Greek progressive/technical metallers Acid Death’s recently signed a deal with Germany’s 7Hard Records. The 5-year deal starts with the release of their upcoming album, Hall Of Mirrors. The album will be on market worldwideon September 11th.

Check out a new video teaser below:

Guest musicians on Hall Of Mirrors include:

Manthos “ManSter” Stergiou (Tardive Dyskinesia) - backing vocals
Nick Melissourgos (Suicidal Angels) - lead guitar
Jon Soti (Floating Worlds) - melodic vocals
Illiana Tsakiraki (Enemy Of Reality) - female vocals

Hall Of Mirrors tracklisting:

“Hell’s Maw”
“Mental Slime”
“Truth Revealed”
“Life And Death”
“The Unfair Fight”
“Hall Of Mirrors”
“Taste Of The Erratic”
“Ghostship”
“Planes Of The Eternal Dead”
“Supreme Act Of Heroism”

Audio samples:

Hall Of Mirrors Album Sample by ACID DEATH

 

 

England’s Copro Records was the label which released Acid Death’s first full-length album, Pieces Of Mankind, back in 1999. Now, Copro Records will re-releases the band’s first full-length albums, Pieces Of Mankind and Random’s Manifest, in October, recordings that were sold-out for many years. Both albums will be remastered, including extra material.

Says the label: “We are really happy to have again band’s first albums out the same period that Acid Death’s new album Hall Of Mirrors will be released from band’s new label-home, 7Hard Records.”

Eluveitie have announced the departure of their violin player Nicole Ansperger. They have enjoyed a wonderful year of adventures with Nicole, circling the globe and completing the first part of the Origins world tour together - their biggest, longest and most successful one yet.
 
Eluveitie comment: “Unfortunately, it can be extremely difficult to manage personal obligations and take care of a family alongside a life of constant touring, and Nicole’s priorities are with her family - where they should be. We are parting amicably and would like to thank Nicole for the good times and her musical contribution. It’s been an honour to share stage and studio with such a talented musician!“

 
Nicole adds a few words herself:
“Dear fans, as mentioned before, it can become pretty difficult to reconcile personal obligations and the touring life. A lot of things have changed within my family and my personal situation during the last twelve months; and now my familial situation makes it impossible to me to be on the road with my band constantly. After careful consideration and with a heavy and bleeding heart I made the decision to leave Eluveitie. I was a very hard step to me and I will miss Eluveitie - the music, the band, the crew and very much also YOU, the fans! I wanna thank you all - you‘ve been the best fans of the world to me! You rock, you‘ve been wonderful and I won‘t forget you! Also I‘d like to thank my mates in Eluveitie - thank you for the amazing and intense time we had together! Yo‘`ll always be in my remembrance! I wish you all the very best for your future ways and of course I wish you a awesome new fiddle player. :) This certainly doesn‘t mean an end to my musical career. Music will always be a very important part of my life and who knows - maybe we‘ll see each other again one day. Keep on rockin‘ guys and girls!“
 
Now, the show must go on, and as you might know Eluveitie are about to kick off another part of their world tour in early September. Nicole’s last show with the band will take place at the In Extremo Festival on September 5th. Starting right now, they are looking for a talented violin player to step in and complete three months of touring with them, from September 7th to December 15th. This is no easy task, and the band will only consider the best of the best in order to bring you the Eluveitie show they are known for and proud of. If you think, you’ve got what it takes, the band invites you to take this chance and submit your entry in their first ever round of open auditions. Taking part is simple, getting the gig might be the challenge (and chance) of your life! To enter, simply:
 
1. Download this MP3 of their song 'King', if you don’t have it yet: 
2. Record a video of yourself performing the song, making sure that the band can both see you and clearly hear your performance!
3. Upload your video to www.youtube.com and send the link to violin@eluveitie.ch, and don’t forget to include detailed contact info!
 
Deadline for all submissions is Thursday, August 6th, at midnight Central European Time. Ideally, you will be a very talented musician with touring experience, as well as located in or near Switzerland. However, participation in this audition is open to all!
 
Please note that due to the high volume of submissions the band expects, Eluveitie might not be able to reply to everyone personally. They will reply to you with follow-up questions within a few days if you’ve made it into the second round. Either way, the band is looking forward to view your performances and would like to thank you in advance for participating!

(Nicole Ansperger photo by Nicole Volz)

Brazilian power metallers Hibria have released their new video, for the track “Life”, from their fifth and upcoming self-titled full-length that will be released on Test Your Metal Records for North America on August 7th, with album pre-order available here.

Hibria is Vancouver, BC based Test Your Metal Records' first signing of many upcoming releases in 2015 and 2016 that will be announced in the coming months.

“I am very excited to announce the launch of my new record label Test Your Metal Records. After playing in bands and touring for the past 15 years I've developed the relationships and connections to be able to help others in the Canadian and worldwide music scene. I hope to bring more international acts into Canada and spread the Canadian metal internationally to show the world what we have to offer. I have some amazing bands and an amazing team to work with me, so I just want to thank you all in advance and together we will keep Heavy Metal alive!”, comments Test Your Metal Records owner Grant Truesdell.

Power Prog will release Hibria in Europe from August 7th on CD, download card, as digital download and as stream.

Hibria, formed in 1996 in Porto Alegre/Brazil, has been recognized worldwide, both by the media and the audience, after the release of the debut album Defying The Rules in 2004 and a highly successful journey began. With a lot of attention in their home country, the Brazilians were able to establish itself as superstars in Asia and especially in Japan, where each of their albums ended up in the Top 100 charts and where they are easily able to fill the largest venues at their live performances for over a decade. Meanwhile Hibria is a real international force and a hot contender when it comes to climb the global metal throne.

With the upcoming self-titled fifth studio album, Hibria presents itself in a fresh and modern garment without abandoning the proven virtues and the distinctive use of a wide variety of different styles. Whether classic metallic, speedy, thrashy, proggy or even funky with a sensational operating brass section... with their playfulness and musical skills they always hit the right notes to lift phenomenal songwriting up into higher spheres. Certainly Hibria's heaviest album to date, and, with all due respect, the most mature and undoubtedly best one.

The mastering, done by none other than Maor Appelbaum (Sepultura, Dokken, Halford), ensures an innovative, intensive and brutal dynamically coat of paint ... Exactly how modern, sophisticated and "in your face" heavy metal should sound.

“We self titled this release because we believe that it represents what our music is and how we feel about our band. This is our second CD composed with the same lineup and it made all the difference in our songwriting. We already knew what to expect from each other and it contributed a lot for us to write this new work.” says the band. “It is our most daring album. We experienced new influences and they made this album to sound so fresh. We really feel we have started heading to a new level as a band.”

Hibria tracklisting:

“Pain”
“Abyss”
“Tightrope”
“Life”
“Ghosts”
“Legacy”
“Ashamed”
“Church”
“Fame”
“Words”
“Life” (Orchestral Version, European Edition Bonus Track)

"Pain" video:

"Tightrope":

Album details ...

• Produced by Renato Osorio
• Executive Production by Abel Camargo & Juan Corral
• Pre-produced by Hibria
• All songs written and performed by Abel Camargo, Iuri Sanson, Eduardo Baldo, Benhur Lima and Renato Osorio

• Keyboard and programming by Benhur Lima
• Additional vocals on tracks 1 and 8 by Benhur Lima
• Additional vocals on track 9 by Mia Coldheart
• Sax on tracks 1 and 7 by Ronaldo Cereal
• Trumpet on tracks 1 and 7 by Jorginho do Trompete
• Orchestral parts on tracks 4 and 11 by Maestro Adriano Machado & Villa Lobos Orchestra
• Orchestral arrangements on tracks 4 and 11 by Adriano Machado, Benhur Lima & Renato Osorio
• Backing vocals and Choirs by Benhur Lima, Iuri Sanson and Renato Osorio
• Drums recorded at Monostereo Studios - Porto Alegre / Brazil – Engineered by Juliano Rodrigues
• Vocals recorded at Hibria Studios - Porto Alegre / Brazil- Engineered by Renato Osorio
• Guitars and bass guitar recorded at Hibria Studios - Porto Alegre / Brazil
• Guitars reamped by Benhur Lima and Renato Osorio at Hibria Studios & Monostereo Studios - Porto Alegre / Brazil

• Mixed at Hibria Studios & Black Stork Studios- Caxias do Sul / Brazil by Benhur Lima
• Mastered by Maor Appelbaum
• Cover artwork and booklet by Tiago Masseti
• All photos by Karina Kohl

Hibria have announced that they will be touring North America this September and October in support of their fifth and upcoming self-titled full length. Tour dates can be seen on the poster below:

Hibria is:

Iuri Sanson (Vocals)
Abel Camargo (Guitars)
Renato Osorio (Guitars)
Benhur Lima (Bass)
Eduardo Baldo (Drums)

Former Orphaned Land cofounder Yossi Sassi and his band have released an "oriental metal" cover of the Opeth Blackwater Park classic "Bleak. Check it out below:

On September 1st, former Guns N' Roses guitarist Ron "Bumblefoot" Thal is coming to Israel for a show with the Yossi Sassi band and a masterclass. See poster below fo details:

 

 

 

 

Rock Meets Classic showcases classic rock artists of the '70s and '80s performing their hits backed by The Mat Sinner Band and the Bohemian Orchestra Prague. This summer they performed two special festival shows in Germany at Rock Of Ages and the Wacken Open Air on July 31st and August 1st respectively.

Featured artists for these two exclusive shows included Dee Snider (Twisted Sister), Joe Lynn Turner (Rainbow), Michael Kiske (Unisonic, ex-Helloween), Marc Storace (Krokus) and Jennifer Haben (Beyond The Black). 

Check out footage of Kiske performing the Helloween classic "I Want Out" at Wacken Open Air 2015 below:

The Mat Sinner Band includes Primal Fear members Mat Sinner and Alex Beyrodt (guitars), and also features Trillium / Avantasia's Amanda Somerville (backing vocals), Avantasia's Oliver Hartmann (guitars), Voodoo Circle's Jimmy Kresic (keyboards), Sinner's Moritz Müller (drums), Tiffany Kirkland (backing vocals), Kolinda Brozovic (backing vocals) and Sascha Krebs (backing vocals). 

Watch the official Rock Meets Classic Facebook page here for updates.

Doom metallers Exorcism - featuring guitarist Joe Stump - have signed a new management contract with AZ Management, Spain. The band is currently in the studio crafting their latest studio effort, which is due by the end of this year. 

In addition, frontman Csaba Zvekan has introduced Exorcism's new rhythm section, which now features bassist Michael Vetter and drummer Vital Roxx. Zvekan has issued the following statement:
 
"This is great news for me as Exorcism is now a recording and touring band again. We sometimes make the mistake by going with the wrong advice instead of our gut feeling. In the end it’s only rock’n roll that matters.”

For informastion and updates on Exorcism check out their new website at ExorcismBand.com.

"Fallen", the new album from STRYPER, will be released worldwide on Friday, October 16 via Frontiers. The CD was tracked at SpiritHouse Recording Studios in Northampton, Massachusetts and will include a cover version of the BLACK SABBATH classic "After Forever".

The "Fallen" title track can be streamed below. STRYPER guitarist/vocalist Michael Sweet says about the song: "'Fallen' is about Lucifer before he became Satan. It's the story of how he got kicked out of Heaven. He tried to overthrow God and take over. The song talks about how beautiful he was. When he walked, there was music. He was the angel of worship and this incredibly powerful and beautiful being."

"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

"Yahweh" was co-written by SEVENDUST guitarist Clint Lowery.

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". STRYPER frontman Michael Sweet says: "We sent Stanis the concept about Lucifer being cast out of heaven and he sent us this amazing illustration, capturing the original idea perfectly."

Sweet recently stated about the musical direction of "Fallen": "It's gonna be… I don't wanna scare any fans away or anything, but it's gonna be the heaviest album we've done. Not in the sense that it's gonna be thrash metal or anything like that. It's definitely got a little bit of a darker vibe to it lyrically and musically. Some of the songs are tuned down — not like the modern Drop B stuff; I'm talking like the E dropped to D, 'Unchained' VAN HALEN kind of stuff. And it's just got a heavy sound to it. And I think when people hear it, in a good way, they're gonna go, 'That's STRYPER? What?' I think they're gonna be shocked."

He added: "The album was written and arranged very quickly (9-10 days, actually). This by no means reflects on the quality of the album. It's some of our best material to date and so far those who have heard it have said the very same. Chris Jericho [FOZZY singer and WWE wrestling superstar] texted me and said that 'Yahweh' may be the best song since reuniting.

"There are songs on this album that coincide with sitting down and reading the bible.

"The music is heavy and the lyrics are bold and powerful, some taken right from scriptures.

"Sonically, I think this is our best-sounding album to date! Everything is crystal clear. The highs are crisp and the lows are tight and punchy."

AEROSMITH guitarist Brad Whitford's guitar-playing son Graham joined the band on stage this past Saturday, August 1 at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas, Nevada to perform the song "Last Child". Fan-filmed video footage of his appearance can be seen below.

Graham plays guitar in TYLER BRYANT & THE SHAKEDOWN, the Nashville-based band led by Tyler Bryant, which made its late night television debut on "Jimmy Kimmel Live!" in 2012.

TYLER BRYANT & THE SHAKEDOWN's debut album, "Wild Child", was released in January 2013 via Carved Records. The band’s top musical influences include Elvis Presley, Tom Petty, THE ROLLING STONES, Eric Clapton and Robert Johnson.

Swedish progressive death/thrash metal band NONEXIST — which features Johan Liiva (ex-ARCH ENEMY, CARNAGE, FURBOWL) and Johan Reinholdz (ANDROMEDA, SKYFIRE) — has inked a deal with the Danish metal label Mighty Music. The group's third album, "Throne Of Scars", will be released on October 9. The CD features nine tracks s produced and mixed by Johan Reinholdz at Multipass Studios with the assistance of Markus Nilsson at Sunnanå Studio in Malmö. The style of the songs retains the atmosphere from the previous album; dark, intense, varied and heavy while also adding some new influences in the mix.

The release party for "Throne Of Scars" will be held on October 30 at the Zeppelin rock bar in Copenhagen, Denmark and the band will be there to present the new album and DJ the event along with the Mighty Music crew.

The official lyric video for the "Throne Of Scars" title track can be seen below.

NONEXIST's latest full-length album, "From My Cold Dead Hands", was released in November 2012 via Pivotal Rockordings. The CD was recorded at Multipass Studios and featured nine blistering new tracks, accompanied by cover songs that Pivotal made available for free on SoundCloud and YouTube.

Infected is a new industrial metal project featuring Troctapuss (aka Brian Troch) and Jeff Vincent. Troch is also known for being the lead vocalist for Cyclone Temple, Hammeron, The Reign Of Terror, Znöwhite and Shooting Hemlock. Look for more music and live performances, coming soon.
 
Check out the new song "Infected" below. Download the single from iTunes here.

For information and updates on Infected check out the official Facebook page here.

Bulgaria's Enthrallment called Eugenic Wombs contains nine new tracks and will be available on December 4th again via Germany's Rebirth The Metal Productions. Expect more details soon. 

Eugenic Wombs tracklisting is as follows:
“Deserved Fears”
“Few Are Those Who Find It”
“Last Judgment Waltz”
“Totally Dismembered”
“Defame The Incarnation”
“Inspired Lunatic”
“Path To Silence”
“Nature Dose Not Allow Doubling”
“Enslaved by Your Own Seed”

Listen to “Last Judgment Waltz” below:

 

SLIPKNOT was forced to walk off stage several songs into its performance earlier tonight (Sunday, August 2) in Hartford, Connecticut after their bassist, Alessandro "Vman" Venturella, had an unknown medical emergency and was rushed to the hospital. After about a twenty-minute break, SLIPKNOT returned to the stage without Venturella and played the rest of the set as an eight-piece.

Before SLIPKNOT resumed its performance, singer Corey Taylor addressed the crowd, explaining (see video below): "I'm gonna let you know what's going on right now. I'm sorry to say that our bass player, Alex, had… Something happened. I'm not sure what happened. He's been put into an ambulance and he's going to the hospital right now as we speak. But I want you all to make fucking noise for him. Send him some fucking love. Now, we had a choice to come back out here. We've had to modify some shit, but we're gonna keep on playing for you. It's what we want, it's what Alex would fucking want."

SLIPKNOT guitarists Jim Root and Mick Thomson reportedly handled most of the bass duties on the band's latest album, ".5: The Gray Chapter", with some help from Venturella and former touring bassist Donnie Steele. Taylor spoke to the "Talk Is Jericho" podcast about how SLIPKNOT eventually decided to hire Venturella to finish out the record and join the band on the road. He said: "[The way] Vman [came into SLIPKNOT] was a little different [from the way drummer Jay Weinberg did], because we had a couple of people that we were looking at and that we had actually worked with, and it just wasn't vibing. Nothing against them technically — it just wasn't vibing. And I think Jim was actually the one who said, 'For now, let's bring Vman in. He can handle it.' 'Cause the dude is a ripper. A lot of people don't know that. We met him through MASTODON, so we've known him a long time, and Jim knew just how good he was. So he came in, and he just started handling it. And he's so easy to hang out with. He's such a great dude. And it just got better and better and better and better and better. And the question got brought up towards the end of the album. It was, like, 'What are we gonna do live?' And we were, like, 'What do you mean? He's coming with us.' It was a slower burn for him, because we had tried a couple of other people. But it worked so well that it was just, like, 'Okay, this is it.' And then it was trial by fire, 'cause now you're jumping out of the airplane. The first gig was Knotfest in front of 25,000 people. That was their first gig. But it came off, man, and it's just gotten better. It never gets easier, but it's gotten better."

SLIPKNOT's original bassist Paul Gray passed away in May 2010 from an accidental overdose of drugs.

SLIPKNOT's "Summer's Last Stand" tour kicked off on July 24 in West Palm Beach, Florida and is scheduled to hit Boston's Xfinity Center on Tuesday, August 4.


(Thanks: Concert attendee Nick Mucha)

IRON MAIDEN drummer Nicko McBrain and former OVERKILL guitarist Bobby Gustafson joined the heavy metal tribute act MADE OF METAL on stage this past Friday, July 31 at the Culture Room in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida to perform the MAIDEN classic "Two Minutes To Midnight" at a concert hosted by VH1 Classic's "That Metal Show". Fan-filmed video footage can be seen below.

Due globally on September 4 through Parlophone Records (Sanctuary Copyrights/BMG in the U.S.), IRON MAIDEN's new album, "The Book Of Souls", was recorded in Paris, France with producer Kevin "Caveman" Shirley in late 2014, with the finishing touches added earlier this year. However, the band decided to delay its release so that singer Bruce Dickinson, who was recently given the all-clear from the tumor, would have time to recuperate sufficiently to join in the preparations for the album's launch.

Gustafson is involved in a new band called SATANS TAINT, which has made its debut EP, "Songs For The Einherjar", available via iTunes. The effort contains four tracks: "The Hammer And The Cross", "Song For Einherjar", "Battle Of Bravalla" and "Gothic Serpant". Joining Gustafson in the recording lineup for "Songs For The Einherjar" are Jim McCourt on drums, Mark Dykstra on guitar, and Jorgen Kristensen, Blue Heavener and Paolo Velazquez on vocals.

Former GUNS N' ROSES guitarist Slash has recorded a guest appearance on a cover version of a THIN LIZZY classic for original KISS axeman Ace Frehley's forthcoming covers album, due later in the year via SPV/Steamhammer.

A photo of Slash in the studio with Ace's drummer Matt Starr and their engineer can be seen below.

Slash wrote on Twitter: "Had a really fun, live session with @Ace_Frehley last night jamming on a #ThinLizzy tune for his new covers album. Good times!"

Frehley told Billboard.com earlier in the year about his covers disc: "The album's going to be about my influences. I'm probably going to do a ROLLING STONES song, a WHO song, possibly a LED ZEPPELIN song, maybe a BEATLES song. Stuff from bands that I grew up on and greatly influenced me. Those are the songs I'd redo, besides vintage KISS stuff and a FREHLEY'S COMET track."

The set will "probably" include Frehley's versions of the KISS classics "Cold Gin" and "Parasite". "On KISS records, I'm not singing lead. So I'm going to sing lead on them like I do live so there's [studio tracks] out there with me," Ace said.

Frehley said that he has approached Lita Ford, Slash and Mike McCready (PEARL JAM) about making guest appearances on the CD. "I was actually going to ask [KISS bassist/vocalist] Gene Simmons to play bass on a track and sing with me. I haven't gotten to that stage yet," he said.

With all the back-and-forth in the media between Ace and his former KISS bandmates over the past year, VH1 Radio Network asked Frehley if he thinks Gene would accept his invitation to appear on Ace's covers album. "I think he'd consider it," Ace said. "I don't know if he'd do it. Maybe [KISS guitarist/vocalist] Paul [Stanley] won't let him. Who knows?"

AC/DC drummer Phil Rudd pleaded not guilty on Monday (August 3) to breaching the circumstances of his home detention.

He is now facing an additional charge of possessing and consuming alcohol — a breach of the conditions of an eight-month home detention sentence handed down last month.

The 61-year-old was remanded on bail until November 24 when he will return for a two-hour judge-alone hearing on the possible breach.

The drummer previously appealed his sentence of eight months' home detention after pleading guilty to charges of attempting to "procure a murder" and drug possession. He faced up to seven years behind bars.

Rudd's son submitted an affidavit to the court which said in part that his father "has a heart of gold and wouldn't hurt a fly. It's just when the drugs take over, he behaves how he taught me not to." Rudd has reportedly been struggling with a meth addiction.

When his first solo effort, "Head Job", flopped, Rudd reportedly threatened a former employee. A month later, Rudd told an associate that he wanted him to "take out" his personal assistant, whom he then called and verbally threatened, allegedly saying: "I'm going to come over and kill you."

Rudd offered $200,000 and a choice of vehicles and house as payment to kill the assistant, according to reports. When police raided his home in Tauranga, New Zealand, they found methamphetamine and other drugs.

Prior the ruling, the court was told that Rudd's actions were the result of psychosis, brought on by drugs. While he initially denied the allegations, he submitted a guilty plea in April.

Rudd played with AC/DC for 30 years and performed on AC/DC's new album, "Rock Or Bust". Chris Slade, who played with AC/DC from 1990 to 1993, was announced in February as the group's drummer for its current world tour.

ADLER, the band led by former GUNS N' ROSES drummer Steven Adler, performed the GN'R classic "Used To Love Her" on the Peruvian show "Fuera Del Estudio". You can watch video footage of the group's appearance below.

ADLER is comprised of Adler, frontman Jacob Bunton (LYNAM, MARS ELECTRIC), guitarist Lonny Paul (ADLER'S APPETITE), and bassist Johnny Martin (CHELSEA SMILES).

The band is working on material for its sophomore album for a tentative February 2016 release.

ADLER recently returned to the studio with producer Jeff Pilson (FOREIGNER, DOKKEN) to record one new track, "Life Ain't Gonna.

Steven, who appeared on season two of on the "Celebrity Rehab With Dr. Drew" show and the first season of the spin-off program "Sober House" back in late 2008 and early 2009, told the "Fox Rocks" show about ADLER: "[Our debut] album 'Back From The Dead' came out, actually, in November 2012. But because of the addiction problems I had, we were not able to tour the record in 2013. In 2014, I just took the whole year off and focused on my sobriety. I got into an AA program, I have a sponsor, I'm doing the steps. I'm doing the work, basically, and giving a big effort, and it's working out great."

He continued: "It's been such a joy to wake up in the morning. My life [just took] a complete 180[-degree turn]. Life's exciting again. And I love coming down to the studio and playing, even if it's just by myself. Sometimes I get bored, and I go, 'Well, it's time to get out of the house.' And I come out and I come and jam for a couple of hours, and it feels great."

Steven Adler was the drummer for GUNS N' ROSES from 1985 to 1990. He was eventually fired from the band due to his drug addiction, which caused him to spiral down into depression and more drug use.

GUNS N' ROSES was inducted into the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame in 2012. Slash, bassist Duff McKagan and Adler attended the ceremony, while Axl and founding guitarist Izzy Stradlin stayed home.

Guima Drum conducted an interview with legendary heavy metal drummer Vinny Appice (BLACK SABBATH, DIO, HEAVEN & HELL) during his recent workshop tour of Brazil. You can now watch the chat below. A couple of excerpts follow (transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET).

On the most common relationship problems between members of a rock band:

Vinny: "When you're in a rock band, it's like being married to four guys… and if there's any girls in there too. You travel together, you live together… you're always in close quarters with those people, so it does create problems. Sometimes silly little things cause a problem. A big problem is when people are late, or drunk. They let the band down. You know, the band's there and somebody has not arrived yet. Everybody's waiting around and you're keeping everybody… killing everybody's free time. So things like that. And not playing good every night. You've gotta be a team. That's why it's called a band. It's like a ring — everybody's in a circle and carries their own weight and keeps it going."

On the most difficulty he has ever faced in the music industry:

Vinny: "Right now I don't even know what the music business is. I have no idea. There's no record stores. We live in Los Angeles, and the radio sucks. It's better elsewhere. The bands put an album out, and they don't play it. Then everybody downloads it for free. And it's a fucking mess. 'Cause people need to earn money when they play music, just like you go earn money when you go to work. It costs money to make an album. You can't just give it away for free. But that's crazy right now. So I don't know what's going on. I'm glad I grew up and made noise in the '80s and built myself up, 'cause it's hard now. For new bands, everybody makes CDs. Years ago, nobody had CDs. You had to have a record deal. Everybody's got it [now]. And there's so much competition. The Internet is good in a way to get your stuff out there, but the whole music industry is wrecked."

Vinny Appice has anchored the rhythm and power live and in the studio for the music of DIO, BLACK SABBATH, HEAVEN & HELL, WWIII, AXIS, Rick Derringer, John Lennon, and more. He has recorded and co-written songs on over 25 albums and CDs, including many multi-platinum records. Touring the world for over two decades resulted in selling millions of records. Vinny's drumming can also be heard on numerous movie soundtracks, including "Wayne's World 2", "Heavy Metal", "Iron Eagle" and "Bedazzled". Vinny, the author of drum instruction book "Rock Steady" and DVD "Hard Rock Drumming Techniques", has performed incredible powerhouse drum clinics around the globe. Numerous books have been written about BLACK SABBATH and DIO with the authors always mentioned Vinny's unique powerful drumming style.

Sofia Samrad of DCW50 conducted an interview with SLAYER guitarist Kerry King and drummer Paul Bostaph at a recent stop of the Rockstar Energy Drink Mayhem Festival. You can watch the report below.

Asked about the title of SLAYER's forthcoming album, "Repentless", Kerry said: "I made [the word] up. I didn't realize I made it up. I mean, it seemed like a word to me, and then I looked it up and it wasn't there. [Laughs]"

He continued: "To me, 'repentless,' you know, is, basically, having no regrets, not looking back and saying, 'I wish I should have done things differently.' 'Repentless' is meaning I have no reason to repent."

Asked if there is anything that stands out that he wishes he would have done, Kerry said: "No, I like where we're at. I mean, if I said anything, I'd probably wish I would have paid more attention in the '90s, but we got past it."

The "Repentless" title track is an ode to SLAYER's late guitarist, Jeff Hanneman, who passed away in 2013. "I call it the Hannemanthem!" King said of the song. "I wrote that for Jeff. Oh, dude, it's fast as fuck. You don't know what the fuck's coming!"

He added: "It's my perspective of Jeff's perspective. It's what I think... If Jeff wrote a song for himself, 'Repentless' would be it."

SLAYER's eleventh studio album, "Repentless", will be released on September 11 via Nuclear Blast. The highly anticipated 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.

GUNS N' ROSES drummer Frank Ferrer was interviewed by rock journalist Mitch Lafon for a recent edition of the "One On One With Mitch Lafon" podcast (Facebook page). You can now listen to using the Spreaker widget below. A couple of excerpts follow (transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET).

On whether he is still a member of GUNS N' ROSES:

"I am a member of GUNS. [GUNS N' ROSES singer] Axl [Rose] and I text all the time. But, yeah, I am a member of GUNS, and GUNS still exists."

On GUNS N' ROSES' current status as a band:

"Well, the best way to answer that is [to say] that GUNS has a future. GUNS definitely has a lot of moving parts, and there's a lot of things in the works. And once we're ready to announce something, the whole world will know. But everything is moving forward."

On when GUNS N' ROSES will play out again:

"As of right now, we don't have anything booked, but I'm hearing rumors that there probably might be stuff towards the end of this year [or] beginning of next year, but there's nothing booked as of yet."

On why it took Axl Rose so long to release GUNS N' ROSES' last album, "Chinese Democracy":

"I guess the only thing I can say is he wasn't ready, he just wasn't ready, to put it out. He didn't feel like it was completely done. It’s his baby, and he wanted it to be perfect. Still today, even today, he wants everything to come off just right. And that's a lot of pressure to put on yourself. And he deals with it in his own way. He is probably one of the greatest living rock stars in the history of music, and they're becoming rare, as you know. I mean, think of a rock star in the last fifteen years that's popped up. You can't think of anybody. Everybody's still… NINE INCH NAILS is still headlining festivals, and SOUNDGARDEN, and ALICE IN CHAINS. It's, like, there's nobody out there. And Axl puts that pressure on himself. That's a lot of pressure. He just wants it to be right. That's the only thing I can say: he wants everything to be just right. That's who he is. That's what every artist is. They're perfectionists in their own right. Very rarely… For every one great song you hear, they've written sixty songs that probably are great, but they don't feel are great. That's the way they think. He has a lot of pressure on him."

Guitarist D.J. Ashba issued a statement on Monday (July 27) announcing that he was leaving GUNS N' ROSES.

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

Although Ashba and other members of GUNS N' ROSES have hinted in the last year that recording and touring plans were on tap for 2015, none have materialized.

Meanwhile, Ron "Bumblefoot" Thal recently revealed that he was focusing on his solo career after spending eight years playing in GUNS N' ROSES. He has stopped short, however, of saying that he was no longer a member of the band.

Asked by journalist Gary Graff to clarify his status with GUNS, Thal said: "That is the thing I am not to elaborate on. I think there's enough clues out there for you to figure out what I'm up to now."

SLAYER guitarist Kerry King says that he didn't take it personally when Rockstar Energy Drink Mayhem Festival co-founder Kevin Lyman criticized the metal scene for the lower-than-usual attendance at this year's edition of the travelling event. The tour is smaller this year, with fewer bands overall and fewer "headline-worthy" acts at the top.

"The bands at the top all demand a certain level of fee to be on a tour," Lyman told the Detroit Free Press. "Unlike punk rock, metal never knows how to take a step back to move the whole scene forward…What happened was metal chased girls away because what happened was metal aged. Metal got gray, bald and fat."

King, whose band is headlining this year's Mayhem, told the Houston Press that the problem with this summer's event lies not so much with the metal bands themselves but with the way the festival was booked.

"I didn't take what he said personally," Kerry said. "He just definitely had a mike put in front of him and said some shit that's detrimental to this tour and any tours he has in the future — not just Mayhem, but whatever else he promotes. Because, to me, he committed business suicide.

"At the end of the day, what I think happened to Mayhem was that they waited too late in the game to get the talent they needed to pull it off correctly," Kerry continued. "Because what happens is, people get booked up so early these days that it seems like all the bands that could have made this more of a success are playing in Europe now instead of being on a U.S. festival. It just made the talent pool less than it could be."

According to King, there is a certain benefit to headlining a big package like Mayhem. "The advantage, for me, is that if we're doing our own tour, we're carrying our own sound and lights, whereas if we do a big tour like this, sound and lights are provided," he said. "It lets us invest more in the show, which is why at Mayhem you always see us with fire and video screens behind us instead of a backdrop."

Despite his public war of words with Lyman, King told the Houston Press that he wouldn't rule out another Mayhem stint for SLAYER in the future.

"Under different circumstances, of course," he said. "One of the owners is a close friend of mine, and I can't wait for him to come back. Not to chew him out, just to say, 'Hey dude, I understand your partner made some shitty comments, but I don't hold that against you. You didn't say 'em, you're my bro, and somebody never should have put a mike in front of that guy. In the future you better keep a mike away from him if you want your festivals to be well-attended, because he's just fucking everything up.'"

This year's Rockstar Energy Drink Mayhem Festival kicked off on June 26 in Chula Vista, California and will wrap on August 2 in Dallas, Texas.

In a brand new interview with CTNow, drummer Michael "Moose" Thomas of Welsh metallers BULLET FOR MY VALENTINE spoke about the band's decision to abandon all traces of pop accessibility on their new album, "Venom", and return to the more aggressive approach of their earlier efforts. He said: "We definitely know who we are at this point, and our fans definitely want that from us.

"Working with certain people and producers in the music industry, if you've had a radio hit at one time in your career, they try and make your whole album sound like that," he continued. "We tried to do that on the last album, and we failed miserably. So we went back to our roots and picked up where we left off."

Moose added: "People liked the band in the beginning because we had nothing to prove. On the first album, we didn't know what we were doing. We were just writing songs. Then, with a little bit of success, you think, 'Maybe if we tone it down a little, we'll get even more success.' But I don't think that's the case in heavy music at all. People like you for who you are, so if you just stay true to yourselves, people will like you all the more."

Thomas also talked about the writing process for "Venom" following the departure of bassist Jason "Jay" James.

"God bless him, but he never really contributed anyway," the drummer said about his former bandmate. "It was just the three of us putting stuff together. It was business as usual."

Asked how Jamie Matthias, Jason's replacement, is fitting in, Thomas said: "Awesome. He just fit right in, like he's been here for the last nine years. It's like having a naughty little brother on tour. I just got on with him so easily. Him and Matt [Tuck, guitar/vocals], when they sing together, it's just perfect. We can do things that we've never done before."

BULLET FOR MY VALENTINE's fifth studio album, "Venom", will be released on August 14 via RCA. The CD was produced by Carl Bown and Colin Richardson (SLIPKNOT, MACHINE HEAD, TRIVIUM) at Metropolis Studio in London.

Mick Burgess of Metal Express Radio conducted an interview with BIOHAZARD drummer Danny Schuler on July 6 in Newcastle, England. You can now listen to the chat using the audio player below. A few excerpts follow (transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET).

On BIOHAZARD's forthcoming follow-up to 2012's "Reborn In Defiance" album:

"We've got a bunch of songs, and we're still working on it. We should be getting it done pretty soon, I think."

On where BIOHAZARD gets inspiration for new songs:

"Life. I mean, like everybody else — just like everybody else — things happen in life that can motivate you or inspire you or frustrate you, can instigate you. So there's always those things going on in our lives, so we never run out of material, we never run out of motivation, I guess."

On BIOHAZARD's current bassist/vocalist Scott Roberts, who replaced Evan Seinfeld in 2011:

"Scott's great. He likes to get to work and actually be a part of it, which is nice, 'cause it didn't use to be like that. It's great having Scott as a part of the band. He's really come into his own. It's difficult for him to do what he does… in the eyes of a lot of people, it's very difficult. It's a hard job. But he does a great job."

On how the music business has changed since BIOHAZARD started in the late 1980s:

"I think the bands have an opportunity now to take back the business from those that they think haven't done a good job promoting their music or whatever. You know, a partnership with a record company to physically produce the music and distribute it can be a good idea if you can make it work. I'm not anti-record company, but the way the music business now is, it's very difficult to make money selling records, [because] people don't buy 'em anymore. Which is crazy to me, because I never stopped buying records — I've always bought records — and now I just buy 'em… you know, I buy MP3s and I have it on my iPod. I mean, I still buy all my music. I couldn't imagine how… I don't understand how people could just steal music. I just don't do that. I don't know… Like, a band like LED ZEPPELIN doesn't need the money, but if they put something out, like they did recently, I buy it. You know, I buy. You support the bands. I also like the convenience of just having it on my iPod. But, like, my friends' bands, I buy every one of 'em. If I wanna support them and hear their music, I don't ask for a free copy. I go buy it. I don't understand that whole thing — how you can justify stealing music."

Interview (audio):


Performance footage (Dynamo Metalfest in Eindhoven, The Netherlands):

Arte conducted an interview with guitarist/vocalist Mikael Åkerfeldt of Swedish progressive metallers OPETH at this year's edition of the Wacken Open Air festival, which is taking place this weekend in Wacken, Germany. You can now watch the chat below.

Speaking about his early musical influences and the evolution of OPETH's sound, Mikael said: "On a very early stage, I was interested in progressive rock, because it was a form of music that I had never heard, really. I didn't know it existed until I started digging around the record shops and stumbled on bands like KING CRIMSON, YES and GENESIS — those types of bands. And that's also where I found my own voice, so to speak, my own kind of musicality. Even if I was a death metalhead, or a metalhead, something clicked with me with that type of music, because there was no limitations. And that's the way I like it, if you know what I mean."

He continued: "I think limitations on music [are] ugly and wrong. And I didn't know the metal scene was so conservative, but it really is. But we have been struggling… We certainly haven't been an overnight sensation, this band — we did things and people were, like, 'What are they doing? Why aren't they heavy all the time?' But that doesn't really have anything to do with music for me. I love the heavy stuff, but I also love the soft stuff and the complicated stuff and the simple stuff. So I want everything in… I think it kind of makes sense."

Mikael added: "I made the choice a long time ago to be a musician and to put all my energy into being a musician, and I don't wanna restrict myself because we're supposed to fit in somewhere. So progressive rock, and the kind of discovery of progressive rock, helped me, like I said, to find my own style, and to this day, I still think that we have… We're pretty much on our own. There's other bands who are progressive, so to speak, but I think we're on our own, which I like."

Asked for his opinion about some OPETH fans' position that Mikael should have started a side project under a new name instead of taking the band completely away from the death metal-tinged sounds of OPETH's early albums, Åkerfeldt told Lady Obscure: "Well, I mean… It doesn't really work like that, does it? First and foremost, people can have their opinions. It doesn't mean we'll follow it. We love our fans, [and] we respect them, but we're a band first and foremost. I never felt that… Whatever we do with this band, whatever ends up being OPETH is OPETH, because it's us. And that argument kind of fails in that sense… How does that work with Joni Mitchell [or] David Bowie? For solo artists who have a sound. Should they change their name? It's just a random and, I think, a bit ignorant and stupid comment, to be honest. I think it's easier if [the fans] just stop listening to it. I think the best solution is that they stop listening to it if they don't like it."

During an interview with Australia's The Rockpit, Mikael spoke about the sharp musical turn OPETH took with 2011's "Heritage" album and its follow-up release, 2014's "Pale Communion". He said: "I do understand and appreciate that 'Heritage' was a little bit of a shock to fans who are more into the heavy, death metal type of sound, and maybe it's a bit much to expect them to take it all in so we got a bit of shit for that record. I love that album with a passion, because, for me, it was natural, but I have seen that with the coming of the 'Pale Communion' record that people come up to me and say, 'I did not like 'Heritage' when it came out, but when you put out 'Pale Communion', I finally understood 'Heritage' and now I'm starting to like it.' So I'm hoping it's going to escalate into a love for that record."

He continued: "People have been more gentle with us with 'Pale Communion' coming out, but there is still... Like, I don't have social media, I don't correspond with the fans in that sense, so I don't really get a lot of the confrontations about what the hell we are doing. My overall response to that question would be that people might be getting used to and maybe understand a little bit better about what we are trying to do. And, for me, that is good, of course. I never had a problem. For me, it was never a big step. For everybody in the band, it was not a massive thing for us to do 'Heritage', but I do accept that it might have been too curvy of a curveball for people who are not in the band, but now it's starting to calm down a little bit."

According to The Pulse Of Radio, DISTURBED frontman David Draiman says that as much as 95 percent of the music he's written for the band has been created while he was high. Speaking with Revolver, Draiman revealed that the new song "Fire It Up", which opens with the sound of a bong hit, was inspired by the singer's routine. He explained: "There was a big fat bowl before that one. 95 percent of the songs I've written in my life, I've written them while high. That's the god's honest truth."

Draiman continued: "I'll have a very skeletal musical idea in my head, and then I'll light one up, go in the shower and let the steam kind of build up. It helps me relax, and I can see the gaps. I can see the holes in the rhythm and the melody and I'll know where I can go, and what the possibilities are. It helps me be able to perceive everything a little bit more clearly."

Draiman told The Pulse Of Radio that "Fire It Up" was inspired by a recording session where he sang DISTURBED's new cover of SIMON AND GARFUNKEL's "The Sound Of Silence" while high. "I was done with the day and I wanted to relax, so I went ahead and I smoked a bowl," he laughed. "[I] came back and was high out of my mind and no, no, by no means ready to track vocals by any stretch of the imagination. And they all encouraged me to go into the vocal booth, and I was pretty blown away. I hadn't heard my voice that vulnerable in a very, very long time."

Draiman added that "Fire It Up" is more lighthearted than usual for DISTURBED, remarking: "Yeah, that's me saying it: There' s a song on this DISTURBED record that's fun… And God knows there's certainly enough people out there that appreciate the enlightening aspects of smoking marijuana."

"Fire It Up" can be found on DISTURBED's sixth studio album, "Immortalized", which arrives on August 21. The band released a lyric video for the title track last week.

The album ends a four-year hiatus for the band and features the current Top 10 rock single, "The Vengeful One".

DISTURBED will play its first show in four years on August 21 at the House of Blues in the band's hometown of Chicago.

SLIPKNOT and STONE SOUR singer Corey Taylor released his third book, "You're Making Me Hate You: A Cantankerous Look At The Common Misconception That Humans Have Any Common Sense Left", on July 7 via Da Capo Press, a member of the Perseus Books Group. The book acts as a commentary on society and pop culture and has been described as "Taylor's take on Peter Griffin's 'You Know What Really Grinds My Gears'."

Taylor promoted the book with a combination of bookstore events and a solo tour which were one-of-a-kind shows featuring readings from the book, acoustic performance, and audience discussion.

Fan-filmed video footage of Taylor's entire July 11 appearance at the Bottom Lounge in Chicago, Illinois can be seen below.

Taylor said that his original title — which the publisher refused to allow him to use — was "You're Making Me Hate You (Or How Justin Bieber Sucked A Million Dicks To Make His Money)".

Taylor's last book, "A Funny Thing Happened On The Way To Heaven", was published in the summer of 2013 and landed at No. 23 on the New York Times "Hardcover Non-Fiction" best sellers list.

His first book, 2011's "Seven Deadly Sins: Settling The Argument Between Born Bad And Damaged Good", also made the list at No. 26.