In a new interview with Scott Penfold of Loaded Radio, founding DROWNING POOL guitarist C.J. Pierce discussed the progress of the songwriting sessions for the new music that he and his longtime bandmates — drummer Mike Luce and bassist Stevie Benton — have been working on with singer Ryan McCombs. He said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "We just got done recording in [Las] Vegas about two weeks ago, and it's getting mixed right now. So we do have three new ideas that we can't wait to get out. We're hoping to get them out here summertime, shooting for like June 15th. But things just take a little extra time, between touring schedule and life and family. Plus, we're not trying to rush anything. We're taking our time and writing what we feel and making sure it's good to go for everybody to hear it. So it's right there, man. It's pretty much just about done."

Pierce went on to say that he and his DROWNING POOL bandmates are once again working with producer Shawn McGhee. "He has his own studio," C.J. explained. "We did the last record with him as well. We did [2022's] 'Strike A Nerve' [with him]. And he's just a great guy to work with. He's on the same page as us and a great friend and a great musician and a killer producer and mixer. So, we love working with Shawn. He really knows how to capture what we're trying to do, man. That's the kind of producer you want. We put him in a driver's seat and somebody you can trust to have that outside ear to take what we have already and elevate it.

"I'm excited, man," Pierce added. "We're super excited, man. I was hoping to get out sooner, but right place and right time for everything. And it's right there, man. It's almost done."

Asked what fans can expect from the new DROWNING POOL music, Pierce said: "It just came out naturally. We just started writing. We were all excited to be together again. And we never try to be that kind of band to [go], like, 'Okay, let's write 'Bodies Part Two' or 'Sinner Part Two'. We just write what we feel. And then this came out naturally just to have that 'Sinner' record foundation with Ryan singing on it, man. It's probably the closest thing we've had that's like that, that's a good blend of us and Ryan and stuff from the Dave Williams [original DROWNING POOL singer] days. And it came naturally and organically and, dude, it's slamming. I'm excited to be playing these new songs coming up here shortly within the next few weeks."

Regarding what it has been like having Ryan step back into the band and if that familiarity was there again, C.J. said: "Yeah, it was there like that and then some, man, 'cause we're all different people. And getting to know all of us, the new us — new and improved, hopefully.

"We just did the [Welcome To] Rockville festival, and just to see friends say that, 'cause people are just now seeing us with Ryan again," he continued. "[People are telling us], 'Man, I can just tell you guys are having so much fun with it. It's awesome to see you guys'. You can tell when a band's up there doing it for real. There's no going through motions with us. And we're having fun with it."

Two months ago, Pierce told Tulsa Music Stream about the new DROWNING POOL music: "It's the first time we have new music with Ryan McCombs in 13 years. And everything's organic and natural. We just started jamming and it just came out like that. It's not trying to push anything or any agenda. We just had this great writing relationship, and it was awesome to click like that again, especially with everybody in the band. Before we finish up the lyrics and all the singing, we're all sat down at the table and bounce ideas off each other to finetune the songs. It's awesome to work with my brothers like that, to have that kind of relationship where everybody has some input and say into it. So when the song comes out, all four of us love what we do with it."

Asked if he and his bandmates usually discuss where they want their new music to go or if they just generally stick to a tried-and-tested formula, Pierce said: "It's actually none of those things at all. Sorry. The answer is none of the above. I mean, some people, they approach it like that. I know some bands have the songwriter in the band or two guys writing everything, and some people don't. I love the fact that we all just get in a room and jam. It's a feeling thing. Music's expressing what's going on at the time. So, the way ideas usually come up with us in DROWNING POOL, it's just, 'Hey, man, I have this feeling, this idea. What do you think about this or this subject matter?' If something comes up, like, 'We should write something about that.' It's different. It's not really a set formula. We need to sound like this; we need to sound like that."

He continued: "It was unfortunate that we lost Dave Williams in 2002 from cardiomyopathy, but it also allowed us to work with other singers. They all have their own style and where they fit within the music Mike, Stevie and I write, So that was also fun. I wouldn't say challenge as much as just coming up with you feel and then see how it works with the strong points of the singer that's singing to it as well. So it just comes up. Everything's, again, whatever you feel at the time; that's what we write. It's never been trying to follow the trend, which is I'm fine with bands that do that or trying to fit in here and there. We try to keep it a hundred percent original."

Pierce added: "There's a few bands out there that have that formula — like AC/DC, as an example — and that works for them and that probably works for them to stick with it. With us, we've kind of been all over the board with, obviously, singer changes and stuff. But everybody knows 'Bodies'. And that's the core sound of what we have anyway. And the excitement of Ryan coming back in the band with the new songs that we have are equal to, if not more jamming than, 'Bodies'. And not intentional, like 'we have to like write a 'Bodies Part Two'' or another song [like that]. It's we just have that fire again. So it just comes out like that."

Earlier in April, Pierce spoke to Pierre Gutiérrez of Rock Talks about how the new DROWNING POOL music compares to "Strike A Nerve", the band's first record in seven years, which came out in September 2022 via T-Boy/UMe. It marked the band's third album with singer Jasen Moreno, who joined DROWNING POOL in 2012. Asked if the material is "more balanced" than "Strike A Nerve", C.J. said: "I wouldn't say more balanced. With Jasen Moreno on the last couple of records, we just started going up a heavy thing. Plus our career, just things that were going on at that time — I write what's going on in my life at the time; it's art, it's music — and just things were getting more intense with Jasen. Not just Jasen, but the music business, everything. So the music got intense as well, as you hear. And then with Ryan back in here, we still have that same intention, but Ryan brings a different kind of aspect and the delivery to the songs. There's definitely the style that we had on the two records we did with Ryan that's there, but we still have that heaviness going on as well. So it's definitely the heaviest stuff we've done with Ryan, for sure. So it's all heavy, brother. There's definitely a few songs that may be… We had '37 Stitches' and songs like that with Ryan. We have one or two songs that are kind of more in that mellow zone with him as well that we're working on. But, yeah, the last few records, we were pretty much just slamming, just full-on super-heavy stuff, man, which I enjoy as well. So you're gonna get a mix of it. I feel like with Ryan, we can get more of a mix of styles in there as well… It's intense, man. It's intense music. That's what we write."

McCombs played his first shows back with DROWNING POOL in March 2023 at Club L.A. in Destin, Florida and at the inaugural Throwdown At The Campground festival in Fruitland Park, Florida.

The longtime SOIL frontman, who has lived in Swindon, England since 2018, originally joined DROWNING POOL in 2005 and appeared on two of the band's studio albums, "Full Circle" (2007) and "Drowning Pool" (2010),as well as a live album, 2009's "Loudest Common Denominator". He rejoined SOIL after exiting DROWNING POOL in 2011.

McCombs is continuing to front SOIL and will carry on recording and performing with both bands.

DROWNING POOL's debut album, "Sinner", was certified platinum within six weeks of its release in 2001, while the CD's first single, "Bodies", was one of the most frequently aired videos on MTV by a new band. DROWNING POOL reached out to an ever-greater audience with dynamic performances at Wrestlemania XVIII and Ozzfest during the summers of 2001 and 2002. Unfortunately, their streak of success was not to last. Shortly after rousing the crowd at Ozzfest in Indianapolis, Indiana, on August 3, 2002, vocalist Dave "Stage" Williams was found dead of natural causes on the tour bus.

Photo credit: Tricia Starr Photography (courtesy of
O'Donnell Media Group)

At last month's Slam Dunk festival, ASKING ALEXANDRIA bassist Sam Bettley was asked by James Wilson-Taylor of Rock Sound about the recent departure of the band's founding guitarist Ben Bruce. He said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "Well, we have Paul Bartolome. He's been playing with us for a year now. He's been playing guitar. It's been awesome to tour with him. He's a great guy. He's another British lad.

"Yeah, as weird as it's been without Ben, we still speak to Ben every day," he explained. "So that dynamic is only really — for me, it's just different as soon as we hit stage.

"I don't know if you noticed, but we run around a lot on stage. So there's a lot less bumping into each other now that Ben's not here."

Bettley previously discussed Bruce's departure from ASKING ALEXANDRIA this past February in an interview with El Planeta Del Rock. At the time, he said: "Here's the thing: we're all brothers, and we've been brothers since, it's been 15 years now. And when we started doing this, obviously we were all young and we were kids, really. And throughout the years, we've all got families. We've all got kids. I've got two boys — four and about to be two — and he's got a family and he's got kids. And if there's one thing that we always said, it was always put family first. And if you're feeling there's certain things and reasons that I don't wanna go into — it's not my place to go into — but it's just a no-brainer. He's staying home just to be with his family for a bit, and we still speak to him all the time, and he's still like just as much of a brother to all of us, and it's just not as big of a deal to us, because we've kind of known about his feelings of this for a while. We've done a few tours without Ben, actually, recently too, because of these reasons of him needing to be at home with his family. So to us, it's gonna be definitely weird and different to be on stage without Ben, for sure, but I will be definitely speaking to him and seeing him just as much as I ever did. There's no bad blood there. We all have families, so for us to put ourselves in his shoes and he's our brother, we get it. And much love and respect there."

Bruce formed ASKING ALEXANDRIA in 2006 and has played on all of the British band's eight studio albums, including ASKING ALEXANDRIA's latest full-length release, 2023's "Where Do We Go From Here?" A new ASKING ALEXANDRIA EP, "Dark Void", arrived last month.

In a message posted on Instagram on January 19, the guitarist thanked the ASKING ALEXANDRIA fans for their "years of love and support" before explaining that "it's time to dedicate my life to my family. On top of family medical situations, leaving my children means missing out on too many important moments in their lives."

Ben's full statement read as follows:

"To my amazing AA family,

"First and foremost, I want to say thank you to everyone for the years of love and support. It means more to me than you can imagine.

"I've spent my entire life dedicated to music. It's been my first love since about the age of 2 and the journey I've been on has been absolutely incredible. As I've grown older and my life has inevitably changed, I have come to realize how precious time is. The time I have spent with all of you has been the time of my life. But now it's time to dedicate my life to my family.

"On top of family medical situations, leaving my children means missing out on too many important moments in their lives. It's so important for me to be there for them as they grow, and to be here for my family as they need me to be, which means, after a lot of thought, I will be stepping away from ASKING ALEXANDRIA.

"Thank you to everyone who has come and seen me play live and listened to the songs I've written over the years. The memories will love on in my heart forever. I truly love you all so much for the years of support you've given me and ASKING ALEXANDRIA. Thank you from the bottom of my heart."

Bruce had been the lead guitarist, backing vocalist and primary songwriter of ASKING ALEXANDRIA since the band's inception nearly two decades ago.

ASKING ALEXANDRIA recently announced the second leg of their successful headlining "All My Friends" U.S. tour. Produced by Live Nation, the trek will kick off Tuesday, September 24 in Sioux Falls, South Dakota and wrap Saturday, November 2 in Chico, California. The band has invited returning special guests MEMPHIS MAY FIRE and THE WORD ALIVE along with opening act ARCHERS.

On the 22nd anniversary of the death of legendary Ratt guitarist Robbinson Lantz "Robbin" Crosby (June 6th, 2002) at the young age of 42, we revisit last year’s Streaming For Vengeance conversation with singer Stephen Pearcy, as he recalls getting signed by Atlantic Years and walking into the major label offices of their new home with Crosby.  


Pearcy recalls: "What was going through my head - I have to say Robbin too - because we were both like, 'Fuckin' eh!'. This is where Led Zeppelin and The Rolling Stones are at, I think we're happy! I mean, no complaints! What is this BMI (Broadcast Music Inc.)? ASCAP (American Society of Composers, Authors, and Publishers)? Ok, they're BMI, we're going to go there. So yeah, interesting."


BraveWords: But Atlantic must have been happy. They just signed a band with the songs, with the looks, with the attitude, and, most importantly the sales, big time. So, you guys were golden boys. 




Pearcy: "Yeah. You can say that. We worked our asses off, and if it wasn't for Beau Hill instigating ‘Round And Round’ - he was just, 'What do you guys got?'. And we were like, 'Well, we got this song and that song', and when he heard ‘Round And Round’, he was like, 'What's that?'. We were like, 'Oh, it's just a song we have in this set, and it's not quite there', it didn't have the bridge. So, thank you, Beau, for coming in the picture. Because he was a staff producer and the deal was that Doug Morris, President of the label, would sign us only if he was producing. Now, that tale is told, and I don't know how much truth there is there. I'd have to ask Beau Hill. But I loved working with Beau Hill. My drummer, (Bobby) Blotzer, was out there doing some interviews and he's saying some things, speaking for us, Ratt, and I don't agree. I get along great with Beau Hill. He actually mixed and mastered some music of mine over the years, I love him. I mean, he and I created my sound, how we record my voice, the whole schematics of me, you know? My delivery. So, we walk into Atlantic and we were, yeah, quite happy. But I gotta tell you, and Warren hasn't said this in any interview, but it's true, we were one of the last bands to be signed, believe it or not. I mean you got an independent EP selling 100,000 units, and people started taking notice. After we did Santa Monica Civic that was pretty much it. It was like, 'Time for lift-off', you know? Ok, you need a record deal. We were the last to be signed on, if you want to say that."

(Photos by MissTruthAdare)

Norwegian band, Shining, have released a live video for "The Madness And The Damage Done", featuring Emperor legend, Ihsahn.


The track is taken from the Blackjazz Live At The Heavy Water Plant concert film and CD. Watch the video below, and get your signed copy of this exclusive limited edition release, here.







Tracklisting:


Intro
"The Madness And The Damage Done"
"Fisheye"
"Exit Sun"
"HEALTER SKELTER"
"The Madness And The Damage Done (Part 2)"
"Blackjazz Deathtrance"
"Omen"
"21st Century Schizoid Man"
"The Madness And The Damage Done" (feat. Ihsahn)
"RMGDN" outro

Following the success of their previous five singles, Canadian roots rock band The Commoners are pleased to announce the June 7th release of “Shake You Off” – the final single taken from their highly anticipated third studio album, Restless. The album will be released by Gypsy Soul Records on July 5th 2024, and is available to pre-order at this location.


From Friday June 7th, “Shake You Off” will be available on all major streaming platforms and promises to be a heartfelt celebration to The Commoners’ ever-evolving musical journey. The single is available here. 


Gutsy guitar and driving percussion push “Shake You Off” from the speakers, initiating a gripping track that will have heads bobbing from start to finish. Punchy bass and searing organ pierce the arrangement, rousing listeners to a fever pitch as The Commoners attempt to break loose from restraints.







Having wrapped up a bustling 2023 filled with recording sessions and a UK tour alongside Grammy-nominated duo Samantha Fish and Jesse Dayton, The Commoners have solidified their position as a must-watch act.


The release of Restless will mark the quintet’s return to the road in 2024, with numerous festivals in the UK and EU, including Made Of Stone, Steelhouse, and Moulin Blues Festivals, already scheduled for this summer. From the speakers to the stage, one thing is certain: The Commoners are spearheading a party rock renaissance, and the audience is cordially invited.


A natural evolution from their 2022 album Find A Better Way, the forthcoming album Restless offers a peek behind the curtain of success, revealing the gruelling routines and ragged emotions that hide behind the glamorous aesthetic of a rock band on the rise. With introspective, slower-tempo numbers pocketed amongst rip-roaring anthems, the new album, recorded at RHC Music in Toronto, is a portrait of a hardworking group revitalising a classic genre.


“As with our previous album, we wanted to marry old and new southern rock together in a way that was unique to the band’s Canadian roots,” says The Commoners guitarist and producer Ross Hayes Citrullo. “By adding the soul and rock elements of The Black Crowes, and the southern blues rock undertones of The Allman Brothers to a production style akin to Blackberry Smoke and Rival Sons, I think we developed an authentic sound that compares sonically to some of our favourite records across all of those music genres.”





Tracklisting:


"Devil Teasin’ Me" 
"Shake You Off" 
"The Way I Am" 
"Restless" 
"Gone Without Warning" 
"Who Are You (Ain't Knocked Down)" 
"Body And Soul" 
"See You Again"
"Too Soon To Know You" 
"All That We Have" 














For further details, visit The Commoners on Facebook.


(Photo by Paul Wright)


 

The Black Lodge Records family has announced that a deal has been inked with Bombus and the release of their fifth full-length album, Your Blood, is due out later this year.


With this album, Bombus ventures down a somewhat different path than before, marking the dawn of a fresh musical chapter. Yet fans need not worry; the essence of the band remains intact. Your Blood is classic Bombus with a twist—a blend of heavy metal and classic rock, layered with modern elements that reveal a band expanding their sonic horizons. While introducing a more melodic side not previously featured, the band's core sound—heavy, raw, and unmistakably Bombus—persists.


"We decided early to record Your Blood ourselves, without external influences," the band explains. This self-reliance allowed for a meticulous and unhurried recording process, with each member deeply involved. The production, handled by Petter Lithvall at Stigbergstudion, achieves a dynamic sound—thick, beefy bottoms, crispy highs, and punchy mids—all while maintaining clarity and space.




Still resonating with the band's foundational influences like WASP, Motörhead, and Metallica, Your Blood introduces hints of Sisters of Mercy and Queens of the Stone Age, merging with a classic rock vibe. The result is a Bombus that feels familiar yet refreshingly new, embodying what could be described as "metal 'n' roll."


Since its inception in 2008, Bombus has built a formidable presence in the Scandinavian rock scene. Their self-titled debut in 2010 set the stage, followed by The Poet And The Parrot (2013), Repeat Until Death (2016), and Vulture Culture (2019). Each album solidified the band's reputation, and Your Blood will continue this legacy with a bold new twist.


Your Blood is not just an album where Bombus successfully melds past heaviness with a new, melodic edge. It’s a testament to their ability to evolve while staying true to their roots. Prepare for a powerful display of metal 'n' roll, as Bombus delivers Your Blood with intensity and purpose.


(Photo – Jonas Andersson)

On July 5, 2024, Finnish death metal outfit Cryptic Hatred will release their highly anticipated second full-length, Internal Torment, via Time To Kill Records.


Today, the deathsters have shared "Mesmerized By The Malignant Gaze”, a brutal new single and harbinger of things to come.


The band commented: “‘Mesmerized By The Malignant Gaze’ is the perfect Cryptic Hatred song, as it combines multiple different genres and inspirations creating this fierce, groovy but atmospheric song. This song is definitely one of the highlights of the album for us!"




Inarguably the band’s most diverse work to date, Internal Torment ventures far beyond the conventions of old school death metal, without surrendering an ounce of viciousness. Strong nuances of doom and creepy melodies can be heard throughout the record’s ten tracks concluding fittingly with a suffocating wall of sound that leaves its listeners bruised, battered, and shaken.


The album highlights the band’s surgical and intuitive take on death metal mechanics - yet also channels eerie atmospheres and dimensions through moments of tension and tranquility, coexisting in a fragile balance. Between riffs born of primal rage, to melodies seemingly from other worlds, Internal Torment is an album that delivers on all levels of darkness in uncanny and transcendental ways. 


Preorder on Bandcamp.





Tracklisting:


“Death Is Upon You”
“Breeding Of Evil”
“Chasm Of Void”
“Homicidal Intentions”
“Mesmerized By The Malignant Gaze”
“Tomb Of Desecration”
“Mauled To Flesh”
“Beyond Hatred”
“The Passage”
“Internal Torment”


"Mesmerized By The Malignant Gaze":





“Homicidal Intentions” video:

"867-5309/Jenny" was a #4 Billboard 200 hit for Tommy Tutone, lifted from his Tommy Tutone 2 album, released in 1981 via Columbia Records. The track went on to reach #1 on the Rock Top Tracks chart in April 1982.


Van Halen singer, David Lee Roth, has shared his take on the song, releasing the new visualizer below:







Roth previously shared the video below, performing a portion of Steely Dan's "My Old School", featured on the band's 1973 album, Countdown To Ecstasy. Roth's clip features animation by Ramses Rios, TheArtOfRamses.com.

Sony Music is reportedly in talks to acquire the catalog of iconic British rock act Queen, reports Music Business Worldwide.


That’s according to Bloomberg, which published an article on Wednesday (May 29) citing sources as saying that Sony is currently “working with another investor” on a transaction that “could potentially total $1 billion”.


Bloomberg added that the negotiations “are ongoing and may not result in an agreement” but that a potential deal would include “merchandising and other business opportunities”.




Queen’s catalog features megahits like "Killer Queen"," Bohemian Rhapsody", "Another One Bites The Dust" and many more.


News of Sony’s reported talks to acquire Queen’s catalog arrives a year after Music Business Worldwide broke the news (in May 2023) that discussions were happening between Queen’s representatives and certain companies over a potential $1 billion-plus catalog sale.


That catalog, they reported, combined both publishing and recorded music rights, all jointly and equally owned by the band’s surviving ‘classic’ line-up (Brian May, Roger Taylor, John Deacon) plus the estate of Freddie Mercury.


Read more at Music Business Worldwide.

Montreal, QC’s World On Alert has announced the release of their progressive and thrashy self-titled debut EP, alongside the premiere of the music video for their powerful new single “Insecurities” via BraveWords! This highly anticipated project features a unique blend of personal introspection and diverse musical influences, crafted by Gino LaPosta with the collaboration of several talented guest musicians. 


LaPosta comments on the single:


“‘Insecurities’ was a track I had going on for a long time. I had almost every riff on this track written almost six years ago. I just never found any place to really put it. Musically, it has a darker tone. Also, progressive, with a thrashier ending. Lyrically, this is about my struggles with shyness which stopped me from completing many life experiences. But then breaking out of that shyness to finally be who I am.”




The single dives deep into LaPosta's personal battles with introversion and self-assertion, themes also explored in “Alone With My Thoughts”. Justyn Vynn's evocative vocals and guitar work bring an added layer of intensity to the track. The accompanying music video visually captures the raw emotion and transformative journey detailed in the song.





During the pandemic, when live performances were halted, Gino LaPosta took the opportunity to focus on creating music in his studio. This EP is a testament to his ability to draw from personal experiences and collaborate with a network of talented friends and family. This debut offering is recommended for fans of Dream Theater, Rush, and Tool.


Due out on June 28, the EP is available for preorder on Bandcamp.


Tracklisting:


“Freedom In Disguise” feat. Max Rex (CroMagnum), Nick Amalfi, Alex Walsh
“Insecurities” feat. Justyn Vynn (Orchad), Alex Walsh
“They Came From The Pleiades” feat. Costa Skoulikas (Mutank), Alex Walsh
“Alone With My Thoughts” feat. Justyn Vynn (Orchad), Alex Walsh
“The War Inside” feat. John Vincelli (Void Within), Costa Skoulikas (Mutank), Armen Apekian (Ashes Of Eden), Alex Walsh


(Photo – Jonathan Senecal)

In a new interview with Total Guitar magazine, Kerry King spoke about the fact that SLAYER's upcoming reunion shows were announced just days after he revealed the details of his solo band and debut solo album, "From Hell I Rise". He said: "It caught me off guard too. Do I wish the timing was different? Absolutely, but that's completely out of my hands."

King went on to say that fans shouldn't get their hopes up about a full-scale SLAYER reunion.

"Everyone thinks SLAYER are getting back together, but that couldn't be further from the truth," he explained. "We've been turning down gigs ever since we stopped. This one came and I thought, 'If we're ever going to do one, this could be cool because it's the five-year anniversary of our final tour.'

"We're not going to record anymore," he added. "That final tour was definitely our final tour. This is just a reason to have some fun the guys, play a few shows and then jump back in the coffin…"

Earlier this month, King was asked by Jonathan Clarke, host of "Out Of The Box" on Q104.3, New York's classic rock station, about how SLAYER's upcoming reunion shows came about, five years since the completion of what was being billed as the band's farewell tour. He responded: "I'll put it in the perspective everybody can understand. We've been turning down offers since beginning of 2020, pandemic and all. And then it started getting near the five-year anniversary of us stopping playing, so I'm, like, 'You know what? This is a three-show package. I think it would be fun to do.' It's kind of a five-year anniversary of our last tour. We're never gonna tour again — it ain't gonna happen. We're never gonna record again; that's not gonna happen either. But to do commemorative shows, I think that's kind of fun. I don't have to be married to it for a long time. Kids don't have to worry about it coming around on tour because we said we wouldn't. There's not a whole lot of weird diabolical shit going on here. I think people have just gotta say, 'Hey, it's anniversary celebration shows.' That's gonna be the end of it."

Kerry previously discussed the SLAYER comeback last month in an interview with Andrew Daly of ClassicRockHistory.com. Asked for about his outlook on the reunion shows, he said: "It's not really much different at all. It's the same heads, same cabs, same pedals, same guitars. You know, there will be a lot of fire when SLAYER plays, and I think, yeah, those shows will just be fun. It'll be fun to play with Gary Holt [SLAYER guitarist] for a few gigs; I haven't seen him in almost five years, so that will be cool. And it'll be cool to get together with Tom Araya [SLAYER bassist/vocalist] and spit some hate out at people, but don't get used to this being a yearly event."

Earlier last month, King was asked by SiriusXM's "Trunk Nation With Eddie Trunk" if he thinks SLAYER's upcoming dates will have a positive or negative impact on the promotional efforts "From Hell I Rise", which arrived on May 17 via Reigning Phoenix Music. He responded: "I see it both ways. We've [SLAYER] been turning down [reunion] offers for the last four years. Unfortunately, when the right offer came around, this one, it was right as my project was releasing. So there's certainly people, like my management and booking agents, who say, 'Oh, that's great. It's gonna boost your solo thing.' And I'm, like, 'Well, I don't know the business side of it, but it is what it is.' And every time I talk about it to journalists and magazines and stuff, I say, 'Listen, SLAYER is not gonna make another record. SLAYER is never gonna tour again.' May SLAYER do a one-off here or there? Maybe. I told my [solo] band when [the SLAYER reunion shows] came up, I'm, like, 'Listen, this is a blip on the radar to me. This isn't a solo project that's gonna recycle musicians every record cycle. You guys are with me till you don't wanna be.'"

Asked if he envisions SLAYER as the type of thing where the band will do one or two shows a year when a great opportunity comes up, Kerry said: "I'm not even talking yearly. I'm, like, every two years, every three years, every five years. I don't know. 'Cause I'm gonna be super busy with [my solo band] once 2025 rolls around."

On the topic of whether he has spoken to Araya since SLAYER's reunion shows were announced, Kerry said: "I'll tell you the truth, 'cause you know that's how I roll. No, we haven't. But you know what's weird about that? It's not weird. [Laughs]"

He continued: "We'll go probably rehearse off and on for a couple weeks [before the first show], 'cause even though me and [SLAYER drummer] Paul [Bostaph, who is also in Kerry's solo band] will be sharp from playing, playing with different people, you've gotta get sharp together."

Elaborating on his belief that SLAYER's comeback shows will not lead into a full-fledged reunion for the legendary thrash metal act, Kerry said: "The way I look at it, and when I tell you this, it puts it into perspective for a lot of people, I see it as three five-year anniversary shows of our last tour."

Five years after SLAYER played the last concert of what was being billed as the band's farewell tour and just weeks after the SLAYER guitarist unveiled the details of his solo project, Kerry and his longtime bandmates announced that they will play at the Aftershock, Riot Fest and Louder Than Life festivals in September and October.

King also talked about the SLAYER reunion while speaking to Revolver magazine about "From Hell I Rise". Asked if he had known about these shows well before they were officially announced, King said: "If you ask promoters, they're going to have another answer. If you ask booking agents, they'll probably have a third answer. But to me, it kind of came out of nowhere. Have we been getting offers the past few years? Yeah, we turn down offers every year, probably every month of every year. These three festivals are right around the five-year anniversary of our last tour, which I thought was kind of cool. So, I thought this might be the right time to test the water. It will be great to play for the fans again."

Regarding whether the upcoming SLAYER shows will steal some of the thunder away from the touring his solo band will do in support of "From Hell I Rise", Kerry said: "Well, time will tell, and my answer would be, 'hopefully not'. The funny thing is, it never occurred to me until the day the SLAYER announcement came, but [Phil] Demmel [guitarist in Kerry's solo band] said, 'Dude, is this real?' And I'm, like, 'It's just a few weekends and that's it.' Of course, Paul knew. But I didn't tell Phil, I didn't tell Kyle [Sanders, KERRY KING bassist] and didn't tell Mark [Osegueda, KERRY KING singer] — and I said to the guys, 'There's no master plan here.' I didn't want anybody to start getting cold feet. I said, 'This is a little moment in time, and yeah, KERRY KING is going to be touring, you know, hopefully later in the year, as well. But SLAYER is an entity and I'm just a person.' But hopefully, we drive on with the solo project."

King also spoke about the SLAYER reunion in an interview with U.K.'s Metal Hammer magazine. Admitting that the announcement of SLAYER's comeback "was not my favorite timing", Kerry said that the SLAYER reunion "is not going to translate into recording and it's not going to translate into touring. For me, it's three shows marking five years since our final shows, a fun, 'Hey, remember us from before the pandemic?' celebration."

Kerry also explained in more detail why he still has not spoken to Tom since the news of SLAYER's reunion was announced. "It's not like I'm angry with him or anything," King clarified. "We're very different people, and we evolved into business partners at the end of the day. He has very different interests from me, and very different outlooks. Does that make me hate him? No. But I don't need to talk to him every day… We just don't have much in common. When it comes time to rehearse, I'll have no problem showing up. We're professionals, and that's what we do."

When Kerry's solo project was first announced, King told Rolling Stone that he was almost positive he and Tom would never resurrect the band. "I can pretty much a hundred percent say no because I have a new outlet, and it's not SLAYER, but it sounds like SLAYER," King said of a potential SLAYER reunion.

The lineup for SLAYER's comeback will be the same as the one which last toured in 2019: Araya and King, along with guitarist Gary Holt (also of EXODUS) and longtime drummer Paul Bostaph.

Days after SLAYER's reunion was announced, Tom Araya's wife wrote on social media that she "harassed him for over a year" before he "agreed finally" to play more shows with the band. "We shared that news with SLAYER's awesome managers and they did the rest!" she explained. "So yes without Tom it wouldn't have happened.. without me BUGGING HIM it wouldn't have happened."

Both Gary and his wife Lisa Holt were among the hundreds of people who "liked" Sandra's Instagram post, with Lisa sharing three heart emojis in response to Sandra's message.

In a statement confirming SLAYER's return, Tom said: "Nothing compares to the 90 minutes when we're on stage playing live, sharing that intense energy with our fans, and to be honest, we have missed that." King added: "Have I missed playing live? Absolutely. SLAYER means a lot to our fans; they mean a lot to us. It will be five years since we have seen them."

The same day that SLAYER's comeback was announced, Holt's wife Lisa Holt took to her social media to write: "Yes, it's true..and an exciting adventure for the band and fans !

"To all the people saying 'they are liars' 'they must have ran out of money' 'its not SLAYER without so and so' ..I have an idea for you all...DON'T GO.. and for all the people who did go to the final tour dates and enjoyed it...awesome!!

"This isn't a 'TOUR' it's some dates..and GREAT NEWS!!!" she added. "And everyone that thinks they know all the inside info..you can't possibly know. so just enjoy the fact that this amazing band will play some amazing shows this year...go or don't..nobody cares!!!!!"

Three weeks before SLAYER's reunion was announced, Kerry told Rolling Stone that he didn't foresee SLAYER coming back together for the foreseeable future.

"Will SLAYER tour again? I'm pretty sure that's not going to happen. Could SLAYER play a show again? I'm sure there's a scenario," King said, adding that he hadn't spoken to Araya since that final show. "Am I looking for it? No, I'm just getting ready to start my [solo] career. So if that happens, it happens. But I'm going to be doing this for the next 10 years at least."

SLAYER played the final show of its farewell tour in November 2019 at the Forum in Los Angeles. One day later, Kerry's wife Ayesha said that there is "not a chance in hell" that the thrash metal icons will reunite for more live appearances.

SLAYER's final world tour began on May 10, 2018 with the band's intention to play as many places as possible, to make it easy for the fans to see one last SLAYER show and say goodbye. By the time the 18-month trek wrapped at the Forum, the band had completed seven tour legs plus a series of one-off major summer festivals, performing more than 140 shows in 30 countries and 40 U.S. states.

All material for "From Hell I Rise" was written by King, who was accompanied during the recording sessions by Bostaph, Demmel, Sanders and Osegueda. Helming the sessions at Henson Recording Studios in Los Angeles last year was producer Josh Wilbur, who has previously worked with KORN, LAMB OF GOD, AVENGED SEVENFOLD and BAD RELIGION, among others.

Legendary SoCal punk rock band THE OFFSPRING will release its eleventh album, "Supercharged", on October 11 via Concord Records. The LP's first single, "Make It All Right", can be streamed below.

THE OFFSPRING singer Bryan "Dexter" Holland said about the album: "We wanted this record to have pure energy — from the start to the finish! That’s why we called it 'Supercharged'. From the height of our aspirations to the depths of our struggles, we talk about it all on this record…in a way that celebrates the life that we share and where we are now. Our single 'Make It All Right' is a great example of this because it talks about the people in our lives who make us feel strong when we are feeling low — our partners in crime who make us feel all right."

He continued: "The album was recorded in three different locations this time: Maui, Vancouver, and our home studio in Huntington Beach, and together with our producer Bob Rock everything came out awesome. I feel like this is the best we have ever sounded! We've been rocking out and headbanging to it for months! And we can't wait for you guys to hear it!"

"Supercharged" track listing:

01. Looking Out For #1
02. Light It Up
03. The Fall Guy
04. Make It All Right
05. Ok, But This Is The Last Time
06. Truth In Fiction
07. Come To Brazil
08. Get Some
09. Hanging By A Thread
10. You Can't Get There From Here

In a recent appearance on the Rolling Stone Music Now podcast, Holland was asked about the musical direction of the band's recently completed eleventh studio album. He said: "I think it's a David Bowie quote, who said, 'You've gotta make it the same, but different.' It's funny, 'cause it's true. 'Cause if you sound too much like your other record, they go, 'Oh, it just sounds like this record.' And if you change too much, it throws people. And, of course, you've gotta ultimately satisfy your own creativity, what you wanna do. And luckily, I think that we've really expanded the circle of what we can do. We did 'Gone Away' on 'Ixnay [On The Hombre]' and we've done piano stuff and all that, but I think you have to balance that desire to grow with — you don't wanna necessarily be too grown up, if that makes sense. You don't wanna all of a sudden go, 'I'm gonna make a record like U2.' That doesn't necessarily work the best for who you are as a band. We're trying to keep that all in mind."

He continued: "When people ask me, 'What does your new record sound like?', I'll just say 'Ignition', 'cause people go, 'Oh, cool. I love that record.' So, it's not like that. It's a mixture. I think punk is the core of what we've always been, so there's always some of that on a record. And then we usually throw in a couple of oddball songs, but it's always about trying to make the song as good as it can be."

THE OFFSPRING guitarist Kevin "Noodles" Wasserman previously discussed the progress of the recording sessions for the band's follow-up to 2021's "Let The Bad Times Roll" album three months ago in an interview with Colombia's Radioacktiva. At the time, he said: "It's not like we go in and work for a whole bunch of months with Bob and then don't see each other for a couple years. We get together every couple of months and go in the studio and work for a week to two weeks. That's just how we like to work. And it's always fun hanging out with Bob. He's just a great guy. And we just talk about music, talk about ideas, what makes a song great — that sort of thing."

Bob Rock previously helmed three THE OFFSPRING LPs, including "Let The Bad Times Roll".

Last October, Noodles was asked by Rock Sound if there was anything he and his THE OFFSPRING bandmates learned from the making "Let The Bad Times Roll" that they wanted to "lean more into" this time around. Noodles said: "What we learned is when we are not able to go out and play live, we really miss it. And we learned to make the most of our time in the studio and just have fun. It was a really, really creative time for us, actually. Right at the end of making 'Let The Bad Times Roll', ideas were just coming, and we've just been having a good time in the studio since then — and on the road too. It's so good to be back playing live music again."

In September 2023, Noodles was asked by "The Jesea Lee Show" if the new OFFSPRING material follows an "old-school" vein or if it represents "a new era of OFFSPRING". He said: "It's a little bit of both — all that. The last song we did definitely sounds like an old-school — sounds kind of like 'Come Out Swinging'. Definitely some old-school stuff and then some rocking stuff and then some kind of poppy punk stuff too, for sure."

In August 2023, Holland told The Orange County Register about the overall musical and lyrical direction of the new THE OFFSPRING material: "Sometimes you just start writing songs and you don't realize how an album is coming together until it's almost there. Like on 'Americana'. 'Americana' was one of the last songs I wrote because I didn't realize until then all the other songs like 'Why Don't You Get A Job?' and 'Pretty Fly', they were describing American society. I didn't really realize that's what the album was about until I got almost done and thought well, I'll call it 'Americana' because that's like 'Americana' means American culture. This was my vision of what I thought American culture was doing in the late '90s. We're kind of still in that phase with the songs, but we've always liked the energy of punk music and the rebelliousness. What I'm focusing right now on is just melody. I want the songs to be really good."

"Let The Bad Times Roll" was a huge global success, hitting career-high chart debuts with seven Top 5 and ten Top 10 international debuts and nine Top 10 debuts in the U.S. The album peaked at No. 3 on the U.K. chart and hit No. 1 on the Alternative Albums chart in the U.S.

THE OFFSPRING first achieved worldwide success in the 1990s with the release of their album "Smash", which sold over 11 million copies. Following "Smash", they continued to release hit after hit, popularizing rock at a mainstream level.

Throughout THE OFFSPRING's career, they've sold over a staggering 40 million albums, and toured arenas, and built a global fan base. "Let The Bad Times Roll" marked the band's tenth studio album and third album produced by Rock.

Originally formed under the name MANIC SUBSIDAL, THE OFFSPRING's lineup consists of Holland, Wasserman, bassist Todd Morse, multi-instrumentalist Jonah Nimoy and drummer Brandon Pertzborn.

Press photo credit: Daveed Benito

Kobra And The Lotus vocalist Kobra Paige has released a new single, "Dreamer". Check out the official lyric video below.


Kobra: "Elated to share this beautiful, bright one with you. This song speaks to our inner child, beckoning us to remember and nurture our creative natures. Everything in this world exists because of curious, creative impulses brought forward into reality. I believe any effort, small or large, toward recovery of our creative essence, is a big key to individual and collective healing.
 
It’s a path back to our truest self. Even amongst the darkest hour of the soul, there is an ember to be found. Please enjoy and may your inner flame shine bright."


Get the song via digital platforms found here.







"Dreamer" is featured on Kobra Paige’s forthcoming debut solo album, Like No Other. It was produced by Grammy Award winner Brian Howes (Skillet, Linkin Park, Simple Plan). It is mixed by Grammy Award winner Neal Avron (Machine Gun Kelly, Twenty One Pilots, Yungblud) and mastered by Grammy nominated Chris Gehringer at Sterling Sound (Miley Cyrus, Muse, Drake).

Jim Peterik & World Stage, a concept rooted in musical and spiritual collaborations among artists and friends, has announced a new album, Roots & Shoots Vol.2, out August 9 via Frontiers Music Srl. The album follows up the release of Roots & Shoots Vol.1, whose notable guests included Kelly Keagy (Night Ranger), Don Barnes (.38 Special), and Mark Farner (Grand Funk).


Volume 2 presents Jim’s collaborations with Mike Reno, Jason Scheff, Toby Hitchcock, The Ides of March, Cathy Richardson (Jefferson Starship), and Neil Donnell (of Chicago). Among the “Shoots,” Sophia Sheth and Kevin Farris appear along with Marc Scherer, who recorded a great album with Peterik in 2015 entitled Risk Everything.


Additionally, Dave Mikulskis sings the anthemic opener, “American Dreamer,” which is out today and accompanied by a new visualizer, available below.




World Stage is the best representation of Jim Peterik's truly outstanding musical legacy: a testament to his songwriting abilities as one of the true wizards of melodic rock.


The Jim Peterik & World Stage concept arose from the idea that the musical and spiritual collaboration of great artists and friends could be truly special.


This idea created a string of records that followed the now close-to-legendary debut album released in the year 2000, where Peterik managed to present his collaboration with such rock luminaries as Dennis DeYoung (ex-Styx), Kevin Cronin (REO Speedwagon), Johnny Van Zant (Lynyrd Skynyrd), Don Barnes (.38 Special), Tom Kiefer (Cinderella) and many more.


That concept resurfaced in 2019 on the Winds of Change album when Jim Peterik was joined by giants of American rock such as Dennis DeYoung again, Kevin Chalfant (ex-The Storm), Matthew and Gunnar Nelson, Kelly Keagy (Night Ranger), Mike Reno (Loverboy), Jason Scheff (ex-Chicago) and more.


Later on, Peterik decided to dedicate an entire album to the 'Women who Rock the World' giving birth to the awesome album Tigress which showed his collaboration with such outstanding singers and musicians like Jennifer Batten, Chloe Lowery, Rosa Laricchiuta, Chez Kane and so many more.


All those albums spotlight the many talents of Jim Peterik, enhanced and embellished by a cast of noted singers and musicians.


Pre-order the new album here.





Roots & Shoots Vol.2 tracklisting:


"American Dreamer" (feat. Dave Mikulskis)
"Your Own Hero" (feat. Mike Reno with Jim Peterik)
"Stronger Than You Know" (feat. Jim Peterik and Dave Mikulskis)
"All That's Mine To Give" (feat. Toby Hitchcock)
"Been To The Mountain" (feat. Jason Scheff)
"Forever Endeavor" (feat. Jim Peterik with Toby Hitchcock)
"Rise Again" (feat. Kevin Farris)
"We Can Fly" (feat. The Ides Of March with Jim Peterik)
"Love Lives" (feat. Jim Peterik with Cathy Richardson )
"Until" (feat. Neil Donnell)
"Hit Of Freedom" (feat. Sophia Sheth)
"The Road To Forever" (feat. Jim Peterik)


American Dreamer" visualizer:





Jim Peterik, through the years, has written or co-written some of rock's most memorable songs: "Vehicle" by The Ides Of March (on which he was lead vocalist), "Eye Of The Tiger," "The Search Is Over," "High On You," and "I Can't Hold Back”. He penned hits for .38 Special such as "Hold On Loosely," "Caught Up In You," "Fantasy Girl," and "Rockin' Into The Night" as well as "Heavy Metal" with Sammy Hagar, and many, many more.


Peterik, now a part of Pride Of Lions with vocalist Toby Hitchcock, is one of the most esteemed and loved recording artists and songwriters on the Frontiers Music label and in the larger melodic rock community.


(Photo - Kristie Schram)

On July 19, Niji Entertainment & BMG will release The Complete Donington Collection, a Limited Edition 5LP boxset housing Dio’s classic Donington ’83 and Donington ’87 performances at the Donington Festival in the UK, both on 2LP 180gr vinyl with an etching on Side D, as well as the limited Picture Disc Double Dose of Donington ’83 & ’87.


Wendy Dio says, “Fond memories of sitting on the grass and watching the bands play. This is an amazing collection. 1983 when Ronnie had just recently formed the Dio Band and again in 1987. Ronnie always enjoyed playing in Britain, he loved the audiences and the beer!”


Dio At Donington ‘83 captures the original Dio lineup on the Holy Diver Tour and captures a young, hungry band three months after the release of their debut album. The set features classic tracks from Ronnie James Dio’s already amazing career as vocalist for Rainbow and Black Sabbath, alongside soon to be classics like “Holy Diver”, “Rainbow In The Dark”, and “Stand Up And Shout”.




Following three hugely successful studio albums and silver, gold, and platinum certifications around the world, Dio At Donington ’87 captures the Dream Evil lineup, and features such classics as “The Last In Line”, “Rock ‘N’ Roll Children,” and “All The Fools Sailed Away”.


Additionally, both discs contain killer renditions of both Rainbow and Black Sabbath classics, including “Man On The Silver Mountain”, “Neon Knights”, “Stargazer”, and “Heaven And Hell”, among others.


As the singer of Rainbow, Black Sabbath, Heaven And Hell, and his own band, Ronnie James Dio is often considered to be one of rock’s all-time great vocalists, who sadly passed away in 2010, after battling stomach cancer. However, Dio’s music continues to connect with the masses - the official Ronnie James Dio Facebook page has over 2.5 million followers, his music on Spotify receives over 3 million monthly listeners, and in the most recent season of the hit Netflix series, Stranger Things, the popular character Eddie Munson sports a large “Dio” patch on the back of his beloved denim jacket.


Pre-order The Complete Donington Collection here.





Tracklistings:


Dio At Donington '83


Side A
"Stand Up And Shout"
"Straight Through The Heart"
"Children Of The Sea"


Side B
"Rainbow In The Dark"
"Holy Diver"
Drum Solo
"Stargazer"
Guitar Solo


Side C
"Heaven And Hell"
"Man On The Silver Mountain"
"Starstruck"
"Man On The Silver Mountain" (Reprise)


Side D
Dio Vinyl Art Etching


Personnel:


Ronnie James Dio - Vocals
Vivian Campbell - Guitar
Jimmy Bain - Bass
Vinny Appice - Drums
Claude Schnell - Keyboards


Dio At Donington ‘87


Side A
"Dream Evil"
"Neon Knights"
"Naked In The Rain"


Side B
"Rock And Roll Children"
"Long Live Rock ‘n’ Roll"
"The Last In Line"
"Children Of The Sea"
"Holy Diver"


Side C
"Heaven And Hell"
"Man On The Silver Mountain"
"All The Fools Sailed Away"
"The Last In Line" (Reprise)
"Rainbow In The Dark"


Side D
Dio Vinyl Art Etching


Personnel:
Ronnie James Dio - Vocals
Craig Goldy - Guitar
Jimmy Bain - Bass
Vinny Appice - Drums
Claude Schnell - Keyboards


Double Dose Of Donington (Picture Disc)


Side A
"Stand Up And Shout" (Live From Donington 1983)


Side B
"Rock And Roll Children" (Live From Donington 1987)

LAMB OF GOD's groundbreaking album "Ashes Of The Wake" turns 20 this August, and to commemorate the pivotal release, an expanded 20th-anniversary deluxe edition featuring new mixes by HEALTH, Justin K Broadrick (GODFLESH, JESU),and KUBLAI KHAN TX and MALEVOLENCE, as well as demo and live versions of the album's classic songs, arrives on August 30 via Epic Records and Legacy Recordings.

A preview of "Ashes Of The Wake (20th-Anniversary Edition)" is available now with "Another Nail For Your Coffin (Feat. Kublai Khan TX & Malevolence)" . Check it out below.

"I'm excited to see 'Another Nail For Your Coffin' get reborn," LAMB OF GOD guitarist Mark Morton says of the song that was originally a bonus track available exclusively on the Japanese version of "Ashes Of The Wake", which was followed by a worldwide release on the 15th-anniversary edition of the album. "This has always been a really cool, unique song in the LAMB OF GOD catalog but it's been overlooked since it was a bonus track,". "Matt and Alex both absolutely spit flames on this new, updated version, and gave it a ferocious modern energy. I'm glad to see this tune get some shine after all this time!"

LAMB OF GOD singer Randy Blythe adds: "I'm not much for re-recording our existing material — old songs are a snapshot of where we were as a band at that time, for better or worse. But when the idea came up to have a guest vocalist redo my parts on 'Another Nail For Your Coffin', I was all for it, especially if we could get two younger heavy hitters to bring a fresh approach to the song. Anyone who has seen MALEVOLENCE and KUBLAI KHAN TX know that Alex and Matt crush it. It's an honor to have these dudes bring new life to the tune 20 years after we first recorded it."

Originally released in 2004, "Ashes Of The Wake" is viewed as a cornerstone of modern metal, and features beloved songs such as "Laid To Rest", "Now You've Got Something To Die For", "Omertá" and the blistering title track. Revolver said of the gold-certified album: "It's hard to imagine where the metal community would be without 'Ashes Of The Wake'," Metal Hammer declared it "the dawn of a new era of metal," and Decibel said the 11-song collection led the "New Wave Of American Heavy Metal straight into the charts… with absolutely no compromises along the way."

LAMB OF GOD's webstore features a trio of exclusive items marking the 20th anniversary: yellow smoke 2LP vinyl, a 2CD set, and a commemorative "Ashes Of The Wake" t-shirt. Two additional vinyl variants, a standard black and a Project M exclusive white/black/red swirl offering, as well as 2CD, and digital, are also available now for preorder/pre-saves. All formats include the trio of new remixes and live recordings of "Remorse Is For The Dead" and "Now You've Got Something To Die For", while the 2CD and digital versions include demo versions of "Laid To Rest", "Ashes Of The Wake" and "Remorse Is For The Dead".

"Ashes Of The Wake (20th-Anniversary Edition)" track listing:

01. Laid To Rest
02. Hourglass
03. Now You've Got Something To Die For
04. The Faded Line
05. Omertá
06. Blood Of The Scribe
07. One Gun
08. Break You
09. What I've Become
10. Ashes Of The Wake
11. Remorse Is For The Dead
12. Laid To Rest (pre-production demo) *
13. Ashes Of The Wake (pre-production demo) *
14. Remorse Is For The Dead (pre-production demo) *
15. Another Nail For Your Coffin (feat. KUBLAI KHAN TX and MALEVOLENCE)
16. Laid To Rest (HEALTH remix)
17. Omertá (Justin K Broadrick remix)
18. Remorse Is For The Dead (live in Richmond, Virginia)
19. Now You've Got Something To Die For (live from 2007)

* Exclusive to 2CD and digital

This summer, LAMB OF GOD will join forces with MASTODON, who released their sophomore album, "Leviathan", on the same date (August 31) that "Ashes Of The Wake" arrived in 2004. The tour, dubbed "Ashes Of Leviathan", also features openers KERRY KING and MALEVOLENCE.

LAMB OF GOD is Randy Blythe (vocals),John Campbell (bass),Mark Morton (guitar),Willie Adler (guitar) and Art Cruz (drums). Formed in 1994, the Richmond, Virginia-based band have released nine critically acclaimed albums, received five Grammy Award nominations and are widely regarded as one of the most influential and innovative forces in heavy music. The band's most recent collection, "Omens", arrived in late 2022, with Kerrang! noting that the album finds the band "as reliably heavy, violent, and pissed off as ever," and Consequence saying the "album will break you down to nihilistic pieces."

Photo credit: Travis Shinn

In a new interview with The Prog Report, Mike Portnoy offered an update on the writing and recording sessions for DREAM THEATER's sixteenth studio album. The upcoming effort will mark the progressive metal legends' first LP since the drummer's return to the group last October. Mike said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "It's going great. The writing is done. My drum tracks are done. Guitars are done. So, this week we're in bass land. I'm home at the moment. So I'm kind of jumping back and forth between the studio as needed. I'm not there 100 percent of the time. But I'm gonna go back for keyboards in a few weeks and then we're gonna start the vocals, I think, next month."

He continued: "So, yeah, it's a long process. I haven't spent this much time making an album in a long time, because usually [Mike's other projects] NMB [NEAL MORSE BAND] or FLYING COLORS or whatever, you kind of get together, do the writing and the tracking, and everybody does it at home. But DREAM THEATER is still old school where the band is in the studio the whole time. And it's not like anybody's doing anything at home separately. We do it all together, coming in one at a time to work and record. So, yeah, it's a longer process than I've had in quite some time. But it's great… It's the old way. It's the way I always made records with DREAM THEATER. I just hadn't done it that way in so long, but it is good. And the process is really detailed this way. All these other bands and projects, everyone kind of just does their own thing on their own time at their own place. But this really gives a real unified kind of band vibe. Even a couple of weeks ago, James [LaBrie, DREAM THEATER singer] flew back out, came down from Japan and we spent time collaborating on vocal melodies, so lyrics can be written to those melodies, which is kind of the way the process is in DREAM THEATER. So, yeah, it's nice to just be a part of each one of these steps, like the old days. It's been a while since I made a record this way."

Portnoy went on to say that he "can't give away much details" about DREAM THEATER's next LP, "but we are all just really, really excited about it, really proud of it. And just can't wait to unleash some info, but I can't do that just yet," he added.

This past April, DREAM THEATER announced the European leg of its "40th Anniversary Tour 2024 - 2025". The trek — presented as "An Evening With Dream Theater" — is the first outing since Portnoy's return.

The European leg of DREAM THEATER's "40th Anniversary Tour 2024 - 2025" consists of stops in 23 cities and kicks off on October 20 and runs through November 24.

Portnoy co-founded DREAM THEATER in 1985 with guitarist John Petrucci and bassist John Myung. Mike played on 10 DREAM THEATER albums over a 20-year period, from 1989's "When Dream And Day Unite" through 2009's "Black Clouds & Silver Linings", before exiting the group in 2010.

Mike Mangini joined DREAM THEATER in late 2010 through a widely publicized audition following the departure of Portnoy. Mangini beat out six other of the world's top drummers — Marco Minnemann, Virgil Donati, Aquiles Priester, Thomas Lang, Peter Wildoer and Derek Roddy — for the gig, a three-day process that was filmed for a documentary-style reality show called "The Spirit Carries On".

In April, DREAM THEATER singer James LaBrie was asked by Rolling Stone magazine why he and his bandmates wanted Portnoy to return. He said: "I think we had to return the band back to its strongest form." Petrucci added: "It wasn't one singular thing; it was sort of a series of life events that caused an organic conclusion. We all talked about it. It was like, 'Yeah, this makes sense right now.'" Keyboardist Jordan Rudess chimed in: "There's so many factors involved, and each of us has our particular relationships. And it was just a moment when everything seemed to come together, and we went, 'You know what? Let's do this. Now's the time.'" Myung concurred, saying: "It was a collective moment of certainty."

Asked if he was surprised when he was invited back into the band, Portnoy said: "Before the Covid pandemic, if you had asked me or any of these guys, 'Was a reunion in the cards?' I probably would've said I doubted that it could happen. I think if the lockdown hadn't happened, you guys probably would've been on tour, and I would've been on tour with one of my 48 bands. But once we were all locked down, John asked me to play on his solo album. Then, from there, Jordan, John, and myself did the LIQUID TENSION EXPERIMENT album. And then I did John's tour. So there were just these series of events of reconnecting us — not only on a musical level but also on a personal level for many years prior to that.

"All of our families are friends," he continued. "And my daughter and John's daughter shared an apartment together for many, many years. And John Myung lives right down the block from me, and his wife's at my house every night. There was just a series of events both personally and musically that started to feel like, 'Well, maybe this really is in the cards. Maybe this is the right time.'"

Asked if they see this reunion as healing a fractured band, Portnoy said: "I don't want to be over-philosophical about it, but as we're all getting older. Here we are in our 50s and 60s. You start to think of the reality of, 'How much time do we have left?' I would hate it if this were to become a Roger Waters-PINK FLOYD or Peter Gabriel-with-GENESIS situation where the fans want it, but it never happens."

Petrucci added: "When Mike left the band, it was traumatic for all of us. We had to figure out how we were going to move our career forward. And those years that went by, they were also healing years because you don't just have something like that happen, and all of a sudden, you're all best buddies a week later. There's some trauma there that had to heal. Thirteen years was enough time for that to happen and be, like, 'Hey, you know what, man? We love each other like we're brothers.'"

MACHINE HEAD frontman Robb Flynn joined his former band VIO-LENCE on stage on Wednesday, June 5 at the Mystic Festival in Gdansk, Poland to perform the song "World In A World". Fan-filmed video of his appearance can be seen below.

Although Flynn was part of VIO-LENCE's classic incarnation and played on the band's debut album, "Eternal Nightmare", the longtime MACHINE HEAD frontman wasn't approached about taking part in VIO-LENCE's 2018 reunion.

VIO-LENCE released three studio albums between 1988 and 1993. The group reformed soon after guitarist Phil Demmel acrimoniously left MACHINE HEAD more than five years ago.

Singer Sean Killian, who initiated VIO-LENCE's reunion several months after undergoing a successful liver transplant surgery, discussed the possibility of Flynn playing with VIO-LENCE again in a February 2022 interview with El Cuartel Del Metal. He said: "Well, at the time we got back together, that wasn't gonna happen. Robb's got a thing — MACHINE HEAD's a big band; it's a business; they're out touring; people love 'em; they do great. He and Phil, they got personality conflicts over the years. That happens when you're in such tight-knit quarters with people. I can't speak for Robb or Phil but I know that I like 'em both. I was texting Robb the other day.

"For me, I haven't experienced any of what those guys experienced together, so I can't comment on it [except to say] I like 'em both and they're both my friends," the singer continued. "I consider both of 'em my good friends.

"Would Robb play with VIO-LENCE? If it was convenient and it worked out… Obviously, he wouldn't play if Phil was playing, but if Phil was doing something else and we needed a guitar player, I don't know that Robb would say he wouldn't do it. Because we all just have a good time. And he recognizes that VIO-LENCE is a band that just goes out 'cause we love it — we like to write; we like to play live shows; we love the energy from the crowd that the music gets out of 'em.

"Would Robb play with us? I can't speak for him, but if the moment was right, I think he would wanna taste that again," Killian added.

Demmel, who isn't part of VIO-LENCE's current touring lineup, told Dean Delray's "Let There Be Talk" podcast in a 2021 interview that he hadn't spoken to Flynn since he left MACHINE HEAD and added that he had no "desire or need to talk to him ever again."

Demmel left MACHINE HEAD at the end of the band's fall 2018 North American tour. He was in MACHINE HEAD for nearly 16 years, during which time he played on five of the group's studio albums: "Through The Ashes Of Empires" (2003),"The Blackening" (2007),"Unto The Locust" (2011),"Bloodstone & Diamonds" (2014) and "Catharsis" (2018).

VIO-LENCE released a new EP, "Let The World Burn", in March 2022 via Metal Blade Records.

Filling out the band's ranks on "Let The World Burn" alongside Killian and Demmel were original drummer Perry Strickland, former OVERKILL guitarist Bobby Gustafson and former FEAR FACTORY bassist Christian Olde Wolbers.

Killian and Olde Wolbers are the only VIO-LENCE members from the "Let The World Burn" recording lineup who are still touring with the band.

"Let The World Burn" was recorded with Juan Urteaga at Trident Studios (TESTAMENT, MACHINE HEAD, EXODUS),with mixing handled by Tue Madsen (THE HAUNTED, MESHUGGAH) and Grammy Award-winning engineer Ted Jensen (ALICE IN CHAINS, DEFTONES, PANTERA).

Sweden's Portrait returns with their sixth album, The Host, their first ever concept album, set for release on June 21 via Metal Blade Records.  In advance of its official unveiling, today the band reveals the latest single, "From The Urn".


Founding guitarist Christian Lindell describes the new offering as "an occult tale of sword and sorcery, accompanied by some of the most passionate heavy metal ever recorded. The story takes place in seventeenth century Sweden and revolves around an unnamed protagonist who, because of his experiences with the injustice and hypocrisy of this world, decides to seek truth and strength through its 'Adversary.'"


On the musical side, Portrait's co-founding drummer Anders Persson adds that the album "is a versatile entity, showing all sides of what has become our own style of heavy metal, identity, and sense of melody, yet with some new areas explored in several directions. There are songs that are our fastest and most 'extreme' so far along with songs of an almost semi ballad feeling. It blends perfectly together musically and fits the dramaturgy of the story."




Elaborates Lindell on the band's latest single, "'From The Urn' is a song in which the main character of the story realizes that he has stronger connections with the realm of the dead than with any person still alive. A lot of stuff going on in this one musically, showcasing a bit of our progressive side, but still filled with hooks that shall leave incurable wounds."





The story of The Host takes place in the Swedish Empire during the Era Of Great Power, an era of constant war. The church played a central role in Swedish society in those days and the task of choosing the men that would be sent out to war was given to the priests. All men above the age of fifteen were summoned to the church hill once a year, where the priest then decided who would be the "lucky" ones (the rule of guidance being that every tenth man was to be picked).


It was preached that the reason for war was all sins committed by common man, and to be part of the army during those times was to be considered something sacred. Biblical passages were often quoted as references in order to legitimize the conquering of enemy territory, and in order to establish a "fear of god" within the army, religious services were held in the military camps twice a day and anyone not attending would be punished.


But there are also court documents from this era showing that some soldiers stood accused of having made pacts with the Devil with the intent of receiving strength and protection in war, as well as luck and prosperity, in exchange for one's own blood and other offerings. A central part of this process was the sacrament of the Eucharist. Once consecrated by the priest, the bread of communion becomes the Host or body of Jesus Christ, elevated to something beyond its mere forms and imbued with magical powers.


There were different methods to employ the Host for sorcerous ends. One of the most common ways was to simply conduct one's magical rites after having partaken of the sacrament in church, as it was believed that one's own magical abilities were at their strongest by then. Another approach was to steal it from church and give it as an offering to the Devil or other spirits summoned for the work at hand.


The Host serves as Portrait's first album to feature guitarist Karl Gustafsson as part of the band's lineup and was recorded in JFK Studio in Sweden. Mixing and production tasks were handled by singer Per Lengstedt at his own Perilous Productions Studio while mastering was handled by Bart Gabriel.





The record will be released on CD and digital formats as well as vinyl in the following color variants:


- Multicolored Splatter - Ltd. 200
- White Black Marbled - Ltd. 300
- 180-gram Black
- Burgundy Red Marbled


Pre-order here.





The Host tracklisting:


"Hoc Est Corpus Meum" (Intro)
"The Blood Covenant"
"The Sacrament"
"Oneiric Visions"
"One Last Kiss"
"Treachery"
"Sound The Horn"
"Dweller Of The Threshold"
"Die In My Heart"
"Voice Of The Outsider"
"From The Urn"
"The Men Of Renown"
"Sword Of Reason (The Steel Of Revenge)"
"The Passions Of Sophia"


"The Blood Covenant" video:





Portrait live:


June
29 - Pitcher - Düsseldorf, Germany
30 - Bambi Galore - Hamburg, Germany


July
7 - Time To Rock Festival - Knislinge, Sweden
31 - Wacken Open Air - Wacken, Germany


September
27 - L' Homme Sauvage Festival - Auzas, France





Portrait lineup:


Per Lengstedt - vocals
Christian Lindell - guitars
Karl Gustafsson - guitars
Fredrik Petersson - bass
Anders Persson - drums


(Photo - Stefan Johansson)

Swedish genre-blending power rockers Dampf will release their second album, No Angels Alive, on August 23 via Silver Lining Music.


Led by singer/songwriter A-TRON (Martin Erikson aka E-Type) and keyboardist/songwriter Beak, No Angels Alive is an all-in ten-song storytelling experience blending expansive yet tightly bound stylistic ingredients incorporating hard rock, thrash, melodic power metal, and electronic edges. Recorded at Yard Street Studios (Solna, Sweden) and produced by Jona Tee, be gloriously warned: Dampf’s second studio offering, No Angels Alive, is not - and never was - conceived to be for the faint of heart. Forged from deep personal fires within Erikson and Beak in 2021, Dampf is about sheer, bombastic, and brutal power fused with melodic journeys into spaces and places which most would fear to tread.


"In Dampf, we can dwell on all kind of stories: the dark, the weird, the eeriness... the rotten parts of the forest and nature or strange gods or weird people or small people living underneath the moss," explains Erikson. "We developed this band so that we can allow ourselves to go to all these places you’re not meant to. It’s so liberating to have a band where you can say, ‘yeah, let’s do this,’ and not be remotely concerned about whether it ‘fits’ or not."




Completed by vocalist Bhéara aka Olivia Thörn, drummer Haderajja aka David Wallin (HammerFall), bassist Bahari aka Pontus Egberg (King Diamond, The Poodles), guitarists Skaeggyxa aka Love Magnusson (Dynazty) and Sha-Zam’s aka Sam Söderlindh, and growler Arkoūda aka Björn Åkesson, Dampf engages in a theatrical journey through the timeless historical corridors of human darkness and their opus, No Angels Alive, plays like a grand collective performance piece, with an innate sense of beautiful, catchy melody finding ample room and context alongside the overall brutality of Dampf.


"Masquerade," the first single from the album, is released today. With its catchy melodic sensibilities, the track balances how in one specific historical story – and today’s society – illusion can be deadly.


Erikson elaborates, "The song explores the dark spirit and soul of Jacob Johan Anckarström, a disgruntled Swedish military officer whose anger and dissatisfaction with Swedish King Gustav III led him to attempt regicide at a Masquerade Ball before assassinating him at the Royal Stockholm Opera on March 16th, 1792. This happened 300 years ago, but the ‘evil eyes’ are still plotting in modern times: today’s ‘Masquerade’ is about keeping people in the dark, giving them bread, water, flour, and keeping them happy with what they see on the surface, which of course only allows darkness to flourish out of sight and in the shadows."


Dampf will gleefully stretch your sensibilities and boundaries, with Erikson, Beak, and the rest of the band reveling in the opportunity to do so. "We can go that dark, that black... We can go anywhere with this. I can just go in my own head and open up those doors that had been locked for so many years. There are no rules for Dampf, and that gives us all a whole lot to enjoy which is so very important. I don’t need people to say they love it; if they tell us they find it very different and very unique, that’s so much better."


Scary yet colorful, heavy yet catchy, listen to No Angels Alive with a genreless mind and an open heart; the rewards of this immense and unique album will be plentiful.


No Angels Alive will be released on CD digipak, 12” Gold And Black Splatter vinyl, digital formats, and special D2C products and bundles. Preorder here.





Tracklisting:


“No Angels Alive”
“Masquerade”
“Ghost”
“Might As Well Have Died”
“Heart Of Darkness”
“War With The World”
“Hellfire”
“Away”
“Mists Of Avalon (Don’t Wake Me Up)”
“Dark Side Of My Moon”


“Masquerade” video:





Dampf:
Martin Erikson [A-TRON] – vocals
Olivia Thörn [Bhéara] – vocals
Beak – keys
David Wallin [Haderajja] – drums
Pontus Egberg [Bahari] – bass
Sam Söderlindh [Sha-Zam’s] – guitar
Love Magnusson [Skaeggyxa] – guitar
Björn Åkesson [Arkoūda] – growls


(Photo – Ted Lindén)