SEVEN HOURS AFTER VIOLET, the new band led by SYSTEM OF A DOWN bassist Shavo Odadjian, will release its self-titled debut album on October 11 via the Sumerian Records imprint 1336 Records. Shavo is joined in the group by vocalist Taylor Barber (LEFT TO SUFFER),WINDS OF PLAGUE guitarist Michael Montoya (a.k.a. Morgoth Beatz, a producer and songwriter who has previously collaborated with Travis Barker, JuiceWrld, Lil Xan, Jonathan Davis, ISSUES and many more),guitarist/backing vocalist Alejandro Aranda (a.k.a. Scarypoolparty, "American Idol") and drummer Josh Johnson (WINDS OF PLAGUE).

The announcement of SEVEN HOURS AFTER VIOLET's debut album comes alongside the release of the band's ethereal second single, "Radiance", which is available now on all major streaming platforms, accompanied by a visually stunning music video. It is the follow-up to SEVEN HOURS AFTER VIOLET's debut single, "Paradise", which arrived in June.

Shavo comments: "This album is the culmination of years of creative exploration. With SEVEN HOURS AFTER VIOLET I wanted to return to my roots in heavy music but also bring something entirely new to the table. 'Radiance' and its precursor, 'Paradise', are but a small glimpse of the intensity, musical diversity and emotion that run through this album. We can't wait for everyone to hear it in full and to bring these songs to life on stage at our first live performance at Mayhem Fest."

"Seven Hours After Violet" track listing

01. Paradise
02. Alive
03. Sunrise
04. Go!
05. Float
06. Glink
07. Cry...
08. Abandon
09. Radiance
10. Gloom
11. Feel

Shavo recently told RIFF Magazine about how SEVEN HOURS AFTER VIOLET came about: "It was funny. My number's 22, so that's why I have the [cannabis] brand 22Red. So on February 22nd, 2022, we threw a party and the day of the party, I did a live radio show on KROQ here in Los Angeles. And that evening, we were throwing the party for 22Red, but I did that show before and I invited the host to the party. He asked me if he could bring a friend. I said, 'Sure.' He brought his friend. It was Morgoth Beatz who ended up being the producer and now my rhythm guitar player in the band and co-songwriter in some of them songs and stuff. So he and I decided we can write music that day together. So we exchanged numbers and we got together like a month later, wrote a song, and then we did another one a week later. And then it just became this thing where it was gonna be like one song we were going to sell to another artist, 'cause that's what he does; he writes a lot of music and he passes it on. But it became this thing. And he mentioned, he's, like, 'Man, why don't you do a Shavo record? Like something with all of the songs that you wrote instead of just one or two songs. These are coming out great.' And at that point, I wasn't really thinking about doing my own record like that, 'cause I've done so many other projects. And another thing is I've never done heavy music outside of SYSTEM. It's been heavy, but never the same genre. I've always tried to stay against the grain, and I've done EDM, I've done hip-hop, I've done rock-metal shit, but I haven't really just focused on that, which actually is my forte. I close my eyes and it just happens, which is how we did this."

Shavo continued: "So I was at his studio. I have my own studio. I gave him the key. I said, 'Come through. We're gonna start working on this record.' And a year and a half later, we have a full record, plus another half a record for album two. We have a full band. I started my own label and I signed it to Sumerian, who has worldwide distribution to Virgin, which is amazing for me. That's what I kind of wanted with the control. I've been doing this for 30 years, so I kind of knew how I wanted it, and I'm building it. And that's how it started. And that's where we're at right now. It started off as a passion project [and it] became my thing."

Regarding how the songwriting process for SYSTEM OF A DOWN was different from how he approached his previously projects, Shavo said: "Yeah, usually I'll write at home and then I'll bring it to the band. Or my other projects, I've just written at home and then brought it to the rest of the guys. This one, I would just have him play a beat that he made, or even just a 4/4, or even a loop or something, and then I just kind of… I mean, I just started strumming and the music just came out of me. So we just recorded everything I did. And whenever something was amazing, we knew it. I was, like, 'Okay, make that a thing.' So we highlighted that moment. And then afterwards I wrote a part that goes with that, and then kind of arranged it, wrote it all in the studio. So artistically it was really refreshing. There was no boundaries, no law, no rules. I just did it. It just came out so organically. Everything about it has been organic and not planned. And that's what the beauty of SEVEN HOURS AFTER VIOLET."

On the topic of how he came up with the name of the SEVEN HOURS AFTER VIOLET, Shavo said: "He [Morgoth Beatz] wanted to call it SHAV or SHAVO, so people know it's me, and I wrote 95 percent of it. But still, I always like a unit, I like a band. I think it's cooler. And plus he helped me a lot. These guys, they came in and did their part, and it just works perfectly. So I like the collaboration. I've never had the ego, where it's, like, 'me, me, me.' I've never done that. I've never said that. So I like it. It's us. And it became a band. And SEVEN HOURS AFTER VIOLET, the acronym, is S.H.A.V. So that's cool. So they got what they wanted and I got what I wanted. I got a band, the cool name mysterious, but it also has a meaning, but I'm never gonna explain the meaning. It's kind of one of those things. There's many meanings you can think of what 'Violet' is — it could be a female, it could be a thing, the color, an event, it could be anything, and it's kind of cool. So there is some deep meaning to it and maybe one day we'll explain it, but at the moment, I like it where we are."

Shavo also talked about the first single from SEVEN HOURS AFTER VIOLET, "Paradise", which was made available in June. The release marked the launch of Shavo's new joint label venture 1336 Records in partnership with Sumerian Music Group.

"That's one of the heaviest songs on the record," Odadjian said. "I have a few really heavy ones. But I wanted to release something brutal first, 'cause… I don't know… I just kind of like the heaviness of it, and I think the world needs to hear really heavy music from me right now. They've heard a lot, so I kind of wanted to drop that first. I feel like after that we can move into the other stuff, because it does have the melodic, it has the grooves, it has the heavy, heavy stuff."

Regarding the other members of SEVEN HOURS AFTER VIOLET, Shavo said: "My singer, Taylor Barber, he comes from the world of deathcore and the growling. His voice is an instrument, and he's a wonder. He's like the new wonder of the world that no one knows yet that's there. He does have a following and he comes from another band called LEFT TO SUFFER, which is a grindcore band. But he sings like a canary as well. His range is so huge. He's the perfect member. He's the perfect singer that came in and can do all the parts. And then also we got Alejandro Aranda, who, he is just this musical genius who came in. He was the last member, and I didn't even know I needed that member, but, now it's, like, of course I needed him. Of course he fit perfectly. He does side vocals. He sings along with Taylor perfectly. So it's like a two-vocal band now, two-vocalist band. And we got Josh Johnson on the drums, and he's amazing. He hails from a band called WINDS OF PLAGUE; he used to play with them. So he's talented as hell. So, yeah, I'm honored and lucky to have these guys around me and for us to be able to do this music together."

SEVEN HOURS AFTER VIOLET will make its live debut at this year's Mayhem festival, set to take place on October 12 at the Glen Helen Amphitheatre in San Bernardino. "And we are gonna do some shows around it, and then we do have some outside-of-the-U.S. stuff already planned," Shavo explained. "So, yeah, this will be a touring band. 'Cause that's kind of the purpose why I put the band together the way I did. The original idea was to make the music and then have like a DJ Khaled kind of album, but rock and metal, where I have features, guest vocalists coming on; each song has somebody else. But when the songs started developing, I was, like, 'This should be a tour. This should be a touring road band as well.' But you could never do that with guest vocals, so we needed someone to be the singer. So that's why we went ahead and searched for the singer. And that's how we got Taylor. So, yeah, we got the Mayhem coming up. That one's announced, but we are booking a little U.S. thing around it. 'Cause you don't wanna just do one show, but that would be the big one. We're on the main stage. I can't wait. And then we've got some outside-of-the-U.S. ideas too. So yes, more coming."

The music video for "Paradise" is a collaborative effort with creative direction being overseen by Shavo and Adam Mason, who also shot the video. Editing was handled by Arben and Kuj Durollari of BOND, who are also working with the band to design their creative assets.

When the universe aligns, magic happens. This was certainly the case when Odadjian, the legendary bass player of SYSTEM OF A DOWN, crossed paths with platinum-selling producer, songwriter and guitarist Morgoth at a party on 2.22.22. Their initial sessions were a spontaneous combustion of creativity, transforming from a potential solo venture into a full-fledged band. Shavo recalls: "We wrote a song right away. It wasn't like any writing session I had been part of before; riffs were just flowing out of me without me even having to try. Every time I felt like I couldn't write anything. Morgoth would hand me a guitar and say, 'Go, go, go'. I needed that, you know? I needed someone to push me when I wasn't pushing myself. "

As music continued to pour out in torrents, with Shavo writing and performing all the guitar and bass parts and Morgoth producing and providing the beats, atmospherics and FX, Morgoth suggested they turn it into a Shavo solo project. However, with his eye now firmly set on the live arena, Shavo decided to create a full band.

Finding the right vocal talent to complement the musical landscape created by Shavo and Morgoth was crucial. Morgoth's recommendation of Taylor Barber from LEFT TO SUFFER was a game changer. Shavo was blown away. "He was singing in falsetto one minute and growling the next — it was ridiculous," the bassist states. "He became the singer because he knocked every song out of the park."

With Shavo on bass and Morgoth on guitar, the band also brought in Morgoth's WINDS OF PLAGUE bandmate Josh Johnson on drums and Alejandro Aranda, known for his solo project SCARYPOOLPARTY and as runner-up on "American Idol", as lead guitarist and backing vocalist.

Once the new music was complete, mixed by Zach Jones and mastered by Maor Applebaum, Shavo partnered with Avildsen to create 1336 Records, with SEVEN HOURS AFTER VIOLET being the first signing.

SEVEN HOURS AFTER VIOLET is:

Taylor Barber - Vocals
Morgoth - Guitar, Production
Shavo Odadjian - Bass
Alejandro Aranda - Guitar/Backing Vocals
Josh Johnson - Drums

In April 2023, Odadjian spoke to the 96.7 KCAL-FM program "Wired In The Empire" about his solo LP, saying: "I started this solo project with Morgoth Beatz; he's my producer and he's also the guitar player for the group. And it's heavy. I'm back to my roots — no hip-hop. I think it's the heaviest I've ever been, and it's just flowing out of me.

"We have a track with — I'm gonna say it — Jonathan Davis [of KORN]," Shavo revealed. "I'm working on that one right now. We have the choruses and the first verse, and I'm gonna do a little breakdown, and I think we've got one. That's 12 — number 12. So we're 12 songs into the solo record. I'm very excited about that."

Photo credit: Max McGuire

Harpyie releases “Atreju”, the new single from the upcoming studio album “Voodoo” which will be released on 25th October on Metalville Records.

Who hasn’t heard of The Neverending Story? Mythical creatures, enchanted worlds of fantasy and an underprivileged boy who has to make every imaginable sacrifice to save them. Why him? Is he a tool? Is he self-determined or femd? In ‘Atreju’, Harpy sing a hymn to all the everyday heroes who sometimes ask themselves these questions and yet carry on and continue to carry the light across the river, even if nobody will probably remember them later…

In a new interview with Paul Salfen of AMFM Magazine, MEGADETH bassist James Lomenzo spoke about the band's current lineup, which also includes guitarist/vocalist Dave Mustaine, guitarist Teemu Mäntysaari and drummer Dirk Verbeuren. He said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "Dude, we're psyched. It's kind of weird because theoretically I'm part of the new blood, but that's what MEGADETH is. We revolve around Dave Mustaine, the godfather of thrash, and we're here to bring the best version of MEGADETH that we can. We have Teemu Mäntysaari right now playing guitar and he's just a phenom. And Dirk's on the drums, and he's an animal is an understatement. He's an amazing technician and a beautiful musician and a great person. And, of course, you've got Dave there, and, man, he is the anchor that makes this boat roll into port every night."

Regarding how MEGADETH found Teemu, James said: "Actually, when Kiko [Loureiro, former MEGADETH guitarist] had to leave, he had suggested Teemu as his replacement. And at the time, we didn't know that Kiko was going to go permanently, but at that time, as a replacement, he seemed like the guy who could do the job. And he proves it every night. But he was a quick study. He's really very adept at learning all this music and playing it impeccably."

On the topic of the setlist for MEGADETH's "Destroy All Enemies" summer 2024 U.S. tour, which launched on August 2 at Walmart AMP in Rogers, Arkansas, James said: "Yeah, we try to hit as many of the hits that people expect to hear, and lately we've been reaching back into the catalog and trying to pull out some of those less-played songs that the real fans wanna hear. And surprisingly, as the years go on, people catch up with all those album tracks. So we've been picking up a lot of deeper tracks, and we're always excited to do it. Now the Internet is wide open — it's no secret we started playing 'Liar' just the other day. I think it's, like, 20 years before we were playing that one."

Produced by Live Nation, "Destroy All Enemies", which features MUDVAYNE and ALL THAT REMAINS as support, is hitting 33 cities, including Los Angeles, Las Vegas, Boston and St. Louis, before wrapping up on September 28 in Nashville, Tennessee.

Mäntysaari joined MEGADETH last September after the band's longtime axeman Loureiro, announced earlier that month that he would sit out the next leg of MEGADETH's "Crush The World" tour in order to stay home with his children back in Finland. It was later revealed that Mäntysaari would continue to play guitar for MEGADETH for the foreseeable future, with Loureiro seemingly having no plans to return.

The 37-year-old Mäntysaari was born in Tampere, Finland and began playing guitar at the age of 12. In 2004, he joined the band WINTERSUN. He has also been a member of SMACKBOUND since 2015.

MEGADETH played its first concert with Mäntysaari on September 6, 2023 at Revel in Albuquerque, New Mexico.

Loureiro officially joined MEGADETH in April 2015, about five months after Chris Broderick's exit from the group.

Since its inception in 1983, MEGADETH has ascended from its raw thrash metal roots to become an unstoppable force in the heavy metal world. With founder Dave Mustaine at the helm, MEGADETH's journey has been marked by a penchant for pushing the boundaries of speed, technicality, and complexity in their music. Their groundbreaking album "Rust In Peace", released in 1990, is frequently cited as a seminal work in the thrash metal genre. Along with the critically acclaimed "Peace Sells... But Who's Buying?", it cemented MEGADETH's place in the annals of metal history.

Over four decades, the band's discography has earned numerous certifications, including platinum and multi-platinum awards, with albums like "Countdown To Extinction" and "Youthanasia" achieving widespread critical acclaim. 2016's "Dystopia" not only marked a high point with their first Grammy Award for "Best Metal Performance" after twelve nominations but also set the stage for their latest triumph, "The Sick, The Dying... And The Dead!" in 2022. MEGADETH's status as part of the "Big Four" of thrash metal underscores their trailblazing role in the genre, laying the groundwork for countless bands and musicians who have followed in their wake.

HELMET has canceled its previously announced U.S. tour with LOCAL H. According to a statement from HELMET posted on the Facebook page of Wally's in Hampton, New Hampshire, where the two bands were scheduled to perform on September 19, "the cancelation is caused by a mix of significant financial concerns and lower-than-expected ticket sales which is a common problem for many artists this year. We look forward to getting back out on the road in 2025," HELMET wrote. "In the meantime, our European tour this November goes ahead as planned."

HELMET frontman Page Hamilton commented: "As much as we'd love to be getting back out on the road and playing, this one was not lining up well for us. We're excited about our upcoming November/December European tour which is looking great and we will reconvene in 2025 for more U.S. dates."

HELMET's fall 2024 European tour will celebrate the 30th anniversary of the "Betty" album. The setlist will feature the "Betty" album together with favorites from the band's catalog. North American plans for a 2025 "Betty" anniversary tour are under consideration but nothing is scheduled yet.

HELMET's latest album, "Left", was released last November via earMUSIC.

After the critically acclaimed "Dead To The World" in 2016, HELMET is back with their signature blend of heavy, riff-loaded rock and evocative lyrics that have resonated with fans worldwide for over three decades. "Time for your holiday serial murder / How time slips away", resonate the opening lines of "Holiday". HELMET take no prisoners in their direct and unfiltered expression, leaving listeners with a lasting impact and a sense of urgency to examine the world around them.

"Left" sees HELMET — comprising frontman Page Hamilton, drummer Kyle Stevenson, guitarist Dan Beeman and bassist Dave Case — carve out a musical landscape that is taut, muscular, and direct. Hamilton's lead guitar lines feel like everything from downed power lines arcing to exploding resistors in shortwave radios. On "Left", every snare crack hits like gunfire, every solo seemingly a manifestation of rabies-induced psychosis.

Guided by Hamilton alongside co-producers Jim Kaufman and Mark Renk, and mastered by Howie Weinberg, the 11 songs on the new album are leaner and meaner in their execution than previous aural throwdowns. "Left" is powered by unbridled determination, a renewed sense of purpose and a desire to create more new dialects within the musical language Hamilton invented via his use of drop-D tuning.

HELMET's first official live album, "Live And Rare", was released in November 2021 via earMUSIC. It was made available on heavyweight black vinyl as well as a CD digipak edition and digital.

Although HELMET disbanded in 1997, Hamilton revived the band in 2004, and the group has continued to tour and record.

"Dead To The World" was released in October 2016 via earMUSIC. The effort was produced by Hamilton and mixed by Jay Baumgardner.

In 2021, HELMET released a cover of GANG OF FOUR's 1981 song "Into The Ditch". The track was recorded for a tribute album to GANG OF FOUR's guitarist Andy Gill, "The Problem Of Leisure: A Celebration Of Andy Gill And Gang Of Four".

Having cut his teeth playing with avant-garde guitar icon Glenn Branca and indie stalwarts BAND OF SUSANS, Hamilton launched HELMET in 1989, and the band released its debut album, "Strap It On", on the independent Amphetamine Reptile label the following year. HELMET soon became the subject of an unprecedented major-label bidding war, ultimately signing with Interscope and releasing "Meantime" in June 1992.

Even while the band was absent from the spotlight, HELMET continued to exercise considerable influence on multiple generations of bands. Their songs have been covered by the likes of CHEVELLE, DEFTONES, FAITH NO MORE, PIG DESTROYER and SOULFLY, and the band inspired a 2016 HELMET tribute album titled "Meantime Redux". HELMET has also been cited as a key influence on such bands as GODSMACK, KORN, MARILYN MANSON, MASTODON, PANTERA, QUEENS OF THE STONE AGE, SEPULTURA, SLIPKNOT, STAIND, SYSTEM OF A DOWN and TOOL.

Helmet regrets to announce we are having to cancel the upcoming US tour with Local H. The cancellation is caused by a...

Posted by Wally's on Wednesday, August 21, 2024

Yes, this is bad news. But fear not! Good news is on the horizon. Especially if you’re a WHATEVER HAPPENED TO P.J. SOLES...

Posted by Local H on Wednesday, August 21, 2024

In a new interview with Sean P McKenna, host of "Rimshots With Sean" on Barstools And Bandtalk, Michael Sweet of Christian metallers STRYPER spoke about the lasting damage to the live entertainment industry caused by a variety of economic problems, including inflation and high shipping and transportation costs. He said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "The economics in this country, and in the world, but specifically in this country, just to kind of focus on that, because we tour mostly in the U.S., aren't good right now. And that affects what we do. Everything's more expensive. I don't remember the days when buses cost as much. And I'm not talking about the '80s. Of course, you go back that far, it is a night-and-day difference in in the cost of everything. I'm talking about within the past two years, three years. The cost of everything, some things have doubled. And it's very, very costly and very expensive to tour. And when you're only making so much money, a band like us, we're not BON JOVI and an arena band selling out arenas anymore. So we're playing clubs, pulling five, six, seven, eight hundred people. And when you get a 10-thousand guarantee or a 15-thousand-dollar guarantee and you've already spent 10 or 15 thousand dollars and you're in the red, it makes it very difficult to continue touring. And it's not really anything to do with the music business, but it's to do with the U.S. business."

Sweet, who has publicly stated that he voted for Donald Trump in the 2016 U.S. presidential election, then went on to suggest — unsurprisingly — that he won't be voting for the presumed 2024 Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris this time around.

"The U.S. is in a world of hurt right now — a world of hurt — and why anyone would wanna repeat that and continue down that path just makes my head spin, spin in circles," Sweet said. "It's, like 'Wow, let's change it.' I'm not getting political or anything. I'm just saying it's not a good situation at all. So it's very hard. We've felt since the pandemic, and I don't think anything to do with the pandemic many times — some times but many times, most times nothing to do with the pandemic — just the economy, it's very hard to tour right now. Very hard."

In the early stages if the pandemic, global inflation declined sharply amid a collapse in demand and oil prices, according to World Bank. In mid-2020, however, it started to pick up as demand bounced back, supply disruptions deepened, and oil prices rebounded.

Two years ago, compounded by Russia's invasion of Ukraine in 2022, inflation reached a 40-year high in the United States. Globally, it grew in 179 out of 194 nations compared to 2020.

Despite high interest rates and inflation, the economy has been surprisingly resilient in the U.S. as a result of strong job and wage gains that have provided consumers the wherewithal to keep spending. Earlier this year, the Dow Jones, the S&P 500 and the NASDAQ all reached record highs with the Dow crossing the 40,000 threshold for the first time. The markets have rallied back from the recent lows of 2022 and the Dow is about 40 percent higher than when the pandemic started.

Trump has promised to fix inflation and bring back prosperity if he returns to the White House but has released few hard numbers and no real policy language or legislative blueprints. Last week, he told voters that he would bring prices back to pre-COVID levels if elected, drawing heavy skepticism from economists who have studied his proposals, according to Salon. His key policies — a combination of tariffs, tax cuts and a crackdown on immigration — are likely to cause a flare-up in inflation, according to many Wall Street economists.

Earlier this month, Sweet spoke to Ernest Skinner of Canada's Border City Rock Talk about the upcoming U.S. presidential election and alluded to his previous support for Trump, despite the fact that America's 45th president — with his history of casino ventures and two divorces, as well as allegations of sexual misconduct, one of them affirmed by a civil court verdict — could be seen as incompatible with the stated values of the Christian faith.

"Vote for policies. Stop voting for personalities," Sweet said. "If we voted for personalities, we wouldn't like anyone. We wouldn't vote for anyone. The personalities of a lot of the candidates, you dig deep and you find out things about them where they all have issues, and you may not like a particular person, but it doesn't mean that they're the wrong person for the job. Look at their policies, look at what they stand for, look at what they've done, look at what they haven't done and go with that."

Michael continued: "The presidents throughout time that weren't great people per se, they had a lot of sins, a lot of skeletons in the closets, a lot of things that happened that no one would be proud of, but at the same time, they were good presidents. They did great things for [the country], and they certainly tried to. And that's my point.

"When you're looking for an attorney to win a case, you're not hiring that attorney because he's a nice guy or because he doesn't say mean things," Sweet added. "You're hiring that attorney because he's won every case and you just want the best and you wanna win your case. That's what America needs right now. We need an attorney that's gonna win our case. And that's who you should vote for."

Last fall, Sweet was asked by Real Music With Gary Stuckey how he goes about working together in harmony with fellow musicians like Tracii Guns (L.A. GUNS) who represent completely opposing viewpoints. He responded: " I've said this before. I just said it recently in a post. It comes down to respect. And I make mistakes. I blow it. I say things that might come across as disrespectful, so I'm not perfect. I'm not saying I am. But it comes down to respect. You either respect people or you don't. I see a lot of disrespect from all sides."

He continued: "I see disrespect towards Christians. I see Christians disrespect non-believers. I see Republicans disrespect Democrats, Democrats disrespect Republicans. I'm a Republican. I voted for Trump first time around. I don't know who I'm voting for this time around. But when I say publicly, if someone asks me, 'Who'd you vote for?' I'm not gonna sit there and fidget and lie.

"I'm not a believer in you can't mix politics with music," Sweet added. "That's just stupid. It's part of your life. Talk about that. Be open about it. What are you so afraid of? And I said, 'Yeah, I voted for Trump,' and boy, I took a beating for that — some of my friends. Some of my friends were, like, 'Oh, what a moron. He's a Trumptard,' or whatever these disrespectful words are that you can use that you've heard. That's mindblowing to me, man. That's why we have so many issues in our world. Everyone talks about peace and a better world and being politically correct and being respectful of everybody, but yet people are more disrespectful now than they've ever been. It's insane."

Stuckey also asked Sweet why he thinks his public opinions on religious, social and political issues have made so many headlines in the rock and metal world in recent years. He responded: "I mean, honestly? Because of my faith, mostly. Because I take a bold stand for Christ. And that's an easy target. That's something that's funny, something that's easily mocked. 'Oh, my God. What a whack job. He believes in a genie in the sky. What a kook. Oh, my God. F this guy. They suck.' And then it leads to that. Like, we've got gold and platinum albums on the wall, but we suck because we stand for Christ."

He continued: "It's just so hypocritical and such a joke. But that's the world we live in. This is the way it's always been from the very beginning, and it's the way it still is. So all you can do is try to change it, try to be a light in the dark and try to inspire people and encourage people and always take the high road instead of the low road. And I fail at that. I totally fail at that, 'cause it gets under my skin, and I'll react the wrong way or say the wrong thing. But, man, I really try not to. I try hard to be a good guy and to spread love and light instead of negativity and despair. I'm working on it. I'm trying."

Four years ago, Sweet defended his support of Donald Trump, saying that the real estate mogul had "done a lot of good things for America."

Despite the fact that he is twice divorced and had faced over two dozen accusations of sexual misconduct, Trump was white Christians' preferred candidate for the 2020 presidential election, with some insisting that the president was a Christian hero who was standing up for religious rights.

Asked in an October 2020 interview with Slabber.net why he voted for Trump in 2016 and why he believes Trump is a Christian, Sweet said: "I have put it out there already that I voted for Donald Trump four years ago. I voted for him because I had really become fed up with politicians. I feel like most, if not all, politicians are there to tell us what we want to hear so they can get into office, and once they get there they don't deliver. So, when Donald Trump came around, I thought, okay, this guy is not a politician and he's going to be different, and that's why I voted for him.

"I don't think his delivery is often good," Sweet continued. "I wish he would stay off Twitter. The way he presents himself, the way he speaks, and some of the things he says get under my skin as much as anyone else. But I do feel Donald Trump has done a lot of good things for America, especially for the economy.

"I think it's very easy to blame someone for the economy tanking due to a pandemic that's not their fault. This pandemic would have come along regardless of who the president is, and the economy would have tanked regardless. No president in the world could stop the coronavirus coming but Donald Trump has been easy to blame. I don't feel that is justifiable and I feel that it's wrong.

"Joe Biden is an example of someone using Trump and this virus to suit his agenda of getting into office," Michael added.

"There's a lot of people out there who don't like their boss, but their boss is in that position because they do a good job for the company they work for. That's kind of how I view Donald Trump. I don't love everything he says or does, but I voted for him. But by saying all of that, and being Michael Sweet of STRYPER, that opens the door for me to be attacked. I'm okay with that. I'm not gonna run from what I do or say. I'm not afraid to be challenged for my decisions."

Back in November 2016, Sweet drew criticism from some STRYPER fans for posting a picture of Donald Trump and congratulating the real estate mogul for "working his ass off for the presidency of the United States of America."

In March 2020, Sweet praised Trump's actions that served to ramp up the federal government's response to the COVID-19 epidemic — even after Trump was criticized by some parts of the media for downplaying fears about COVID-19 or actively spreading misinformation about its repercussions.

In May 2020, Sweet said that he would like to see his band represented by Trump's fourth White House press secretary, Kayleigh McEnany.

In October 2020, Sweet praised Amy Coney Barrett, who narrowly won confirmation to fill the vacancy left by the death of liberal Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, for answering questions during confirmation hearings "with poise, grace, patience, humility and intelligence."

In 2017, USA Today reported that nearly three-quarters of Republicans are white Christians, but white Christians account for fewer than one-third of Democrats.

Photo courtesy of Frontiers Music Srl

Nigelpoll has uploaded video of Steven Adler's entire August 16 concert at the Northwest Washington Fair in Lynden, Washington. Check it out below.

Joining Adler to bring songs like "Paradise City", "Welcome To The Jungle", "Sweet Child O' Mine", "Civil War", "My Michelle", "Mr. Brownstone" and "Rocket Queen" to life are guitarists Michael Thomas and Alistair James, bassist Cristian Sturba and singer Ariel Kamin.

"You don't bet better than Michael Thomas and Alistair James; they are two of the best guitarists in rock," noted Adler.

Thomas previously delighted music fans as the lead guitarist for ENGINES OF AGGRESSION, BEAUTIFUL CREATURES and FASTER PUSSYCAT. In addition to providing Adler with smooth rhythms, James has engineered recordings for HOLLYWOOD VAMPIRES — the supergroup featuring Johnny Depp, Joe Perry of AEROSMITH, and Alice Cooper.

Kamin was a well-known rocker in Argentina with such bands as CRIATURAS SALVAJES and GN'R tribute act SON OF A GUN when he was selected to come to the U.S. and join Adler in electrifying audiences with the music of GUNS N' ROSES. Audiences have been blown away.

"Ari Kamin is the total package. He's everything a rock 'n' roll front man is supposed to be," Adler said. "Not only does he have an incredible voice, he really connects with the audience. He's one of the best you'll ever experience."

In 2021, Adler told the M3 Rock Festival YouTube channel about how he ended up recruiting Kamin to front his ADLER solo band: "Actually, I went to Argentina [in November 2016] — my wife's from there; her family lives there — and the GN'R guys invited me to do a couple of songs. And so I had a little party at a club called the Roxy in [Buenos Aires], and he was the singer [that played with us that night]. You can go on my web site and see — the Roxy in Argentina. He was so great. I was, like, 'You're coming with me.' And the guitar player from the band that opened up for GN'R was so amazing. I told him, 'Come down. I wanna jam with you.' And he came down. I tell you, if [GUNS N' ROSES guitarist] Slash would have seen him playing, he would have been in the back, in the dressing room, practicing. That's how good he was."

Kamin replaced Constantine Maroulis of "American Idol" and "Rock Of Ages" fame, who was the vocalist for ADLER'S APPETITE for a dozen or so dates in May 2018, including an Australian tour.

Although he wasn't included in the lineup that launched the "Not In This Lifetime" trek in 2016, Adler rejoined GUNS N' ROSES at several shows on the tour, including three stops on the U.S. leg and one gig in Buenos Aires, Argentina, playing drums on "Out Ta Get Me" and "My Michelle".

In February 2017, Adler revealed that he was originally supposed to appear at more than just a handful of shows on the GUNS N' ROSES reunion trek. He claimed that he expected to play all the "Appetite For Destruction" material during the entire tour, only to be told he was out after he hurt his back during rehearsals.

Speculation was rampant that Adler would participate in at least a portion of the reunion tour ever since GUNS made it official in January 2016. The regular GUNS drummer for several years has been Frank Ferrer, who is also part of the current lineup.

ACE FREHLEY IN WASHINGTON TOMORROW! Legends Ace Frehley and Steven Adler take the stage at The Northwest Washington Fair...

Posted by Ace Frehley on Friday, August 16, 2024

In a new interview with Metal Blast, NILE founding mastermind/guitarist Karl Sanders reflected on the fact that he was forced to miss the band's June 29 performance at Hellfest in Clisson, France after becoming "seriously ill." The other three members of NILE's current touring lineup — drummer George Kollias, guitarist/vocalist Zach Jeter and bassist/vocalist Dan Vadim Von — played the show as a three-piece. Asked if Hellfest 2024 marked NILE's first live performance without him, Sanders said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "It's the first time that the [other] guys have had to play without me since 1996. [Back in 1996] I had to miss a couple of shows because I was in a custody battle in court over the custody of my infant son. So I had to be in court. You can't miss that. Then, in 2005, we all got food poisoning in Arizona and I was really, really, really sick. So we just didn't play, which that was a costly endeavor. When you don't play, you still have to pay all the expenses; you just don't get paid. [Laughs] So it's not good. That's what they say: the show must go on. Well, the show must go on. But this thing after Graspop [Metal Meeting in Belgium] and before Hellfest, it's the first time they've had to play without me. The expenses on that trip were so costly this time that we would have lost so much money if they didn't try to save the show. It was just insane. So, hats off to my bandmates. They did what they had to do under very difficult circumstances. And they did it. So I've got some good bandmates."

Regarding what happened to cause him to miss the Hellfest show and how he is doing in his recovery, Karl said: "Well, I don't necessarily wanna bore people with, 'Oh, you got this' or 'You got that.' I'm doing better now. But it was about a month of recovery this time. I feel very cheated out of my summer. I was gonna enjoy this summer. 'Cause the [new NILE] album's finished, and July I was gonna be home. But it was not to be."

After the Hellfest performance, Jeter took to his social media to write: "@hellfestopenair 2024 was one for the books, to say the least. Due to illness, our brother Karl was unfortunately unable to join us on stage. As much as we missed him, the show had to go on. Alongside @georgekolliasofficial and @danielvadimvon we crushed this show as a 3 piece!

"To the Hellfest crowd, you guys were fucking awesome and made it all worthwhile. We'll be back in Europe with Karl in September for 'The Underworld' tour, see you out there!"

NILE will release its tenth album, "The Underworld Awaits Us All", on August 23 via Napalm Records. The LP was once again produced and recorded at Sanders's own Serpent Headed Studios in Greenville, South Carolina. The band then returned to "Vile Nilotic Rites" engineer Mark Lewis (CANNIBAL CORPSE, DYING FETUS, WHITECHAPEL) for mixing and mastering.

"The Underworld Awaits Us All"'s art was once again envisioned and created by Michał "Xaay" Loranc, with reference to the cycle of life and judgment at its end.

In a new interview with Classic Album Review, guitarist, singer, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Richie Kotzen was asked for his opinion on the "health" of the current rock and roll scene. He responded (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "Well, I don't really know. I don't really follow things that way or concern myself too much with the status of rock. I mean, I always hear the conversations, and it's just something I never engage in. I'm not really sure why.

"It's interesting how when cover bands go and play and they pick songs to play, they're always going back to those like early AEROSMITH songs, early AC/DC songs, early LED ZEPPELIN songs," he continued. "It's hard to beat that, no matter what, no matter who you are. Especially for bands. I mean, there's been great bands that have made amazing records. The other day. my wife was finishing up a song and we were listening to the mix, and I said, 'Hey, listen to this OASIS song for perspective on the lead vocal.' And I just remembered that album being one of the greatest albums, rock albums, for me. But the point is that you keep going back.

"Every now and then, you have a rock album that comes out that's so badass, like the first GUNS N' ROSES album or that OASIS album — everybody has their favorite. But there's something to be said for the fact that people keep going back to those other bands that I mentioned.

"One of the things that I will say that's very interesting to me is technology has created a situation where people are making music that would never, ever, ever be able to make music," Kotzen added. "And the music is being made now by non-musicians. And when I say non-musicians, it's not meant to be an insult. It's like the criteria of what would define a musician from when you and I came up learning and playing is very different. If that was a constant, you have a lot less going on. So technology has made a thing where people that are not necessarily musicians by our definition are able to make music. Now, that's not necessarily a bad thing. It means there's more, and there's more variety, and there's more perspective. So, to find what I might like out there in music, there might be less of it because the skillset is very different. And another thing I have to say too, that's very strange with the musicians. Eddie Van Halen — great guitar player, greatest guitar player, however you wanna define him, but also in the context of making great music that people that aren't guitar players want to listen to. That's the biggest component. Unfortunately, that's the component that's missing with the new generation of quote-unquote great musicians. And by the way, great musicians in my mind should make great music. Today. the great musician plays impossible stuff really well. So that now makes them great at doing that. But what, to me, is missing is that you don't have that other component. Steve Lukather — amazing guitar player, but also making great music that stands the test of time that people still want to listen to. And so it feels like somehow the abilities in the guitar world, they're growing, going up, up, up and deeper knowledge of scales and harmony and facility and execution, but complete abandonment on making music. So it's quite strange. It's very bizarre. And I don't really care. It doesn't affect me, 'cause all the great records that I like listening to have been made. And occasionally I hear something new that I'm, like, 'Oh, wow. That's a really cool song,' or whatever. But it's just an interesting observation to look at how the musicians have abandoned the idea of creativity in making music and just solely focused on the ability to move on the instrument."

Kotzen will release his new solo studio album, titled "Nomad", on September 27 via BMG.

Written, recorded and produced by Kotzen, "Nomad" features eight new tracks showcasing Kotzen's multi-faceted musical styles with Kotzen playing almost every instrument on the album. On "Nomad", Kotzen expresses his diverse techniques and influences, from hard rock to '70s-infused soul and funk, jazz fusion to R&B. It's all intertwined with his own unique playing and songwriting approach, while retaining his ever-evolving signature style.

Instrumental heavy psych trio Kanaan have joined forces with neo-folk trio Ævestaden, in a heady collaboration combining two of Norway’s most lauded young groups.

This week Kanaan & Ævestaden have announced their beautiful album project Langt, Langt Vekk, due 11th October via Jansen Records.

In celebration, the new group have also released their new single ‘Fiskaren’.

Stream ‘Fiskaren’ here and pre-order the album: https://orcd.co/fiskaren

Courageous, meditative, and progressive, the album is an exciting new jewel in the crowns of these two award-winning bands.

With Langt, Langt Vekk (translated as far, far away) the two bands have created a singular album. Traditional Norwegian folk music and rock has been combined several times before, but nothing sounds like this. Kanaan contributes its members’ jazz/psych background, rooted in improvisation and jamming. Ævestaden’s modern folktronica utilizes several ancient traditional instruments, in addition to the incorporation of traditional Swedish folk music. The result is something truly groundbreaking, in where both bands’ identities shines through.

Langt, Langt Vekk serves up reworked old traditionals and psalms along with grand new compositions. The album is impressively coherent, given the two band’s wildly different musical backgrounds. Fiddles, cow’s horn, kravik lyre, mouth harp, synths, harmonies, heavy guitars and a thundering rhythm section: Musically, it is impressively versatile, as well as consistently tasteful.


It’s the first new material from Kanaan since their 2023 record Diversions Vol. 2: Enter the Astral Plane (Jansen Records) – their eighth studio album since forming in 2018.

The trio came to prominence with psychedelic, jazz-inspired rock, but have gradually moved in a heavier direction, where their latest studio efforts have been labelled stoner rock. The band, consisting of Eskild Myrvoll (bass, synths), Ask Vatn Strøm (guitars) and Ingvald André Vassbø (drums, speed Farfisa), won the Spellemann award (Norwegian Grammy) in the rock category in 2021.

Ævestaden are a neo-traditional folk trio, who combine ancient instruments and folk songs with electronic music in a cutting-edge and idiosyncratic sound. The band consists of Norwegian Eir Vatn Strøm (the sister of Kanaan‘s Ask Vatn Strøm) and Kenneth Lien, along with the Swedish Levina Storåkern. They have received several awards for the albums Jag är sen igjen (a collaboration with Benedikt) and Solen var bättre där.

Tracklisting:

1. Ganglåt bortåt
2. Habbor og Signe
3. Fiskaren
4. Langt, langt vekk
5. Farvel
6. Vallåt efter C.G. Färje
7. Hva har min Jesus gjort for meg
8. Dalebu Jonsson
9. Vardtjenn

In a new interview with Chuck Armstrong of Loudwire Nights, SYSTEM OF A DOWN frontman Serj Tankian was asked if all the publicity surrounding his recently released memoir, "Down With The System", has jumpstarted or changed any conversations between him and the other guys in the band about recording new music. He responded (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "Not really. No. We're an old steam engine. We do things. We meet up at rehearsals, crack some jokes, have some food, play our music, go play a show. We've known each other for so long. All of this is one person's view coming out this way, one person's view coming out that way. There's truth in everything. And it is what it is. I feel very privileged and lucky to have partners like I have that I've been working with for so long. And the idea that everyone has to agree on everything all the time, whether it's touring or recording or anything is beyond me. For some people, they say, 'Well, that's what a band is. It's one unit, one thing.' No, it's not. No, not in my experience. I've been in it for 30 years, and I've met hundreds, if not thousands, of other bands, and that's just not how it is. But it's great to find a compromise, in a way, of even if we only do what all four of us wanna do, and that might be one show a year or two shows a year or one anything, event or non-event or recording or whatever, I'm happy with that, because it is what it is. It's a beautiful thing."

Serj continued: "Look, there are bands that tour all year round that make a record every year or two years, and their impact on music, a lot of 'em, have not been as strong as SYSTEM OF A DOWN's. You don't need to do a million things to have an impact on people's lives or music itself. You need to do one thing right."

Tankian also touched upon his unwillingness to embark on a full-length tour the way he and his SYSTEM OF A DOWN bandmates used to do in the early days of the group. He said: "We've discussed playing shows and all of that. And I've been very clear I'm not a huge fan of consistent touring for many, many reasons. And I won't go into that now because I've talked about it before many times, but it's almost like when we do play just single shows here and there, it makes it so fun, man. It's the fun that was missing in touring for me, just having it be an event. It becomes special. And the funny thing is the value of the band in terms of touring has grown exponentially the less we've toured. There's these bands touring like crazy and they're not headlining and they [play] like 200 shows a year. And it's, like, maybe you should stop for a little bit or whatever. I don't know. I mean, we're not playing the game of supply and demand. We're just doing what we, as human beings, [wanna do with] our own lives. And it just turns out that way, the way that it turns out. Not everyone's happy with the situation of not doing a lot of tours or not recording, obviously, within the band. But it is what it is. But there is something to be said about having things be an event rather than a constant."

In "Down With The System", Serj revealed that his SYSTEM OF A DOWN bandmates had auditioned a new vocalist after he had asked out of the group in 2017. Serj said that his disdain for touring led to his decision to tell his bandmates to carry on without him so they could continue living their dream. Tankian later learned that the band had begun looking at new singers, and he also shared that in "more recent years", he had pitched a close friend as a potential replacement but he didn't think the band ever seriously considered the offer.

During an appearance on the "Bullseye With Jesse Thorn", Serj reflected on his decision to ask out of the band seven years ago. He explained: "In 2017, after we played a long tour in Europe, 20-something dates, we came back and I was confident at the time that touring was not for me anymore. I had severe back problems, 'cause I hurt my back on tour, in the middle of the tour, in Belgium, I remember, and I was still reeling from it. And over time, over the number of years, because we were… We took a hiatus between 2006 and 2011, and then we kind of toured between 2011 and 2017. And at that point, I was, like, I just really don't wanna tour. I just got over the travel, the physicality of it. I love performing. I just didn't want the travel. And it also gets redundant artistically after a while, while you're on tour, if it's more than one or two shows. So we had a band meeting discussing multiple things, and I asked to add me as one item on the band meeting. And when it got to my turn, I just said, 'Who's throwing me the going-away party. Who's gonna MC it?' And they're, like, 'What?' I'm, like, 'You guys know that I don't wanna tour, and we haven't been able to make a record.' So I kind of [said], 'If you guys need to find a new singer, I'm totally open to that, 'cause I love and respect you guys and I don't wanna hold you back. The band is something very important, not just to you guys, but to me. And let's figure something out, if I can help. Let's be one of those unique situations that instead of cussing each other out and going our separate ways or me going my separate way, let me be constructive. Let me help you find someone, if necessary.' I wanted to give them an option. Now, if you asked me, if I was staying in the band at the time, in 2017, and someone else was gonna leave, I would never continue without them."

Serj continued: "I think SYSTEM OF A DOWN should always be us four. But irrespective of what I felt, because I was the one getting in their way, if you will, I wanted to give them an option. So, that's why I did that. And at the time, they were just, like, 'No, man. It's cool. If something comes up, an opportunity, we'll send it your way. We won't put pressure.' 'Cause before that, if something came up, they were, like, 'Come on, we've gotta do this tour. Come on.' There was a lot of pressure to do tours, to perform and stuff. And I just didn't want that pressure anymore. So they promised they wouldn't do that. And so that kind of changed things a little, at least at that time."

Tankian went on to say that being in a band with several other people is "a unique dynamic". He explained: "They're your creative partners. They're your business partners. No one can have the same exact vision. No one can have the same exact thought process. And trying to negotiate all that where everyone is happy is really, really not easy."

Tankian also talked about his creative partnership with guitarist/vocalist Daron Malakian who had initially written all the music for SYSTEM OF A DOWN. He said: "We had the same vision starting. Daron and I were definitely on the same page when we started. And at first, he wrote all the music and I wrote all the lyrics for our first record. Second record, I started bringing in some more music, he started bringing in more lyrics. I would say that 'Steal This Album', which is our third record, it was almost 50-50. I was bringing in half the songs with lyrics, and he was bringing the other half of the songs with lyrics, and then I would add to his lyrics, and he would add to my music, or whatever, rearrange some of the music. So it was very balanced, which is kind of why I really love that album, even though it's not the biggest hit record album, and we've never toured for it. Most of those songs were never played live, but there's something special about 'Steal This Album' for me.

"By the time we got around to 'Mezmerize' [and] 'Hypnotize', while we were working on 'Mezmerize' [and] 'Hypnotize', I told the guys, I gave them like a two-years heads up and said, 'Listen, when we're done with this next record phase, I need to do my own thing.'"

Tankian previously discussed SYSTEM OF A DOWN's inability to make a new studio album earlier last month in an interview with the "Broken Record" podcast. He said at the time: "Creatively, I keep on making music and making art and doing creatively what I'm meant to do. And if the opportunity arises for us to work together in an egalitarian fashion in the right way with the right vibe and the right influence, then we'll do it.

"In 2020, we put out two songs because there was the invasion of Artsakh and Armenia happening by Azerbaijan during COVID, and people didn't know about what was going on so we used the band and putting out new music as an opportunity to spread awareness and we were successful in doing so," he explained. "So hopefully it's not just the decimation of our people that's gonna take SYSTEM OF A DOWN writing new music, but I think when that time is, and I don't know if it is ever or if it will be, that would be amazing. But I don't get sad by it, because to me it is what it is. When it's right, then it happens. When it's not, it shouldn't happen."

Asked if he would be okay with SYSTEM OF A DOWN going on without him, with a different singer in his place, Serj said: "Absolutely. I've offered them that opportunity and been very supportive of it many years. If they wanted to do that, if they wanted to continue in a way that I didn't — for example, if they wanted to tour a lot and I just wanna do a couple of shows here and there, because I'm not into touring a lot, to be fair to them, if they wanted to do that, I'm totally open to it still. I'm not sure they want to do that. They haven't until now, and I think it would take something away from the prestige and legacy of the band itself, but as friends and as someone who cares very much about my partners, I would be okay with it."

Regarding what it is about the four members of SYSTEM OF A DOWN as individuals, the alchemy of them together, that makes the band so great as a unit, Serj said: "Everything that each person is — from their personality to their playing style to how they think, how they feel and the combination thereof — make SYSTEM OF A DOWN what it is. If you take any particle away from this compound, it's not going to be SYSTEM OF A DOWN. It could be calledSYSTEM OF A DOWN, but it's not going to really be SYSTEM OF A DOWN. Even the stubbornness and the creative differences, everything, the push and pull, the manicness, the calmness, all of the above is what makes who we are."

In June, Serj was asked by Metal Hammer magazine about comments from his SYSTEM bandmate John Dolmayan last year in which the drummer claimed that Serj "hasn't wanted to be in the band for a long time." Serj said: "John means the world to me. He's my brother-in-law, I love him, and I saw him just yesterday, but there are times he's got mad and said fucking shit. And look, there's times I've gotten mad and said fucking shit, too. The option has always been there for the band to move on without me, and John knows that.

"In the end, to me SYSTEM OF A DOWN is beyond the band," he continued. "It's our relationship together. And it means more to me than the band itself, or even the music itself. And that is hard for other people, maybe even other people in the band, to understand. But, as I saw from the stage at Sick New World [festival in Las Vegas] last year, the multi-generational appeal of the music we have made is mind-blowing, bro. Our music is more timeless than we ever imagined, and that is the hugest compliment for any artist."

Three months ago, Serj spoke to the Soul Boom With Rainn Wilson podcast about his reluctance to embrace the touring lifestyle that characterized SYSTEM OF A DOWN's early years. He said: "We've had incredible, unexpected success as a very far-flung kind of progressive metal band with our 'Toxicity' record in 2001 and touring and doing what we did. And after many years of touring, when we were making the last few records which we made together, 'Mezmerize' and 'Hypnotize' — those recordings were done at the same time, then released as two records within six months of each other in 2005 and 2006 — before those sessions, when we first started those sessions, I told the [other] guys [in the band], 'Guys, this kind of cyclical thing that we're doing with making records for a year, touring for two years at that time, doing all this promo publicity,' it was just cyclical. It was, like, 'I've gotta stop. And I also wanna do my own thing. I have other artistic adventures that I wanna get on.'"

He continued: "Part of it was we had so much creativity and input coming into the band, specifically with Daron's [Malakian, SYSTEM OF A DOWN guitarist and vocalist] songwriting and me wanting to bring in music as well, because, over time, he became a better lyricist and I became a better musical songwriter, a better composer, so it became kind of like a push and pull, which is really good for bands, actually, 'cause it's a yin-and-yang kind of thing — two strong, creative forces. And it also broken up so many bands. So, before 'Mezmerize' and 'Hypnotize', I basically told the guys, 'Listen, I'd like to take a hiatus. I'm not saying I never wanna do this, but I'm saying I can't do this right now anymore. And I wanna do my own thing and also take time off and have a life, and all of that stuff.' It wasn't taken well at the time. I won't get into that. But years later, we started touring again in 2011, and it became a fun thing, 'cause it left… Nothing was totally resolved creatively, but it became a fun thing because we at least put everything to the side and said, 'Look, we're friends, we're brothers. We've known each other for a long time. We still respect and love each other. Let's go have fun and tour together.' And we've been doing that since. Not as much as they would like, let's say, or I'm not gonna speak for each and every person of the band, because that wouldn't be fair of me either. But generally I'm the least person that wants to tour. Part of that is physical, because it's tiring. I've done it for 20, 25 years, and I had back surgery a few years ago. I'm much better now and all of that. But part of it is that. Part of it is that it's artistically redundant after a while, because it's 'Groundhog Day'; you're repeating yourself. David Bowie said the first two weeks of every tour is basically — I'm paraphrasing — creative; after that, it's redundant, kind of thing, which is correct. So it's that. But I do enjoy playing with the guys, and when it's a one-off, it's actually fun, 'cause there's no pressure to do this whole rigamarang of a long tour or press or anything. You just rehearse together, make your dumb jokes, have food together, and then go and play that one show and it becomes a hoorah. So that's what we've been doing. And I'm grateful for that."

Tankian, who is promoting his memoir, previously addressed how his relationship with Malakian has evolved over the years, particularly as it relates to their collaborative partnership, in May in an interview with Tom Power, host of "Q" on Canada's CBC Radio One. He said: "Well, changing the dynamic is basically years of time and the progression of the band, the success of the band, everything that happened in between the day that we met and now, basically, so 25, 30 years. A lot changes in that time. And so I think that's a part of it.

"Daron's been a lifer and he's incredibly serious about his music and he's incredibly protective of his music and vulnerable due to his music," Serj explained. "All of those things kind of go together. So it's those things, I think, that created some of the creative differences that we started finding. And it's also our progression. Listen, when Daron and I started working together, I didn't really write a lot of instrumental music — I mostly wrote lyrics; I was the lyricist; I was the singer. And he didn't write any lyrics; he just wrote music. But as time progressed and I played more musical instruments and I started becoming a songwriter/composer and he started writing more lyrics, we started kind of covering each other's territory. And I was okay with that. If he wrote lyrics, I was trying to encourage him to write more, because I believe in artistic growth. I believe in progression. I don't believe in things staying the same way, for music's sake. Otherwise the music becomes the same thing over and over again. That progression is necessary in every artist's life or in every group's life. So I was very encouraging of that. And I just wish that I got some of that back. And so that wasn't the case, and it was disappointing. And it became a creative difference over the band's path, and whatnot, over time."

Asked why he wanted to write about this in his book, Serj said: "A lot of it has been publicized in a very sensationalist format by media, music media mostly, and I kind of wanted to put it in a proper perspective and grounding perspective, but with love and with balance and understanding that these things happen. This is normal. You have a relationship and you have differences in opinion as [to] how you wanna go forward, whether it's a band or a marriage or whatever it is. And these things happen. And so I wanted to take that aspect out, I wanted to take the sensationalist aspect out of the whole thing and be, like, this is not only what happened, but this is how I see things."

Tankian also addressed the fact that SYSTEM OF A DOWN has toured intermittently since ending its hiatus in 2011, but has only managed to record two songs in the last 19 years, "Protect The Land" and "Genocidal Humanoidz". Released in November 2020, the tracks were motivated by the conflict between Artsakh and Azerbaijan, with all proceeds supporting humanitarian efforts in SYSTEM OF A DOWN's ancestral homeland of Armenia. Along with other donations from fans on their social pages, they raised over $600,000.

"We haven't been making new music," Serj said. "We only put out two songs when the invasion of Artsakh, Nagorno Karabakh happened in 2020 by Azerbaijan, because we felt like the Azeri trolls, the government-sponsored trolls were taking over social media and the news networks, and the victims of these attacks weren't getting the word out. So we became kind of obsessed with getting the word out, because we were seeing our people suffer. So we put out those two songs because of that and we donated a lot of the proceeds for that to the cause as well."

Asked how he balances the love and obligation he might feel toward his fans, those who love SYSTEM OF A DOWN, and the internal struggles within the band, Tankian said: "That's an incredibly smart question. It's really hard catering — when you're an artist, it's really hard catering. If you're an entertainer, catering is [what you do], but if you're an artist, then you're just creating what comes to you. You're almost unaware of what people want. Yes, if it's something heavier, you know people are gonna like it more. But if you're a good songwriter, you could do both. I do orchestral music, I do film music, I do rock music — I do it all. So I enjoy 'em all, but I know that if I do rock, more people are going to listen to it than a piano, instrumental orchestral piece of music, soundtrack kind of music. But it doesn't mean that you don't do both, as an artist. So it's hard to really cater to people's feelings. What I love is, and I know that I can speak for the rest of the guys in the band, that no matter what's going on with our creative difference or the band not making new music or not touring fully or whatever, everyone's incredibly appreciative of what we have in terms of the love that we get from our fans and the way that people react to our music and the way that we get all these e-mails about how it's changed people's lives and all of that stuff, and that is mind-blowing. It's the biggest honor. And when I meet people on the street, I'm still incredibly honored that someone would pick me out and look at me in a positive light, not knowing who I am personally, but knowing me through my music, through our music, let's say. And I think that's a great fucking honor. I feel blessed for it. But it doesn't mean that that thing should continue forever either."

"Down With The System" was released on May 14 via Hachette Books.

Rob Zombie and Alice Cooper launched the 2024 leg of their "Freaks On Parade" tour on Tuesday, August 20 at the Isleta Amphitheater in Albuquerque, New Mexico. The concert marked Zombie's first live appearance with bassist Rob "Blasko" Nicholson in 18 years.

According to Setlist.fm, the setlist for the show was as follows:

01. Demon Speeding
02. Super-Charger Heaven (WHITE ZOMBIE song)
03. Feel So Numb
04. Well, Everybody's Fucking In A U.F.O.
05. What Lurks On Channel X?
06. Superbeast
07. The Lords Of Salem
08. The Triumph Of King Freak (A Crypt Of Preservation And Superstition)
09. Never Gonna Stop (The Red, Red Kroovy)
10. Dead City Radio And The New Gods Of Supertown
11. The Satanic Rites Of Blacula
12. More Human Than Human (WHITE ZOMBIE song)
13. Living Dead Girl
14. Thunder Kiss '65 (WHITE ZOMBIE song)
15. Dragula

Blasko's return to Rob Zombie was announced in January.

Nicholson rejoined the group just hours after the shock rocker's longtime bassist Matt "Piggy D." Montgomery revealed that he was exiting the band after 18 years.

"After 18 years I am thrilled to announce that Blasko has returned," Zombie wrote on Instagram on January 30. "The original four-string Zombie monster is back. Get ready for a crazy summer of mayhem."

Blasko was a member of Rob Zombie's band from 1997 through 2006, playing bass on the first three Zombie albums: "Hellbilly Deluxe", "The Sinister Urge" and "Educated Horses".

Nicholson left ZOMBIE in May 2006 in order to join Ozzy Osbourne's recording/touring band.

Montgomery's debut performance with ROB ZOMBIE came on May 24, 2006 during an appearance on CBS's "Late Night Show with David Letterman".

Montgomery played bass on the Rob Zombie studio albums "Hellbilly Deluxe 2" (2010),"Venomous Rat Regeneration Vendor" (2013),"The Electric Warlock Acid Witch Satanic Orgy Celebration Dispenser" (2016) and "The Lunar Injection Kool Aid Eclipse Conspiracy" (2021).

In the fall of 2022, John 5 left ROB ZOMBIE to join MÖTLEY CRÜE as the replacement for that band's co-founding guitarist Mick Mars. John 5 has since been replaced in Zombie's band by returning guitarist Mike Riggs.

Rob Zombie's current band consists of Zombie, Riggs, Blasko and drummer Ginger Fish, who has played with Rob since 2011.

Jim Lindberg, lead singer and songwriter for long-running California skate punk band PENNYWISE, has recorded an 11-song album with his side-project band THE BLACK PACIFIC, titled "Here Comes Our Wave", that will be released on September 20 via Toronto-based Dine Alone Records. The LP was recorded, mixed and mastered by Paul Miner (TOUCHÉ AMORÉ, DEATH BY STEREO, H20) at his Buzzbomb Studios in Orange, California over two sessions in the spring and fall of 2023.

THE BLACK PACIFIC previously released its self-titled debut album on SideOneDummy Records in 2010, and, like this new LP, all the songs were written and performed by Lindberg, and feature his longtime friend and recording partner, drummer Alan Vega.

"I've been writing songs for PENNYWISE and various projects for many years, and I've amassed a catalog of hundreds of demos, literally boxes of cassette tapes from the last few decades," says Lindberg. "Some of the songs weren't right for PENNYWISE, and I worked on them with Alan from THE BLACK PACIFIC so it just made sense to put out under that name. I think the knee-jerk reaction will be to say it all sounds like PENNYWISE, but I wrote the music and lyrics for more than half of every PENNYWISE album we made together after Jason our bass player passed away, so I think it's more accurate to say that PENNYWISE sounds like me, not the other way around! When I pick up an electric guitar this is the music that comes out of me, regardless of what name it comes out under."

The album kicks off with the hyper-kinetic opening song and lead-off single "I Think I'm Paranoid". Lindberg says of the track: "I've had this song for a while now and it was about all the senseless violence, terrorism, government conspiracies and divisiveness that make you want to move to a desert island somewhere, but now I've updated it to include hate groups, militias and global pandemics, so it's basically just a panic attack with distorted guitars at 120 beats per minute."

The rest of the album doesn't let up from there with tracks like "No Fun" about sociopath dictators around the world inflicting chaos and death on innocent civilians, and the relentlessly pounding "Here We Come" about the encroaching threat of A.I. taking all our jobs and eventually replacing us completely. The lyrics on this album are extremely timely and reflect the millennial angst that continues to build around the world.

"I've always felt the need to purge my frustration with our self-defeating tendency to want to destroy ourselves and the planet in a never-ending quest for power, dominance and greed, and that message is more urgent than ever so I didn't want to wait any longer to put these songs out," explains Lindberg.

But there are several tracks that are about the resignation that maybe the dreams of acceptance and escape are the only things that help keep hope alive. "Float Away" is a rare love song from Lindberg about wanting to build a raft so he and his wife can float away to "Canada or Timbuktu" — and in "I Won't Let You Down" he wistfully tells her "Somehow we've made it through it all" and now they enjoy the sunsets waiting for "the flash of green, shining through the gold." The closing title track is Lindberg's 'love song to a wave." A lifelong surfer and member by proxy of Taylor Steele's Momentum Generation, it's hard not to hear that Lindberg finds his escape from all the carnage in the world by sharing the ocean waves and spending time with his friends and family.

The long-awaited follow up to their first album, "Here Comes Our Wave" is a powerful, thought-provoking collection of songs from THE BLACK PACIFIC that is at the same time resigned to our fate as a highly flawed planet, but hopeful that the bonds of love and respect for nature can hopefully guide us through stormiest of seas.

Photo credit: Brent Broza

During a recent appearance on the "Artist Friendly With Joel Madden" podcast, KITTIE frontwoman Morgan Lander discussed the overwhelmingly positive fan and media response to the band's comeback. She said in part (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "Right now we're in this weird second chapter where it feels like everything that we've done so far has just been like a win. And it's the wins that we never thought that we would have been able to achieve in any other period in our career. And it's just so weird to see that happening and unfolding in real time. And being able to enjoy it and experience it as the people that we are now, with the experience and the maturity and all of those things, sort of just heading headfirst into the unknown. Things are just lining up."

Asked if she and her KITTIE bandmates are excited to once again be part of the modern metal scene, Morgan said: "Yeah. Of course. I think that we wouldn't be back at it if it wasn't exciting, if it wasn't a challenge, if it wasn't something that we didn't think was important. And ultimately, if it's exciting and fun, that's where we wanna be. That's where we're at in our career. If it's not, we don't want a part of it. I think that's a beautiful thing… And I feel like all of that experience lends to what's happening right now. We certainly have a lot of experience. We feel like veterans."

Morgan also talked about the band's decision to put KITTIE on hiatus in 2013 after almost two decades in the industry, six studio albums and several lineup changes. She said: "The last few years that we were touring, things kind of kept getting more and more diminished. We had switched labels a few years prior and we put out what I think are two of some of our best albums, but we were touring in a van, the guarantees were getting smaller and smaller, the crowds were getting smaller and smaller, and that can also weigh heavily on your psyche, having to grind it out like that night after night, and feeling like you have to do it rather than you want to do it.

"We are all great friends. We were still at that time," she clarified. "There was no interpersonal drama or anything. It was just a case of just being tired and feeling the weight of almost defeat, just from putting in so much and sort of receiving so little. And for us, it wasn't really like a conscious thing. It just like kind of just drifted, just kind of fell through our fingers. We didn't sit down one day and were, like, 'Let's break up the band.' There was no announcement or anything. It was just kind of, like, we all just started to do our own things and find our own way and it sort of just naturally kind of drifted."

Morgan previously spoke about KITTIE's decision to put the band on hiatus last month in an interview with Primordial Radio. She said: "The industry was sort of in a weird flux position when we were doing those last tours and whatnot. And it was sort of like the transition period between like people buying CDs and people streaming music. And there certainly are a lot of elements that went into it, but I think a lot of it was just personal."

She continued: "The industry is hard, and [we were] slugging it out on the road, not really feeling as supported as I think we probably could have been by our former label. I thought at the time we were putting out some of the best music that we had written up to that point with very little return, and it got tiring. It can be a really, really tough business, and expensive as well. If you're just out there in a van not making tons of money, it's like one show after another. And it is physically and can be emotionally exhausting."

Asked if KITTIE's 2022 comeback, initially only as a live act, was rooted in the band's desire to return to having fun, Morgan said: "Yeah. I think ultimately if it's not fun, then there's no point in doing it. And that's not to say that it wasn't ever fun before and we stopped because it stopped being fun. But there were elements of touring back before we took our hiatus that were not very fun. And I think being able to step away from the situation and sort of re-evaluate, and then given this opportunity, we were able to enjoy some of the fruits of our previous labors in a way that we'd never been able to experience before. And that aspect is fun. These are big festivals. We were just shocked at how many people were excited to see the band. And for me, those things are back-to-basics, fun stuff, getting together, reconnecting, playing all of these songs that we've played together hundreds of times before. And sometimes just getting into a room together as musicians and friends and jamming and just laughing and having a blast, that's at the very core of what a band should be — people that are enjoying themselves together and making and creating together. Being creative together, I think, is one of the most fun and rewarding things that you can do in life. And being able to do it with a great group of girls, yeah, that's it. We love to play live. And, so that definitely was the main thing there."

KITTIE's first album in over 13 years, "Fire", was made available on June 21 via Sumerian Records.

Last November, it was revealed that KITTIE was working on a new studio LP with producer Nick Raskulinecz at Nashville's Sienna Studios.

Raskulinecz, who moved to Nashville from Los Angeles around 16 years ago, had previously worked with such acts as RUSH, ALICE IN CHAINS, KORN, RISE AGAINST, HALESTORM, EVANESCENCE, SKID ROW and the DEFTONES.

In April, KITTIE announced an exclusive run of North American headline dates. The long-awaited shows saw the band perform in five cities across the U.S. and Canada this July and August, giving fans a very special and rare chance to see the band play a full headline set that will include their recently released singles "We Are Shadows" and "Eyes Wide Open" as well as classic hits and some deep cuts not played live since the band's early days.

KITTIE played its first concert in five years in September 2022 at the Blue Ridge Rock Festival at the Virginia International Raceway in Alton, Virginia.

Joining Morgan and drummer Mercedes Lander in KITTIE's current lineup are guitarist Tara McLeod and bassist Ivana "Ivy" Vujic.

Prior to Blue Ridge, KITTIE had not performed since its reunion show at London Music Hall in the band's native London, Ontario in 2017, celebrating the group's documentary "Kittie: Origins/Evolutions".

Vujic joined KITTIE in 2008 and appeared on the band's fifth studio CD, 2009's "In The Black". She also wrote and recorded bass for KITTIE's sixth album, 2011's "I've Failed You".

After KITTIE completed the touring cycle for "I've Failed You" album, the band entered a long period of inactivity during which Morgan focused on a marketing job for a chain of fitness clubs while Mercedes worked in real estate and more recently at a software company. The group also began work on a career-spanning documentary, "Origins/Evolutions", which finally saw the light of day in 2018 via Lightyear Entertainment in North America.

"I've Failed You" sold 3,000 copies in the United States in its first week of release to debut at position No. 178 on The Billboard 200 chart.

BLANDINI videos by Eric Hutcheson has uploaded multi-camera video ofANTHRAX singer Joey Belladonna performing the DIO classic "Holy Diver" with his tribute band to Ronnie James Dio on Sunday, August 18 at Conduit in Orlando, Florida. The new group, in which Belladonna is joined by Mike Rivera on guitar, Rob Stokes on bass, and Jim McCourt on drums, is performing music from DIO, BLACK SABBATH and RAINBOW. Check out the clip below.

A decade ago, Belladonna spoke to Jay Nanda of the San Antonio Metal Music Examiner about the ANTHRAX frontman's involvement in "This Is Your Life", the tribute to album to Ronnie James Dio. Asked why ANTHRAX chose to record a cover version of the BLACK SABBATH classic "Neon Knights", Belladonna said: "I think I suggested it. When we talked about doing something, collectively, we all like the song, so it was a no-brainer. We could pretty much pick anything… I went for the heavier."

Asked if recording the "Neon Knights" cover was a more emotional experience than some of the other cover versions ANTHRAX had recorded over the years, Belladonna said: "For me, no. I just love doing that type of thing, and it was another day for me to sing something of his. Obviously, I'm excited, because it is a record, but I don't think I did it any different. In fact, I only did a couple of takes. I mean, I actually have on video the first time I tried it, and it pretty much sounds like what it sounds like already. It was business as usual for me."

Regarding what Ronnie meant to him, Joey said: "Ronnie's an inspirational singer for me." He added: "I really believe that as you grow up, you're inspired by the people that perform and things that you would like to hear yourself be in that kind of category and have such a talent like he did and just be inspired. [He was a] great human being, great musician — just all that… He was just the slickest. He was so heavy but melodic, as well as his attitude about everything. He had great charisma."

Belladonna also spoke about the first impression Ronnie made on him. "He made me laugh big time," Joey said. "He just want[ed] to be funny. And yet he [was] so sincere and [could] have that serious point of view. You need to be enthralled with that when you're around him, to have him speak to you with that kind of attitude and spunk that he had. And I'd been around him when things weren't so good, which I won't bring up right now, but to have him share that with me, which was more private, about being in his band — things like that. Just to engage in that with me and run that by me."

Belladonna, whose most recent return to ANTHRAX was officially announced in May 2010, was originally the lead singer of ANTHRAX from 1984 to 1992, and was considered part of the influential thrash metal group's classic lineup (alongside guitarists Dan Spitz and Scott Ian, bassist Frank Bello and drummer Charlie Benante),which reunited and toured during 2005 and 2006. His voice was featured on over 10 albums, which reportedly sold eight million copies worldwide.

Grammy Award-nominated act IN THIS MOMENT has released a cinematic second part to the visual story that is "Godmode", in a magnificent new music video for "Sanctify Me", directed by Jensen Noen. They also just announced an epic headlining tour across North America this fall, featuring special guests KIM DRACULA, NATHAN JAMES and MIKE'S DEAD. "The Godmode Tour Part 2", which continues the celebration of the release of their 2023 album of the same name, will see the band perform at arenas and amphitheaters across the country.

The upcoming trek is set to kick off November 8 at Thomas Wolfe Auditorium in Asheville, North Carolina and continue through a December 7 performance at SNHU Arena in Manchester, New Hampshire.

IN THIS MOMENT hit a career milestone in their evening-closing performance at Lollapalooza this summer, and is currently on the second leg of its co-headline "Kiss Of Death Tour" with ICE NINE KILLS, featuring special guests AVATAR and TX2. The band also makes a stop at Louder Than Life festival, as well as a performance alongside EVANESCENCE and HALESTORM at Soaring Eagle Casino on September 28.

IN THIS MOMENT's latest album, "Godmode", arrived back in October via BMG. The LP was produced by Kane Churko (ROB ZOMBIE, DISTURBED, PAPA ROACH) and Tyler Bates. Bates produced, wrote songs for, and played multiple instruments on albums by MARILYN MANSON, BUSH and ALICE IN CHAINS guitarist Jerry Cantrell. He is best known, however, for scoring the box office smash "300", the Emmy Award-winning Showtime series "Californication", the "Guardians Of The Galaxy" and "John Wick" film franchises. IN THIS MOMENT's song "I Would Die For You" appeared on the soundtrack for "John Wick: Chapter 4", for which Bates wrote the score.

With a Grammy nomination ("The In-Between", 2021),platinum and gold record sales, multiple Top 25 entries on the Billboard Top 200 ("Black Widow" and "Ritual"),hits including "Whore", "Blood" and "Adrenalize" and career streams of more than 1.3 billion, you'd think IN THIS MOMENT might rest on their laurels. Instead, they've created "Godmode", 10 dynamic songs that mark a new high for the quintet, further cementing their legacy in the heavy music world. Proof positive is in "Godmode"'s first single, the industrial-heavy yet ultra-melodic "The Purge", and its darkly cinematic video directed by Jensen Noen (BRING ME THE HORIZON, DEMI LOVATO). From the portentous start of the '90s-tinged "Godmode" with Maria Brink's powerful primal scream to the pitch-perfect cover of Bjork's 1995 "Army Of Me" to the impassioned pain to partnership in "Everything Starts And Ends With You", "Godmode" is a cut above.

The L.A.-based band's eighth album finds vocalist Maria Brink and guitarist Chris Howorth writing the most powerful songs of their career.

"We're always striving for reinvention and growth. It's been 10 years since our 'Blood' album, and there's been a lot of transitions happening, this year particularly, but it all felt so meant to be," explains Brink. Top talent aided and abetted IN THIS MOMENT; Spencer Charnas from ICE NINE KILLS guests on the pointed and pained "Damaged", and several songs were co-written with Tyler Bates, the award-winning producer and composer of numerous film, television, and video game scores. In fact, the initial collaboration with Bates, the moody, haunting mid-tempo winner "I Would Die For You" ended up both on the "John Wick: Chapter 4" soundtrack and as the last cut on "Godmode".

IN THIS MOMENT, a touring juggernaut who've slayed stages worldwide at Ozzfest, Warped Tour, Download, Knotfest and Rocklahoma, put out "Mother" in 2020, during the pandemic, giving fans something to hold on in during that bleak time, and earning "The In-Between" the band's first Grammy nod. It was 2021 when Howorth and Brink first wrote with Bates on "I Would Die For You". Following that collaboration, the duo were writing organically, for pleasure, not focused on the next album. As the pandemic waxed and waned, Howorth learned programming, and created music around synthwave sounds, which Brink leaned into. Her lyrical ideas arose both from soul-searching and "humanity and so much crisis and so many heart-wrenching things in the world. That negativity and darkness is how songs like 'The Purge' came about," Brink explains.

The end result is that when IN THIS MOMENT went into the studio in January 2023, the easy flow had allowed them to compile the most songs they'd ever written at one time, songs the entire band loved. Longtime producer Kevin Churko helped shape ITM's sound starting in 2008, but for "Godmode", his son, Kane Churko, was at the helm.

"Kane's got all the strengths that his father taught him —everything, all the bells and whistles, but he's got some new tricks because he's a younger generation, he's hungry," says Brink.

Kane was the perfect match for IN THIS MOMENT's inspired songs.

"During the pandemic, just writing versus writing with a pressure that music has to be for an album, allowed us the freedom to make the record we made," says Howorth. "Godmode"'s songs gained even more strength in the studio, with Kane shaking up the band's usual m.o. even further.

"Having some songs by Tyler influenced us as well," Brink explains. "It was scary for the band, but it ended up flowing just so beautifully. We felt very experimental."

That flow gave the album its name and theme. "Godmode" isn't religious, rather it's an expression for a triumphant flow state where all comes together seamlessly, coalescing into an ultimate form. As Brink sings in "Godmode", "You got me feeling so high / You lift me off of my feet yeah / You got me feeling like, feeling like / I'm in Godmode." In video games — Howorth plays the game "Destiny" — "God mode" also refers to a code that makes a player invincible.

"There's a spontaneity in this album that you can hear. It's a little more visceral. And that we're not with Kevin, who has done all our albums except for our very first, fans will hear those differences too, which is really cool and exciting for us," Howorth says.

"We had all this built-up energy from the last three years, we felt angst, we felt we had a lot to release," furthers Brink. "And we were letting it loose organically, while also playing with different time signatures and interesting things like that." "We use an 8-string on the album, which we haven't done before," Howorth says. "We did some different tunings, and it can definitely be freeing from guitar standpoint, the way we did things this time. Working with Kane was different and more off the cuff, being in the studio, getting creative and just trying a bunch of different stuff on every song. It was a really good experience."

As fans of Brink's lyrics know, life in and around IN THIS MOMENT hasn't always been easy. As Brink recalls, "When I met Chris, I was just a starry-eyed girl with huge dreams. And he was in a PANTERA-like metal band!" She told Howorth she wanted a heavy lineup that could sell platinum and win Grammys. The band had an early manager who told them it would never happen. But his dismissiveness only fueled IN THIS MOMENT's fire, energy and fight. "We're just relentless," says Brink. "Anything's possible if you really put your mind and energy into it."

For "Godmode", that energy also went into the "The Purge" video, where director Noen brought his artistry and next-level talent to Brink's storyboard ideas. The larger-than-life video themes and sets have been translated into IN THIS MOMENT's live stage show, literally. And summer 2023 saw the band on its first arena co-headlining tour with full pyrotechnics.

"Our whole lives we've talked about being in an arena and having fire and a full show," Brink says. "And now we're doing it and it's just so beautiful."

IN THIS MOMENT certainly have nothing to prove, the lineup's authority assured live on record and onscreen. Yet, "Godmode"'s energy and scope is visceral.

"With our new ideas and excitement and Kane's energy of wanting to prove himself to everybody, we were able to show that we're heavy and just as impactful as every other new band coming out right now," says Howorth. "We can punch you right in the face, that energy is in there big, time. I think our fans are really gonna like this album, because it's taken us back a little bit where it began, but it's also more instinctive, and heavier than anything we've done a long time," concludes Howorth.

Brink, a private person, nonetheless gives and takes much strength from ITM's millions of fans. The healing is on both sides.

"It's amazing if my songs help people feel empowered. When humans share painful things that we went through and how we heal from it, we can help each other and pass that energy on," she says. "Honestly, the most beautiful thing about being in a band is being able to have that connection with strangers who become kindred spirits. Sure, I have urges to wear 'masks' and hide from everything and wear makeup, but I like to share and be honest and vulnerable. The sky's the limit," Brink concludes. "You just have to keep dreaming, keep expanding, keep pushing yourself to that next level. I feel like something is shifting right now in the band; this is such a special moment for us with 'Godmode'."

With everything they do, Swedish genre-blending rockers, Dampf, remain unique in their idiosyncrasy. It should therefore not come as a surprise for the band to release today, not one, but two brand new singles and videos.


“War With The World” and “Might As Well Have Died” juxtapose two tales, one of light and one of darkness. The two singles are taken from their sophomore album, No Angels Alive, out this Friday, August 23 via Silver Lining Music.


With Dampf there will always be contrasts and opposites, Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, dreams and nightmares, comedy and tragedy… but through it all runs the common thread of theatre, of the grandiose, of the joys in the unpredictable, and an overwhelming confidence in embracing them all. Whether the gothic dungeon of “War With The World” or the snakes and misty forests of “Might As Well Have Died,” Dampf reigns supreme in telling stories of theatrical chaos and color.




The first song “War With The World” is a maritime singalong-flavored juggernaut. “Persuading people to go to war by using powerful words is obviously a complex subject. Take for example Napoleon. He made people go euphorically wild with his speeches and suddenly people were charging towards the ‘enemy’ with only pikes or other makeshift weapons even though they knew that the enemies were stronger and larger in numbers. They felt invincible thanks to those speeches: people just responding with flock mentality to those words, instead of taking a moment to think, ‘hold on, you’re going to fight that person for what?! A bottle of rum or whatever?’ Madness!” chuckles singer/songwriter A-Tron.


“The second song, ‘Might As Well Have Died,’ is probably Dampf's darkest yet,” A-Tron continues. “The lyrics are the dark thoughts you can sometimes have, for various reasons, when you can't sleep. ‘Why am I putting energy into all of this when it's done anyway?’ It can be a simple relationship that has ended, you think you have done everything that you can and it still goes to hell. Or you try to work or study for a better future, then a handful of dictators start wars in all corners of the world… threatening me with nuclear weapons when I just had a baby, what the hell? It’s a feeling of cold, empty hopelessness.”








Led by singer/songwriter A-Tron (Martin Erikson aka E-Type) and keyboardist/songwriter Beak, No Angels Alive is an all-in ten-song storytelling experience blending expansive yet tightly bound stylistic ingredients incorporating hard rock, thrash, melodic power metal, and electronic edges. Recorded at Yard Street Studios (Solna, Sweden) and produced by Jona Tee, be gloriously warned: Dampf’s second studio offering, No Angels Alive, is not - and never was - conceived to be for the faint of heart.


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


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


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





Tracklisting:


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


"No Angels Alive" video:





“Masquerade” video:





Dampf are:


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


(Photo - Ted Lindén)







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Earlier in the month, it was announced that the original 1991 lineup of Swedish death metal pioneers GRAVE — Ola Lindgren (guitar, vocals),Jörgen Sandström (vocals, guitar),Jens "Jensa" Paulsson (drums) and Jonas Torndal (bass) — will reunite for a series of concerts in 2025 during which they will perform "an exclusive old-school set" consisting of material from the first three classic GRAVE albums: 1991's "Into The Grave", 1992's "You'll Never See..." and 1994's "Soulless". The first confirmed performance will take place at the Party.San Metal Open Air festival at Flugplatz Obermehler in Schlotheim, Germany in August 2025.

Now, Lindgren has taken to GRAVE's social media to offer "some clarity" to what the upcoming shows will entail. He wrote: "Many thanks to all of you who commented on last weeks announcement and who are as excited about this as we are. Lets bring some clarity to what this 'reunion' is about.

"So early this year I was approached by the other 3 original members for a meeting. It resulted in the plan to do a couple of rehearsals for fun to see if we were first of all capable and also of course if we enjoyed jamming again.

"I would say that playing together after all these decades went far beyond anyone's expectations so we decided to try get some shows booked and here we are.

"This is initially a plan for festival shows during 2025. At the moment there are no plans to do any touring or recording new material with this lineup but who knows where this might lead us...

"The GRAVE that imploded last year is not dead and buried, it is simply put on ice.

"Tomas [Lagrén, drums] is definitely not fired from the band and it will be his decision if he wants to be a part of any future GRAVE endevours when that time comes."

One of the very first Swedish death metal bands alongside NIHILIST, MORBID and TREBLINKA, GRAVE released its first demo in 1986 under the band name CORPSE, before they switched to GRAVE in 1988. GRAVE's debut album, "Into The Grave", arrived in August 1991 through the then-young record label Century Media.

Lindgren told the "Swedish Death Metal" book by Daniel Ekeroth about how GRAVE landed its record deal: "We sent our third demo to just every label there was. A lot of them kept in touch, such as Earache and Peaceville. But Century Media was working faster than any of them, so we just went with them without thinking too much about it. Century Media invited us down to Germany to record that single ('Tremendous Pain'),and it was only after that we started to discuss a deal. It felt amazing for us to go abroad, so in a way they lured us into their roster! But it turned out well."

After Century Media and GRAVE parted ways after seven albums with the release of 2006's "As Rapture Comes", the band launched two highly acclaimed albums, "Dominium VIII" (2008) and "Burial Ground" (2010) through Regain, before reuniting with Century Media for 2012's "Endless Procession Of Souls" and 2015's "Out Of Respect For The Dead".

In 2019, GRAVE teamed up with Century Media Records to bring back the albums "Dominion VIII" and "Burial Ground" as classy, limited colored and black vinyl editions, hand-numbered digipak CDs limited to 3,000 copies each, and digitally. Remastered in 2019 by Lindgren and mastered for vinyl by Patrick W. Engel of Temple Of Disharmony, these records offer crushing and savage GRAVE tracks that fully live up to the group's morbid legacy.

This past January, GRAVE parted ways with bassist Tobias Cristiansson and guitarist Mika Lagrén.

Many thanks to all of you who commented on last weeks announcement and who are as excited about this as we are. Lets...

Posted by Grave on Tuesday, August 20, 2024

GRAVA will release their ominous sophomore album, “The Great White Nothing”, on September 27th 2024 via Aesthetic Death (CD), Vinyltroll Records (LP) and Evil Noise (MC).

The first single, “Decimate”, is now streaming HERE.

The Faroese/Danish trio’s debut album, “Weight of a God” (2022), showcased a violent yet atmospheric type of sludge metal that was simultaneously raw in its execution and disciplined in terms of songwriting. Its follow-up continues in the same vein while adding a touch of nuance and depth to the vicious soundscape. Like its predecessor, the album was produced by Troels Damgaard Holm and mastered by Brad Boatright at Audiosiege.

Though not a concept album, the album kicks off with two tracks (“Erebus” and “White Thresher”) that revolve around the same event: the tragic Franklin Expedition, which in 1845 ventured to the northernmost Arctic to explore the Northwest Passage between the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans. The expedition was a disaster; both ships (HMS Erebus and HMS Terror) were lost, and all 128 crew members perished in the great white nothing to which the title and cover refer.


Throughout the album, GRAVA expand their lyrical universe, and the bleak sludge metal is accompanied by tales of a heartbreaking execution of a Swedish nobleman in 1707 (“Breaker”), a tragic train accident in the outskirts of Copenhagen in 1897 (“Mangled”), and a soldier’s final chaotic moments in one of the countless muddy trenches of World War I (“Bayonet”).

Just like on their debut album, GRAVA do not attempt to tell stories from A to Z but instead attempt to capture moments of death as seen through the eyes of the dying. The effect is a musical and lyrical drama that appears fragmented and intense but also surprisingly disciplined in terms of songwriting. In a genre often characterized by long songs, GRAVA never lose grip on their compositions, and although “The Great White Nothing” is full of interesting musical ideas, the tracks rarely extend far beyond the three-minute mark.

Tracklist:

1. Erebus
2. White Thresher
3. Decimate
4. Breaker
5. The Fall
6. Mangled
7. Bayonet
8. Ceasefire
9. Hinterlands

The 15th-anniversary expanded reissue of MASTODON's seminal "Crack The Skye" album will be made available on October 4. The reissue includes a remastered version of the original album, as well as instrumental versions of all the tracks that appear on the LP.

The Blu-ray disc includes "Crack The Skye: 10th Anniversary Animations", "Crack The Skye: The Movie" and "The Making Of Crack The Skye". The box also includes a 24"x24" poster, 10"x10" sheet with four individual custom-designed magnets and a 12-page 12"x12" booklet.

All editions feature re-imagined artwork from MASTODON's longtime collaborator Paul Romano.

Originally released in March 2009, MASTODON's fourth album features "Oblivion", "Divinations", "The Last Baron" and more.

The LP's title pays tribute to drummer/vocalist Brann Dailor's late sister Skye.

In 2019, MASTODON celebrated the tenth anniversary of "Crack The Skye" by playing the album in its entirety on tour. The band also released a range of "Crack The Skye" merchandise, including a picture disc of the record, t-shirt, jacket, poster and more. In addition, MASTODON released a documentary detailing how they made the landmark album.

MASTODON recorded "Crack The Skye" in June 2008 at Atlanta's Southern Tracks studio with veteran producer Brendan O'Brien (RAGE AGAINST THE MACHINE, PEARL JAM, STONE TEMPLE PILOTS).

"We worked with Matt Bayles on our first three records because he was a good friend and has a good ear," MASTODON vocalist-bassist Troy Sanders told Revolver magazine. "But Brendan is great at helping out with musical patterns and vocal approaches. Working with him was crucial for making the kind of record we wanted to make."

MASTODON recently launched a North American tour celebrating the 20th anniversary of another album, 2004's "Leviathan". The trek, which is scheduled to conclude August 31, is co-headlined by LAMB OF GOD.

METALLICA has made a $40,000 donation to People Serving People, Minnesota's largest organization that provides services for people and families experiencing homelessness, through the band's All Within My Hands foundation.

On Monday (August 19),the non-profit posted on Instagram: "Wow! Talk about Give me fuel, give me fire! METALLICA just invested $40,000 through their All Within My Hands Foundation to People Serving People when they visited Minneapolis. Gifts like this make programs like financial literacy, emergency assistance, and high-quality childcare possible at People Serving People.

"Thank you, METALLICA, for fueling our work, firing up our community, and helping the families at our shelter achieve their desires!"

People Serving People's Amanda Finman-Palmer told KARE 11 about METALLICA's donation: "For us, it's really, really exciting to be recognized like that. Clearly they did some research and thought, 'This organization is doing some really exciting stuff."

Finman-Palmer added that portions of the $40,000 may go to People Serving People's Savings Match Program, financial literacy classes or the Emergency Assistance Fund.

Through All Within My Hands, METALLICA donates a portion of all ticket sales back into the communities visited in each city. In partnership with local promoters, the Foundation has been working diligently to find organizations that align with the AWMH mission and actively put funds to use to better the lives of people in need.

All Within My Hands was established in 2017 by METALLICA to invest in the people and places that have supported the band. It also allows METALLICA's fans to engage in philanthropy and volunteerism. The Foundation is dedicated to creating sustainable communities through workforce education, the fight against hunger, and other critical local services. All expenses of the Foundation are covered by the band, the board, and a few special friends so that 100 percent of donations go to the organizations it supports. AWMH is a registered 501(c)3 non-profit organization.

The METALLICA family and the All Within My Hands foundation board members are committed to running an organization of the highest integrity where expenses are kept to a minimum and are paid for entirely by the band, the board, and friends who have worked with the band over many years and are excited to help in this mission. As such, 100% of all donations from fans and third parties go to the organizations AWMH supports.

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Ice cold Finnish modern metal band ARCTIS have announced their self-titled debut album, set for release via Napalm Records on November 1, 2024. Drawing inspiration from the mythical winters and mystical summers of the North, the Finnish metal minds of talented misfits ARCTIS fearlessly navigate their futuristic battleship through a treacherous ocean where ferocious waves of Metal clash against reefs of Rock and Pop, birthing a sonic assault of epic proportions. To celebrate the announcement of their debut album, the first single “I’ll Give You Hell” and their first official music video ever, has been released. The song explores the complexities of romance with their catchy anthem.

ARCTIS fuses nature and technology, inspired by Finland’s seasonal extremes, capturing the imagination of fans through storytelling that goes beyond the music itself. Led by the enigmatic Alva, the eternal Ice Queen Rebel Leader who shines with an ethereal presence, the band is rounded out by the formidable Björn the Captain, Michael the Magician, Mats the Rambler and Mika the Sage. ARCTIS creates a dynamic and captivating energy and elevates to new heights.

With their talent, the band will soon head out on a tour with Finnish symphonic metal masters Apocalyptica, and the band’s self-titled debut album will be released this fall. It was produced by Jimmy Westerlund (Sturm und Drang), mixed by Stefan Glaumann (Rammstein), and mastered by Svante Forsbäck (Rammstein). Join ARCTIS on a thrilling adventure that combines elements of both nature and technology!

ARCTIS comment on their new single:
“We’re excited to drop our debut track and music video, “I’ll Give You Hell,” a powerful anthem that was one of the first songs we ever wrote. This release marks the start of something big, and we can’t wait to share more of what we’ve been working on. Stay tuned—this is just the beginning!”

ARCTIS is led by the enigmatic Alva, the eternal Ice Queen Rebel Leader, whose mesmerizing voice and shining white battle suit give her an ethereal, almost otherworldly presence that captures the imagination of fans. The dark-clad, valiant men who move beside Alva include the formidable Björn the Captain, whose unwavering leadership skills inspire the band to greatness, Michael the Magician, whose mystical abilities and lightning-fast fingers leave audiences spellbound, Mats the Rambler, whose wild and untamed spirit infuses the band’s music with a sense of reckless abandon, and Mika the Sage, whose deep wisdom and profound insights elevate ARCTIS‘ message to new heights. Together, these legendary figures create a dynamic and captivating energy that defines ARCTIS‘ unique brand of metal and makes them exceptional.

Drawing inspiration on northern themes as metaphors, Arctis explores mental struggles and the internal battles within modern chaos. The strong opener, “I’ll Give You Hell”, delves into the complexities of romance, highlighting the inevitable downfall that arises from a relationship, where honesty and commitment are lacking. With its original version already amassing 5 million streams to date, Finnish modern metal act ARCTIS is set to add to the song’s impressive reception with the release of their own rendition of “Bimbo (Lambretta Cover)”! With a 2000s pop-rock vibe, “Remedy” addresses drug addiction and the steep price one is willing to pay for it. The mystical “Tell Me Why” paints a starry landscape of anger and self-deception while the enchanting “Frozen Swan” showcases personal musical talent while exploring the concept of self-freedom. This smoothly transitions into the upbeat “Fire”, which explores the risks of drug consumption, before flowing seamlessly into “When The Lights Go Out” lyrically exploring nocturnal metaphors through vivid passages. Closing the album, “Theatre Of Tragedy” features powerful guitar riffs, underscoring the limitations of personal human struggle.

Whether through music, artwork, or storytelling, ARCTIS creates a multi-dimensional world that fans can immerse themselves in and explore, transcending genre boundaries and offering a truly unique experience. Prepare for an onslaught of powerful riffs, epic melodies, and the raw energy that has never been seen before!


ARCTIS about their debut album:
“The moment we’ve been dreaming of is finally here, and we couldn’t be more excited to share it with you all! It’s been a long road, filled with hard work, late nights, and an unbreakable passion for music, but we’re thrilled to announce that our first single is out, our debut album is on the way, and we’re hitting the road for our first tour!

Now, we’re ready to take on the world, bring our music to life on stage, and connect with each and every one of you. This is just the beginning, and we’re so happy to have you with us as we start this next chapter.

Get ready, because we’re coming in full force – and we can’t wait to see you on the road!”

Pre-Order Arctis HERE

Arctis tracklisting:
1. I’ll Give You Hell
2. Bimbo
3. Remedy
4. Tell Me Why
5. Frozen Swan
6. WWM
7. Fire
8. Child Of The Night
9. When The Lights Go Out
10. No Slave
11. Theatre Of Tragedy