"Lethean", the new video from Swedish dark rockers KATATONIA, can be seen at Rocknytt.net. The clip was shot by Lasse Hoile, who has previously worked with KATATONIA as well as OPETH and PORCUPINE TREE. The song comes off KATATONIA's ninth album, "Dead End Kings", which sold 3,200 copies in the United States in its first week of release to debut at position No. 138 on The Billboard 200 chart. The CD landed at position No. 4 on the Top New Artist Albums (Heatseekers) chart, which lists the best-selling albums by new and developing artists, defined as those who have never appeared in the Top 100 of The Billboard 200.

KATATONIA's previous album, 2009's "Night Is The New Day", opened with around 2,200 units.

"Dead End Kings" was released on August 28, 2012 (one day earlier internationally) via Peaceville Records. Containing some of KATATONIA's most poignant and ambitious material to date, the CD sees the quintet conjure yet another milestone in audial angst and melancholy with this much-anticipated follow-up to 2009's inspired and acclaimed "Night Is The New Day".

"Dead End Kings", which features a guest appearance by Norwegian singer Silje Wergeland (THE GATHERING), was recorded at Ghost Ward Studios and The City Of Glass, and was produced by KATATONIA's own Anders Nyström and Jonas Renkse, and mixed by David Castillo, known for his prior work with KATATONIA, as well as OPETH and BLOODBATH. The album marks the recording debut of KATATONIA guitarist Per Eriksson and bassist Niklas Sandin. Additionally, KATATONIA was joined once again by Frank Default and his invaluable expertise on sampling and atmospherics. The cover artwork was created by KATATONIA's longtime visual collaborator Travis Smith.

KATATONIA guitarist/co-founder Anders "Blakkheim" Nyström recently finished stripping down "Dead End Kings" to an atmospheric sound devoid of any metal.

Says Nyström: "Early on, we felt it was both peculiar and interesting how the songs could breathe on their own taking a different minimal approach, so we wanted to go back and explore this in a very spontaneous and unpretentious way. Vocals, keyboards and acoustic guitars are in and distorted guitars/bass and drums are out! Stay tuned for a release date!"

In other news, Nyström will spend the next dew weeks "diggin' into old boxes and transferring ancient VHS cassettes and DV tapes to digital media, so we can finally get goin' on the actual edit on the documentary that will hopefully wrap up the anniversary DVD that's been taken forever!"

KATATONIA's upcoming DVD is expected to contain professionally filmed video footage of the band's May 6, 2011 concert at Koko in London, England.

An EPK (Electronic Press Kit) for "Sacrifice", the new album from British heavy metal legends SAXON, can be seen below.

"Sacrifice" will now be released on March 1 in Europe (except in the U.K., where it will be made available on March 4) and March 26 in North America through UDR. Taking a sharper, re-invigorated approach to the production, on this, their 20th album, SAXON have produced 10 of their strongest, heaviest and most inspired songs for many-a-year, and a more than worthy successor to their last album "A Call To Arms".

"Less tricks, more power!" roars frontman and founding father Biff Byford. "My brief to the band was to be raw, be real and not be afraid to look back at the old classic material for inspiration."

The album was recorded at LS Studios in Yorkshire and was produced by Byford, with Andy Sneap mixing and engineering by Jacky Lehmann. It fairly bristles with muscular metallic intent, Paul Quinn's and Doug Scarratt's guitar work the best it's ever been, while Biff's vocals sound fresher and livelier. The songwriting too harks back to a classic era in SAXON's history, with the likes of "Warriors Of The Road", "Wheels Of Terror" and "Stand Up And Fight" evoking the halcyon days of yore with a contemporary twist, the classic SAXON sound absorbing the snarl, ferocity and attitude of contemporary bands (and fans) such as MEGADETH, as evidenced by the crunching title cut, "Sacrifice".

"It's certainly been done from a more early '80s thrashier perspective," explains Biff, "and it's not just guitars bashing away willy-nilly, they've got a fresh drive, purpose and perspective."

Besides the new material, SAXON will also be adding some unique recordings of revisited classic to certain formats of the release, also produced by Byford and mastered by Andy Sneap, including an orchestrated version of "Crusader" and an acoustic version of "Frozen Rainbow".

"From the songs to the production, I wanted to focus on the raw aspects which made us great in the first place," concludes Biff, "And living in that rawness, combined with some great classic SAXON songwriting, has in my opinion made SAXON fresher than ever."

The "Sacrifice" cover artwork was created by longtime SAXON artist Paul Raymond Gregory and can be seen below.

"Sacrifice" track listing:

01. Procession
02. Sacrifice
03. Made In Belfast
04. Warriors Of The Road
05. Guardians Of The Tomb
06. Stand Up And Fight
07. Walking The Steel
08. Night Of The Wolf
09. Wheels Of Terror
10. Standing In A Queue

Bonus track:

* Luck Of The Draw (on iTunes only)

01. Crusader (orchestrated version)
02. Just Let Me Rock (re-recorded version)
03. Requiem (acoustic version)
04. Frozen Rainbow (acoustic version)
05. Forever Free (re-recorded version)

Metal Meltdown recently caught up with drummer MIKE TERRANA, known for his work with TARJA TURUNEN and RAGE. A few excerpts from the audio interview are available below.
On his time with YNGWIE MALMSTEEN: "He's one of the worst people I've ever met, and I would never work with someone like that again, nor would I ever play with him again. I would work at McDonald's before I played drums for that guy. There's more respect and credibility in working a regular job than playing music for that man."

On leaving Rage: "They just kept quantizing my drumming, and putting heavy samples on my drums. And I said, 'Please leave it alone, man. You're destroying this, you're destroying me.' They wouldn't listen. So I left."

Go to this location for the audio interview.

New York, NY based thrash metal band PIROSAINT have announced that it will be rejoined by original singer Gonzalo Rodriguez to record the vocals for the band's next album. Rodriguez was responsible for the vocals on the band's demos Atrocity Not Condign (1992), Infected Dreams (1994), and the New God EP (1997). All recordings released by the band in cassette format only.

The video for track 'Real Psychology', taken from the Infected Dreams demo from 1994, is available below:
Drummer Ignacio Orellana commented: "We are happy to announce that we are working with our original singer. It has been a pretty tough decision for us to do this, since he will be working with us from Chile and we already know that the second part of this project it will be the hardest part, because of that fact, but right now… with two local failures in the count, we still haven't found any stable singer locally to be able to record or perform live with us and we need to put our new material out. We have been working on the new songs for some time now, so our EP project has become our debut album. Twenty years after but what the hell, we have at least have two original members that were on those old recordings, so that's all, we just keep working hard at it. We love what we do."

All the music on Pirosaint's debut album was been recorded at Oily Sound Studios in New Windsor, NY, and the vocal tracks and mixing process will be done in Santiago, Chile later this year. The album will contain nine tracks, more information will be revealed soon.

Pirosaint is:
Gonzalo Rodriguez - vocals
Bill Smith - guitars
Ron Buckner - bass
Ignacio Orellana - drums

For updates visit Pirosaint on Facebook here.

Video footage of New York hardcore legends AGNOSTIC FRONT performing a cover version of the RAMONES classic "Blitzkrieg Bop" can be seen below.

Commented AGNOSTIC FRONT: "We recorded this song for the Strength Records compilation 'Respect Your Roots' when we recorded 'My Life My Way' about three years ago... We have been playing at our live shows for last two years and our friends at Coretex Records help put this together for us combining the recording and live shows in collaboration with their 25-year anniversary and the release on Strength Records.

"This is actual real footage from the song being played live on the Persistence Tour mainly in Dresden! Just a little history on it... Mainly dedicated to the band that made us who we are the RAMONES! Thank you!"

AGNOSTIC FRONT's latest album, "My Life My Way", was released in March 2011 via Nuclear Blast Records. The CD was recorded at Mana Recording Studios in St. Petersburg, Florida and features 13 new powerful and anthemic songs laid down by Erik Rutan (MADBALL, GOATWHORE, CANNIBAL CORPSE, etc.) under the watchful guide of producer Freddy Cricien of MADBALL. The record was mastered by Alan Douches at West West Side Music (SEPULTURA, SUFFOCATION, UNEARTH) in New Windsor, New York.

The "My Life My Way" cover artwork was brought to life this time by artist Todd Hubber, who also works with vocalist Roger Miret on designing his street wear clothing line American Made Kustom.

By Martin Popoff

History has ossified around the idea that CHRIS POLAND and Gar Samuelson were jazzers trapped in a thrash metal machine of Mustaine’s making. Gar is now dead, and Chris has moved on from his seminal two records with MEGADETH, most notably with major label act DAMN THE MACHINE in 1993, into the here and now where he’s a fearless seeker of all things front-edge guitary.

“We’ve been playing The Iridium in New York, and so we had a little jam CD we called Tsunami Jams,” begins Poland, giving us the run-down on his current band OHM: and beyond. “We brought that CD there to try to make some money in New York. Because if you’re in New York, it costs you 50 bucks to walk out the door. So we brought that there, and we were selling that on the Internet and whatnot. But we just finished a project with HAWKWIND, you know, the late ‘60s band? Basically, Adam Hamilton came in and we used my studio, and it came out really good. So they’re going to send those tapes to England, and the sax player... they approached us to do it, and they said, ‘We just want you to jam,’ and it’s kind of a concept on each song, and see what happens, and that’s what we did. But as far as Ohm: goes, our new record is done—we just have to find some time to mix it.”
As for the vibe of the new Ohm: record, Poland explains that, “Since playing with the Sean, Jim and Frank Catalano from POLCAT, we decided we’re gonna make a live record in the studio. And I’m glad we did, because the energy that we exhibit live is actually on tape now. So I think people will really get a better example of what the band’s really about, instead of overdubs and everything’s perfect. I don’t know, everything is perfect on this record, but it’s just got way more energy and it’s just intense. So I’m glad we did it live. Peter, my co-producer/engineer, he insisted that we do it live, and I said, you know, you’re right, let’s do it.”

But we’re still confused about this Hawkwind thing... “Well, we composed the music, and existing members of Hawkwind are going to overdub over the top of it,” says Chris. “And some guys from The Doors, you know, just bands from that era, whoever they can find. It’s on Cleopatra Records. It was a blast, man. Because that’s one thing that me, David Eagle and Robby Pagliari, before we even start rehearsing or writing or anything, we jam. It’s something that we do, because we like to do that more than anything else, really. So it just worked out great. It was a pleasure to do it, and it was easy.”
And the title? Band name? Album name? “I have no idea. I’m pretty sure it’s Hawkwind. I don’t know what they’re going to call it, and I don’t know what it’s going to sound like, because basically Adam kind of told me... he said, ‘I notice that you always go into a repeated melody or whatever, and you have a defined theme. If you can just keep doing that, then we can have a sax player kind of repeat that, and we’ll just go from there.’ And I was like, cool. So that was our plan. It’s too bad. I mean, I guess Lemmy Kilmister used to be in the band, but I doubt he’s going to have anything to do with it. But maybe he will; I don’t know. But it was just a pleasure to do. Because as far as off-the-cuff jamming and shit... I love doing that stuff, man.”

“Just go to ChrisPoland.com,” offers Chris, adding, in closing, a summary. “We’re getting ready to mix the album. We’re done with recording. We just did the Hawkwind project, and I’m going to be doing some shows in Chicago. I’m going to be playing the Elastic Festival in March. June I’m playing with Frank Catalano, a sax player from Chicago, and we have our project called Polcat. And Frank is an amazing sax player. He’s played with Miles, played with BEYONCÉ, RANDY BRECKER. I mean, when he was 18, he played with Randy Brecker, and Randy Becker just decided that he’s going to be called The Kid, because he was so young, and he could play like... back then he could play like MICHAEL BRECKER, and now he’s just like effortless. It’s hard to play with him because he’s a stickler jazz guy, and I’m just who I am, and what I do, and I’m faking it most of the time (laughs).”
If this is all a little bewildering for fans of Chris in Megadeth, Poland understands... “Yeah, well, I just want to say, any Megadeth fan who reads this, obviously, you guys are the best fans in the world, and I appreciate it. You know, every time I see a Megadeth fan and how excited they get sometimes it’s... the stuff I’m playing now, sometimes it’s an albatross—guys who are serious guys, they just go, ‘He’s a metal guy.’ But the thing was, I was never a metal guy (laughs). That’s the funny thing about it.”

For more details visit Threeohms.com.

Another new track from SOILWORK's ninth album and first dual-disc, The Living Infinite, is available at iTunes. Click here to download 'Long Live The Misanthrope'.
The Living Infinite will be released on March 1st (Europe), March 4th (UK) and March 5th (North America) via Nuclear Blast.

Soilwork singer Bjorn 'Speed' Strid will be answering fan questions on Soilwork's Twitter page this Monday, February 18th at 11am Pacific / 2pm Eastern. Tweet your questions to @_Soilwork using #TheLivingInfinite hashtag and they'll all be answered. Don't have a Twitter account? Post your questions for Bjorn in the comments section below and they will be answered also on the band's Twitter wall.

Soilwork recently posted the third album trailer for The Living Infinite. In the three-minute video, singer Björn „Speed“ Strid talks about the lyrics, guest features, the musical approach and his personal favorites on the first double album in the history of melodic death metal:
Check out the previous trailers below:

Speed talks about the production process and the artwork of the first double album in the history of melodic death metal:
What Speed has to say about the idea of a double album, the songwriting process and working with new guitarist David Andersson for the first time:
Produced by Jens Bogren (OPETH, AMON AMARTH, BLOODBATH), The Living Infinite features artwork by MNEMIC’s Mircea Eftemie Gabriel.
The Living Infinite tracklisting:

CD 1:
'Spectrum Of Eternity'
'Memories Confined'
'This Momentary Bliss'
'Tongue'
'The Living Infinite I'
'Let The First Wave Rise'
'Vesta'
'Realm Of The Wasted'
'The Windswept Mercy'
'Whispers And Lights'

CD 2:
'Entering Aeons'
'Long Live The Misanthrope'
'Drowning With Silence'
'Antidotes In Passing'
'Leech'
'The Living Infinite II'
'Loyal Shadow'
'Rise Above The Sentiment'
'Parasite Blues'
'Owls Predict, Oracles Stand Guard'

A video for The Living Infinite track, 'Rise Above The Sentiment', follows:
The official viral video for 'Spectrum Of Eternity' and 'This Momentary Bliss' can be viewed below:
Soilwork's North American Infinity Tour 2013, also featuring JEFF LOOMIS, BLACKGUARD, THE BROWNING and WRETCHED, includes the following dates:

March
12 - West Springfield, VA - Empire
13 - Philadelphia, PA - Trocadero
14 - Albany, NY - Bogie's
15 - New York, NY - Gramercy Theatre
16 - Hartford, CT - Webster Theater
17 - Montreal, QC - Petit Campus
18 - Qu?bec City, QC - Dagobert
19 - Ottawa, ON - Mavericks
20 - Toronto, ON - Opera House
21 - Pittsburgh, PA - Altar Bar
22 - Cleveland, OH - Peabody's
23 - Westland, MI - Token Lounge
24 - Milwaukee, WI - Rave
25 - Joliet, IL - Mojoes
26 - Des Moines, IA - Wooly's
27 - St. Paul, MN - Station 4
28 - Winnipeg, MB - Park Theatre
29 - Regina, SK - Exchange
30 - Calgary, AB - Republik
31 - Edmonton, AB - Starlite Room

April
1 - Prince George, BC - Generator
2 - Vancouver, BC - Rickshaw Theater
3 - Seattle, WA - El Corazon
4 - Portland, OR - Hawthorne Theatre
5 - San Francisco, CA - Slim's
6 - West Hollywood, CA - Whiskey-a-Go-Go
7 - Tempe, AZ - Rocky Point Cantina
8 - Tucson, AZ - The Rock
9 - Las Vegas, NV - Las Vegas Country Saloon
11 - Salt Lake City, UT - In The Venue
12 - Englewood, CO - Gothic Theatre
13 - Kansas City, MO - Riot Room
14 - St. Louis, MO - Firebird
15 - Dallas, TX - Trees
16 - San Antonio, TX - Backstage Live
17 - Lubbock, TX - Jake's
18 - Abilene, TX - Lucky Mule
19 - Odessa, TX - Chameleon Room
20 - El Paso, TX - Tricky Falls
21 - Austin, TX - Dirty Dog Bar
22 - Corpus Christi, TX - House of Rock
23 - McAllen, TX - Geo's
24 - Houston, TX - Scout Bar
26 - St. Petersburg, FL - State Theatre
27 - Jacksonville, FL - Jack Rabbits
28 - Charlotte, NC - Casbah
29 - Richmond, VA - Kingdom
30 - Baltimore, MD - Soundstage

May
1 - Teaneck, NJ - Mexicali Live
2 - Poughkeepsie, NY - Chance Theatre
3 - Buffalo, NY - Broadway Joe's
4 - Columbus, OH - Al Rosa Villa
5 - London, ON - Music Hall
6 - Syracuse, NY - Station 58
7 - Worcester, MA - Palladium
For more info on Soilwork visit Facebook.

Germany's HIGHLIGHT KENOSIS have checked in with the following update:
"HK is proud to announce that we'll be pairing up with some pretty awesome professionals for some recording and production of our upcoming album!

Amanda Somerville (TRILLIUM, KISKE/SOMERVILLE, AVANTASIA) will be producing the vocals, while Sander Gommans (HDK, ex-AFTER FOREVER) and Paul Simons take care of such recording sessions and engineering at The Rock Station in the Netherlands.

More info to come!"

Check out Highlight Kenosis on Facebook here.

Free music player widget at ReverbNation.com

Östergötland/Norrköping, Sweden-based occult rock quintet YEAR OF THE GOAT have set loose a brand new video for the track 'Spirits Of Fire', "showcasing the incredibly hooks and melodies the band have seemingly perfected, depicted in a psychedelic '70s occult horror," according to a press release.

Check out 'Spirits Of Fire' below:
Year Of The Goat will hit the stage sporadically and continuously through the year, having just announced the acts first confirmed performances of 2013. Stay tuned for further updates as more shows are confirmed.

Live rituals:

March
1 - John Dee - Sankt Hanshaugen, Norway
9 - Dynamo - Norrköping, Sweden
22 - Harry’s Rock Night - Linkoping, Sweden

May
24 - Club Destroyer - Sundsvall, Sweden

July
27 - Skogsröjet - Rejmre, Sweden

August
8/29 - Beyond The Gates - Bergen, Norway

November
16 - Hammer Of Doom Festival - Würzburg, Germany
More on Year Of The Goat at this location.

SHADOW SOCIETY have unveiled the cover art and tracklisting for their debut EP as follows:
Shadow Society tracklisting:
'Initiation Ritual'
'Shrouded In Darkness'
'Beneath A Full Moon'
'Dreaming With Demons'
'Hidden In Plain Sight'

The band’s eagerly-awaited first single, 'Shrouded In Darkness', is now available for streaming below. Mixed and mastered at the Audio Refinery by Eric Koondel (SOILWORK, CYNIC, MALEVOLENT CREATION), "Shrouded In Darkness is a glimpse into the dark arts of Shadow Society. Ambience, brutality, melody, and technicality all blend together seamlessly to weave unique and original sonic soundscapes," according to a band statement
Shadow Society is:
Rob Thoth: lead vocals (CHRONZON, IMMANIFEST)
Kevin Quirion: guitars/vocals (DEICIDE, ORDER OF ENNEAD, COUNCIL OF THE FALLEN)
Al Asgrim: guitars/clean Vocals (YETI, Immanifest)
Adam Sagan: drums/clean vocals (CIRCLE II CIRCLE, INTO ETERNITY)
Scott Patrick: bass (Order Of Ennead, Council Of The Fallen)
Roberto “Kadath” Celentano: keyboards (Yeti)
More information about Shadow Society can be found on Facebook.

MERCYFUL FATE's Hank Shermann, who played guitar for Danish metal rock 'n' rollers VOLBEAT for all of last year, has released 11-minute "What Happened In 2012?" video, featuring highlights from the past 12 months. Check it out below.

Shermann shared the stage with METALLICA in December 2011 at one of four intimate shows which took place at the Fillmore in San Francisco as part of the week-long celebration of METALLICA's 30th anniversary as a band for fan club members only.

As previously reported, Shermann's DEMONICA project — which also features FORBIDDEN/SPIRALARMS axeman Craig Locicero — has tapped drummer Paul Bostaph (SLAYER, EXODUS, TESTAMENT, FORBIDDEN) for the band's sophomore album, which is expected to be recorded sometime this year.

The sixth in a series of video clips featuring behind-the-scenes footage from the recording sessions for the new MEGADETH album, "Super Collider", can be seen below.

"Super Collider" is scheduled for release in June via MEGADETH mainman Dave Mustaine's new label, Tradecraft, which is distributed by Universal Music Enterprises(UMe).

"It was a real thrill for us to learn there was an opportunity to join Universal," said Mustaine. "It seems like every time you see a great band or music video, it comes from a Universal label.

"Being with Universal is by far the most exciting and prestigious home for MEGADETH ever! We are electrified with what the future holds and the possibilities such a powerhouse like Universal will bring for us all.

"We have worked with some great people over the years, and it is amazing to see so many of them on the Universal team for our new record, 'Super Collider'.

"If MEGADETH being here isn't satiating enough, having Tradecraft as my own label is going to be really amazing for metal bands around the world."

"Super Collider" is being recorded at Mustaine's Vic's Garage studio in San Marcos, California and is MEGADETH's first release its recent split with Roadrunner Records.

"Shawn [Drover, drums], Chris [Broderick, guitar] and David [Ellefson, bass] have all been feverishly contributing some great music and I believe we are doing our best work ever together in the studio right now," Mustaine said.

Speaking to Full Metal Jackie at last month's NAMM (National Association Of Music Merchants) show in Anaheim, California, Mustaine stated about the direction of the band's new material: "[MEGADETH bassist] David Ellefson is one of those guys that's kind of the barometer of the band. You ask me, you never really know what you're gonna get, but when you ask David Ellefson, it's kind of like reading the ingredients on the back of something, 'cause he's such a straight shooter. He told some people the other day that this is music that's really similar to [MEGADETH's 1985 debut album] 'Killing Is My Business... and Business Is Good!', some of the stuff — really dark, really heavy and fast stuff. I mean, I don't thnk it's really as fast and heavy as 'Killing' is, to me, but Junior is a great, like I said, barometer — bad word, but he knows what's going on."

On the topic of MEGADETH's current label situation, Mustaine said: "We have a new label. We left Roadrunner; we completed our contract with them, which not a lot of many metal bands have the luxury to have been able to complete contracts. They usually either break up or quit or give up and stuff like that, but we were honorable and finished our contract with them and we moved on. And we've actually got a fantastic relationship with a brand new label. We have eleven songs already recorded. We wanna give them thirteen, 'cause, you know, the B-sides and Japanese releases and all that kind of crazy stuff."

"MEGADETH is not just one of the most successful metal bands, but one of the most influential rock bands of the past 30 years," said UMe President/CEO Bruce Resnikoff in making the announcement. "They continue to be a huge draw on the road with their longtime fans as well as continually adding new fans. I look forward to working together with them."

With the recent acquisition of EMI, UMe now brings together MEGADETH's classic, 14-year, seven-album Capitol catalog, which includes one multi-platinum release ('92's "Countdown To Extinction"), four platinum records ('86's "Peace Sells... But Who's Buying?" ; '88's "So Far, So Good... So What?"; '90's "Rust in Peace"; '94's "Youthanasia"), and one gold ('97's "Cryptic Writings"). In all, the band has scored five U.S. Top 10 albums (including 2007's "United Abominations" and 2009's "Endgame") and two Top 5 releases, with 2011's "TH1RT3EN" debuting at No. 1 on the Billboard Hard Rock Albums chart.

In a January 24 post on his Facebook page, Ellefson wrote about the recording process for MEGADETH's new album: "Having a great week here at Vic's Garage laying down bass on the new songs. Really some great, great songs taking shape at this point in the recording process. I told Dave [Mustaine] today that one of them totally reminded me of the earliest stuff back when we first met. Fast, ripppin' and fully bringing the REAL old-school MEGADETH sound!!!"

Johnny K produced MEGADETH's last album, 2011's "TH1RT3EN", which was also recorded at Vic's Garage.

Professionally filmed video footage of PRONG's January 26 performance at the 11th annual Schecter Guitar Research NAMM party at The Grove of Anaheim in Anaheim, California can be seen below.

PRONG's new album, "Carved Into Stone", sold around 1,700 copies in the United States in its first week of release. The CD landed at position No. 13 on the Top New Artist Albums (Heatseekers) chart, which lists the best-selling albums by new and developing artists, defined as those who have never appeared in the Top 100 of The Billboard 200.

"Carved Into Stone" was released on April 24, 2012 in North America via Long Branch Records/SPV. The CD was recorded with producer Steve Evetts, who has previously worked with THE DILLINGER ESCAPE PLAN, SYMPHONY X, SEPULTURA and HATEBREED, among others. The cover artwork was created by Vance Kelly (DOWN, THE SWORD).

Veteran Swedish hard rockers 220 VOLT have announced the addition of singer Anders Engberg (pictured below; THERION, LION'S SHARE) to the group's ranks. The band's current line is completed by founding members Thomas Drevin and Mats Karlsson on guitar, returning drummer Peter Hermansson and Mike Krusenberg on bass.

"The time is right," says Karlsson in a statement. "2013 will be great for us, things are moving in the right direction again, forward that is. We're lettting people hear a few samples of our new demos, and we hope to be releasing new music in the next few months, but a full album will not be out until late this year."

220 VOLT describes its new songs as "as classic hard rock/metal — a bit harder than before, but still melodic."

Sony/BMG has just reissued 220 VOLT's first five albums ("220 Volt", "Power Games", "Mind Over Muscle", "Young And Wild" and "Eye To Eye") digitally with some bonus tracks added on to the "Power Games" and "Eye To Eye" LPs. They are now available on iTunes, Spotify and similar platforms, though it may still be a few weeks before they are released in the U.S.

2013 marks the 30th anniversary of 220 VOLT's self-titled first LP and the 25th anniversary of their landmark effort, "Eye To Eye". The band recently released short stories on their Facebook page about the recordings of each of their albums. They're posted in chronological order and take us album by album up to date.

"Pulvis Et Umbra", the new album from French doomsters SURTR, will be released on March 15 via Altsphere Production on CD and transparent blue limited-edition vinyl.

"Pulvis Et Umbra" track listing:

01. Rise Again
02. Three Winters of War
03. Sonic Doom
04. The Call
05. Rebellion
06. I Am The Cross
07. Fred Karno's Army

The video for the song "I Am The Cross" can be seen below.

SURTR started in 2009, inspired by bands like BLACK SABBATH, SAINT VITUS, REVEREND BIZARRE, COUNT RAVEN and CANDLEMASS.

SURTR is confirmed for this year's edition of the Hellfest festival in Clisson, France, where they will share the stage with such bands as CANDLEMASS, SLEEP, MANILLA ROAD, GHOST and PROCESSION.

SURTR is:

Régis Beck: Drums
Julien Kuhn: Bass
Jeff Maurer: Guitar, Vocals

Finnish thrashers HATEFORM will release their third album, "Sanctuary In Abyss", on March 1 via Spinefarm Records. Drums for the CD were recorded at Petrax Studios (CHILDREN OF BODOM, NIGHTWISH, ENSIFERUM) with engineer Santeri Salmi. Guitars, bass, and vocals were laid down at Ansa Studio with engineer Jori Haukio. The CD was mixed by Thomas "Plec" Johansson (WATAIN, ESKIMO CALLBOY, SCAR SYMMETRY, GRAVEWORM, MORS PRINCIPIUM EST, AS YOU DROWN) and was mastered by Mika Jussila (NIGHTWISH, CHILDREN OF BODOM) at Finnvox Studios.

"Sanctuary In Abyss" track listing:

01. Origin Of Plague
02. Born Exiled
03. Morphine
04. Sculpture Of Flesh
05. All Becomes Nothing
06. Perpetual Cold
07. Rise Beyond
08. Burn To Feel
09. Illusion For The Absolved
10. Redemption For The Awake

A five-minute teaser for the album is available below.

HATEFORM signed a deal with Spinefarm Records in the fall of 2011.

The band's previous albums, "Dominance" and "Origin Of Plague", were released via 7:45 Records.

HATEFORM is:

Tomy Laisto (guitar)
Petri Nyström (vocals)
Tom Gardiner (guitar)
Tuomo Latvala (drums)
Joni Suodenjärvi (bass)

Swedish melodic gloom lords OCTOBER TIDE will release their fourth album, "Tunnel Of No Light", on March 25 in Europe and April 16 in North America via Pulverised Records. The CD was recorded at Black Lounge Studio (SCAR SYMMETRY, CARNAL FORGE, IN MOURNING, CENTINEX) in Avesta, Sweden with producer Jonas Kjellgren.

"Tunnel Of No Light" track listing:

01. Of Wounds To Come
02. Our Constellation
03. Emptiness Fulfilled
04. Caught In Silence
05. The Day I Dissolved
06. Watching The Drowners
07. In Hopeless Pursuit
08. Adoring Ashes

The song "Adoring Ashes" can be streamed using the widget below.

Vocalist Tobias Netzell and bassist Pierre Stam last year left OCTOBER TIDE in order to focus on their family lives and other projects and have since been replaced by Mattias Norrman (ex-KATATONIA) and Alexander Högbom (VOLTURYON, SPASMODIC), respectively.

OCTOBER TIDE's current lineup:

Fredrik Norrman (KATATONIA, UNCANNY) - Guitar
Mattias Norrman (KATATONIA, DELLAMORTE) - Bass
Alexander Högbom (VOLTURYON, SPASMODIC) - Vocals
Robin Bergh (AMARAN, GOREMENT) - Drums
Emil Alstermark (MANDYLON) - Guitar

OCTOBER TIDE's latest album, "A Thin Shell", was released in North America in September 2010 via Candlelight Records. The band's first CD in ten years followed the 2009 reissue of its debut, "Rain Without End" (Candlelight).

Formed in 1995 by then-KATATONIA guitarist Norrman and KATATONIA/BLOODBATH vocalist Jonas Renkse, OCTOBER TIDE quickly made a mark with two albums recorded and released during the years 1997 and 1999 ("Rain Without End" and "Grey Dawn", respectively). Much of the band's music was written during a short break up of KATATONIA which later proved only temporary as the band would reform and continues today. OCTOBER TIDE would not perform live during this short period of activity and few interviews with the members were granted despite praise from both media and fans. The band, until reforming in late 2009, would maintain a cult status throughout the doom/metal community.

TESTAMENT's February 15 concert at the Paramount Theatre in Huntington, New York as part of "The Dark Roots Of Thrash" tour was professionally filmed for a 90-minute DVD, to be released later this year via Nuclear Blast.

Fan-filmed video footage of the show can be seen below.

"We haven't shot a live DVD or CD since our 'Live In London' release and we've had two killer albums since then," commented TESTAMENT vocalist Chuck Billy. "We thought it would be cool to put out a live DVD/CD focusing on the last three records ('The Gathering', 'The Formation Of Damnation' and 'Dark Roots Of Earth') mixed in with a good amount of classics, too. Last time we recorded anything live in America was for 'Live At The Fillmore' on the West Coast. This time we thought we'd give the East Coast a chance to show the world how crazy and loud they can be."

The band's setlist was as follows:

01. Rise Up
02. More Than Meets the Eye
03. Burnt Offerings
04. Native Blood
05. True American Hate
06. Dark Roots of Earth
07. Into the Pit
08. Practice What You Preach
09. Riding the Snake
10. Eyes of Wrath
11. Trial By Fire
12. The Haunting
13. The New Order
14. D.N.R. (Do Not Resuscitate)
15. 3 Days in Darkness

Encore 1:

16. The Formation of Damnation

Encore 2:

17. Over the Wall
18. Disciples of the Watch

TESTAMENT's new album, "Dark Roots Of Earth", sold more than 20,000 copies in the United States in its first week of release to land at position No, 12 on The Billboard 200 chart. The CD arrived in stores on July 31, 2012 via Nuclear Blast Records.

"Dark Roots Of Earth" was produced, mixed and mastered by acclaimed British producer Andy Sneap (ARCH ENEMY, NEVERMORE, ACCEPT, EXODUS). Special bonus tracks were recorded, mixed and mastered by Juan Urteaga (MACHINE HEAD, EXODUS, TED NUGENT, NIGHT RANGER) at his Trident Studios. The cover artwork for the effort (see below) was painted by Eliran Kantor, who has previously worked with ATHEIST, SIGH, ANACRUSIS and GWAR, among others.

Professionally filmed video footage of former NEVERMORE guitarist Jeff Loomis' January 26 performance at the 11th annual Schecter Guitar Research NAMM party at The Grove of Anaheim in Aneheim, California can be seen below.

Loomis last year released a brand-new song, "A Liar's Chain", recorded with his touring band consisting of Joe Nurre (guitar and vocals), Anup Sastry (drums) and Greg Macklin (bass).

Loomis's second solo album, "Plains Of Oblivion", sold 2,900 copies in the United States in its first week of release to debut at position No. 179 on The Billboard 200 chart. The effort landed at No. 2 on the Top New Artist Albums (Heatseekers) chart, which lists the best-selling albums by new and developing artists, defined as those who have never appeared in the Top 100 of The Billboard 200.

"Plains Of Oblivion" was released on April 10, 2012 in North America (one day earlier in Europe) via Century Media Records. The CD was produced by Aaron Smith (7 HORNS 7 EYES) and features cover artwork by Colin Marks of Rain Song Design, who has previously worked with ALL SHALL PERISH, THE END and XERATH.

DISTURBED frontman David Draiman, who last year announced the formation of his new project DEVICE, also featuring former FILTER guitarist Geno Lenardo, has posted the following message online:

"My brothers and sisters, my blood, I just wanted to take a moment to thank all of you for coming with me on this new journey that is DEVICE.

"I am eternally grateful for the love that you all have for DISTURBED, and I also understand the defensiveness that can come with any thing that could potentially be perceived as a catalyst to some sort of 'breakup theory' that, I assure you, has no base in the first place.

"If you read the DEVICE bio that was posted on the DEVICE Facebook page, you will learn that the whole project came together quite accidentally, and I'm very glad it did. I think you will be too.

"DISTURBED is still on hiatus. A hiatus is an extended break, not 'breakup.' We have fought long and hard together, all of us, to make DISTURBED what it has become, and are not just walking away from it. We all needed to just give ourselves some time away from it. The existence of DEVICE does not in any way shape or form mean the end of DISTURBED. They are two completely separate entities, and I hold them both in the highest regard. You are about to get your first taste this coming week.

"You have all of my love and respect."

DEVICE will play a number of shows this spring and summer in support of its debut album, which is due out April 9. The CD will feature guest appearances from AVENGED SEVENFOLD singer M. Shadows, SYSTEM OF A DOWN vocalist Serj Tankian, RAGE AGAINST THE MACHINE guitarist Tom Morello, HALESTORM singer Lzzy Hale, BLACK SABBATH bassist Geezer Butler and ex-DEEP PURPLE bassist/vocalist Glenn Hughes.

Lenardo will not be part of the DEVICE touring band due to previous commitments.

Other members of the live lineup include EVANESCENCE drummer Will Hunt and DOPE guitarist Virus.

A 44-second teaser for DEVICE's forthcoming album can be seen below.

The first single from the DEVICE album, called "Vilify", arrives at rock radio on February 19. A video is being produced as well.

Former PANTERA and current DOWN frontman Philip Anselmo was interviewed for the cover story in the March 2013 issue of Revolver magazine. During the in-depth chat, the singer spoke about reconnecting with Sterling Winfield, co-producer of PANTERA's 2000 album, "Reinventing The Steel". "I didn't know there was a rift between Sterling and I until I spoke with him several months ago," Anselmo said of the first time they'd talked in 12 years. "He chose sides at one point, and picked Vinnie Paul's [Abbott, former PANTERA drummer] side, which is a psychotic side."

He continued: "I feel bad for Vince. People should pity the guy. I wasn't there when Dimebag [late PANTERA guitarist and Vinnie Paul's brother, "Dimebag" Darrell Abbott, who was killed on stage while performing with DAMAGEPLAN in December 2004] was murdered, but he sure as fuck was. That's his flesh and blood, murdered right in front of him. It's a shame that Vince never reached out to Rex [Brown, former PANTERA bassist] and I. I think the healing process would have been beneficial to him, instead of his knee-jerk reaction to fear, and his therapy through tit bars and whiskey."

Returning to his story about Winfield, Anselmo explained: "He said that he drank heavily after Dimebag's death. He admitted that he hated my guts but then he got sober. Over his first two years of sobriety, he realized that these bad feelings towards me were unfounded completely."

Anselmo also reflected on PANTERA's downfall, telling Revolver: "One guy can't break up a band. After we broke up, why was Rex with me and not with Dimebag and Vince? You have to understand, it goes all four ways when a band breaks up. Yes, I made mistakes. Yes, there was a lack of communication on both sides and some of it is my fault — a lot of it is my fault."

Anselmo, whose comments in the U.K. music press about how Dimebag should be "beaten severely" were unfairly linked to some of the guitarist's shooter's motive, stated about his former bandmate: "Two mornings ago, the first thing I thought of when I woke up was Dimebag. I think about Dime a lot. Last year was very rough. I don't know what it was about last year, but I got into a severe depression about the loss of Darrell and what it meant and how huge it is. How heinous it is for him not to be here and to go out the way he did. There are still a few days to go [before the eighth anniversary of Dimebag's death] [the interview was conducted in early December 2012. — Ed.], and hopefully it's just not as bad as last year. But if it is, so be it.

"Dimebag was a lifer," Anselmo continued. "He was meant to be this guitar hero. He was born for it. We would have made amends. I would like to think he would be proud of me for pulling myself out of the muck, the abyss. I'm not a believer in the afterlife. I think this is our shot. But I guess, in an atavistic way, you hope that the fallen one's mighty spirit is looking down and smiling on you. I just choose to remember the positive things. He was almost like the perfect counterpoint to me. We may have clashed to a certain extent, but we would always find a happy medium, It was a vital relationship that I miss greatiy."

"PANTERA had an almost supernatural freakin' alchemic chemistry, not of this world," he added. "I have not felt it since. DOWN has its own chemistry, but it's not PANTERA."

"His Will", the new ZerOonE-produced video from Swedish metallers REVENGIA, can be seen below. The song comes off the band's new album, "Lake Of Fire", which was released on November 11, 2012 via Dirge Entertainment through Sound Pollution distribution. The CD was mastered at Bohus Sound Studios by Dragan Tanaskovic.

The band previously described its new songs as "heavy, fast, doomy and melodic, just as usual in REVENGIA-land!"

"Lake Of Fire" track listing:

01. Free From Sin
02. His Will
03. Lake Of Fire
04. The Day I Die
05. Alone
06. Purest Of Emotions
07. Sin For Sale
08. Asylum
09. Bloodline
10. Termination By The Hand Of Creation
11. The Galleon
12. The One (bonus track on first pressing)

The cover artwork was painted by Petra Christensen and can be seen below.

REVENGIA recently announced the addition of touring guitarist Andreas Stolt (NASCENCY) to the group's ranks.

Andreas made his live debut with REVENGIA on November 3, 2012 at Sparbankshallen in Varberg, Sweden.

REVENGIA's previous album, "Eraser", was released in Japan on November 21, 2007 via Soundholic Records.

The band in 2007 split with ARCH ENEMY drummer Daniel Erlandsson due to scheduling conflicts. He has since been replaced by Conny Pettersson (ANATA, TRENDKILL, ETERNAL LIES).

GUNS N' ROSES' June 2012 performance at London, England's O2 Arena will be broadcast on VH1 Classic on March 9 as part of a five-hour GN'R special. The night will kick off at 8:00 p.m. with a one-hour, all-GUNS N' ROSES video block hosted by "That Metal Show"'s Eddie Trunk, followed by the London concert and a rebroadcast of the Axl Rose "That Metal Show" episode.

The big-screen premiere of GUNS N' ROSES' 2012 performance at O2 Arena was scheduled for last October at select theaters in Europe but was "postponed" by the band's management.

A trailer for the concert film, which promised to show the grand finale of the band's U.K. tour in "stunning" HD quality and Surround Sound, can be seen below.

GUNS N' ROSES has been added to The Governer's Ball festival, set to take place June 7-9 on Randall's Island in New York City. They join the likes of KANYE WEST, KINGS OF LEON, GRIZZLY BEAR, ANIMAL COLLECTIVE, KENDRICK LAMAR and many others. GUNS N' ROSES will also co-headline this year's edition of Rocklahoma, which is scheduled to take place over the weekend of May 24-26 at the Catch the Fever Festival Grounds in Pryor, Oklahoma. The event, now in its seventh year, will also feature sets from KORN, ALICE IN CHAINS and many more older and newer acts.

In addition sole original member Axl Rose (lead vocals), the current lineup of GUNS N' ROSES includes guitarists Ron "Bumblefoot" Thal, Richard Fortus and DJ Ashba, bassist Tommy Stinson, keyboardists Dizzy Reed and Chris Pitman and drummer Frank Ferrer.

Canadian metal innovators VOIVOD have released the following statement:

"VOIVOD has had to postpone any shows for the immediate future as Snake [vocalist Denis Belanger] needs four-six weeks rest due to a procedure for diverticulitis, a common digestive disease. This affects the MS Benefit in Ottawa and the SXSW shows, this should not affect the Santiago, Chile Metal Fest appearance in April. More tour news to be announced shortly."

VOIVOD's new album, "Target Earth", sold around 1,500 copies in the United States in its first week of release. The CD was issued on January 22 via the band's own company, Iron Gang Factory, and Century Media.

VOIVOD's previous album, "Infini", opened with around 840 units back in July 2009.

"Target Earth" was recorded in early 2012 at Pierre Rémillard's (OBLIVEON, CRYPTOPSY, KRISIUN, MISERY INDEX) Wild Studio in a small town called St-Zénon in Quebec, Canada and was mixed by Sanford Parker (PELICAN, NACHTMYSTIUM). The follow-up to 2009's "Infini" contains the band's first music to be written with guitarist Dan Mongrain (MARTYR) following the passing of original axeman Denis "Piggy" D'Amour in 2005. The original art was once again drawn by drummer Michel "Away" Langevin and features color schemes from each one of the band's previous albums.

New Jersey thrash metal veterans OVERKILL have released the following statement:

"We are terribly sorry that we had to cancel our performance last night [Friday, February 15 at the Paramount Theatre in Huntington, New York], but let's put the rumors to rest, before speculation runs rampant.

"Blitz [singer Bobby Ellsworth] was diagnosed with what is called 'walking pneumonia,' and was medically advised to not perform due to it potentially getting worse if he did. When the health risk is no longer an issue, he'll be ready to kick ass once again."

OVERKILL and TESTAMENT are currently on the road in North America together part of "The Dark Roots Of Thrash" tour, also featuring FLOTSAM AND JETSAM and 4ARM.

OVERKILL's new album, "The Electric Age", sold 6,500 copies in the United States in its first week of release to debut at position No. 77 on The Billboard 200 chart. The CD was recorded and mixed at Gear Recording Studios in New Jersey, owned and operated by OVERKILL bassist D.D. Verni.

Bassist Bobby Ferkovich has hit the ground running in 2013. The new year begins with work on his fourth release with Kurdt Vanderhoof’s (METAL CHRUCH) prog-rock outfit PRESTO BALLET. This follow-up to 2012’s Relic of the Modern World will be released later this year with tour dates around the world to follow.

Ferkovich is also back into the studio with POWERTRAIN, (featuring Kendall Bechtel of FIFTH ANGEL on guitar and vocals) on their (as yet untitled) fourth release, the follow-up to last year’s effort Off The Rails.
As if this wasn’t enough, Ferkovich is currently in the studio working with legendary former W.A.S.P. guitarist Randy Piper on his new solo project (release dates and tour dates coming soon) and is also slated to hit the road with world renowned power-vocalist Pamela Moore (QUEENSRŸCHE’s 'Sister Mary') following the release of her highly anticipated upcoming album Resurrect Me.

March will also see Ferkovich in the studio with shred guitar virtuoso Gabriele Palermo (from Germany’s TRAGEDIAN) along with Bobby’s former HEIR APPARENT band mate, drummer Jeffrey McCormack. The project, simply titled M.P.F. is slated for a late 2013 release. No tour plans have been scheduled at press time.

“It’s amazing to be so incredibly busy this year, and such an honor that it’s with such remarkable artist," says Ferkovich,

For more details visit Bobbyferkovich.com.