HOTEL DIABLO — the new band featuring vocalist Rick Stitch (LADYJACK, ex-ADLER'S APPETITE), guitarist Alex Grossi (QUIET RIOT), bassist Mike Duda and drummer Mike Dupke (both of W.A.S.P.) — will release its full-length debut, "The Return To Psycho, California", on June 12. The CD was produced by Gilby Clarke (GUNS N' ROSES, ROCKSTAR SUPERNOVA), with additional production by Matt Starr (ACE FREHLEY, BEAUTIFUL CREATURES).

"Psycho, California" is "a collection of stories, true stories, experienced during a time when our lives were filled with mind-altering shots of wretched adrenaline," says Stitch. "Strings got bent, knobs were turned and an uncontrolled visceral energy screamed life" into what has become "Psycho, California".

"The Return To Psycho, California" track listing:

01. Taken
02. Set It Off
03. What You Do To Me
04. Psycho, California
05. Bury You *
06. Wicked Lines *
07. All These Years
08. Wonderwall (OASIS cover)
09. Trigger
10. Bury You (alternate version) *
11. What You Do To Me (alternate version)

Produced by Gilby Clarke
* Produced by Matt Starr

The song "Bury You" can be streamed in the YouTube clip below.

"Bury You" audio stream:

Century Media Records has welcomed Maryland-based experimental, progressive metallers PERIPHERY to the family as licensing partner for the world outside of North America, Australia, New Zealand and Japan. July 2 will see the European digital release of PERIPHERY's highly anticipated sophomore album, "Periphery II: This Time It's Personal",, whereas the physical release of the album will follow July 16, including bonus material.

"Periphery II: This Time It's Personal" will be released in North America on July 3 via Sumerian Records. The CD will feature guest appearances by John Petrucci (DREAM THEATER), Guthrie Govan (THE ARISTOCRATS) and Wes Hauch (THE FACELESS).

Commented PERIPHERY guitarist Misha Mansoor: "We put so much hard work and time into this album and we thank all of you for your continued support and patience. The album clocks in at sixty-nine minutes exactly and has tons of brand new material, so I assure you it is well worth the wait. Make sure to keep on the lookout for the first track which we will be releasing in the coming weeks."

"Periphery II: This Time It's Personal" track listing:

01. Muramasa
02. Have A Blast (feat. Guthrie Govan)
03. Facepalm Mute
04. Ji
05. Scarlet
06. Luck As A Constant
07. Ragnarok
08. The Gods Must Be Crazy!
09. Make Total Destroy
10. Erised (feat. John Petrucci)
11. Epoch
12. Froggin' Bullfish
13. Mile Zero (feat. Wes Hauch)
14. Masamune

PERIPHERY supported DREAM THEATER for two U.S. shows last October and a full-length European tour in January and February.

In a September 2011 interview with Metal Assault, Mansoor stated about Petrucci, "John Petrucci is the reason why I have a seven-string. John Petrucci is who I wanted to be when I started taking guitar seriously. I learned all the songs off [1999's] 'Metropolis Pt. 2: Scenes From A Memory' and played them horribly. But it really challenged me and showed me… I wanted to be him… I wanted to be John Petrucci so badly. I didn't even wanna be like him; I just wanted to be him. And I figured if I learned every song and solo, I'd get in his head and figure out how he wrote the amazing parts that he did and I'd understand how to be a better musician. I kind of got over that eventually when I realized I just didn't have the technical prowess to pull that off. But it definitely made a very big mark on me in many ways — in his approach to lead playing and arrangements and songwriting, in riff writing… everything. He's just such a balanced player and such a huge influence to me."

Bassist Tom Murphy last year announced his departure from PERIPHERY "to pursue something new." Adam "Nolly" Getgood of RED SEAS FIRE has been filling in on bass while Mark Holcomb took up his position as the full-time guitarist on the band's most recent tour.

"Elements And Spirit", the new video from French progressive technical death metallers GOROD, can be seen below. The song comes off the band's fourth full-length album, "A Perfect Absolution", which was released in the U.S. on May 8 via Unique Leader Records (March in Europe through Listenable Records). The CD was mixed by producer Frédéric "Elmobo" Motte, who oversaw the recording of the drums, bass and vocals, while all guitars were tracked by GOROD's mastermind Matthieu Pascal at his Bud Records Studio. The mix and the mastering were done at Elmobo's Conkrete Studio by Pascal and Elmobo.

The lyrical concept of "A Perfect Absolution" is based on the history of Kievan Rus during the 10th century.

In the year 945, Igor, King of Kiev, was killed while collecting a "tribute" when he visited a neighbor pagan tribe (the Derevlians) who lives in the forest. He left a widow, Olga, who avenged him in an extremely harsh manner before converting to Orthodox Christianity.

"A Perfect Absolution" features guest guitar solos by Christian Muenzner (OBSCURA) and Mike Keene (THE FACELESS).

"A Perfect Absolution" track listing:

01. Birds Of Sulphur
02. Sailing Into The Earth
03. Elements And Spirit
04. The Axe Of God
05. 5000 At The Funeral
06. Carved In The Wind
07. Varangian Paradise
08. Tribute Of Blood

GOROD's previous full-length album, "Process Of A New Decline", came out in 2009 via Listenable Records. The follow-up to 2006's "Leading Vision" marked the recording debut of GOROD's new drummer, Samuel Santiago.

GOROD's "Transcendence" EP came out last year. The disc included a 15-minute-long new song, one acoustic track, a CYNIC cover and two re-recorded songs from the band's first two albums.

"Elements And Spirit" video:

Swedish hard rockers BULLET will release a new single, "Full Pull", on July 13 via Nuclear Blast Records. The single will be available digitally and on vinyl, with various colours.

The track listing is as follows:

Side A: "Full Pull"
Side B: "Get On"

"Full Pull" is the title track of BULLET's new album, which will be released on September 14 via Nuclear Blast Records. The CD was recorded at Gutterview Recorders in Solna, Sweden with producers Nicke Andersson (HELLACOPTERS, ENTOMBED) and Fred Estby (DISMEMBER). The band states, "We think this is going to be our best album thus far. Expect the hardest-rocking BULLET album yet recorded!"

BULLET's third full-length album "Highway Pirates", entered the official chart in Sweden at position No. 3.

"Highway Pirates" was mixed by Tobias Lindell, who has previously worked with such Swedish rock bands as EUROPE, MUSTASCH and HARDCORE SUPERSTAR.

A short video teaser for "L'Enfant Sauvage", the forthcoming fifth album from French progressive metallers GOJIRA, can be seen below.

Due on June 26 via Roadrunner Records, "L'Enfant Sauvage" (which translates to "The Wild Child") features 11 tracks of mind-bending, thunderous metal. The CD was recorded at Spin Recording Studios in Long Island City, New York with co-producer Josh Wilbur (LAMB OF GOD).

In a recent interview with Metalshrine, GOJIRA guitarist/vocalist Joseph Duplantier stated about the new album title, "We couldn't call it 'The Wild Child', because it's hard to translate 'L'Enfant Sauvage'. It's not really the wild child as understood in English, because a wild child for me, has an aspect like someone out of control somehow. 'L'Enfant Sauvage' in French… 'Sauvage' is something that is not educated or something that is like free and completely free in nature. A wild flower that goes wherever she wants and becomes something beautiful. The idea with 'L'Enfant Sauvage' is like with a human that would grow up in nature, raised by wolves, for example, without the influence from others and the influence from institutions or society in general. Without a social security number. [laughs] Not even a name. This is what you are and I am on the inside, right? How much the education and the culture, emotions and the guilt are interacting with us and it changes us and how far are we from this pure child inside? That's the question we had on this album."

A special collector's package of "L'Enfant Sauvage" will feature two bonus tracks and a double-colored vinyl version of the record, along with an exclusive t-shirt.

"L'Enfant Sauvage" track listing:

01. Explosia
02. L’Enfant Sauvage
03. The Axe
04. Liquid Fire
05. The Wild Healer
06. Planned Obsolescence
07. Mouth Of Kala
08. The Gift Of Guilt
09. Pain Is A Master
10. Born In Winter
11. The Fall

GOJIRA will release a new DVD/Blu-ray, "The Flesh Alive", in Europe on June 4 and in the U.S. on July 31 via Mascot. The set will be made available in the following formats:

* 2-DVD+CD
* Blu-ray+CD with free poster

The three-disc "The Flesh Alive" chronicles the making of GOJIRA's 2008 album, "The Way Of All Flesh", and the touring activity that followed the CD's release.

"L'Enfant Sauvage" album teaser:

Rock Hard Live has uploaded quality two-camera video footage of WARBRINGER's May 25 performance at Ace Of Spades in Sacramento, California as the support act for DESTRUCTION. Check it out below.

WARBRINGER recently completed a seven-week North American tour supporting ICED EARTH and SYMPHONY X.

WARBRINGER's third album, "Worlds Torn Asunder", sold around 2,000 copies in the United States in its first week of release, according to Nielsen SoundScan. The CD landed at position No. 11 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.

WARBRINGER's sophomore CD, "Waking Into Nightmares", also opened with around 2,000 units back in May 2009 to debut at No. 14 on the Heatseekers chart.

"Worlds Torn Asunder" was produced and mixed by Steve Evetts (SUICIDE SILENCE, THE DILLINGER ESCAPE PLAN, SYMPHONY X), and features artwork by Dan Seagrave, who designed WARBRINGER's previous album cover (in addition to art for bands such as ENTOMBED, SUFFOCATION and MORBID ANGEL).

WARBRINGER 2012 is (left to right in photo below):

Andy Laux - Bass
Andrew Bennett - Guitar
John Kevill - Vocals
John Laux - Guitar
Carlos Cruz – Drums

Video footage of resurrected German death metallers MORGOTH performing at this year's Maryland Deathfest on May 27 at Sonar in Baltimore, Maryland can be seen below.

MORGOTH will release its first-ever live album and DVD, "Cursed To Live", on June 25 via Century Media Records. The audio tracks were mixed at Unisound Studio in Sweden with Dan Swanö (OPETH, KATATONIA, DISSECTION).

"Cursed To Live" is the documentation of MORGOTH's ongoing 20th-anniversary celebration of the band's all-time classic album "Cursed" (released by Century Media Records in 1991). It will be released on CD, a limited DVD+2CD as well as a limited deluxe 2LP. The live show featured on the album was recorded at the band's triumphant show headlining Way Of Darkness festival 2011, at which MORGOTH performed an extensive set of 15 songs, with the main focus on the songs off "Cursed". The cover artwork — with an intentional nod to the original "Cursed" art — was designed by the renowned artist Dirk Rudolph (RAMMSTEIN, IN EXTREMO, APOCALYPTICA), who had also created the original artwork for "Cursed" 21 years ago.

MORGOTH is:

Marc Grewe - Vocals
Harry Busse - Guitar
Sebastian Swart - Guitar
Sotirios "Soti" Kelekides - Bass
Marc Reign - Drums

Legendary VELVET REVOLVER/ex-GUNS N' ROSES guitarist Slash says that the forthcoming "The Cat In The Hat: The Story So Far" documentary "is not authorized" and that he has "nothing to do with it."

"Slash - The Cat In The Hat: The Story So Far" will be released on on Blu-ray on August 21 via Pride. A two-disc set with a running time of 131 minutes, it is described as follows: "The most iconic rock guitarist since Keith Richards, Slash has achieved the status of 'most interesting hard rock act in the world today'. And 20 years after the demise proper of the group with whom he made his name, he continues to build on an already remarkable career trajectory, while his old sparring partner in GUNS N' ROSES produces pale imitations of past glories. This two-disc set includes a DVD documentary tracing the life and times of Slash, and a disc of audio interviews with the Cat himself during which he speaks candidly and honestly on almost everything he feels strongly about."

b>Slash's (VELVET REVOLVER, GUNS N' ROSES) second solo album, "Apocalyptic Love", sold around 38,000 copies in the United States in its first week of release to land at position No. 4 on The Billboard 200 chart.

Slash's self-titled debut album scored the highest new entry on The Billboard 200 chart in April 2010, with first-week U.S. sales of around 60,000 copies.

Fan-filmed video footage of KILLSWITCH ENGAGE's May 31 performance at Tivoli in Utrecht, Holland can be seen below.

KILLSWITCH ENGAGE 's April 22 performance at at the New England Metal & Hardcore Festival marked the band's first concert with singer Jesse Leach in more than nine years.

Leach sang on the band's first self-titled album, which came out in 2000, and on their landmark 2002 Roadrunner debut "Alive Or Just Breathing". Leach left the band in 2002 and was replaced by Howard Jones, but his work on "Alive Or Just Breathing" has always been revered by diehard, longtime KILLSWITCH ENGAGE fans.

"Honestly, we didn't want to jump into anything too quickly," Adam told AOL's Noisecreep in a recent interview. "We were in a position where we could take our time and try out as many singers as we wanted. There are a lot of talented singers out there, and we didn't want to rush everything. We ended up mulling it over a bit, and we tried out a few different people.

"When we got back in the rehearsal room with Jesse, it just felt right. He's one of my good friends, and the awkwardness of meeting someone for the first time, and all of that stuff, was gone when he jammed with us again. We also knew what Jesse is capable of, so it just took all of us getting in a room together again to remember how cool it once was. He blew us away."

Regarding the reasons for Leach's original departure from KILLSWITCH ENGAGE ten years ago and whether those same issues will come into play now, Adam said, "He was feeling a lot of frustration [back in 2002]. He didn't know how to take care of his voice, and he would blow it out every couple of shows. We had to cancel a lot of shows because of that. He was also a newlywed, and they didn't know how tough it would be to be in a relationship when the other person is a road dog. It was a lot of pressure on him. All of those things piled up, and it put him in that bad place. But these days he's really learned how to take care of himself on the road. His marriage is also going great, and they've figured out how to make it work, even though one of them is a touring musician. Jesse's in a much better place now, that's for sure."

KILLSWITCH ENGAGE is hard at work on material for the follow-up to 2009's second self-titled album.

In a recent interview with the "Brock And The Fatguy" radio show, Jesse stated about KILLSWITCH ENGAGE's new material, "I have the 14 demos for the new KILLSWITCH record, and let me tell you, I'm glad that they didn't turn into TIMES OF GRACE [songs], and I'm glad that KILLSWITCH is gonna have the opportunity to write another record with me — or a few more, God willing. I can tell you right now from the demos, the people are gonna be really surprised; they're setting the bar up high once again. I'm literally within day three of just listening to them and just sort of digesting them. It's really fast and it's really heavy. It's not what people are going to anticipate, I'm sure. I literally am getting chills right now talking about it. It's gonna blow the doors off people, man. It's gonna be great."

Ex-GUNS N' ROSES guitarist Izzy Stradlin joined his former band on stage earlier tonight (Thursday, May 31) at the O2 Arena in London, England to perform the songs "14 Years", "You Could Be Mine", Dead Flowers", "Knockin' On Heaven's Door", "Nightrain" and "Paradise City".

Fan-filmed video footage of the "14 Years" performance can be seen below.

A number of photos taken at the concert are available at this location.

The last time the "Use Your Illusion II" track "14 Years" was performed live by GUNS N' ROSES was in August 1991, also in London.

Stradlin previously played with GN'R at a few shows in 2006.

Both Izzy and GUNS N' ROSES lead singer Axl Rose skipped the band's recent induction into the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame.

Stradlin issued a statement the week before the induction, thanking his bandmates, the Hall Of Fame for "the acknowledgment of our works over the years," and the fans who "have supported GUNS N' ROSES from day one."

Former GUNS N' ROSES bassist Duff McKagan joined Axl Rose on stage for the first time in seventeen years at the band's October 14, 2010 concert in London.

For the Rock Hall induction performance, McKagan, guitarist Slash and drummer Steven Adler were joined by guitarist Gilby Clarke and drummer Matt Sorum for three songs — "Mr. Brownstone", "Sweet Child O' Mine" and "Paradise City" — from the band's classic 1987 debut, "Appetite For Destruction". Providing vocals in the absence of Axl Rose was Myles Kennedy, the singer for ALTER BRIDGE and Slash's current solo band.

Sorum played drums for "Mr. Brownstone", while original drummer Adler took over for the other two songs.

Michael Grant, singer of CRESCENT SHIELD, ONWARD, CYPHER SEER and LEGEND MAKER, died earlier today (Thursday, May 31) at Glendale Memorial Hospital in Glendale, California after a relatively brief but serious illness. He was 39 years old. He was peaceful and surrounded by family at the time of his passing.

Michael recorded and toured with several bands throughout his career, most notably ONWARD on Century Media Records and more recently CRESCENT SHIELD on Cruz del Sur Music.

Commented CRESCENT SHIELD/ex-DESTINY'S END guitarist Dan DeLucie: "Michael's rich and powerful baritone and clean melodic vocal style made him a distinct voice in heavy metal. He was known for crafting memorable vocal hooks and layered harmonies. He often weaved multiple vocal phrases together creating a complex and striking tapestry of vocal melodies. Perhaps most notable however was the passion Mike sang with. He could evoke the strength and grandiloquence of the mightiest metal warrior or the mournful atmosphere of a passing life.

"Mike was more than just a singer, though. He was a greatly talented songwriter and lyricist. Although he didn't play an instrument, he would often write complete songs by humming guitar lines and vocalizing drum beats. His lyrics were profound, evocative and often personal. He was a true lover of heavy metal and would sing its praises with a sense of poetry and grandeur. No matter the topic: journeys into the unknown, the choices we make in life, religious dogma, or a crimson moonrise, Mike always delivered a moving message with unique elegance.

"Writing, recording, and performing music with Mike in CRESCENT SHIELD was a joy. We were in synch creatively and complemented each other's abilities very well. We produced music for the love of it. We performed for the love of it. CRESCENT SHIELD's pinnacle performance at Keep It True 2008 in Germany was a dream come true for both of us [see video below].

"Working with Mike was the most creatively rewarding experience of my life. Although the band has been on hiatus for a while, Mike and I still were writing new material and his voice and creative energies were still in top form. Losing him at such a young age is both shocking and tragic. I will miss my musical companion, my metal brother, and my friend."

Yoshiki, leader of legendary visual rock band X JAPAN, attended the unveiling ceremony of his wax figure in Madame Tussauds Hong Kong earlier this week. Astonished by the striking resemblance and lifelikeness of his wax figure which is being shown in Hong Kong for a limited time only, Yoshiki couldn't help asking himself, "Am I looking in a mirror?"
Considered Asia's most influential musical artist and biggest rock icon, Yoshiki is a songwriter, drummer, classically trained pianist and composer. He is the leader of one of Japan's most successful rock bands, X JAPAN, which has sold more than 30 million singles and albums combined and filled the 55,000-seat Toyko Dome a record 18 times. In addition, X JAPAN recently won a Revolver Golden Gods award as "Best International Band." Beyond X JAPAN, Yoshiki's diverse musical achievements range from composing and conducting for the 2005 World Expo's opening ceremonies, to writing the theme song for the Golden Globe Awards that aired in 190 countries earlier this year.

Yoshiki's wax figure is dressed in one of the rocker's and took approximately four months from the first sitting to completion. Madame Tussauds' team flew to Paris and London to get Yoshiki's accurate measurements right down to the finest details like his eye color and hair style. Hundreds of photos were taken as reference.

"When I met 'the other me' for the first time in Tokyo last year," said Yoshiki during the ceremony," I was amazed by the true resemblance. It looks exactly like me! And I feel honored to have my wax figure exhibited in Hong Kong. It has been months since I last visited Hong Kong to meet the media and my beloved fans here. Today is definitely an important moment I have been looking forward to", said Yoshiki.

Kelly Mak, General Manager of Madame Tussauds Hong Kong said, "It is our honor to have Yoshiki here with us in Madame Tussauds Hong Kong today to witness the debut appearance of his wax figure in Hong Kong. Now, X JAPAN fans can meet Yoshiki up close at any time."

The wax figure of Yoshiki will be displayed in Madame Tussauds Hong Kong from May 26 through to the end of 2012.

Steve Baltin of Grammy.com recently conducted an interview with ALICE IN CHAINS guitarist Jerry Cantrell. An excerpt from the chat follows below.

Grammy.com: Your last album, "Black Gives Way To Blue", spawned two Grammy nominations. What did that mean to you?

Cantrell: Well, we were very happy to be nominated and lose two Grammys again. I think that put us at zero and eight. Hey, look, dude, it's the old cliché, but it's totally true, it's an honor to be thought of. To be considered one of the [best hard rock performances] of the year, we achieved something. But we were very happy with that, we were very happy with the success that we had. It just felt good, it was hard work and it was worth every bit of it. And we're looking forward to doing it again.

Grammy.com: Do you think the new ALICE IN CHAINS album will be out this year?

Cantrell: It'll depend on when it's done. We started writing stuff last year. I think we're all good with that now, so now it's time to cut it. So we're gonna try to, but if not, it'll probably be out early next year. It'll be out about three or four minutes after we're finished [laughs]. Give the record company time to set it up and plan the attack and tour for hopefully a year, year and a half.

Grammy.com: So the writing is pretty much done though?

Cantrell: The thing that set me back is I had some bone spurs [and] cartilage issues in my shoulders. I had the same issue in the other shoulder about six years ago so I've had them both done now. It's a repetitive motion injury from playing. But the repair takes a year [laughs]. So that kind of set us back a little bit, but it takes time anyway — my body started a vacation.

Read the entire interview from Grammy.com.

Cleveland, Ohio thrash metal veterans DESTRUCTOR have parted ways with guitarist Pat Rabid and bassist Jamie Boulder. Rabid was a founding member in 1983 and played on the band's classic "Maximum Destruction" debut album, released in 1985 via Auburn Records. Boulder joined in 2002 and appeared on the "Sonic Bullet" (2003), "Forever In Leather" (2007) and "Storm Of Steel" (2007) releases.

Commented DESTRUCTOR vocalist/guitarist Dave Overkill: "Pat Rabid has left the band, citing personal issues, and is unable to keep his position. Jamie Boulder has also decided to leave. Jamie fronts his own metal band, MIDNIGHT, and decided to bow out shortly after Pat's announcement.

"Sometimes change happens but the heart and soul of DESTRUCTOR continues to beat fast and strong. Matt [Flammable, drums] and I wish them both the best and are thankful for their years of service to the band. We will be replacing the bass and guitar positions and are looking forward to being ready to support the new record shortly. Live shows are being tentatively planned, along with select auditions in the weeks to follow. Rest assured, DESTRUCTOR is here to stay and Matt and I are positive and moving forward with conviction. Stay tuned for updates to follow and as always keep the faith!"

DESTRUCTOR is finishing up the recording of its new studio album, "Decibel Casualties", at Supernatural Sound in Kirtland, Ohio. Tomasz Scull, guitarist for the band VENOMIN JAMES and owner of the studio, is engineering.

"We've had some recording delays due to the personnel problems," adds Overkill. "There is just some vocals and a little guitar work to tweak before mixing will begin. I am confident this will be the best DESTRUCTOR release to date. There is so much energy to the songs and the production will be what our fans have come to expect from us."

DESTRUCTOR's most recent lineup (left to right in photo below):

Pat Rabid - Guitar
Jamie Boulder - Bass
Matt Flammable - Drums
Dave Overkill - Guitar, Vocals

Photo credit: Joe Kleon

BLACK LIGHT BURNS, the avant-garde alter ego of LIMP BIZKIT/ex-MARILYN MANSON guitarist Wes Borland, will release its long-awaited sophomore album, "The Moment You Realize You're Going To Fall", on August 14 via Rocket Science Ventures/THC: Music.

"This is a really personal record for me," says Wes. "I spent three years writing it . . . and I am confident it's the best BLACK LIGHT BURNS record yet."

"The Moment You Realize You're Going To Fall" track listing:

01. How To Look Naked
02. We Light Up
03. I Want You To
04. The Girl In Black
05. The Colour Escapes
06. Tiger By The Tail
07. Your Head Will Be Rotting On A Spike
08. Torch From The Sky
09. Because Of You
10. Splayed
11. Scream Hallelujah
12. Bakelite
13. Burn The World
14. Grinning Like A Slit
15. The Moment You Realize You're Going To Fall

"Scream Hallelujah" audio stream (courtesy of AOL's Noisecreep):

HATRIOT, the new San Francisco Bay Area thrash metal band fronted by Steve "Zetro" Souza (EXODUS, TENET, DUBLIN DEATH PATROL, LEGACY), is currently seeking a new full-time drummer.

Commented the group: "We would like to fill this position with a musician who works well with others, has gear, transportation, and can tour on short notice. One requirement for the open tryout is we are looking for a full playthrough of our four-song demo currently available for download at ReverbNation.com/hatriot. Once you have learned our demo and it is tight, mistake-free, please feel free to Facebook message our page or contact Cody Souza about meeting up to perform the demo live to us, before actual tryout is given. We are currently talking to two record labels and an album will be recorded before summer's end. HATRIOT has a lot of big things in the future; we just want to make sure we find the right musician to keep us moving forward."

In a recent interview with Metalholic.com, Zetro called HATRIOT's previous drummer, Alex Bent, "a monster" and "probably the best drummer I've seen, ever." He added, "He's like a machine. He plays drums constantly, like eight hours a day. He's an animal in the studio, he's an animal live. I don't know if HATRIOT would be the same with another guy."

HATRIOT supported TESTAMENT on February 19 at The Avalon in Santa Clara, California. Multi-camera video footage of the performance can be seen below (courtesy of Zero To Hero Films).

Regarding HATRIOT's musical direction, Zetro told Metalholic.com, "It's in the vein of typical Bay Area thrash, but these guys are a lot younger, so there's gonna be some blast-beats in there. There's gonna be some kind of death [metal] approach to it, a little bit. 'Cause these guys are new. They're raw, and they're fast, young, heavy, hard and aggressive, and I'm trying to convey that along as well."

He added, "These new kids seem to understand what we did in the '80s, but still bring a little bit of a new essence to it. We put that together with what I write vocally and it's turned out to be really, really killer. It's good stuff."

HATRIOT's lineup includes Zetro's 21-year-old son Cody, who got his first bass as a present from his father after Zetro bought it off current EXODUS bassist Jack Gibson. "I told him," said Zetro, "You have to try out [for the bassist position in HATRIOT if you want to be in the band]. There's no nepotism here, boy. If you can hang, you're on. So he actually tried out, and he got the gig."

HATRIOT's December 23, 2011 concert at The Avalon in Santa Clara marked the band's first live performance with new guitarist Miguel Esparza.

DEVICE is the name of the new collaborative project featuring DISTURBED vocalist David Draiman and former FILTER guitarist Geno Lenardo. The band, which has just launched its official Facebook page at this location, will enter the studio later this week to begin demoing material for its debut release. Draiman previously described the group's sound as in the vein of industrial acts like NINE INCH NAILS and MINISTRY.

When asked by a fan via Twitter if the project would be anything "like dubstep," Draiman wrote, "No, it's about as close to it as [NINE INCH NAILS] or MINISTRY or RAMMSTEIN are. Industrial predates dubstep. . . In other words, it is at all times a guitar-driven sound."

Lenardo was initially hired as a touring guitarist for FILTER's "Short Bus" tour in 1995, then later signed on as a full-fledged member, co-writing tracks on FILTER's second album, "Title Of Record" (released in 1999), and the group's follow-up disc, 2002's "The Amalgamut".

Lenardo most recently contributed three songs to the soundtrack to the film "Underworld: Awakening", including "Heavy Prey" (see video below), which was a collaboration with FLYLEAF singer Lacey Sturm. The CD, which came out in January through Lakeshore Records, sold 3,000 copies in its first week of release to debut at position No. 175 on The Billboard 200 chart.

DISTURBED went on an open-ended hiatus last fall, and although the members of the band expressed interest in working on other endeavors, Draiman told The Pulse Of Radio at the time that he wasn't sure if he would do a solo project. "I don't know," he said. "I'm concerned about that, to be honest. I think too many people have tried and failed. You know, I think that the number of artists that have done it and been successful at it, you can count on one hand, and I would never want to stymie my persona or my growth individually by doing something just for the sake of doing it. If I were going to do something, it would have really have to be something special."

DISTURBED has not indicated when it plans to return, although all four members say they're likely to come back.

Aside from Draiman, DISTURBED bassist John Moyer has branched out recently by joining ADRENALINE MOB, a new group also featuring ex-DREAM THEATER drummer Mike Portnoy and SYMPHONY X vocalist Russell Allen.

DISTURBED issued a limited-edition box set of all five of its studio albums on vinyl on April 21, Record Store Day, called "The Collection". The six-disc package includes all the records remastered and pressed on 140-gram heavy duty vinyl, with each housed in new artwork that is unique and exclusive to the box. Only 2,500 copies were made available worldwide.

AXEWOUND — the new project featuring Matt Tuck (BULLET FOR MY VALENTINE) on guitar and vocals, Liam Cormier (CANCER BATS) on lead vocals, Mike Kingswood (GLAMOUR OF THE KILL) on guitar, Joe Copcutt (RISE TO REMAIN) on bass, and Jason Bowld (PITCHSHIFTER, KILLING JOKE) on drums — made its live debut last night (Thursday, May 31) at Tivoli in Utrecht, Holland as the support act for KILLSWITCH ENGAGE. Fan-filmed video footage of the performance can be seen below.

During the time off between BULLET FOR MY VALENTINE albums, Tuck grew restless. Recruiting Bowld, routinely touted as the best session drummer in the U.K., and engineer Martyn "Ginge" Ford (BULLET FOR MY VALENTINE, TRIVIUM), Matt set to creating monster riffs and intricate metal melodies at the Atrium recording studios in Cardiff, Wales. The project proved fertile ground for Matt to explore the darker, heavier side of his appetite for metal, and soon enough Matt was recruiting co-conspirators to the cause, including Synyster Gates of AVENGED SEVENFOLD delivering a finger-burning guitar solo on standout track "Vultures".

Choosing a vocalist to match the intensity of the music was easy, says Matt. "The first phone call I made was to Liam [Cormier, of CANCER BATS]. We've toured the world together and I've always admired the furious energy he brings to a performance." Liam flew over from his native Canada to join Matt and Jason at the studio and began recording his trademark searing vocals that took the then-unnamed project to the next level. "That was when it really hit me," continues Matt, "we had something special here, way more than just a studio project. We've gotta take this show on the road!" Guitarist Mike Kingswood (GLAMOUR OF THE KILL) and Joe Copcutt (ex-RISE TO REMAIN) were handpicked to join the lineup and a metal supergroup AXEWOUND was born.

A strict Omerta-like code of silence prevailed around the camp as finishing touches were added to the record and in March the tracks were shipped off to be mixed by Machine (LAMB OF GOD, THE BRONX) at his studio in New Jersey.

AXEWOUND's lead track, "Post Apocalyptic Party", was aired on the BBC Radio 1 "Rock Show" and is available for free download from the band’s web site at www.axewounduk.com.

Tuck admitted in an interview with the "Rock Show" that he is looking forward to not being the singer and leader. "It's going to be different, not being the main vocalist, but it's something I look forward to, [to] just enjoy being a guitar player and a songwriter," Tuck said. "It's not something I ever wanted to do, [to] be the frontman of the band. I was always the guitar player who could sing at the same time and that is how I ended up doing what I do."

He added, "It's going to be a different experience. I've never not been in a band without singing so it'll be quite odd to be up there without a microphone in my face for the whole show. But Liam is a dream to work with and one of the most ferocious vocalists."

AXEWOUND is:

Matt Tuck (BULLET FOR MY VALENTINE) - Guitar, Vocals
Liam Cormier (CANCER BATS) – Vocals
Mike Kingswood (GLAMOUR OF THE KILL) - Guitar
Joe Copcutt (RISE TO REMAIN) - Bass
Jason Bowld (ex-PITCHSHIFTER) - Drums

AXEWOUND will make a number of festival appearances, including at Download (U.K.), Rock Am Ring/Rock Im Park (Germany), Gods Of Metal (Italy) and Graspop Metal Meeting (Belgium).

FOZZY, the band featuring WWE wrestling superstar Chris Jericho and STUCK MOJO mastermind Rich "The Duke" Ward, has finished mixing the follow-up to 2010's "Chasing The Grail" for a late summer/early fall release via the group's new label, Century Media Records.

Ward previously stated about the forthcoming CD, "Although every band says 'this is the best thing we've ever done,' I can honestly say that this new album is going to blow everyone away. It's the epitome of who FOZZY is as a band and will expand upon the ultra-heavy yet super melodic and hooky territory that we've refined for the last 12 years. I have a strong feeling that this will be known as our definitive masterpiece for years to come."

FOZZY last year parted ways with bassist Sean Delson and replaced him with Paul DiLeo (ADRENALINE MOB).

FOZZY released the "Remains Alive & Chasing The Grail" two-CD set on July 18, 2011 via Edel's international rock label earMUSIC.

FOZZY was already on the map as the band with the pro wrestler singer, but "Chasing The Grail" broke them as a proper band. It hit #6 on the U.S. Heatseekers charts and the single "Martyr No More" was a theme song for the WWE Royal Rumble. "Remains Alive" is a 2005 live album (recorded in Australia) that was previously available in digital format only.

"Chasing The Grail" sold around 2,200 copies in the United States in its first week of release. The CD landed at position No. 6 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.

TROLLFEST, the self-proclaimed "true Norwegian Balkan metal" band, has parted ways with bassist PsychoTroll and guitarist St Beinhard because "they could no longer dedicate the amount of time needed for a band that's as active as TROLLFEST."

Commented the remaining members of the group: "We have lots of musicians waiting to fill in on stage for us, some of whom you know and love, some of whom you don't know yet, but you're bound to love them once you do."

TROLLFEST's new album, "Brumlebassen", is scheduled for release in August via NoiseArt Records. Responsible once again for the amazing images that vividly depict the story of what will be the band's fifth full-length album, is Swedish cartoonist Jonas Darnell, who originally created the iconic metal duck from TROLLFEST's "Villanden" album, and has worked with the band ever since. Terje Johnsen, who has been working on the design side of TROLLFEST's releases since the "Brakebein" album, has once again teamed up with Darnell to produce the finished package.

Like all TROLLFEST albums, "Brumlebassen" tells a story about one of the characters that inhabit the fantastical universe created by the band. This time the story is about Brumlebassen the Bee Keeper, whose task it is to care for the bees and brew the Honey Mead that is much loved by the Trolls. Brumlebassen adores his bees so much that he would secretly like to become one of them himself and he is therefore depicted wearing a bee costume!

Track listing for "Brumlebassen", which will be available as a gatefold vinyl and limited digipack including 12 tracks plus a bonus cut, is as follows:

01. Brumlebassen
02. Böse Tivoli
03. Illsint
04: Hevlette
05. Finsken, Norsken and Presten
06. Mystisk Maskert
07. Apis Mellifera
08. TrinkenTroll
09. Verboten Kjærleik
10. Bråk
11. Sellout
12. Rundt Bålet
13. Konterbier (bonus track)

MURDERDOLLS frontman Wednesday 13 has set "Spook & Destroy" as the title of his new EP, tentatively due in the fall.

A video message from the singer announcing the new EP and accompanying tour can be seen below.

Wednesday 13's last solo album, "Calling All Corpses", sold around 1,300 copies in the United States in its first week of release. The CD landed at No. 21 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.

"Calling All Corpses" was released on October 11, 2011. The artwork for the CD was created by D.A. Frizell, who has worked on SEVENDUST's "Cold Day Memory" as well as AVENGED SEVENFOLD's "Nightmare", "Book Of Nightmare" and "Diamonds In The Rough/ Live In The LBC" and the AVENGED video "A Little Piece Of Heaven".

"Calling All Corpses" was mastered by Tom Baker at Precision Mastering who has previously worked with NINE INCH NAILS, ROB ZOMBIE, MARILYN MANSON and MINISTRY, among others.

Official Metallica.com footage of METALLICA's meet-and-greet, pre-show tuning-room jam and "Don't Tread On Me" performance at the Rock In Rio Lisbon festival on May 25 in Lisbon, Portugal can be viewed below.

METALLICA performed its top-selling 1991 LP, "Metallica", a.k.a. "the black album," in its entirety at the Lisbon concert. As they have done on all the shows on their current European tour, the band played the LP backwards, starting with closing number "The Struggle Within" and ending with "Enter Sandman".

The band's setlist was as follows:

01. Hit The Lights
02. Master Of Puppets
03. Fuel
04. For Whom The Bell Tolls
05. Hell And Back
06. The Struggle Within
07. My Friend Of Misery
08. The God That Failed
09. Of Wolf & Man
10. Nothing Else Matters
11. Through The Never
12. Don't Tread On Me
13. Wherever I May Roam
14. The Unforgiven
15. Holier Than Thou
16. Sad But True
17. Enter Sandman

Encore:

18. Fight Fire With Fire
19. One
20. Seek & Destroy

Asked whose idea it was for METALLICA to play the "black" album in reverse on the current tour, the band's drummer, Lars Ulrich, told Rolling Stone magazine, "If you like the idea, it was mine. If you don't, it was James' [Hetfield, guitar/vocals]. For better or worse, I'm the setlist guy. This is all subject to change if it doesn't work. But the idea of starting off with the lesser-known songs buried down there and ending up with 'Sad But True' and 'Enter Sandman' seems like a winner. You finish with the money shot, which is the first song."

On the topic of the "black" album's shift away from sped metal to shorter, simpler songs, which set the tone for the rest of METALLICA's career, Lars said, "I'm a big believer that the records all thread together. That straighter, four-on-the-floor thing was present on earlier records, in 'Harvester Of Sorrow' and 'Ride The Lightning'. But we went all-out because there was nowhere else to go. Where do you go after 'Dyer's Eve'? You can't get faster. You can't get more pissed off than Hetfield barking at his parents. That was the end of the Eighties for us."

He continued, "We played a show with AEROSMITH in the summer of 1990, right at the time we started writing the 'black' album. I remember sitting under the grandstand with [co-manager] Cliff Burnstein. He said, 'The MISFITS are a huge part of your influence — 'Last Caress' is a minute and a half long, [THE ROLLING STONES'] 'Jumpin' Jack Flash' is part of who you are. You just haven't released it yet.'

"I went back to San Francisco and there was a riff on Kirk's [Hammett, guitar] on tape [hums the 'Enter Sandman' lick]. The whole thing is just that riff. 'Enter Sandman' was the blueprint. The rest of the record appeared over two months."

METALLICA will play the complete "black album" at its own Orion Music + More festival, scheduled for June 23-24 in Atlantic City, New Jersey. METALLICA is headlining both days and will perform its entire 1984 album "Ride The Lightning" for the first time ever on the other day of the festival.

"Metallica" in 2009 surpassed SHANIA TWAIN's 1997 record, "Come On Over", as the best-selling CD of the SoundScan era. To date, the black album has sold 15,776,000 copies in the United States.

Although METALLICA had scored their first radio and video airplay with their previous effort, 1988's "...And Justice For All", the black album was the band's biggest commercial breakthrough, producing five singles and making them into one of the most popular rock bands in the world.

Rock Hard Live has uploaded quality video footage of VITAL REMAINS's May 25 performance at Ace Of Spades in Sacramento, California as the support act for DESTRUCTION. Check it out below.

VITAL REMAINS guitarist Tony Lazaro recently told Metal Hangar 18 about the progress of the songwriting sessions for the band's long-awaited follow-up to 2007's "Icons of Evil", "The songs [for the new album] have been written [for a long time] — some of them since 2008. I've written, like, two albums' worth of material; I have almost 20 songs.

"We will record the new album this year. Everything is kind of in place. We can't wait — after this tour — to get working on it again before we have another tour in the U.S. in May with DESTRUCTION. And then after that it's all about recording the new album this summer. So hopefully everything's gonna work out and we'll have the album recorded and it will be out finally this year."

Regarding whether fans can expect to hear new songs that are each at least six minutes long, just as they were on "Icons of Evil", Lazaro said, "The new album, the new songs are shorter." He added, "I've been writing the music since the beginning, since '89. I write all the music, and this is the first time that I wrote the songs shorter. The songs are averaging only about four minutes; the longest song, I think, is four and a half minutes. First time ever. But I tried to keep my style of writing in there — keep the speed, the brutality, the melodic stuff, and also put some old-school stuff in there and some classical stuff in there; some solo stuff, really good solos and melodies. It's everything you'd expect from VITAL REMAINS, but just in a shorter package."

VITAL REMAINS 2012 is:

Scott Wily – Vocals
Tony Lazaro – Guitar
Gator Collier – Bass
Brian Weber – Guitar
Alberto Allende - Drums

Restrain Records in 2007 released a high-quality double-vinyl presentation of VITAL REMAINS' latest abum, "Icons of Evil". The set includes 'brutal blasphemy spread over three sides, with the fourth side bearing an engraving," according to the band. "Comes in a gatefold cover with printed lyric sleeves!"

VITAL REMAINS' DVD, entitled "Evil Death Live", came out in 2007 via Metal Mind Productions. The disc includes footage of VITAL REMAINS' performance at the Metalmania Festival 2007 on April 24, 2007 in Katowice, Poland as well as an interview with Tony Lazaro (one of the band's founders) and Dave Suzuki, live bootleg material and many other surprises. Also available is a limited DVD+CD swing case edition, featuring a bonus CD containing songs recorded at the Metalmania gig.

Dallas-based thrashers POWER TRIP have inked a multi-album deal with Southern Lord.

Having amassed a diehard following since their 2008 formation through their crushing live shows, as well as several compilation inclusions, demos and EPs released via Lockin' Out, Withdrawal Records, Triple B Records and other indie labels, POWER TRIP channel the old-school crossover energy of legendary acts like CRO-MAGS, NUCLEAR ASSAULT and LEEWAY through modern thrash warfare.

This weekend POWER TRIP will invade the sweltering Chaos In Tejas fiesta in Austin, Texas for two crushing shows, performing Saturday night alongside their allies in TOXIC HOLOCAUST and MIDNIGHT, and Sunday flanking BOSTON STRANGLER, RIVAL MOB and THE ABUSED. And as previously announced, POWER TRIP will also terrorize all three Texas shows of the forthcoming Southern Lord label summer package tour, joining now-labelmates ENABLER, BURNING LOVE, MARTYRDÖD and BLACK BREATH.

Ahead of BLACK SABBATH's history-making Download festival appearance, the massive, 172-page new issue of Metal Hammer is a tribute to the legendary heavy metal act, paying homage to one of the greatest, heaviest and most influential bands to ever walk this earth. Metal Hammer talks to SABBATH members themselves as they look back on an unmatched legacy as the most influential and innovative band in metal's history, and looks to some of the biggest names in rock music to help them commemorate the masters' return. Members of METALLICA, SLAYER, MACHINE HEAD, PANTERA, MANOWAR, MASTODON, DIMMU BORGIR, DEVILDRIVER, KISS, RUSH, BEHEMOTH, SLASH, ALICE COOPER, BLACK LABEL SOCIETY, RAMMSTEIN, GHOST, STEEL PANTHER and more all join Metal Hammer in gauging BLACK SABBATH's seminal impact on rock 'n' roll, and well as picking their favorite SABBATH hits and memories.

A one-minute video clip in which SLAYER guitarist Kerry King picks his favorite BLACK SABBATH song can be seen below.

"I didn't know we were the forefathers of metal," says singer Ozzy Osbourne when asked about his thoughts on SABBATH's influence. "When I used to do Ozzfest, I hadn't realized we had such an impact on the young bands. I'm proud of that alone. I wasn't aware for a long time, I thought everyone was just taking the piss, you know?"

And, to top off the SABBATH worship, Metal Hammer is giving away a free "Sons Of Sabbath" CD with the issue, featuring choice, riff-filled, heavy-as-a-philosophizing-T-fucking-Rex cuts from the discographies of some of the finest bands to have been inspired by the hand of Iommi et al, including ELECTRIC WIZARD, CHURCH OF MISERY, BLOOD CEREMONY, WITCHCRAFT, GRAVEYARD, REVEREND BIZARRE and many more.

For more information, click here.

Original BLACK SABBATH guitarist Tony Iommi, singer Ozzy Osbourne and bassist Geezer Butler performed live together for the first time in seven years on May 19, playing an intimate show at the 3,800-person O2 Academy in SABBATH's hometown of Birmingham, England. The show, which served as a warm-up for the group's headlining appearance next month at the Download festival, was laced with emotion and drama: it was the first live appearance for Iommi since being diagnosed with cancer, and it was the first with stand-in drummer Tommy Clufetos, making the split official between founding drummer Bill Ward and the rest of SABBATH.

In addition to Download, the members of SABBATH will play at Lollapalooza this August in Chicago, their only scheduled U.S. gig. The rest of the scheduled SABBATH tour dates will be played by Ozzy and billed as "Ozzy & Friends".

Ozzy, Iommi and Butler are working on their first new album together in 33 years. Clufetos is a member of Ozzy's solo touring band.

According to a new video message from drummer Kelly David Smith of Long-running Arizona metallers FLOTSAM AND JETSAM, the band has "about eight songs [for the next album] done in pre-production." The group is hoping to complete all tracks by the middle of the summer for a tentative late 2012/early 2013 release.

Funding for the next FLOTSAM AND JETSAM album is being aided by the PledgeMusic.com project, which encourages fans to contribute funds to the recording of albums and the artists themselves to donate to charity as a part of their fundraising.

FLOTSAM AND JETSAM last summer parted ways with drummer Craig Nielsen and was rejoined by Kelly David Smith.

The band's current lineup is the same as the one that recorded the "Cuatro" (1992), "Drift" (1995) and "High" (1997) albums:

Eric "A.K." Knutson - Vocals
Ed Carlson - Guitar
Michael Gilbert - Guitar
Jason Ward - Bass
Kelly David Smith – Drums

FLOTSAM AND JETSAM's latest album, "The Cold", was released in Europe in February 2011 via Nuclear Blast. The CD's cover artwork was created by Travis Smith, who has previously worked with OPETH, NEVERMORE, AMORPHIS and KING DIAMOND, among others.

"The Cold" was released in North America on September 14, 2010.

Fan-filmed video footage of KYUSS LIVES!'s May 28 performance at Kino Šiška in Ljubljana, SLovania can be seen below.

The current KYUSS LIVES! lineup features ex-KYUSS members John Garcia (vocals) and Brant Bjork (drums) alongside guitarist Bruno Fevery and bassist Billy Cordell.

Garcia, Bjork and ex-KYUSS bassist Nick Oliveri reunited for shows last year under the KYUSS LIVES! banner, in which they were joined by Fevery. The band has since toured on both sides of the Atlantic and is said to be currently working on a live album for a late 2012 release. There are also plans for the group to record a brand new studio CD — albeit without Oliveri, who exited the group earlier this year.

In March of this year, Garcia and Bjork were sued by their former KYUSS bandmates Josh Homme and Scott Reeder over the use of the KYUSS name.

In a recent interview with RollingStone,com, Bjork claimed that there was a "misconception" that KYUSS was Homme's band. "This untruth has affected Josh's ability to accept historical fact to the point that he truly believes he is entitled to dictate what we do with a band that we're all responsible for," he said.

"The simple fact that we got the band back together without him has left his ego bruised. I swallowed the bitter pill watching the band carry on after I left — now Josh is getting a taste."

Homme was the guitarist in KYUSS from the band's inception until its split in 1995.

Homme and Reeder released a statement on March 10 via public relations firm Nasty Little Man in which they claimed that they "made every attempt to help [Garcia, Bjork and Oliveri] continue KYUSS LIVES! respectfully. Only to discover while they looked us in the eye, KYUSS LIVES! management and band had filed federal documents in 2011 in an attempt to steal the name KYUSS. This is desperately what we were trying to avoid."

Reeder played a handful of European live dates with KYUSS LIVES! last year as a fill-in for Oliveri. He was also a "special guest" at KYUSS LIVES!'s homecoming show on November 18, 2011 at The Wiltern in Los Angeles.

Reeder played bass on KYUSS' classic LPs "Welcome to Sky Valley" and "...And the Circus Leaves Town" and was also a member of doom legends THE OBSESSED.

Regarding why Homme is not involved in the KYUSS reunion, Garcia previously told Rock Sound magazine, "I have nothing bad to say about Josh — he's extremely intelligent, very smart, a great guitar player, great songwriter, a great vocalist — he is a bad-ass, there is no question, and I love him dearly but he is busy with his own thing. He has THEM CROOKED VULTURES, QUEENS OF THE STONE AGE, he's a father, a businessman and even if we asked him to do it, I don't think he'd say yes, so I don't want to set myself up for a big fat no which is 99.9 percent what he would say."

In a 2010 interview, Homme explained his hesitation to participate in a KYUSS reformation.

"The offers come in all the time," he said. "They're getting more and more expensive, and more and more elaborate. The money is crazy, but I've never been tempted — I don't really care about the money, I never have. That's not what KYUSS was about, so to punctuate the end of our sentence with that would be blasphemy… KYUSS has such a great history that it would be a total error. I like that nobody saw KYUSS, and that it was largely misunderstood. That sounds like a legend forming to me. I'm too proud of it to rub my dick on it."

Vocalist Biff Byford of British heavy metal legends SAXON has issued the following update:

"We are in the middle of our studio work and recording right now some vocals. I have got a throat infection and it hurts quite a bit.

"We have made the decision to postpone the show in Hatfield into September/October. It would be too risky to play an hour and 45 minutes and drive after the show up to Donington as we are on quite early and this could be a serious damage to my voice. Because of this, we are thinking that we shouldn't risk the Download appearance and album.

"We are very sorry to cause you problems with travel and hotels but hopefully letting you know early is better than finding out the night before. It's not cancelled! We will let you know a new date [as soon as possible] and maybe we play you a couple of new songs.

"I hope you all understand and have a great time at Donington!"

SAXON las month released "Saxon - Heavy Metal Thunder - Live - Eagles Over Wacken", the no-fat-no-bullshit-100%-pure CD/DVD featuring DVD highlights from the band's Wacken shows in 2004, 2007 and 2009 comprising thirty songs, plus a live CD from Glasgow in 2011. Each set captures the Barnsley-bred British heavy metal legends delivering classic after classic, from "Denim & Leather" to "Metalhead" to "Heavy Metal Thunder" to "Princess Of The Night" to "Crusader" in front of 75,000-pluds loyal, ravenous fans, who have come to expect (and receive) the levels of performance SAXON have been delivering for 32 years.

"Heavy Metal Thunder - Live - Eagles Over Wacken" is available in a variety of formats, including the Golden Ticket D2C/Direct To Consumer Box.

Strictly limited, this exclusive package contains the "Best Of Wacken" DVD, plus the full and complete SAXON Wacken Open Air performances from 2004/2007/2009 each on a separate DVD, plus a SAXON flag.

"Call To Arms" sold around 700 copies in the United States in its first week of release, according to Nielsen SoundScan. The CD debuted at No. 51 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. The digipack version of "Call To Arms" includes a glorious bonus — a free seven-track CD, "Live At Donington 1980".