And Origins is an insightful representation of the group's decade-long existence. A full stream can be found below.

Gods And Origins will be released in a Limited Edition (150) Swamp Green and Regular Black vinyl. Pre-order through Cruz Del Sur Music or the band's website.

The EP features new song "Elohim" and a re-recording of an early gem called "An Dagda Awakens" (renamed "An Dagda" for the 7").

Guitarist Ade Mulgrew had this to say about the re-recording of "An Dagda Awakens”: "Since it's almost 10 years since myself and Sarah started playing guitar together, we decided to revisit one of the first songs we wrote, 'An Dagda Awakens'.  Written with the fiery energy (and perhaps naivety) of teenage metalheads making their first steps on their journey, we have breathed smoke and ashes into this old song and brought it screaming into the darkness."
 

 



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Spain’s Killus have revealed the cover artwork for their new opus, to be titled Ultrazombies. The design of the cover was created by artist Damien Worm (who worked with the band on their Feel The Monster album), and the rest of the artwork is the responsibility of Ingrid Gala.

In the artwork we see a new image of the band, inspired by the world of comics combined with the 80's horror movies.

Some confirmed track titles for the new album are “Satanachia”, “The Tall Man” and “Mr. Jack”.
 
This new album is expected to be released in February/March 2016 through Art Gates Records worldwide. More details will be unveiled soon.

(Photo - Adrián Morote Photography)



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Dutch metal legends, Martyr, have signed an exclusive deal with Into The LimeLight Records for their new album in combination with a worldwide promotion and publishing deal with Pure Steel Promotion and a worldwide distribution deal with Soulfood Music Distribution. As icing on the cake, Martyr has also signed an exclusive management deal with Agentur EAM. The band is ready for the next step.

After one and a half years of writing new songs and a year in the studio (Jack’s Place) with producer Jack Nobelen (also responsible for the production of Circle Of 8)  the new album is ready. It is a real masterpiece. Heavy, diverse, innovative but also maintaining the characteristic Martyr sound. The album includes guest appearances from:

Gert Nijboer (Highway Chile)
Nick Holleman (Vicious Rumors, Powerized, Methusalem)
Marloes Voskuil (Izegrim)
John Jaycee Cuijpers (Praying Mantis)
Andreas van Lipinski (Wolfen)

The album, You Are Next, will be released next year (March/April 2016) on CD and with a special vinyl edition. The exact date will be announced soon.

Says Martyr: "The reason for us to choose the Dutch Into The Limelight Records, despite the foreign interest, has to do with the good and short lines of communication as well as the fantastic label deal offer. Add to that the addition of the global promotion and publishing deal by Pure Steel, worldwide distribution from Soulfood and an attractive management deal by Agentur EAM and our choice was there. We are very happy with this deal and expect to release our new album in March/April 2016 with a grand release party."



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California metallers DEVILDRIVER will release their seventh studio album, "Trust No One", on May 13, 2016 via Napalm Records. The follow-up to 2013's "Winter Kills" was once again produced by Mark Lewis (ARSIS, THE BLACK DAHLIA MURDER, WHITECHAPEL, DEVILDRIVER, DEICIDE, SIX FEET UNDER). The new CD mark the group's first release since the departures of guitarist Jeff Kendrick and drummer John Boecklin and addition of axeman Neal Tiemann and former CHIMAIRA sticksman Austin D'Amond.

Says DEVILDRIVER fontman Dez Fafara: "Almost three years in the making, get ready for a new DEVILDRIVER record!

"'Trust No One' is filled with killer riffs, groove after groove and massive hooks!

"Regarding the title 'Trust No One', it's rightly named and done so. There will be no explanation needed regarding what the title means. The lyrics are volatile and straight to the point!

"See you next year with 'Trust No One' and around the world on tour!"

Asked what makes Austin the right drummer for DEVILDRIVER, Dez told Full Metal Jackie: "What made him the right guy is he's more than capable.

"You can understand when members leave a band, and Jeff, the guitar player, left 'cause he just didn't wanna tour anymore, and I totally understood that after the schedule we kept for almost 13 years. And John wanted to try and do some stuff on his own, and it was more than okay with me after that length of time. So, when you do replace members, what you wanna do is you wanna get people who are more than capable — or more capable than even who you had [before]."

He continued: "I definitely am looking forward to playing with Austin. He's a great guy, he's a great drummer, [and] he's got an incredible stage presence. And when he came in for the audition, he absolutely just smoked it. He's just an incredible guy. And you get a real good vibe from him, which is another thing. We're gonna tour a lot, so you're gonna have to have that."

Boecklin and Kendrick played their last show with DEVILDRIVER as part of the 2014 Knotfest in Devore, California.

"Winter Kills" sold around 11,000 copies in the United States in its first week of release to debut at position No. 32 on The Billboard 200 chart.

"Electric Sky", a brand new song from New York's VISION OF DISORDER, can be streamed using the SoundCloud widget below. The track is taken from the band's new album, "Razed To The Ground", which will be released on November 27 via Candlelight Records. Produced by Chris "Zeuss" Harris (HATEBREED, DEMON HUNTER, ROB ZOMBIE), it is the band's second recording for Candlelight.

Recorded during July and August, "Razed To The Ground" contains ten hearty and provocative new songs from the hardcore luminaries. Vocalist Tim Williams notes: "We are very excited for our fans to hear this record. We believe it offers everything VOD does well. I am especially excited about the growth of the songs; the brutality, the melody, and the overall sound of the record." Bassist Mike Fleischmann adds: "As a band, VISION OF DISORDER strives to evolve musically with each album. Having Zeuss as producer really allowed us to achieve that goal. 'Razed To The Ground' contains some of this band's finest moments and we are extremely grateful to Candlelight that we have been given the opportunity to demonstrate that we are still at the top of our game." Questioned about the album's first single, "Hours In Chaos", Williams stated, "Upon hearing the first riffs of the song, I knew it was gonna be a monster and needed strong vocals and lyrics to bring it where it needed to be. It is a song to awaken people to what is going on around them; the unrest, the guns, the utter disregard for human life. The world has become a dangerous place. I feel I have illustrated the feelings of anxiety and insecurity that is so prevalent today." Guitarist Mike Kennedy asserts: "This song embodies everything that is VOD. Politically relevant and musically explosive, 'Hours In Chaos' is one of the most raw and powerful tracks VOD has ever written. Lyrically, it is a stark reflection of the state of the world today. The frenetic pace of the song mirrors the chaos we see on the streets. The vilification of the police by media and citizens alike is simply the status quo today. 'Hours' shines a harsh spotlight on these events and the tragedies surrounding them." "Razed To The Ground" comes three years after the release of "The Cursed Remain Cursed", the first newly recorded material by the band in over ten years.

"Razed To The Ground" track listing:

01. Heart Of Darkness02. Hours In Chaos03. Electric Sky04. Razed To The Ground05. The Craving06. Cut My Teeth07. Red On The Walls08. Nightcrawler09. Severed Wing10. Amurdica: A Culture Of Violence VISION OF DISORDER is guitarist Mike Kennedy, drummer Brendon Cohen, vocalist Tim Williams and bassist Mike Fleischmann.

Canadian rock legends RUSH will release their "R40 Live" concert film on November 20.

A performance clip of the song "Xanadu", taken from "R40 Live", can be seen below.

All roads have led to this. Forty-one years in the making, RUSH's "R40 Live" tour took a very real journey back through time. Beginning with the grand design: a state-of-the-art stage set that pivots, rolls and dives, and brings "Clockwork Angels" in to bombastic, colorful life before marching stridently back in time (through theatre stages, a panoply of band and fan shots, the accrued memories of a life spent playing live) to a mocked-up school gym and the band playing there; a solitary bass amp set on the chair behind Geddy Lee, a mirror ball spiraling crazily above, casting thin rods of light like a light rain across the crowd, "Working Man" coming to a shuddering halt as the band's beginning becomes their end.

RUSH recorded and filmed "R40 Live" over two sold-out shows in the band's hometown of Toronto at the Air Canada Centre on June 17 and June 19, 2015 in the middle of their "R40 Live" 35-date North American tour.

"R40 Live" had the trio of Geddy Lee, Alex Lifeson and Neil Peart, performing a career-spanning live retrospective, celebrating their 40-plus years together. The epic live shows by the Rock And Roll Hall Of Famers were captured with 14 cameras to present the band feature-film style.

The center-point of this tour was the remarkable setlist, coupled with their idea of a "de-evolution" set design. When the band opened the show with cuts "Headlong Flight" and "The Anarchist" from their most recent studio recording, 2012's "Clockwork Angels", they did so with all the bells and whistles from that extensive tour. They worked backwards through their catalogue as the show progressed, the innovative set design making for constant visual eye-candy, as stagehands exchanged the gear and props on stage to resemble the era-correct tour staging in accordance with the songs being played.

The first set featured the infamous dryers on stage while they played "Roll The Bones", "Subdivisions", and for the first time ever live, "Losing It" featuring violinist Ben Mink, who appeared on the original studio recording from 1982's "Signals".

The second set opened with classics "Tom Sawyer", followed by crowd favorite "The Spirit Of Radio", but also included "Jacob's Ladder", which hasn't been performed live since 1980 on their "Permanent Waves" tour. The last few songs of the "R40" were set against the persimmon curtained theatre-looking stage, with the crowd raising their lighters and camera phones to "Closer To The Heart", and then Alex and Geddy appeared with their signature doubleneck guitars as they played "Xanadu", into the epic "2112" and encored with "Lakeside Park/Anthem" and "What You're Doing/Working Man".

The concert film also includes the the band's renowned tour videos, highlighted by "Roll The Bones (R40 Live)", that features an array of special guests in the rap part of the song: Jay Baruchel (SHE'S OUT OF MY LEAGUE), Les Claypool (PRIMUS), Peter Dinklage ("Game Of Thrones"), Tom Morello (RAGE AGAINST THE MACHINE, AUDIOSLAVE), Chad Smith (RED HOT CHILI PEPPERS), "The Trailer Park Boys", and Jason Segel and Paul Rudd ("I Love You, Man"). It is the first time the band put the song back in the setlist since the "R30" tour, a full decade ago. During the "R40 Live" tour, "Roll The Bones" gained new life and became a fan-favorite with an arena sing-along to the chorus "Why are we here? Because we're here — Roll The Bones."

Singer/bassist Geddy Lee explained how the large group of cameo appearances came about: "We had this older video of an animated skeleton doing the 'rap' part of 'Roll The Bones', and felt it was time to update the concept for this tour. So after a lot of joking around with our show design team, we thought it would fun if we called upon some of our well-known pals and see if they wanted to have some fun with the lyrics. There were so many good and funny moments that it was hard to choose, some really hilarious and outrageous stuff! I'm so glad it worked out as it brought a big smile to the faces in the audience (and to us) every single night!"

"R40 Live" audio was produced by RUSH and David Botrill, and mixed by David Botrill (TOOL, MUSE); the film was directed by Dale Heslip, and produced by Allan Weinrib. The live photograph on the cover of "R40" was shot by baseball Hall Of Famer Randy Johnson, who captured the band in a rare moment when both Geddy Lee and Alex LIfeson were on Neil Peart's drum kit riser.

"As a friend and fan of RUSH, and the passion I have for photography to capture moments, it's great that both can blend together in a lasting impression, here for the world to see," commented the self-described 6' 10" ninja in the photo pit," who was on a portion of the tour in his new role as photographer.

"R40 Live" will be available in the following configurations:

* 3-CD/1 Blu-ray set* 3-CD/1 DVD set* 3-CD set (audio only)* Single-disc Blu-ray* Single-disc DVD

Pre-orders from the band's site feature each configuration bundled with a special "R40" All Over t-shirt.

Bengt Lemne of Gamereactor TV conducted an interview with guitarist Björn Gelotte of Swedish metallers IN FLAMES at the August 21 Marshall London party at Berns in Stockholm, Sweden, where the company introduced its brand new smartphone.

Speaking about IN FLAMES' inclusion in the "Guitar Hero Live" game with the song "Deliver Us", Björn said: "We actually worked with the guys from 'Guitar Hero' really early on here in Sweden. And I think the whole reason is that I think that our… There's a synergy effect kind of thing between rock/metal and gaming. It's mostly the same audience in a way — it's male most of the time, which is changing now, which is awesome, I think; it's actually turning into a lot of girls and women playing as well. But it has been in the past. So the synergy effect has been very obvious; we could see it. So, for us, it was the next step, I mean, to be able to incorporate what we do and in such a way, with a guitar, with music, into the gaming community."

He continued: "Myself, I'm a gamer since… not birth, because then there were no video games per se, but I've played all my life; it's one of the biggest passions I have. I try to pass it on to my kids, and so far they're not too happy with it, but they're getting into it… They do the 'Skylanders' and stuff like that, so they're getting into it. For me, it's always been a big, big… It's what I spend most of my life doing, pretty much, when I'm not playing music. So, for me, it was a really, really big thing, and a really cool thing, and getting to work with people that actually know what they're doing is fantastic."

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

IN FLAMES' latest album, "Siren Charms", sold around 9,000 copies in the United States in its first week of release to debut at position No. 26 on The Billboard 200 chart.

GREAT WHITE guitarist Michael Lardie has confirmed to MyDaytonDailyNews.com that the band is planning to enter the studio in early 2016 to begin work on the follow-up to 2012's "Elation". He said: "We're hoping to get into the studio in February or March to at least flesh out some ideas. We're always writing. Part of your gig as a musician is working on new material all the time. It might be something as simple as a riff or it could be a complete song that you just catalog away. Then we all get together to flesh everything out and see if it works within the framework of the GREAT WHITE experience.”

Asked why GREAT WHITE is choosing to make new music at a time when record sales are rapidly diminishing, Lardie said: "Thank goodness we can still create and release new music. I can't see anybody in the band being happy about turning into a greatest hits band. I'm not criticizing anybody that does that, because God love anybody that still has a career in this business. For us, personally, we want to keep moving forward and improving upon our craft rather than just resting on our particular laurels, however big or small they might have been."

GREAT WHITE is founder and lead guitarist Mark Kendall, Michael Lardie (keyboards, guitar), Audie Desbrow (drums), Scott Snyder (bass) and lead singer Terry Ilous.

"Elation" sold around 1,000 copies in the United States in its first week of release. Issued on May 22, 2012 via Frontiers Records, the 12-song CD marked GREAT WHITE's first effort with singer Ilous following the band's split with founding singer Jack Russell.

This version of GREAT WHITE is not to be confused with JACK RUSSELL'S GREAT WHITE, which features Russell alongside Robby Lochner (FIGHT) on guitar, Chris Tristram on bass, Tony Montana on guitar and Dicki Fliszar on drums.

GREAT WHITE released a live album, "30 Years - Live From The Sunset Strip", on February 22, 2013 in Europe and February 26, 2013 in North America via Frontiers Records.

OF MICE & MEN singer Austin Carlile has revealed that he will undergo hip and back surgery soon, according to The Pulse Of Radio. Carlile mentioned the upcoming operations on Twitter, but did not elaborate further. They are most likely related to his struggle with Marfan syndrome, a connective tissue disorder that has already led to several surgeries for Carlile and the removal of a rib in the past year alone.

Carlile was hospitalized abruptly last June 6, forcing the band to cancel several shows, and ended up in surgery.

He spent the summer in recovery and physical therapy, tweeting at one point in mid-July that he was going to therapy three times a week.

The band canceled several fall appearances while Carlile continued his recovery. They are still listed as performing at Ozzfest Japan on November 21.

OF MICE & MEN has also used the downtime to work on material for its next album.

The last single from its 2015 release, "Restoring Force: Full Circle", called "Never Giving Up", reached Number 16 on the rock radio chart.

KING DIAMOND frontman and namesake has confirmed to The Guardian that the band will begin work on a new album sometime in early 2016.

"It's coming out when it's done," he said. "It has to be one that can kill every other album we ever did."

He continued: "Andy [La Rocque, guitarist] and I have some ideas already, and I have my own recording studio out here, which means that for the first time ever I will have the opportunity to build a 50-voice choir if I feel like it! No one's there pointing at the clock, saying, 'You don't need to make it any bigger.' It will be amazing to do it this way."

The 59-year-old singer, whose real name is Kim Bendix Petersen, in December 2012 signed a new three-album worldwide deal with Metal Blade Records. He told the 107.7 WRKR-FM radio station in Kalamazoo, Michigan: "I have a Pro Tools system now and I had a vocal booth from Oregon, something called VocalBooth.com, ship 1,800 pounds of wood and metal and stuff here that me and my friends put together; one guy owns a studio and another guy has worked at one. So we put that together. And it's a vocal booth like you'll find in any studio, with double insulated walls, floating floors, all this stuff… So I can do all my vocals now from home. And that means I will never have to sing with a hoarse voice in the studio again. Like, 'The clock, it's still ticking. C'mon.' There's nothing like that now. I can work 40-voice choirs together if I want to while writing music. If I sit and work on a verse and a chorus, I can go straight in after I've done that and feel good about it and check if it's good to sing to. It's gonna be amazing. Andy has the same speakers now; he has a big studio in Sweden and lots of bands have been there recording albums. So I have lot of the same stuff [at my home studio] now. I can't record drums here, but I can pretty much record everything else here."

KING DIAMOND received a Grammy nomination in the "Best Metal Performance" category for the track "Never Ending Hill" off the group's latest album, 2007's "Give Me Your Soul … Please".

"Give Me Your Soul ... Please" entered the Swedish national chart at position No. 28. The CD also landed at No. 58 on the Danish chart. The effort sold 4,500 copies in the United States in its first week of release to debut at position No. 174 on The Billboard 200 chart.

Former EXODUS and current GENERATION KILL frontman Rob Dukes was interviewed by Mark Strigl for the latest episode of the "Talking Metal" podcast (web site). You can now listen to the chat using the Spreaker widget below. A few excerpts follow (transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET).

On his recent appearance on the "Opie And Jim Norton" talk show where he said that he didn’t like the music EXODUS was writing prior to his departure, explaining that it was "just regurgitated shit that we had just done and done over and over again":

"They did ask me some EXODUS questions, and I think I told the truth… I was completely honest. And it was funny that Blabbermouth took it out of context and didn't actually put what I said on there. They took pieces of it and took out the in-between pieces that made it make sense and just put the shitty stuff.

"I didn't get personal. I'm not gonna get personal about it. I'm not gonna talk shit about the band personally.

"The situation and how it ended was really shitty, and my friendships with all of them ended really shitty, when it was basically business. You know what I mean? I get it. But the fans don't see it that way; they're too attached to it. They love it."

On the BLABBERMOUTH.NET response to the comments he made during his appearance on the "Opie And Jim Norton" talk show:

"I didn't read any of the comments [on Blabbermouth]. My friend [told me], 'Dude, you're getting fucking trashed.' I'm, like, 'I don't give a fuck.' He was, like, 'Don't even [read it].' And I [went], 'I' never gonna read it. I don't give a shit.' But he was, like, 'yeah, they took it completely out of context.' Honestly, I just stopped going [on Blabbermouth]. I don't even go there anymore. I'm not in metal anymore. I'm just being a guy, you know what I mean? I have a regular job now. I work, like, sixty hours a fucking week. I don't fucking go and sit at a computer on a tour bus anymore; I just… I don't do it. I'm not that guy anymore. So I don't care… I don't owe those people anything. They don't owe me anything. They don't give me anything, and I don't expect anything from them. They're not a part of my existence. I don't do what I do for them; I do it for myself. And if anything comes other than that, then I'm cool with that. But if it doesn't, I'm cool with that too. You know?"

On why he is so angry about the way his stint with EXODUS ended:

"Look, everything ends bad. When things end, they end bad. You know what I mean? Nobody gets a divorce 'cause they're fucking happy. Divorces are… they're all bad, and I get that. But I think, basically, what left me so sour is that… You know, I was in this situation where I thought these guys were my brothers, my friends, and they were family. I'd eaten at their homes and I'd met their parents and we were all very close. To have it end the way it did just left me really angry. And just the fact that they're gone just makes me mad. It makes me mad that you couldn't just… 'Hey, man…' You know… Anger is always the reaction, but it's, really, that inside you're hurt. So it's shitty, you know what I mean? And it sucks. I miss my friendships that I had, and I've lost a lot of friendships along the way because of it. Because people…. A lot of people are hanger-ons; that's what bands call these people. They're called hanger-ons because they're only friends with you for what you can give them. And when I was no longer the singer of EXODUS, a lot of people fucking tipped away. Because now they're, like, 'Well, if I stay friends with Rob, Gary Holt's [EXODUS and SLAYER guitarist] not gonna let me into the SLAYER show.' You know what I mean? So there's a divide of the children and divide of the family and the friends. So that's the honesty of it. It's nothing personal. I know that this was a business decision; this wasn't because I was there. And the people that are making comments [on the Internet], they weren't there. They were never a part of this situation. They're commenting on something that they're only getting… It would be like making a complete decision, but you only have a third of the facts. And then you're gonna base all your decisions based on that. But you don't have all the information. You only have a third of it. You know what I mean? So there are a lot of factors.

"Look, I'm not the fucking easiest guy in the world to get along with. But at least I'm honest about it. At least I'm a dick for the right reasons. I never rolled over. If I didn't like something, I fucking said it. Like when we were on tour with TESTAMENT, and TESTAMENT was gonna give us two feet of stage room. And I fucking walked in and I tapped on the bus and then TESTAMENT wouldn't answer the door. 'Cause I'm, like, 'Fuck you! You are fucking moving your drums. You are not putting us in this fucking situation.' And I went in and I fucking… Me and the drum tech got in this big fucking argument. I'm, like, 'Fuck you, man! Move those fucking drums.' And then the fucking tour manager for MEGADETH came out and said, 'Yeah, what the fuck are you doing? Move the fucking drums! You're not gonna treat EXODUS like this. You're the fucking middle band. You're not the fucking headliner.' And I walked back on the [EXODUS] bus, and everyone… Gary and Tom [Hunting, EXODUS drummer] [were, like], 'Dude, you're the best!' And I'm like, 'No, dude. I'm just…. This is what we deserve.' You know what I mean? And I fucking knew what the fuck… who I was. So the opinion of somebody on Blabbermouth is not gonna deter me from being me; it's not gonna change the way I am."

On the music EXODUS was writing for what ended up being last year's "Blood In Blood Out" album:

"I think they thought that they could get that era from the '80s… They wanted to do this retro album and they thought that they could get that glory days from the '80s back if they… Because that was the idea, and I couldn't do that. I mean, how can you tell me that the song 'The Sun Is My Destroyer'… You're gonna tell me that… Okay, 'The Sun Is My Destroyer' is, I think, one of the best songs I ever did with EXODUS; it's a vicious fucking song. But that's the watermark for trying to do something better, not for doing something that's mediocre or less than — which I thought was… that's everything that was written after that. I think the whole new album was just slapped together and mediocre and they didn't really give a fuck. You know, it was, like, 'Hurry up and get it done.' And it wasn't passionate at all.

"Like I said, this isn't personal. This was my point of view. I was just trying to be better. You know what I mean? Challenge me. Let's do something better than 'The Sun Is My Destroyer' — not write something that's just, 'Eh.' And that's how I felt about it. Now, if other people think I'm wrong, that's okay — that's their opinion. This is my opinion of how I saw things."

Dukes joined EXODUS in January 2005 and appeared on four of the band's studio albums — "Shovel Headed Kill Machine" (2005), "The Atrocity Exhibition... Exhibit A" (2007), "Let There Be Blood" (2008, a re-recording of EXODUS' classic 1985 LP, "Bonded By Blood") and "Exhibit B: The Human Condition" (2010).

Dukes has released two studio albums with his GENERATION KILL project, 2011's "Red White And Blood" and 2013's "We're All Gonna Die".

EAGLES OF DEATH METAL, who were thrust into the headlines on November 13 when a mass shooting at the band's Paris concert left nearly 100 people dead, have released the following statement:

"While the band is now home safe, we are horrified and still trying to come to terms with what happened in France. Our thoughts and hearts are first and foremost with our brother Nick Alexander, our record company comrades Thomas Ayad, Marie Mosser and Manu Perez, and all the friends and fans whose lives were taken in Paris, as well as their friends, families, and loved ones.

"Although bonded in grief with the victims, the fans, the families, the citizens of Paris, and all those affected by terrorism, we are proud to stand together, with our new family, now united by a common goal of love and compassion.

"We would like to thank the French police, the FBI, the U.S. and French state departments, and especially all those at ground zero with us who helped each other as best they could during this unimaginable ordeal, proving once again that love overshadows evil. "All EAGLES OF DEATH METAL shows are on hold until further notice.

"Vive la musique, vive la liberté, vive la France, and vive EAGLES OF DEATH METAL."

EAGLES OF DEATH METAL's most recent album, "Zipper Down", was released in October and entered at No. 59 on The Billboard 200 and No. 14 on Top Rock Albums charts.

The video for "Zipper Down"'s first single, "Complexity", has been seen more than one and a half million times on YouTube.

EAGLES OF DEATH METAL is the California-based band founded in 1998 by QUEENS OF THE STONE AGE mainman Josh Homme and Jesse Hughes.

Despite their name, EAGLES OF DEATH METAL are not considered a "death metal" band — but rather the moniker was cooked up after a member mused aloud that their sound would be what THE EAGLES sounded like if they attempted to play death metal.

Singer Elize Ryd and guitarist Olof Mörck of Swedish metallers AMARANTHE recently spoke to Louder Noise about the band's new B-sides collection "Breaking Point", Elize's ballet skills in the "True" music video, and the status of their next album.

Speaking about AMARANTHE's upcoming follow-up to 2014's "Massive Addictive" album, Olof said: "As soon as we're done with something, we start to figure out the next level, when it comes to the live show and for the next record and that whole thing. So, absolutely, as soon as we stopped and we finished 'Massive Addictive', we started to plan the next album. So it's gonna be… It's definitely gonna be next year. I'm always a little bit careful about saying too much, because if something gets pushed back, then everyone can become really disappointed. But in terms of the release windows and how often we have releases, for us, we're not really forcing anything; it's more the opposite. We're always trying to hold back. And when we started to write for the upcoming album, it was almost a year of not writing any music. So we're really, really excited to be working on that right now."

AMARANTHE released a digital-only compilation of B-sides on October 30. "Breaking Point - B-Sides 2011-2015" features eight tracks. AMARANTHE has just returned to the U.S. on an epic headline tour with BUTCHER BABIES in tow.

LAMB OF GOD and CHILDREN OF BODOM, who are currently touring Europe together, have canceled their concert tonight (Wednesday, November 18) at 013 in Tiburg, The Netherlands. According to a statement released by the venue, "Because of the attacks on Paris last Friday that also took place in a music venue, a lot of stress is caused for bands playing in Europe. Combined with the terrorist threat that took place in Hannover, Germany last night, the bands are feeling to big a pressure to give the performance the audience is used from them and have decided to cancel their shows tonight. As of now, it is unknown if the bands will return for a replacement show later on."

FOO FIGHTERS and MOTÖRHEAD are among the bands who canceled their French concerts in the wake of last weekend's terror attacks which have left more than 120 dead.

On Saturday, the French Government declared a state of emergency, closing the nation's borders and shutting down Paris' concert halls, movie theatres, museums and public spaces until further notice.

89 people were killed at the EAGLES OF DEATH METAL show at Paris venue Bataclan, where when gunmen fired inside the venue and took concertgoers hostage. All of the bandmembers were confirmed safe after the attacks, but members of their crew were not so lucky. Merchandising manager Nick Alexander lost his life, as did Bataclan stage and lighting manager Nathalie Jardin.

Germany's soccer match against the Netherlands was called off Tuesday (November 17) after a bomb threat at Hanover's main football stadium. The area was evacuated and spectators were moved to safe areas.

Robert Williams of Metal-Rules.com conducted an interview with British black metal pioneers VENOM at this year's Fun Fun Fun Fest, which was held earlier this month in Austin, Texas. You can now watch the chat below.

Without directly mentioning VENOM INC. — the new band featuring original VENOM members Jeff "Mantas" Dunn (guitar) and Anthony "Abaddon" Bray (drums) alongside ex-VENOM bassist/vocalist Tony "Demolition Man" Dolan — VENOM guitarist Rage (a.k.a. Stuart Dixon) said: "Don't be fooled by pale imitations." VENOM bassist/vocalist Conrad "Cronos" Lant added: "Yes, indeed. Check out the real VENOM. We know that there's been some sites who've been putting our photographs and our VENOM logo up for a whole load of dates that don't have anything to do with us. VENOM play one-off shows, and that's the way we've always done it. And we like to have it as big and as best as we can. We don't do little club tours; that's never been the VENOM way. And we're trying to contact some of these sites to say, 'Look, you're misrepresenting the band. We don't know who this band is that you're talking about, but we're not coming to America to play thirty shows. Please get your shit together and sort it out.' But these web sites must just wanna put any shit on their site."

Cronos also talked about VENOM's musical evolution over the last three and a half decades. He said: "The thing is, the way I've always seen VENOM is… VENOM needs to be a band that evolves. You know, I don't wanna play the same songs fucking year after year after year. I wanna evolve this band. I wanna stay with a slightly commercial… Rock and roll has to be something that you remember, and a lot of the death metal stuff that's all based on the same sort of [fast rhythm], to me, it doesn't have a hook. And I've always found that with songs like 'Welcome To Hell', it's something that stays with you. I know people think 'commercial' is a dirty word with metal, and [they] can fuck off, because commercial just means something that stays with you, that you like, that you enjoy. And that's something that we do well. We come up with songs where you're still thinking about them weeks later, months later after you've heard them. They stick with you. They're not throwaway songs. We don't want any throwaway songs. If the song doesn't move you, and if you don't remember it, you don't wanna keep playing it in the car or wherever, then we throw it away; it's goodbye. We want the stuff that stays hardcore and evolving. You know, still being a bit controversial as well. You know, the song 'Smoke', I'm sure people didn't expect that one out of VENOM; it's a little bit different. But we've always done that. We got shit for '7 Gates Of Hell' back in the day. 'What the fuck? That's not like 'Angel Dust'.' But that's what I love about this band. We have the ability to just keep trying out new ideas and retaining that 'Black Metal' stamp. So fucking long may it continue."

VENOM's latest album, "From The Very Depths", was released on January 27 via Spinefarm.

Finnish cello rockers APOCALYPTICA performed the "Angry Birds" theme — composed by Ari Pulkkinen and arranged by APOCALYPTICA and Jonne Valtonen — live on November 10 at Slush's Midnight Game Music Concert. Check out the footage below.

APOCALYPTICA wrote and recorded the theme song for the "On Finn Ice" episode of the Angry Birds Seasons puzzle video game in the Angry Birds series, developed by Finnish computer game developer Rovio Entertainment.

Inspired primarily by a sketch of stylized wingless birds, the first Angry Birds game was released for Apple's iOS in December 2009.

Angry Birds has been praised for its successful combination of addictive gameplay, comical style, and low price. Its popularity led to versions of Angry Birds being created for personal computers and gaming consoles, a market for merchandise featuring its characters, spin-offs and television series based on the franchise, and even long-term plans for a feature film.

APOCALYPTICA's new album, "Shadowmaker", was released on April 21 via Eleven Seven Music Group's Better Noise imprint. The Finnish musicians — accompanied by their American lead singer Franky Perez — recorded the CD with Grammy Award-winning producer Nick Raskulinecz (FOO FIGHTERS, DEFTONES, MASTODON).

QUEENSRŸCHE is featured in the latest episode of Digital Tour Bus's "Bus Invaders", which takes you inside the touring vehicle of one of today's top touring acts. The footage was shot on September 26 in Rosemont, Illinois.

QUEENSRŸCHE's new album, "Condition Hüman", debuted at No. 27 on The Billboard 200 chart, having shifted 14,000 equivalent album units in the week ending October 8.

The Billboard 200 ranks the most popular albums of the week based on multi-metric consumption, which includes traditional album sales, track equivalent albums (TEA) and streaming equivalent albums (SEA).

"Condition Hüman" was released on October 2 via Century Media. The CD was recorded in part at at Uberbeatz Studio in Washington with producer Chris "Zeuss" Harris, who has previously worked with ROB ZOMBIE, HATEBREED, SOULFLY and SHADOWS FALL.

TWISTED SISTER frontman Dee Snider made a surprise appearance at BARENAKED LADIES' November 13 concert at Toronto, Ontario, Canada's Massey Hall to perform the TWISTED SISTER classic "We're Not Gonna Take It".

In the fan-filmed video footage below, you can see BARENAKED LADIES playing the first few bars of "We're Not Gonna Take It", only to be interrupted by Snider, who strolled onto the stage in mock outrage, pretending to be upset about not being invited to perform his song.

Snider's holiday rock musical "Dee Snider's Rock & Roll Christmas Tale" had a two-month run last year at the Broadway Playhouse in Chicago and is at Toronto's Winter Garden Theater this holiday season (November 17 - January 3). "Dee Snider's Rock & Roll Christmas Tale" tells the story of DÄISY CÜTTER, a heavy metal bar band looking to make it big even though the '80s are long over. This year, these four guys are ready to take the ultimate step and, in mythic rock tradition, sell their souls to the devil in exchange for success beyond their wildest metal dreams! But every time they try to seal the infernal pact, their headbanging anthems turn into warm-hearted carols. Soon these rockers are forced to realize their dreams of stardom are no match for the Christmas spirit.

Snider, who appears in the show as both the narrator and exorcist, says: "It's about a band that has a dream and is giving it everything they've got for that dream, and also recognizing that sometimes we overlook all the great things we have in our life."

Finland-based symphonic metal masters NIGHTWISH have sold out their biggest U.K. show to date. They will headline the 12,000-capacity Wembley Arena on the December 19 — making history as the first Finnish band to ever headline the venue.

NIGHTWISH's Tuomas Holopainen comments: "The Wembley Arena show will surely be the most fantastic finale to this ongoing European tour. 'Sold Out Wembley' — a phrase from every musician's dreamland, THANK YOU!"

The "Endless Forms Most Beautiful" world tour kicked off in April this year in North America and the band has played sold-out shows in the U.S., Canada, South America and throughout Europe. The 2016 leg of the tour sees the band head to Australia, Asia and North America once again with a main-stage slot also announced for Donington's Download festival in June.

NIGHTWISH recently released a strictly limited (no reprints!) special tour edition of its current album, "Endless Forms Most Beautiful". The tour edition comes with a bonus DVD of live performances, documentary footage and promo videos as well as a huge photo gallery.

NIGHTWISH has announced a 26-date headlining tour of North America for 2016, launching in Sayreville, New Jersey on February 19, hitting six Canadian cities plus Pittsburgh, Anaheim, and New Orleans, then closing out in Tampa, Florida on March 23. Support on the tour will come from Dutch symphonic metallers DELAIN.

"Endless Forms Most Beautiful" was made available on March 27 in Europe and March 31 in the U.S. via Nuclear Blast.

The cover artwork for "Endless Forms Most Beautiful" was created by the band's longtime collaborator Toxic Angel. Famed evolutionary biologist and atheist writer/leader Richard Dawkins appears as a guest on the effort.

Longtime NIGHTWISH drummer Jukka Nevalainen sat out the recording sessions for "Endless Forms Most Beautiful" due to health issues. He has since been replaced by Kai Hahto (WINTERSUN, SWALLOW THE SUN, TREES OF ETERNITY).

Mercury Records international product manager Thomas Ayad, who has worked with METALLICA, was among the victims in Friday's (November 13) gun and bomb attacks in Paris, when 129 people were killed.

Said METALLICA in a statement: "We had great fortune to work with Thomas Ayad at Universal Music France for the past eight years and while Thomas had the official title of being our 'project manager,' we knew him as a member of our METALLICA family, a fan, a friend… and a warm, helpful, supportive familiar face each time we visited France. Friday we lost Thomas, at the Bataclan theatre, in a way that none of us can begin to comprehend. Our thoughts are with Thomas' friends, family, co-workers and all Parisians during these very difficult times."

The photo of METALLICA frontman James Hetfield and Ayad below was taken on November 9, 2011 at the "Taratata" TV show.

Throughout his career, Ayad worked with dozens of musicians all over the world, including pop superstar Justin Bieber and THE ROLLING STONES legend Keith Richards, both of whom paid tribute to Ayad in messages, remembering him and thanking him for the work he did.

"Still thinking about Paris and my friend Thomas that we lost in the tragedy," Bieber wrote Monday night. "He was part of the team for years and I wish I would've taken the time to thank him."

Richards uploaded a photo of him and Ayad and offered "heartfelt condolences."

According to Entertainment Weekly, Universal Music Group CEO Lucian Grainge confirmed Ayad's death in a statement on Saturday. He said: "This is an unspeakably appalling tragedy. On behalf of everyone here at UMG, we extend our most profound sympathies to his parents and all of his friends and family."

Ayad was part of the team working at the EAGLES OF DEATH METAL show at Paris venue Bataclan, where 89 people were killed when gunmen fired inside the venue and took concertgoers hostage. All of the bandmembers were confirmed safe after the attacks, but members of their crew were not so lucky. Merchandising manager Nick Alexander lost his life, as did Bataclan stage and lighting manager Nathalie Jardin.

Acclaimed hard rock vocalist David VanLanding was killed early Tuesday morning (November 17) in a collision with a garbage truck in Clearwater, Florida.

VanLanding's good friend, QUEENSRŸCHE singer Todd La Torre, said: "I am beyond devastated to learn that one of my best friends, David VanLanding, has passed away [Tuesday] from a car accident. He was full of life, love, and laughter. He is notably known for singing with Michael Schenker, and has a lifelong professional music career, but those who knew him best know him as a loving friend, husband, and sibling. My deepest condolences to his wife and family."

VanLanding had done several tours with MICHAEL SCHENKER GROUP and had a short stint with CRIMSON GLORY. His last run with MSG took place in 2012, a 44-day, 31-city trek that VanLanding said "turned out to be one of the most rewarding tours of my career."

VanLanding once said: "I would rather play for 75 enthusiastic people than 750 standing there with the thumb in their butt."

Falun, Sweden’s blackened death metal one-man project Necrosavant has signed a deal with Kolony Records. Necrosavant’s debut album Aniara MMXIV, a 45-minute epos based on the 1956’s epic sci-fi poem Aniara: A Review Of Man In Time And Space (original title: Aniara: en revy om människan i tid och rum) by Harry Martinson, will be released at the beginning of 2016.  
 
Aniara MMXIV features, besides Necrosavant (Jonas Martinsson (Majalis, Me The Tiger)), special guests Tobias Netzell (In Mourning, Majalis, Thenighttimeproject, ex-October Tide), Alexander Högbom (October Tide, Centinex, Moondark, Volturyon, Spasmodic), Daniel Jansson (Ikhon, Majalis) and recitation by Gabriella Åström (Me The Tiger). The production is written, all instruments played, recorded, mixed and mastered by Necrosavant (Jonas Martinsson) and may appeal to fans of Behemoth, Decapitated and so forth.

Commented mastermind Jonas Martinsson: “My fascination for Harry Martinson’s amazing space poem Aniara: A Review Of Man In Time And Space from 1956 inspired me to the point that I interpreted and composed music to it, in my own and unique way. Already in the mid-1950s, Harry Martinson wrote about that human existence and our destiny is in our own hands. That we must break our destructive behaviors for our own and our planet's sake. That we must begin to realize the consequences of our actions. The poem may be just a poem, but if we do not do something about ours and others actions, this planet will go straight to hell. This composition is a lamentation from the perspective where one foot is in the Harry Martinson’s brilliance, and the other foot in my personal musical fusion on the basis of the genre blackened death metal. My version and interpretation is entitled Aniara MMXIV. 

“I started this project in 2014 and I finished now, a year later. It is no news to compose music to this poem. However, it has not been made in this unique way. I have written and recorded everything myself and I play all the instruments, and I have invited fantastic guests.
The unexpected mixture of poetry and dark metal music was shown to be so unique that Kolony Records hooked and wanted to release the album, physical and digital world-wide.
I see this as my way to preserve and convey a cultural treasure, but in a new way. I think everyone should read Aniara.”

Line-up:

Jonas Martinsson / Necrosavant – vocals and all instruments

Special guests:

Tobias Netzell - vocals
Alexander Högbom - vocals
Daniel Jansson - vocals 
Gabriella Åström - recitation



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Voodoo Circle, the classic hard rock band led by Primal Fear guitarist Alex Beyrodt, will release its fourth studio album Whisky Fingers on November 27th. The group has released an audio video for the new song “Heart Of Stone” below:

Whiskey Fingers will be available as CD, digipak, colored vinyl, and box set (including digipak and whisky glass).

Tracklisting:

“Trapped In Paradise”
“Heartbreaking Woman”
“Watch And Wait (I Got My Eye On You)”
“Medicine Man”
“The Day The Walls Came Down”
“Heart Of Stone”
“Straight Shooter”
“The Rhythm Of My Heart”
“Devil Takes Me Down”
“5 O’Clock”
“Been Said And Done”

Digipak bonus tracks:
“Coming Home To You”
“Trapped In Paradise” (video clip)

Voodoo Circle is:

Alex Beyrodt - guitars
David Readman - lead vocals
Francesco Jovino - drums
Alessandro del Vecchio - keyboards, vocals
Mat Sinner - bass, vocals



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Toronto's Diemonds have released a video for the song "Ain't That Kinda Girl", which appears on their new album, Never Wanna Die. Filmed DIY by guitarist C.C. Diemond, the clip follows vocalist Priya Panda around Las Vegas as she makes her mark on The Pinball Hall Of Fame, Fremont Street, and so much more.

To read BraveWords scribe Nick Balazs' review of Never Wanna Die, click here.

 

 

 



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German sludge/death/thrash band Disbelief are currently pre-producing their upcoming album and recently entered the Perle Am Rhein Studio in Andernach, Germany to record two songs live.

They plan to enter the studio in late summer 2016 to record the new album, which has the working title Full Of Terrors.
 
It will be darker, yet more melodic than previous albums, stated the band. They also plan to use various details, such as samples or faster passages.

The band has revealed the names of two songs, “Symbol Of Death” and “The Unsuspecting” with a late 2016 release date set via Massacre Records.

Album teaser:



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