Hammheart Records will release the new Cirith Gorgor album Visions Of Exalted Lucifer in February 2016. A new album teaser is streaming below:

The artwork is created by Metastazis (Watain, Behemoth, Amorphis) and reflects the lyrics and mood on Visions Of Exalted Lucifer perfectly. 

Hammerheart Records recently stated: “After hearing Cirith Gorgor's new material in a raw mix (like “Storm Of The Light’s Bane” was mixed with “De Mysteriis Dom Sathanas”) form we had no choice, the band is entering a new level and is a force to be reckoned with on an international level: stronger, blacker and more majestic than ever before! Kneel before the new Masters of melodic blackness! We are aware their past recordings were good, well, their new album is like a new born entity for sure.”

Cirith Gorgor represent one of the longest existing and most well-known black metal bands from the Netherlands. Holding high the banner of the Horned One since 1993, the band have built up a solid reputation by delivering furious and uncompromising yet powerful and melodic black metal. Apart from their widely acclaimed and high-quality studio releases, the band have executed close to 150 live rituals throughout Europe. These occult performances are characterized by an intense and ominous atmosphere as the band deliver their refined black metal with ice-cold precision.

Now, after more than 20 years of existence, Cirith Gorgor are more determined than ever to spread their black art through the desecration of stages and by conquering the allegiance of extreme metal fans worldwide. The release of Visions Of Exalted Lucifer on Hammerheart Records, a sophisticated yet blatantly brutal opus, is a further triumph on their path to spiritual glory.

The release will be followed by a European tour. More details to follow.

 

"Sound The Siren", a brand new song from the Welsh "ragga metal" act SKINDRED, can be streamed below. The track is taken from the band's new album, "Volume", which will be released on October 30 via Napalm Records. In the U.S., the deluxe edition of the album containing the "Rude Boys For Life" film as a bonus DVD will be made available as a Best Buy exclusive.

"Volume" was recorded at The Strongroom studio in East London and was produced by longtime collaborator James "Lerock" Loughrey, who has previously worked with WHITE ZOMBIE, DEPECHE MODE and MANIC STREET PREACHERS.

"Volume" track listing:

01. Under Attack02. Volume03. Hit The Ground04. Shut Ya Mouth05. I06. The Healing07. Sound The Siren08. Saying It Now09. II10. Straight Jacket11. III12. No Justice13. Stand Up14. Three Words

"Rude Boys For Life" looks at life on the road, its ups and downs, celebrations, festival appearances and headline shows, studio access and their Polish Woodstock headline show where the band played to over one million people.

Directed by SKINDRED's Dan Sturgess, "Rude Boys For Life" offers a revealing and exclusive behind-the-scenes look at one of rock music's best live bands. Taken from over 1000 hours of footage filmed by the band over its 17-year career, "Rude Boys For Life" chronicles the band's rise: through the making of all six studio albums, including the new album, "Volume", to exclusive, unseen, behind-the -scenes footage of five world tours; through the early days — touring the USA in a van, to the birth of the now infamous Newport Helicopter at Download festival 2011, culminating in their headline set to a million people at Polish Woodstock. It is a must for any SKINDRED fan, offering unparalleled access to the band's life on the road, with SKINDRED members talking candidly about the highlights, the pitfalls, and how they've maintained inter-band relationships over the course of their career.

SKINDRED has announced a full U.K. headline tour in November. After a sold-out arena run with STEEL PANTHER, a remarkable Camden Rocks performance, two sold-out Hit The Deck headline slots and a host of European festival shows (including Rock Am Ring and Rock Im Park in Germany with FOO FIGHTERS and SLIPKNOT), SKINDRED will be hitting the road with CROSSFAITH, YASHIN and HED PE as support.

According to Deep-Purple.it, legendary British hard rockers DEEP PURPLE performed two new songs during their concert last night (Sunday, October 25) at Atlas Arena in Lodz, Poland. The first track was an instrumental that was similar to "Contact Lost", while the second cut was a midtempo song that featured singer Ian Gillan's lead vocals.

A 22-minute video clip containing highlights of the Lodz show can be seen below.

DEEP PURPLE is preparing to enter the studio to begin recording its follow-up to 2013's "Now What?!" album for a 2016 release.

"We've been working on the material, several writing sessions, and we have one more session before we actually start recording," DEEP PURPLE guitarist Steve Morse told the "GuitCast" podcast. And the recording is gonna be about the middle of January; [we'll] start with the tracks."

Morse also confirmed that DEEP PURPLE's next album will once again be helmed by Bob Ezrin (KISS, PINK FLOYD, PETER GABRIEL, ALICE COOPER, KANSAS), who produced "Now What?!".

"We've kept in touch with Bob," DEEP PURPLE bassist Roger Glover previously told Ultimate Classic Rock. "Bob has actually become a very good friend. He really enjoyed making the record with us, so it's a no-brainer really that we're going to do it again."

Glover also described the actual writing process, telling Ultimate Classic Rock: "We jam and jam and jam, and if we find something that we like to play or that works well or inspires us, then we'll try to knock it into some kind of arrangement. Then, once we've got that, Ian [Gillan, vocals] and I will figure out what the song's really all about, and write the lyrics and all of that stuff."

You can listen to Morse's entire interview with the "GuitCast" podcast at www.guitcast.com.

"Now What?!" sold 4,000 copies in the United States in its first week of release to debut at position No. 115 on The Billboard 200 chart. The album was released in North America in April 2013 via earMUSIC, the Hamburg, Germany-based international rock label which is part of Edel Group.

Southern California's melodic hardcore-punk legends IGNITE will release their new album, "A War Against You", on January 8, 2016 via Century Media. The follow-up to 2006's "Our Darkest Days" was recorded over the course of a year with producer Cameron Webb (MOTÖRHEAD, SOCIAL DISTORTION, ALKALINE TRIO, PENNYWISE).

"A War Against You" track listing:

01. Begin Again02. Nothing Can Stop Me03. This Is A War04. Oh No Not Again05. Alive06. You Saved Me07. Rise Up08. Where I'm From09. The Suffering10. How Is This Progress?11. You Lie12. Descend13. Work

The cover artwork can be seen below.

Digital pre-order starts on December 4 and includes an instant download of the single "Nothing Can Stop Me", which the band has already performed live. The track is dedicated to a friend of IGNITE who is fighting brain tumor. On the same day, a strictly limited seven-inch single will be made available.

The lyrical themes covered on the new IGNITE album by frontman Zoli Teglas include bullying, the trappings and pitfalls of what some call the progress of today's world, and the mass media and its filtered information that he feels is molded to suit eco-political goals for the occupation of natural resources to the oppression of peoples. Zoli also hits upon topics such as racism and prejudice in America and the insanity of war told to him from the stories of hardship and perseverance of his immigrant family while making their journey west through wartorn Europe finally ending up in Los Angeles, California.

"A War Against You" will be released shortly before IGNITE heads out on the 2016 edition of the EMP Persistence Tour, on which IGNITE will be performing as headliner. This amazing package also features labelmates TERROR, who will be out supporting their own brand new album, "The 25th Hour", as well as NYHC legends H20 and special guests IRON REAGAN, TWITCHING TONGUES, WISDOM IN CHAINS and RISK IT. IGNITE 2015 is:

Zoli Teglas - VocalsBrett Rasmussen - BassBrian Balchack - GuitarCraig Anderson - DrumsKevin Kilkenny - Guitar

On October 30, Knoxville, Tennessee death metallers WHITECHAPEL will unleash their new feature-length video release, "The Brotherhood Of The Blade". The set follows the sextet on tour and at home, and dives deep into the hearts and minds of one of metal's brightest acts. Featuring an exclusive documentary, it stands as a glimpse into the band's world, into each member's outlook, and the changes they've experienced over the past near-decade on the road. Shot and directed by Mathis Arnell for Naughty Mantis, with live show audio recording, mixing, and mastering by Audiohammer's Mark Lewis, this CD/DVD set is an audio/visual apex that fans won't want to miss. "The Brotherhood Of The Blade" also includes an entire live performance: a hometown gig filmed at The International.

A performance clip of the song "The Saw Is The Law", taken from "The Brotherhood Of The Blade", can be seen below.

Since forming in 2006, WHITECHAPEL has toured extensively around the globe, amassing a level of success of which most only dream. Most recently, their 2014 album, "Our Endless War", earned them the bragging rights as one of the heaviest groups to ever crack the Billboard Top 10, plus a #1 spot on the Billboard Hard Rock chart. With each new release, the band takes their career to new heights.

WHITECHAPEL's Alex Wade (guitar) comments: "We are happy to announce our Indiegogo-funded DVD titled 'The Brotherhood Of The Blade' is now shipping with all perk items to the contributors. We are also excited to announce the DVD will see an official release through Metal Blade Records on October 30th for those of you who did not get a copy in the campaign."

"The Brotherhood Of The Blade" track listing:

Disc 1

* DVD: "The Brotherhood Of The Blade" documentary* DVD: Live at The International - Knoxville, TN June 7, 2014 (video)

01. Rise (live)02. Our Endless War (live)03. Section 8 (live)04. Faces (live)05. I, Dementia (live)06. Possession (live)07. Prostatic Fluid Asphyxiation (live)08. Vicer Exciser (live)09. Mono (live)10. Worship The Digital Age (live)11. The Saw Is The Law (live)12. Possibilities Of An Impossible Existence (live)

Disc 2

* CD: Live At The International - Knoxville, TN June 7, 2014 (audio)

01. Rise (live)02. Our Endless War (live)03. Section 8 (live)04. Faces (live)05. I, Dementia (live)06. Possession (live)07. Prostatic Fluid Asphyxiation (live)08. Vicer Exciser (live)09. Mono (live)10. Worship The Digital Age (live)11. The Saw Is The Law (live)12. Possibilities Of An Impossible Existence (live)13. This Is Exile (live bonus track)

Berlin-based startup company Staramba has created 3D figures of German metal queen Doro Pesch and her entire band. Doro and the band look incredibly realistic, due to the unique technology (photogrammetry scanner 3D Instagraph), which scans persons within a few seconds. Afterwards, lifelike and full-coloured figures emerge shift by shift in a highly-modern 3D printer.

The puppets made out of polymer plaster casts are the spitting images of the originals, only smaller.

"The figures became absolutely super," Doro states. "It's a really interesting experience to hold yourself in your hands suddenly. I'm sure that the fans will love these new figures and they will get them all for their homes."

DORO is the third act to get its own Staramba figures, following LINKIN PARK and Slash.

Pesch and her bandmates — Johnny Dee (drums), Nick Douglas (bass), Bas Maas (guitar), Luca Princiotta (guitar) as well as Harrison Young (keyboards) — are available now as a full package in the scale of 1:20 and 1:15 from the Staramba online shop.

All figures can be purchased seperately for €30 in the scale of 1:20, 1:15, 1:10 and 1:7.

California thrashers SLAYER kicked off their European tour with ANTHRAX last night (Sunday, October 25) at 013 in Tilburg, The Netherlands. Fan-filmed video footage of the performance can be seen below.

SLAYER's new album, "Repentless", was released on September 11 via Nuclear Blast. The follow-up to 2009's critically acclaimed, Grammy-nominated "World Painted Blood" was produced by Terry Date, who has previously worked with PANTERA, DEFTONES and SOUNDGARDEN. The artwork was created by Brazilian artist Marcelo Vasco in collaboration with the band's Tom Araya and Kerry King.

Asked what has been the most embarrassing thing that has happened to him while on stage or meeting a fan, King told OC Weekly: "The oddest thing that's ever happened to me was in Spain. We were playing small enough shows at the time where our bus was on the street and we weren't segregated from the fans. People would wait for autographs outside. In one particular city, the fans were really well behaved. They waited in line and we would just walk down and sign things. Half way down the line, this guy gestures for me to write with something, and it ended up being a scalpel. He wanted me to carve SLAYER or my name in him somewhere. I told him I would sign anything he had, but I wasn't going to cut him."

He continued: "The only thing I've really done on stage that wasn't planned was on the 'South Of Heaven' tour. Back then, but I used to be on [late SLAYER guitarist] Jeff's [Hanneman] side of the stage for the tradeoff lead in 'Angel Of Death'. During the double-bass kill, I would run back over to my side when the strobes were going. One time, I was running over to my side and the strobes didn't work; it was so dark that I ran into a light and went sliding on my back across stage. I tried to keep playing, but the tour manager at the time had to prop me up for the last 30 seconds of the song."

Bay Area natives and thrash metal band Hatchet are set to release their third studio album, Fear Beyond Lunacy, on October 30th via The End Records/ADA. The band is streaming two new tracks, "Tearing Into Hell" and "Prophet Of Delusion".

The follow-up to 2013's Dawn Of The End will debut the new Hatchet lineup behind founding member, vocalist, and lead guitarist, Julz Ramos: Clayton Cagle on guitar, Kody Barba on bass, and Ben Smith on drums. The new members have injected the band with a surge of raw energy, and fans of Hatchet will be overly satisfied with this revived enthusiasm laid into the recordings.

Says Ramos, “We felt “The World Beyond” (streaming below) was a good all around track to introduce fans to the new album. It has a good mixture of both fast and mid-tempo pacing with some cool gang chants in the verse. It isn't the fastest or the most melodic on the album either so we wanted people to get a taste but not give away the whole brewery up front. It only leads to good things from here!"

When discussing the album artwork for Fear Beyond Lunacy Ramos adds, “We're excited to finally be revealing our cover art for our third studio album. The artwork was done by Andrej Bartulovic from All Things Rotten who also did our previous album cover for Dawn Of The End. The artwork depicts what I see us becoming as a modern society. A society of fear engrossed, media addicted slaves. We are constantly hooked on what our media and TVs are feeding us to believe to be true and what we should be afraid of today, tomorrow, next month/year etc.. I feel this is particularly true with Americans. There is always some big conspiracy happening or natural disaster predicted by someone hundreds of years ago that everyone in some form or another seems to live their lives in fear of. It's getting out of hand and that's what this picture represents; someone who is ultimately driven insane by this and where we can all be heading if we are not careful."

Fear Beyond Lunacy tracklisting:

“Where Time Cannot Exist”
“Living In Extinction”
“Lethal Injustice”
“In Fear We Trust”
“Killing Indulgence”
“Dead And Gone”
“Tearing Into Hell”
“Prophet Of Delusion”
“The World Beyond”
“Frozen Hell” (bonus track)
“Awaiting Evil (bonus track, only available on vinyl edition)

"Prophet Of Delusion":

"Tearing Into Hell":

Lyric video "Living In Extinction":

“The World Beyond”:

Pre-order the album at The Omega Order.

Hatchet are preparing to hit the road September 22nd for a six-week tour with Doyle, the namesake band of Doyle Von Frankenstein (formerly of The Misfits), alongside supporting acts The Family Ruin and Calabrese, with select dates featuring Hatchet with Lich King.

Says Julz Ramos: "We definitely learned a lot from Kobra and that tour's diverse metal bill, who all had their stuff dialled in tight. Now we are proud to announce our next tour supporting Doyle. Being a thrash band you always have that hardcore punk influence somewhere in your sound and it will be exciting to play to more of that crowd. We will be hitting some new territories this time around as well. Look forward to seeing the Hatchet Legions in full force!"

Tour dates:

October
23 - Korova - San Antonio, TX
24 - Del Rio Civic Center - Del Rio, TX ***
25 - Cine El Rey - McAllen, TX ***
28 - Jake's - Lubbock, TX ***
29 - Trees - Dallas, TX ***
30 - 18th St. - San Leon, TX ***

November
2 - Blue Max - Midland, TX ***
3 - Mesa Music Hall - El Paso, TX ***

*** With Calabrese

After a year that saw a deluxe reissue of his career-launching 1983 album Unchained as well as seeing his life’s story retold in the documentary film I Am Thor, which has been picking up awards at such prestigious film festivals as Slamdance and Fantasia Fest, metal legend Jon Mikl Thor is capping off one of the biggest years of his career with the release of his newest studio album Metal Avenger on October 30th.

Joining the metal savior on this epic recording is a slew of luminaries from both the rock and punk worlds including powerhouse vocalist Henry Rollins, Motörhead guitarist Fast Eddie Clarke, Dead Boy Cheetah Chrome, Twister Sister axeman Jay Jay French, Christian Death guitarist Rikk Agnew, D.O.A.’s own Joey Shithead plus Ritchy Stotts of Plasmatics, Betsy Bitch and many others. The album will be available on both CD as well as a limited edition “blood red” vinyl pressing courtesy of Deadline Music.

“This is my most ambitious and best album in the history of my career,” Thor states boldly. Reteaming with producers Bruce Duff (Twisted Roots) and Frank Meyer (Streetwalkin’ Cheetahs), the group began writing new material and “came up with the concept of the Metal Avenger whereby each song represents Thor’s quest to overcome the overlords of the planet Psykon and free the slaves on the master ship. There is adventure, intrigue and love in the lyrics and story. But most of all there is strength in the music. These songs are HEAVY yet melodic.”

Recording took place at Kitten Robot studios with engineer Paul Roessler (The Screamers, 45 Grave) behind the board. Speaking of his guest performers, Thor offers, “I was very fortunate to perform with these incredible musicians who are each superhero characters in their own right. With my Comrades of Metal, I feel more powerful than ever!”

Check out the “Metal Avenger” video below.

Tracklisting:

“Out Of Control” feat. Jussi Lehtisalo (Circle)
“Metal Avenger” feat. Fast Eddie Clarke (Motörhead)
“Kings Of Thunder And Lightning” feat. Scott Carlson (Repulsion)
“Master Of Revenge” feat. Henry Rollins (Black Flag)
“Destruct” feat. Brian Forsythe (Kix)
“The Hammer” feat. Jay Jay French (Twisted Sister)
“Taste Of Victory” feat. Betsy Bitch (Bitch) & Rikk Agnew (Christian Death)
“Heavy Load”
“Legions Of The Psykon World” feat. Jack Starr (Virgin Steele)
“Drive” feat. Cheetah Chrome (The Dead Boys)
“Stars Upon Stars” feat. Betsy Bitch (Bitch)
“T.H.O.R.” feat. Joey Shithead (D.O.A.)
“Atomic Man” feat. Peter Stjärnvind (Krux)
“Wings Of Destiny” feat. Niklas Stålvind (Wolf)
“Law Of The Universe”

“Metal Avenger” video:

Catch Thor perform live along with screenings of his documentary at these following locations:

November
10 - Seattle, WA - El Corazon
11 - Portland, OR - Dante’s
12 - Los Angeles, CA - Whisky A Go-Go
14 - San Antonio, TX - Phil Anselmo’s Housecore Horror Film Festival
16 - Chicago, IL - Reggie Rock Club
18 - Detroit, MI - Small’s Bar
20 - Philadelphia, PA - PhillyMOCA
22 - Brooklyn, NY - Saint Vitus Bar

Reactivated Chicago thrash metal masters AFTERMATH are writing new material that will blend the speed and aggression of their seminal demo, "Killing The Future", with the complex, progressive, technical thrash of their later offerings. The first song, titled "There Is Something Wrong", is "the fastest song we have written and a return to our roots," according to AFTERMATH vocalist Kyriakos "Charlie" Tsiolis.

Formed in 1985 as a four-piece with the singular purpose of playing faster than anyone before them, AFTERMATH was one of the pioneering bands of the crossover genre with the release of their first demo (1986) and the seminal "Killing The Future" (1987). By 1989, with the addition of a second guitarist the band departed from their crossover roots and released their "Words That Echo Fear" demo. The four-song demo was a dark, complex, technical and progressive thrash metal tour de force. The band inked a deal with Big Chief Records in 1990 and began recording its debut. Unfortunately, the label went bankrupt during the making of the "Eyes Of Tomorrow" record. The result: a delayed release of nearly four years. By the time "Eyes Of Tomorrow" came out in 1994, the thrash metal scene was dead.

On October 30, Divebomb Records will release "Killing The Future" for the first time on CD in a remastered version from the original master tapes by Paul Logus (PANTERA, STONE SOUR, SATYRICON, STEEL PANTHER) along with four bonus tracks. The CD will include an expanded booklet and will also be available on iTunes, Amazon, Spotify, etc.

Celebrating its 30th anniversary, AFTERMATH reissued "Eyes Of Tomorrow" in September on Shadow Kingdom Records.

"During the past several years the thought of reuniting crossed my mind, but it wasn't until we received an offer to play Headbangers Open Air (HOA) and the reissue of 'Eyes Of Tomorrow' became real that I called the other guys," explained Tsiolis. They agreed to only reunite if the energy was there and the songs sounded as good as they did back in the day. Two minutes into their first rehearsal, they knew it felt right.

Having played its first show this past May as part of Ragnarokkr Metal Apocalypse in Chicago and just coming off its electrifying performance as part of the Headbangers Open Air festival in Germany on July 24, AFTERMATH is back.

A clip of the Headbangers Open Air performance can be seen below.

STRYPER's new album, "Fallen", entered The Billboard 200 chart at position No. 43 with first-week sales of just over 10,000 units — nearly all from pure album sales. The set follows the No. 35-peaking "No More Hell To Pay", which was released in 2013.

The Billboard 200 chart 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).

"Fallen" was rleased on October 16 via Frontiers. The CD was tracked at SpiritHouse Recording Studios in Northampton, Massachusetts and includes a cover version of the BLACK SABBATH classic "After Forever".

In a recent interview with Audio Ink Radio, STRYPER frontman Michael Sweet stated about the musical direction of "Fallen": "It's similar to the last album but a little different. We tuned the guitars down on a few more songs than on the last album. It's a heavier vibe. I did a co-write with Clint Lowery of SEVENDUST on 'Yahweh', and that song turned out really different in a great way. We're never going to be as heavy as METALLICA, but STRYPER's roots are tied to heavy metal. We grew up on IRON MAIDEN and JUDAS PRIEST and VAN HALEN and the SCORPIONS. Over the years, we ventured a short distance from that background with pop songs and ballads, which we love doing, but we like to be heavy."

Asked if he feels STRYPER has influenced other Christian hard rock and metal bands to stay true to their faith and musical vision, Sweet said: "I hope so. We've always been a band that's gone out of our way to wave the flag that God is cool, and not only cool, but the Creator of all things. Aside from that, people say it's an oxymoron to mix metal with Christian lyrics, and we're trying to break that apart and destroy that mentality because it's just not true. I feel God created all things, and therefore, He created music. So, it makes perfect sense to me to mix the two. It should be done more than the devil and metal being mixed, in my opinion, but for some reason, people have this thing that metal is all about the devil. It's ridiculous."

"Fallen" track listing:

01. Yahweh02. Fallen03. Pride04. Big Screen Lies05. Heaven06. Love You Like I Do07. All Over Again08. After Forever (BLACK SABBATH cover)09. Till I Get What I Need10. Let There Be Light11. The Calling12. King Of Kings

The cover artwork for "Fallen", which can be seen below, was designed by Stanis Decker, who worked with STRYPER on 2013's "No More Hell To Pay".

Fan-filmed video footage of W.A.S.P.'s October 9 performance at Kulttuuritalo in Helsinki, Finland can be seen below.

W.A.S.P.'s new album, "Golgotha", has registered the following first-week chart positions:

Sweden: #6Finland: #13Norway: #17Germany: #18Austria: #33Switzerland: #36Poland: #37UK: #50USA: #93Belgium: #73Canada: 79France: #110The Netherlands: #136

"Golgotha" was released on October 2 via Austria's Napalm Records.

W.A.S.P. frontman Blackie Lawless told Ultimate Classic Rock about the six-year gap between the release of 2009's "Babylon" and the arrival of "Golgotha": "That gap, we originally started in spring of 2011 and we went and did the 30th-anniversary tour in 2012 and then, the following May, I broke my leg pretty badly and we lost the rest of that year, so if you put it all together, it's about two years of work spread out. Those gaps in time, be them planned or unplanned, ended up being a good thing because it gave us the luxury of time I've never had before. We were talking about it a couple of months ago when we mixed the record. Had those gaps not happened, this record wouldn't have turned out the way it did. It gave us the ability to sit back and really question it and said, 'Is this what we want to do? Is this what we want to sound like?'"

Regarding the new song "Last Runaway", Lawless said: "Forty years ago I came to Hollywood as a teenager. Terrified and scared out of my mind, I had no idea what waited there for me. The song 'Last Runaway' is an intensely personal account of what happened to me, not only then but over the years and the success that followed after. Be it a kid looking for success in the music business or any life-challenging endeavor that someone would 'run away' from in life, I'm certain that everyone can relate to this story one way or another. It's another kid 'chasing the dream' and trying to survive it in the process. We've all been there."

Drummer Mike Dupke left W.A.S.P. in July 2015 after a nine-year stint with the band. He has since been replaced on the road by YNGWIE MALMSTEEN drummer Patrick Johansson and, more recently, by Randy Black (PRIMAL FEAR).

The release of Find Me's new album, entitled Dark Angel, is scheduled for December 4th in Europe and North America. A lyric video for “Nowhere To Hide” can be found below.

Find Me is a collaboration between Swedish musician, songwriter and producer Daniel Flores (Issa, The Murder of My Sweet, Seventh Wonder) and singer Robbie LaBlanc from Blanc Faces. The partnership was put together by Serafino Perugino with a vision to unleash another AOR behemoth. Find Me’s debut album, Wings Of Love received excellent reviews and left fans begging for more music from the duo. No demands could have been easier to fulfill as the two guys just love working together and finding the right songs for the group from contributors the likes of Alessandro Del Vecchio, brothers Tom and James Martin (Vega, Issa), Soren Kronqvist (Sunstorm), Niclas Olsson (Alyson Avenue) or Philip Lindstrand (Strong) is never a problem.

“Serafino of Frontiers and I searched for new songs and fresh ideas from writers from all over the world”, tells drummer and producer Daniel Flores. “I personally was searching for a musical challenge and Serafino with his golden ears is always looking for the next big song. It’s the combination of the two mentalities, with Robbie’s ability to sing and work on melodies that made this album what it is.”

According to Robbie LaBlanc: “Daniel really understands how to create an awesome AOR record. He allows me some flexibility in the melodies and is a pleasure to work with and a true pro.”

The result is once again a delightful and massive melodic rock record, chock full of mighty anthemic AOR songs with Robbie’s soaring lead vocals and amazing performances from Daniel Flores and guitarist Philip Lindstrand! Sonically, this powerhouse album sits in between the classic sound of Journey and Giant and newcomers like W.E.T and Eclipse.

“To be honest, in the first album, all involved tried to find the right combination of all the elements we love in AOR music” adds Daniel. “Now we feel more confident on what people will like. Productionwise everything just came naturally in place in this recording. Also Robbie sings even better than on last record and that's no small accomplishment really.”

“I feel I connected with these songs really nicely” adds Robbie. “It's funny of all the demos I received from Daniel I think we only changed one key. It's like they were written right for me!”

“I hope we get to give the AOR fans the same feelings they got when they discovered this music for the first time,” concludes Daniel, “We try to remind people of how the old records where done in this style, with the same mentality and complete devotion but with the cutting edge sound and quality engineering that technology has brought to date. Also, we hope to have chances to play for the fans live next year.”

Tracklisting:

“Nowhere To Hide”
“Let Love Rule”
“Forever”
“Another Day”
“Dark Angel”
“Bleed In The Rain”
“Face To Face”
“Where Do I Go”
“Midnight Memories”
“Don't Slip Away From Me”
“Did You Feel Any Love”
“I'm Free”

“Nowhere To Hide” lyric video:

Trailer:

Find Me is:

Robbie Lablanc - Lead and background vocals
Philip Lindstrand - Rhythm and lead Guitars, Bass
Sören Kronqvist - Keyboards
Daniel Flores - Drums and Keyboards

Additional musicians:

Angelica Rylin - Vocals on "Another day"
Christopher Vetter - Lead guitars and Clean Guitars

Backing vocals: Robert Lablanc, Philip Lidstrand, Thomas Vikström, Angelica Rylin, Redas Jefisovas and Daniel Flores.

Morbid Throne, the upcoming new album from Alabama death netallers, Grave Ritual, is now streaming in its entirety below.

Five years removed from their acclaimed debut album, the maniacs of Grave Ritual have re-emerged from the crypt with Morbid Throne. The band's newest burnt offering delivers nine tracks of blasphemous, old-school death metal in the vein of Incantation, Death and Autopsy. Dark Descent Records will release Morbid Throne October 30th on CD, LP and digital formats. Cover art for the album was done by Daniel Desecrator.

Formed from the ashes of Alabama bred duo Meathole Infection in 2009, Grave Ritual's sole purpose is to create dark and primitive death metal. The band's self-titled demo was released in 2009. A year later, Dark Descent Records released Grave Ritual's first full-length album, Euphoric Hymns From The Altar Of Death. Since the release of their debut album, Grave Ritual has focused on perfecting their devastating live assaults, sharing the stage with such bands as Proclamation, Revenge, Black Witchery, and Inquisition. They have played Rites of Darkness II and III, as well as several appearances at Destroying Texas Fest. The band is now stationed in New Orleans.  

Morbid Throne tracklisting:

“Baleful Aversion”
“Autonomous Death”
“Adversary Crown”
“Invoker Of Heathen Gnosis”
“Tyrant's Hammer”
“Masters And Slaves”
“Lewd Perversities”
“Behind The Reigns Of Gods”
“Throne Of Continuum”

Morbid Throne by Grave Ritual

In a brand new interview with Metal Express Radio, legendary bassist/vocalist Glenn Hughes (DEEP PURPLE, BLACK SABBATH, BLACK COUNTRY COMMUNION) was asked about what it was like to join his ex-DEEP PURPLE bandmate David Coverdale on stage in California this past June to perform a couple of DEEP PURPLE classics (see video below). He responded: "It was a Wednesday at Newport Beach, I was having my hair done and I knew WHITESNAKE were playing Beverly Hills that night and knew there was a possibility I could make that show. So I was getting my hair done and I called [David] up to let him know I was coming. I get there 20 minutes before he goes on stage and I was walking towards him to give him a hug and he gives me the microphone. Basically, he asked me if I wanted to do it and I said that this is what I do. We didn't talk about it before we met up. What you can see on YouTube is evident that it wasn't rehearsed. It was very tribal and spontaneous."

He continued: "There's never been any hidden agenda between David and I. There was never a moment in DEEP PURPLE where I had to tell a lie. There's always been difficulties between members of bands, but David Coverdale and Glenn Hughes were always very close. In fact, even more so today than ever before. You can see on that YouTube footage how close we are."

Hughes also talked about attempts in recent years to reunite some of the members of the DEEP PURPLE Mark III lineup. He explained: "About six years ago, David and I, along with [late DEEP PURPLE keyboardist] Jon Lord, were talking about doing something together as DEEP PURPLE Mark III. We were talking about who was going to call Ritchie [Blackmore, ex-DEEP PURPLE guitarist]. Jon said he'd call Ritchie, but he couldn't get through to him. Then Jon got sick and died, so it didn't happen. After Jon died, me, David and Ritchie did try to get something together but it never materialized. I can't say why it didn't, but it just didn't happen. I can say to you now that I don't think it'll ever materialize. David is so busy and I am so busy that I can't lend my face to something that is not real. Yes, it would be great if Mark III could get together but we've missed that opportunity now. I said my goodbyes to Jon Lord at the Albert Hall last year and that is it. I'm still friends with Ian Paice and everybody's good, but I can't live in that past. It is something that has gone. I only want to wish Ritchie the very best in what he does and long may the legacy of DEEP PURPLE live on."

Coverdale celebrated his past in the present with this year's release of WHITESNAKE's 12th studio album, "The Purple Album". The new set was billed as "a re-imagination of classic songs from David Coverdale's time as the lead singer for DEEP PURPLE's Mark III and Mark IV studio albums." PURPLE classics revamped for the new set include "Stormbringer", "Lady Double Dealer", "Soldier Of Fortune" and "Sail Away". Coverdale was DEEP PURPLE's frontman from late 1973 to early 1976 and sang on the albums "Burn", "Stormbringer" and "Come Taste The Band". Coverdale explained that shortly before DEEP PURPLE co-founder Jon Lord's 2012 death, he was eyeing a DEEP PURPLE gig featuring all the band members throughout the lineups. The Pulse Of Radio asked Coverdale what if any relationship he has with the frontman he replaced — the great Ian Gillan. "Ian was one of the nicest blokes I met," he said. "I'd flown over to [England to] do a charity show for Roger Glover at the [Royal] Albert Hall — a thing called 'Butterfly Ball' [in 1975] — and Ian was there and we ended up carousing for, like, four days and nights. I ended up sleeping from the moment the plane took off from Heathrow back to Los Angeles. Woke up as we landed. The perfect journey! [Laughs] But, yeah, I have absolutely no problem sharing a microphone with Ian. None. Y'know? To me, it would be the ultimate expression of gratitude to breathtaking loyalty from PURPLE fans. It's amazing. It truly is."

Heavy Talk conducted an interview with MASTERPLAN members Roland Grapow (guitar; HELLOWEEN) and Rick Altzi (vocals; AT VANCE, SANDALINAS, THUNDERSTONE) during the band's recent South American tour. You can now watch the chat below. A couple of excerpts follow (transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET).

On replacing singer Jorn Lande with Rick Altzi:

Roland: "Finding the right singer is never easy, especially when you've had an amazing singer like Jorn Lande. So, I don't know how to say it in English, but it's like when you put your level so high… Then that's a problem when somebody leaves the band or you get separated and to replace someone. It's easier when you have a decent singer and good success, and replacing [him] with a better singer. But now, with Rick, I thought it's so close, it's so… [He's] maybe the only one who can really replace Jorn. And it was not easy in the beginning, because people always like… [they're] a little bit narrow-minded, the fans, and always complaining. Especially, we had already a lineup change with Mike DiMeo. Fifty percent of the fans, when we announced the news [that Altzi had joined MASTERPLAN], were, like, 'Oh. We will see.' And then the album came out. But when we made the live performance, a lot of people said, 'Wow! This is fucking amazing. He sounds the same or better.' That's why made [a concert] DVD now, to prove to people that, after many shows… This show [for the DVD] was recorded after the third concert or fourth, so it's funny that it's so good, because we played a big festival. I think we're more tight and more better playing and more relaxed. We know what we do together. We're smiling all the time."

Rick: "It was really hard for me to decide if I wanted to do it, [to] join the band, because I thought it's a hard situation. It can only go bad, I thought. So... But I thought, Jorn really didn't wanna be in the band — he didn't wanna do anything more — so either you put the band on hold, or you put it to rest, or we try it again. And it was, actually, working okay. And live, I tried to stick as close as I can to the original songs, I tried to make them as good as I can. After every show, at least people say, 'Hey, it was better than I expected.' It's really nice. But it's hard work. We have to prove that we still can do it… So we just hope that this live DVD… hopefully it's gonna bring more light to the whole situation and [people can] see that we can actually perform good live anyway."

On MASTERPLAN's plans for the future:

Roland: "We have many plans now for the future, which started maybe with the new contract with AFM again. I had the plan, because… The situations are getting more heavy, more difficult in the music business, and I had the idea to… instead of one normal studio album, to deliver something like the DVD first. Then we're working on the re-recording CD of my ex-band HELLOWEEN — my favorite, let's say, ten [or] twelve songs, we want to re-record soon. We did already the drums, and we want to deliver it maybe late spring — as a MASTERPLAN album with some HELLOWEEN melodies. And I think it's very close to MASTERPLAN, because I wrote these songs, like 'The Time Of The Oath', 'The Dark Ride' or 'Escalation 666'… 'The Chance', and many, many more. And I'm pretty sure people will love it… with [Rick's] voice. I will sing maybe some stuff as well. And after that, we do another studio album."

MASTERPLAN's first-ever concert release came out on October 9. "Keep Your Dream aLive" was made available as DVD/CD and Blu-ray/CD sets, both including the entire show from Masters Of Rock festival, recordings from Wacken Open Air, footage from the band's latest Asian tour and ProgPower USA, as well as all five official MASTERPLAN video clips. The Masters Of Rock show is featured on the CD.

A performance clip of the song "Spirit Never Die" from "Keep Your Dream aLive" can be seen below.

MASTERPLAN's latest studio album, "Novum Initium", was released in June 2013 via AFM Records.

Joining guitarist Grapow in MASTERPLAN's current lineup are drummer Martin "Marthus" Skaroupka (CRADLE OF FILTH), Rick Altzi and bassist Jari Kainulainen (STRATOVARIUS, SYMFONIA, DEVIL'S TRAIN).

Former GUNS N' ROSES and current SIXX: A.M. guitarist DJ Ashba is featured on the latest episode of Animal Planet's "Tanked", a show that creates custom fish tanks for celebrities.

"Tanked" stars Wayde King and Brett Raymer, co-owners of Las Vegas-based Acrylic Tank Manufacturing (ATM), set up Ashba's aquarium — themed after the Catacombs of Paris — and filmed the guitarist's reaction for the October 23 episode.

According to the official "Tanked" show description, "ATM is one of the country's most successful builders of aquariums and two of Sin City's most imaginative businessmen, Wayde King and Brett Raymer, are tasked with building some of the most enormous and awe-inspiring tanks and aquariums for top celebrities, luxury hotels and casinos, Fortune 500 businesses, private homes and millionaire homeowners across the country. ATM takes on more than 200 projects every year with tanks ranging from 50 to one million gallons in size. "

Ashba issued a statement on July 27 saying that he was leaving GUNS N' ROSES. His statement read in part, "It is with a very heavy heart and yet great pride that I announce that I've decided to close this chapter of my life and encapsulate the wonderful times that I've shared with GUNS N' ROSES into fond memories. I have reached a point in my life where I feel its time to dedicate myself to my band SIXX: A.M., my adoring wife and family, and to the many new adventures that the future holds for me."

Ashba added: "I want to take a moment to thank Axl from the bottom of my heart for not only the most incredible experience of my life, but for truly believing in me. You are a true friend and a champion of mine and I am forever grateful. And even as I move on to pursue other endeavors, I will always remain one of your biggest fans. I also would like to thank each and every one of you fans for your love and support throughout the years."

Ashba said earlier in his statement that working with GUNS N' ROSES was "the most incredible journey I could have possibly imagined."

Ashba joined GUNS N' ROSES in March 2009 following the departure of Robin Finck.

Guitar lord Joe Stump (HolyHell, Exorcism) is streaming the track “Hostile Takeover”, from his new album, The Dark Lord Rises, out now via Lion Music.

Stump recently spoke with BraveWords scribe Carl Begai and revealed some details of his new album: "It's a killer with some very heavy stuff; thrash, speed, power, and even a black metal-tinged track, along with of course the badass Blackmore rocking shit and Yngwie induced neo-classical fret frying. Also, a beautiful ballad dedicated and inspired by Gary Moore that's one of the best things I`ve ever recorded as far as that emotional side of my playing goes."

MEGADETH mainman Dave Mustaine says that the band's upcoming fifteenth album, "Dystopia", has the "excitement" that was present during the recording sessions for MEGADETH's classic sophomore LP, "Peace Sells... But Who's Buying?"

"Dystopia" will be released on January 22, 2016. The follow-up to 2013's "Super Collider" marks the recording debut of MEGADETH's new lineup, which includes Brazilian guitarist Kiko Loureiro, best known for his work with ANGRA, and LAMB OF GOD drummer Chris Adler.

Speaking to Australia's Heavy magazine, Mustaine stated about "Dystopia": "I'm so happy with it, brother. It reminds me of when we recorded 'Peace Sells…' because it has that excitement. There are some songs on there that are melodic; I think that when you learn how to play heavy metal and bring melody to it then that's a huge accomplishment. Most guys, when they play metal, they've got a really fast right hand but their left hand isn't really that melodic. Once you've found the secret on how to write melody with metal, well, then you've got it. This new lineup has a really cool, honest and organic feel to it."

He continued: "It's easy to say that it's going to be heavier than 'Super Collider' was; I've always made whatever I'm singing or writing about musically as an example of what I'm going through personally. I lost my mother-in-law to Alzheimer's last year and just because a person died in October when the record was done doesn't mean she wasn't slowly dying for many, many months before that. I haven't had a lot of people close to me die. I've known a lot them but nothing as personal as inside my family. So when she died, that really fucked my head up, which led to the songs being dark, somber and melancholy."

Mustaine also talked about the inspiration behind the new MEGADETH album title. He said: "I've had this outlook for a long time that the world is a really good place with some bad people in it. Others might think the opposite. But I think if you were to take a consensus of people, they know the difference between right and wrong. People have manners and morals but lately there's been a decline in how people treat one another. That's where 'Dystopia' comes in, and if people don't start loving each other and helping those in need then when that becomes more important than power, fame or money then I think we're going to be okay."

Due to his LAMB OF GOD schedule, Adler was unable to play with MEGADETH in China and Japan earlier in the month and was temporarily replaced by Tony Laureano (ex-DIMMU BORGIR, NILE, ANGELCORPSE), a veteran extreme-metal skinsman who has worked as MEGADETH's drum tech since 2011.

Adler made his live debut with MEGADETH in July at the Festival D'été De Québec (also known as by its acronym FEQ, or Quebec City Summer Festival in English), in Quebec City, Quebec, Canada.

EUROPE's place as a legendary hard rock band was platinum-stamped early in their career. Having enjoyed an explosive period of worldwide success in the '80s (under-pinned by their hit album and single "The Final Countdown"), 2015's "War Of Kings" has seen them take full advantage of the global groundwork EUROPE have keenly re-established over the last few years.

Recently, it was decided that EUROPE's momentous live appearance at Wacken Open Air festival should not only be filmed and recorded, but released as a DVD and Blu-ray. EUROPE's "War Of Kings Special Edition" will include the original "War Of Kings" CD plus the Wacken 2015 DVD and Blu-ray, and will hit stores in North America on December 4 via Hell & Back Recordings/UDR Music. The set will come in three formats (2-disc ecolbook CD+DVD, 2-disc ecolbook CD+ Blu-ray, limited-edition deluxe package with "War Of Kings" CD + DVD + Blu-ray and photobook), and an audio-only edition of the Wacken performance will also be available via digital format. Pre-orders will available beginning next Wednesday, October 21.

CD track listing:

01. War Of Kings02. Hole In My Pocket03. The Second Day04. Praise You05. Nothin' To Ya06. California 40507. Days Of Rock 'N' Roll08. Children Of The Mind09. Rainbow Bridge10. Angels (With Broken Hearts)11. Light It Up12. Vasastan (instrumental)

DVD and Blu-ray track listing:

01. War Of Kings02. Hole In My Pocket03. Superstitious04. Scream Of Anger05. Last Look At Eden06. Second Day07. Firebox08. Sign Of The Times09. Praise You10. The Beast11. Ready Or Not12. Girl From Lebanon13. Nothin' To Ya14. Let The Good Times Rock15. Rock The Night16. Days Of Rock 'N' Roll17. The Final Countdown

A performance clip of the song "Nothin' To Ya", taken from "War Of Kings Special Edition", can be seen below.

In celebration of this release, EUROPE will embark on the "War Of Kings" U.S. tour in January. The trek begins in San Jose, California on January 19 and hits 16 cities before coming to a close in Atlanta, Georgia on February 6. General on-sale begins next Friday, October 23 at 9 a.m., PT/12 p.m. ET via all major ticketing sites or EuropeTheBand.com.

EUROPE vocalist Joey Tempest states: "[We're] very excited to have the 'War Of Kings Special Edition' coming out with our Wacken festival performance as bonus disc and so great to soon be back in the USA after our very successful East Coast shows earlier this year — covering a lot more states this time.. The 'War Of Kings' tour continues!"

Tour dates:

Jan. 19 - San Jose, CA - Rockbar TheaterJan. 20 - Anaheim, CA - The GroveJan. 22 - Los Angeles, CA - Saban TheaterJan. 23 - Las Vegas, NV - Hard Rock LiveJan. 24 - San Diego, CA - Music Box TheaterJan. 25 - Chandler, AZ - Wild Horse Pass CasinoJan. 27 - Lawrence, KS - The Granada TheaterJan. 28 - Sioux Falls, SD - Badlands PawnJan. 29 - Shawnee, OK - The Grand Events CtrJan. 30 - Dallas, TX - House of BluesJan. 31 - Houston, TX - House of BluesFeb. 02 - Fort Lauderdale, FL - RevolutionFeb. 03 - St. Petersburg, FL - The Concert Courtyard - Ferg'sFeb. 04 - Lake Buena Vista, FL - House of BluesFeb. 05 - Biloxi, MS - Hard Rock CasinoFeb. 06 - Atlanta, GA - The Masquerade

In celebration of the band's 30th anniversary, German power metallers HELLOWEEN will release their first-ever book on October 31. "Hellbook" is described as a "HELLOWEEN bible" which is guaranteed to become a sought-after fan item as well as the only official reference book to date.

HELLOWEEN bassist Markus Grosskopf recently stated about "Hellbook": "For us, this book is highly emotional and evokes a thousand memories. Good moments as well as not-so-good ones are captured here. Thirty years of HELLOWEEN on almost 500 pages — and no end in sight..."

A "Hellbook" preview is available at this location.

HELLOWEEN will return to North America to play select shows in February and March 2016.

HELLOWEEN's 15th studio album, "My God-Given Right", was released on May 29 via Nuclear Blast. The CD was recorded between October 2014 and February 2015 at the band's MiSueno Studio on the isle of Tenerife with producer Charlie Bauerfeind (GOTTHARD, HAMMERFALL).

According to singer Andi Deris, the band insists on a simple motto: "Back to the roots — but with new songs." He continues: "More than ever, our fans want to sing and rock out along with us. This simply works best with the use of distinctive choruses and '80s hooklines."

Guitarist Michael Weikath clarifies: "It is not our mission to just relive the '80s at all cost — to our own surprise, the whole dynamic of this working concept took on a life of its own."

Both Weikath and Deris stress that the album title is self-explanatory. "Surely there'll be haters again that will presume that we have nothing better to do than to keep recycling the past instead of moving on into the 21st century," the guitarist says. "But such critics have followed us all along and never impressed us. We've always had a liberal attitude towards heavy metal: to do anything we want — and not follow the directions the know-it-alls would have pushed on us. We remained unfazed and acted out our vision of 'anything goes' in the songwriting process to 'My God-Given Right' because we believe that it is our god-given-right (no pun intended) to do as we please and fulfill our musical vision without any boundaries."

The "My God-Given Right" video was directed by Oliver Sommer of AVA Studios.

The "My God-Given Right" artwork was once again created by graphic guru Martin Häusler (BON JOVI, QUEEN, GOTTHARD) and is also available as a 3D lenticular print.

In a brand new interview with Sticks For Stones, former DREAM THEATER and current THE WINERY DOGS and METAL ALLEGIANCE drummer Mike Portnoy was asked if he thinks somebody like METALLICA's Lars Ulrich is a good drummer. He responded (hear audio below): "Well, I have a tremendous amount of respect for Lars, even though he takes a beating in the drum community. To me, his value is not necessarily in drumming, but it has to do with him being a part of a musical revolution that he was a huge, huge part of starting. He's been a tremendous asset to METALLICA, not only as a writer, but as a businessman and his abilities to market things and his ability to arrange music and his performance on stage — he's a very animated player on stage. And to me, I would rather watch somebody like Lars Ulrich on stage than one of these technical drummers that can do quadruple paradiddles at 240bpm. To me, that's boring. Who cares about that?"

He continued: "I'd rather be entertained and go to a show and watch a drummer and have somebody that makes me actually smile. So I don't judge drummers based on their technical ability; I judge them based on the overall package and what they bring to the music they're part of. And what Lars brings to the music of METALLICA is absolutely invaluable. So I could care less if his meter might be slightly up and down, or if his fills are slightly sloppy; I don't care about that. To me, there's way more to being a good drummer than precision and technique."

Asked in a 2008 interview with U.K.'s Rhythm magazine if he was troubled by the fact that he's gotten a lot of flak over the years from people who accused him of being a poor drummer, Lars said: "It used to, back in the day — and I spent a lot of time overcompensating for that on the early records. But then you wake up one day and you're like, whatever. It hasn't bothered me for about 15 years. I'm no Joey Jordison, I'm no Mike Portnoy, and I have nothing but love and respect and admiration for all those guys. When I hear some of the young dudes, they blow my mind with what they can do with their feet and stuff — but it's not something that makes me go, 'I need to feel better about myself so I'm gonna learn how to do what they do with my feet.' I'm not a particularly accomplished drummer but I am very, very, very good at understanding the role of the drums next to James Hetfield's rhythm guitar. I guarantee you I'm the best guy in the world for that, and that's enough for me!"

Ulrich stated about his playing ability in a 2012 interview with DRUM! magazine: "I usually feel like I've regressed. [laughs] I'm like, 'Why can't I do that anymore?'"

He continued: "I can't say that I necessarily sit down to practice, like, 'I'm going to play and practice so I can get better.' What happens is that I just sit down and kind of play to just more stay in shape."

Ulrich added: "You know, METALLICA was up to two or three months off [in 2011], and I would sit down, I have an iPod next to my drums so I can play along to all kind of crazy stuff, and try to see if I can land in the same zip code of some of that stuff occasionally. But I can't say that I sit down to necessarily practice to sort of get better. For most of my stuff, it's about listening and about interpreting stuff that I'm listening to. So all the kind of sitting down and, you know, 'Now I'm going to do thirty-second-note paradiddles standing on my head — you know what I mean? I don't do that kind of stuff so much. For me it's more about the regimen of staying in shape, running every day, eating healthy, you know, being on top of that side of it."

WWE NXT wrestling superstar Samoa Joe got an assist from an unlikely ally at the Aftershock festival in Sacramento, California on Friday, October 23: Corey Taylor.

The SLIPKNOT singer, which was trading barbs with WWE NXT wrestler Baron Corbin on social media in the weeks leading up to this weekend's match between Samoa Joe and Corbin, was in attendance watching the action. Taylor had words with Corbin, and later, during the match, Corbin threw Joe into the stairs in front of Corey, Baron got in Corey's face and Corey slapped him. This got the biggest audience reaction of the match and allowed Joe to get the win.

In a 2011 interview with Wrestling With Pop Culture, Taylor said: "I've been a wrestling fan since I was a kid. If you embrace it for what it is, which is entertainment, I have no illusions about the fact of if it's real or not. But I know it's physically taxing and it takes great skill to make it look good and no skill to make it look crappy. I know the people who rise to the top are the best in the business and it's almost a metaphor for the music business. People come and go, but legends stay forever. My all-time favorite wrestler is Stone Cold, but I also love The Rock, Triple H, Shawn Michaels and the wrestlers I grew up with, which is [Hulk] Hogan, Ricky 'The Dragon' Steamboat, Tito Santana, Andre [The Giant], even 'Hacksaw' Jim Duggan. I got to meet him and Brutus 'The Barber' Beefcake and I was, like, freaking out. I was losing my shit, I was like, 'Oh my God. You guys are awesome.' I'm still a fan."

SLIPKNOT's latest album, ".5: The Gray Chapter", sold 132,000 copies in the U.S. in its first week of release to land at No. 1 on The Billboard 200 chart. It was the band's first new record since the 2010 death of bassist Paul Gray and the 2013 dismissal of drummer Joey Jordison.

ACT OF DEFIANCE, the band featuring former MEGADETH members Shawn Drover (drums) and Chris Broderick (guitar), alongside ex-SCAR THE MARTYR singer Henry Derek Bonner, and SHADOWS FALL's Matt Bachand (bass), kicked off its North American tour this past Thursday night (October 22) at Count's Vamp'd in Las Vegas, Nevada. Fan-filmed video footage of the concert can be seen below.

Remaining tour dates:

Oct. 26 - Reno, NV @ Psychedelic BallroomOct. 28 - Salt Lake City, UT @ Area 51Oct. 30 - Denver, CO @ MarquisOct. 31 - Merriam, KS @ AftershockNov. 01 - St. Louis, MO @ FubarNov. 03 - Danville, IL @ Vintage VillainsNov. 04 - Chicago, IL @ Cobra LoungeNov. 05 - Westland, MI @ Token LoungeNov. 06 - Lakewood, OH @ The FoundryNov. 08 - Rochester, NY @ Flour City StationNov. 09 - Toronto, ON @ Mod ClubNov. 11 - Montreal, QC @ Petit CampusNov. 13 - Brooklyn, NY @ Saint VitusNov. 14 - Holyoke, MA @ Waterfront TavernNov. 15 - Providence, RI @ Fete Ballroom (Providence Metal Fest)Nov. 16 - Trenton, NJ @ ChampionshipsNov. 18 - Winston-Salem, NC @ ZiggysNov. 19 - Wilmington, NC @ Ziggys by the SeaNov. 20 - Raleigh, NC @ Drunk HorseNov. 22 - Atlanta, GA @ MasqueradeNov. 29 - Fort Worth, TX @ Rail ClubNov. 30 - Austin, TX @ Dirty DogDec. 02 - Houston, TX @ Scout BarDec. 04 - Tucson, AZ @ The RockDec. 05 - Pomona, CA @ Glass House

ACT OF DEFIANCE's debut album, "Birth And The Burial", was released on August 21 via Metal Blade Records.

In a time of endless sub-genre classifications being thrown at bands, ACT OF DEFIANCE cut to the quick, offering 100-percent in-your-face, uncompromising metal. "If you invited fans of all kinds of metal — from thrash to Scandinavian metal to modern American metal — and had them all in a mosh pit, ACT OF DEFIANCE would be their soundtrack," asserts Broderick.

Having a deep-seated respect for each other, Broderick and Drover share a very complementary writing style, instinctively getting where the other is coming from.

"Shawn knows metal inside and out," says Broderick. "He's always been a metalhead, so we come from the same musical background, and we get that world. We didn't really talk about what we might do next until after we had both left MEGADETH, and we were like, well, we came up with all of these great riffs for MEGADETH that were never used, so we decided to use some of those for the basis of what we were going to do with ACT OF DEFIANCE. Out of that spawned a burst of creativity and a lot of newer material, and it was all really exciting and what we really wanted this band to be."

Drover is very much on the same page, believing the two have a special chemistry that goes beyond their musical collaborations. "Having the same vision of what we want to do musically, from a business perspective, and in terms of what we want to achieve with this band, is a really important factor," he says. "It means we can concentrate on making the best music and we can and look at the overall picture, instead of squabbling about who should get more songwriting credit and unimportant crap, which often leads to the demise of so many bands. As far as we are concerned, the body of music we create is what matters."

While Bachand is better known for his work on six rather than four strings, coming into the band he stepped up straight away, impressing Broderick and Drover with his adaptability and playing style. "I'd met Matt many times before and he's a great guy and an all-around great musician," Chris says. "He plays bass like a bass player, which was awesome for me, because when I demoed the songs it was pretty much laying down the bass just so it had some lower notes and then moving on! But he came in and he spent the time and made them into really nice bass lines that added an extra dimension to the songs, which not all guitarists can do, and he really gets what we're trying to achieve with this band."

The final piece of the puzzle fell into place with Henry Derek Bonner, who was recruited following an extensive search. Determined that the band needed to be fronted by a vocalist who was not limited to the standard practice of screamed vocals or clean vocals, they demanded versatility, and Derek delivered. "We started from a list of I'd say 30 vocalists, and we worked that down to a shortlist, and we sent everyone on that a demo to lay some vocal tracks over, and when they all came back we knew Henry was our guy," Drover enthuses. "He can do the super-heavy, growling vocals, he can do the really melodic clean vocals, but he can also do everything in between, and he has the ability to really build and shift within that range," adds Broderick. "The other really cool thing I really like is that his really heavy singing still has pitch to it. There are these really melodic lines even in his heaviest vocals."

It takes only one exposure to "Birth And The Burial" to become abundantly aware that this is not the sound of a bunch of guys screwing around. Kicking things off with first single "Throwback" they throw down the gauntlet, the track erupting in a cascading lead before launching into a breakneck thrash attack, sounding very much like four guys ready to fight, its massive chorus only upping the ante. The merciless intensity displayed is a mode they return to often, "Thy Lord Belial", "Dead Stare" and "Disastrophe" particularly upping the adrenaline and sure to cause mosh pit carnage. However, groove and dark melody are as important as flat out riffing, kicking up plenty to inspire mass headbanging and fist-in-the-air excitement, and they also have their more brooding, atmospheric moments, "Poison Dream" and "Obey The Fallen" possessing a somberness alongside their compelling sonic violence. Fans of Broderick's previous work are aware of his incredible talent when it comes to shredding, and on "Birth And The Burial" he unleashes some of his most breathless and compelling soloing to date, finding the perfect marriage between technicality and melody.

"I really loved the luxury of being able to look at the rhythm behind the solo and have it support the kind of soloing I wanted to do," he says. "What I really like to do is listen to the rhythm and imagine what I want to hear, whether it's a harmonic, rhythmic kind of sixteenth note kind of thing, or a melody that is really haunting and eerie. After I flesh some of that out I let my inspiration take me as I'm creating the solo. I've never been one to typically improv a solo and say that's it, and I wanted every one on this record to really have a life of its own."

Thematically, the band explore their own personal experiences, focusing on some of the harder truths, the aggression of the music the perfect vehicle for expressing such sentiments. "'Poison Dream' is about somebody being consumed by a dream of fame or power or money, and how they will sacrifice anything to get that, while 'Legion Of Lies' is about a person who is constantly casting out negativity and betrayal and trying to deceive those around him, but we hope that fans will take these lyrics and put their own personal meaning to them," Chris says. "You never want to make them so specific to any particular situation, and I think a lot of these experiences are really relatable."

The album title is lifted from the anthemic closing track of the same name, focusing on a person burning their bridges with friends and those they have worked with in past, and asking them to look for forgiveness before it's too late. "The line 'you reap what you sow, the birth and the burial' — to me, that really sums it up, because what you do in life will reflect in the time that you die, and I thought that was really cool in the way it tied into the record," Broderick says.

With recording split between three studios in three different states, Broderick handled vocal and guitar production at his own Ill-Fated Studio in Los Angeles, Chris "Zeuss" Harris (ROB ZOMBIE, REVOCATION, MUNICIPAL WASTE) worked with Drover tracking the drums in Dexter's Lab in Milford, Connecticut, while Bachand laid down his bass at ManShark, in Southampton, Massachusetts. While the band had a lot of work to do, when they headed into the studio things ran very smoothly.

"We had pretty much everything demoed by the time we started recording," Chris says. 'We would change things as we were doing the final takes, but for the most part we knew exactly what we were playing, and from there it was a case of making sure we got really good takes." With artwork courtesy of Travis Smith (AVENGED SEVENFOLD, STRAPPING YOUNG LAD) and their logo and emblem the work of Van Williams (formerly of NEVERMORE and currently of GHOST SHIP OCTAVIUS) the band focused on ensuring every element of their presentation had meaning to it, wanting to offer fans the proverbial full package, and they have every intention of being around a while.

"I want ACT OF DEFIANCE to be a hard working, heavy metal road-dog band, and we really do have what's almost a blue collar sensibility and perspective," Drover states plainly. "We know we are going to have to earn this and that we can't rest on what any of us have done previously, and that is something we are more than willing to do. Believe me."

Band photo credit: Stephanie Cabral