"Indifferent", the new video from ADRENALINE MOB — the band featuring featuring drummer Mike Portnoy (DREAM THEATER, AVENGED SEVENFOLD), SYMPHONY X frontman Russell Allen, guitar virtuoso Mike Orlando (SONIC STOMP) and DISTURBED bassist John Moyer — can be seen below. The clip was was filmed in March in the desert in California and throughout Los Angeles with director Scott Hansen, who has previously worked with A DAY TO REMEMBER, UNEARTH and WILLIE NELSON, among others.

"Indifferent" comes off ADRENALINE MOB's debut album, "Omertá", which sold around 6,600 copies in the United States in its first week of release to land at position No. 70 on The Billboard 200 chart. The CD was released in Europe on March 19 in Europe via Century Media Records and in the U.S. on March 13 through the newly formed Elm City Music in conjunction with EMI Label Services.

The 11-song effort — which was produced by ADRENALINE MOB and mixed by Jay Ruston, who has previously worked on ANTHRAX's "Worship Music" and STEEL PANTHER's "Balls Out" — includes a blistering reinterpretation of DURAN DURAN's classic "Come Undone" featuring guest vocals by Lzzy Hale of HALESTORM.

ADRENALINE MOB and KILL DEVIL HILL will join forces for a short co-headlining tour in May. The trek will kick off on May 10 in Cleveland and will make stops in Dallas, Chicago and Orlando before wrapping up in Charlotte on May 22. The shows will feature KILL DEVIL HILL followed by ADRENALINE MOB and then end in all-out jam between the two groups. Special VIP packages, including exclusive items and meet-and-greets will be available for each band.

ADRENALINE MOB will embark on a European tour in June.

Singer Jonas Renkse of Swedish dark rockers KATATONIA has finished laying down vocals on the band's new album, tentatively due in September via Peaceville Records. He says in an online posting, "Vocals done a few days ago, now checking through every song to make sure this baby is ready for mix!"

In a recent interview with Loud TV (audio available below), KATATONIA guitarist/co-founder Anders "Blakkheim" Nyström stated about the overall musical direction of the band's new CD, "The new album, it will, first of all, have 11 or 13 songs — we haven't decided if we're putting all of them or not on there. I think there's been some discussions that a few editions are gonna have all the tracks, a few editions are gonna have 11 tracks. So that's a little bit up to the label yet. But as far as all those 13 tracks go, first of all, it sounds definitely like KATATONIA; it's a KATATONIA album — solely KATATONIA album. The difference this time is that we maybe even pushed the differences even further. If you compare some of the songs, they could be almost in difference categories of genres, but the interesting thing here is that we have managed with our sound and the production and our performances to make it sound like it's not that far apart; it sounds like it's the same band. But if we would give the songs to some other band, it would sound very, very different. So I'm really happy with that. It was a big challenge. Like, for instance, you could have a song that is going totally off into this singer-songwriter territory, and you could have another song that goes into one of the most aggressive, heavy songs we've ever done, but when I listen to those both songs back to back, I can hear it's the same band doing [them]."

When asked if the new KATATONIA album is the kind of record that will take several airings to really register with the listener, Nyström asid, "Yes. It might be even more like that this time [than in the past], probably, which is a good thing. I was nervous in the beginning and a little bit insecure with how we were gonna pull this album off and what people were gonna think and everything, but now I have this total calm about it; I am totally positive and confident that we have made the album that we needed to do and also what people expect from us. It might take a few listenings to get into the whole thing, but that will stay longer in your listening collection — you will not get tired of it in the first place; I am totally sure of it."

Regarding the upcoming CD's cover artwork — which is once again being created by Travis Smith of Seempieces (OPETH, DEVIN TOWNSEND) — Nyström said, "It's also gonna be a little bit different. It's actually a really big piece that we're splitting into four, and one of those four is gonna be on the cover. So there will be more to it than what you see first. I don't want to describe too much what's on it yet — you're gonna see that when it's [unveiled] pretty soon — but we're changing the color theme this time. We have been doing the black and the red for a long time now, and we're going totally the opposite and we're doing, actually… The basic color is, actually, white on the new one, but it's not solid white — it's like shades of frost whites and a little bit grey and mixed with black."

On the topic of the lyrical themes cover on the new KATATONIA album, Nyström said, "The lyrics are, actually, a mixture of trying to be as direct and easy as possible but also remaining a very cryptic feel at the same time, which is a very cool paradox. We're not trying to make it too complicated, but it might be… I mean, the words aren't too complicated, but the meaning of the songs is encrypted. And that we are very eager to see how people will react to and how they will define the meanings of these lyrics. 'Cause they're easy to read, easy to access, but the meaning itself might not be that easy [to decipher]."

KATATONIA played four shows in Scandinavia in December, hitting the capital cites of Copenhagen, Oslo, Helsinki and, of course, the band's hometown of Stockholm. The concerts, which were part of the 20th-anniversary "Last Fair Day Gone Night Tour 2011", saw the band perform two sets. The first set consisted of a performance of the entire "Last Fair Deal Gone Down" album front to back. The second set was a mixture of carefully picked songs from the band's extensive catalogue.

KATATONIA's May 6, 2011 concert at Koko in London, England was professionally filmed/recorded for a future DVD release.

Interview (audio)

"Revenge", a song from KILL DEVIL HILL — the band featuring Vinny Appice (HEAVEN & HELL, BLACK SABBATH, DIO) on drums, Rex Brown (PANTERA, DOWN) on bass, Mark Zavon (RATT, W.A.S.P., 40 CYCLE HUM) on guitar and Jason "Dewey" Bragg (PISSING RAZORS) on vocals — can be streamed below (courtesy of AOL's Decibel). The track comes off the group's self-titled debut album, which will be released via SPV/Steamhammer on the following dates:

U.S./Canada: May 22
Germany: May 25
Rest Of Europe: May 28

"Kill Devil Hill" was originally due on March 27 but had its release date pushed back so that the band could record another track at the last minute. The group explained, "It was decided that a song that was to be a bonus track might be released as a single, so in order to include that song on the CD we needed an additional track to include as a bonus in its place."

"Kill Devil Hill" was produced by Warren Riker, who is best known for his work with DOWN, CORROSION OF CONFORMITY, SUBLIME and CATHEDRAL. The effort will be available in a standard CD edition, as an iTunes digital download, and double gatefold LP.

"Kill Devil Hill" track listing:

CD:

01. War Machine (3:09)
02. Hangman (3:40)
03. Voodoo Doll (3:53)
04. Gates Of Hell (4:53)
05. Rise From The Shadows (4:03)
06. We're All Gonna Die (4:26)
07. Strange (3:31)
08. Time & Time Again (3:50)
09. Old Man (3:06)
10. Mysterious Ways (2:25)
11. Up In Flames (6:04)
12. Revenge (4:54)

Double Gatefold LP:

Side 1 (14:56)

01. War Machine (3:09)
02. Hangman (3:40)
03. We're All Gonna Die (4:26)
04. Time & Time Again (3:50)

Side 2 (10:21)

01. Old Man (3:06)
02. Mysterious Ways (2:25
03. Revenge (4:54)

Side 3 (10:07)

01. Rise From The Shadows (4:03)
02. Up In Flames (6:04)
03. Strange (3:31)

Side 4 (12:56)

01. Voodoo Doll (3:53)
02. Gates Of Hell (4:53)
03. Drawbridge (5:58) (bonus track)

iTunes Digital Download:

01. War Machine (3:09)
02. Hangman (3:40)
03. Voodoo Doll (3:53)
04. Gates Of Hell (4:53)
05. Rise From The Shadows (4:03)
06. We're All Gonna Die (4:26)
07. Strange (3:31)
08. Time & Time Again (3:50)
09. Old Man (3:06)
10. Mysterious Ways (2:25)
11. Up In Flames (6:04)
12. Revenge (4:54)
13. Gates Of Hell (acoustic version; bonus track)

The song "Time & Time Again" can be streamed using the SoundCloud player below (courtesy of RevolverMag.com).

According to Appice, KILL DEVIL HILL's sound is "like a cross between BLACK SABBATH, ALICE IN CHAINS and a little bit of LED ZEPPELIN thrown in. It's heavy, but with a lot of cool hooks and melodic overtones, too."

The members of KILL DEVIL HILL previously stated about their songwriting and recording approach, "We are going old school meets new; no sample drums here!!"

KILL DEVIL HILL made its live debut on April 29, 2011 at the Key Club in Hollywood, California.

KILL DEVIL HILL is:

* Jason "Dewey" Bragg (PISSING RAZORS) - Vocals
* Mark Zavon (RATT, W.A.S.P., 40 CYCLE HUM) - Guitar
* Rex Brown (DOWN, PANTERA) - Bass
* Vinny Appice (HEAVEN & HELL, BLACK SABBATH, DIO) - Drums

"Revenge" audio stream:

Four musicians who performed on KING DIAMOND's 1990 album, "The Eye" — guitarists Andy La Rocque and Pete Blakk, bassist Hal Patino and drummer Snowy Shaw — are featured on "Free Falling Angels", the forthcoming debut album from Patino's son, Danish rock singer Maryann Cotton (born Jackie Patino). The CD, which also features guitarist Sebastain Sly, will be released on June 15 via Pure Steel Records.

"Free Falling Angels" track listing:

01. Heaven Send For Me
02. Never "Waste" Land
03. Crazy
04. Get It On
05. Free Falling Angels
06. Nighttrain To Paris
07. Die In Britain
08. Miss Misery
09. Shock Me
10. The One
11. "Maryann"

Check out the new cover artwork below.

Said Maryann: "The album will consist of 11 old school garage rock songs, combined with a brutal and dirty rhythm sections, to the most beautiful orchestra arrangements."

Blakk, Hal Patino and Shaw are also expected to be part of Cotton's touring band, which will begin playing shows in the fall.

Maryann Cotton's career was launched in 2006 when he performed live on Danish TV as part of the "Scenen Er Din" program (Danish version of "Star Search").

King Diamond stated about Maryann's Shock Me" single (which also featured appearances by La Rocque, Blakk, Hal Patino and Shaw), "I checked out the Maryann Cotton song 'Shock Me'. I really liked it. It reminded me in a positive way of Alice Cooper 1971. I think his vocals fit really well in the music, and the few backing vocals he did seemed to make everything sound a lot bigger. Normally horn sections really give me the creeps, but the way they used it in this song, I didn't mind. Great musicians, of course. I really look forward to hear more songs from him, so I can begin to get the full picture."

"Arousing Wombs In Nine Angels Pleroma", a brand new song from French black metallers MERRIMACK, can be streamed in the YouTube clip below. The track comes off the band's new album, "The Acausal Mass", which will be released on June 22 via AFM Records. The CD was once again produced by Tore Stjerna and Sverker Widgren at Necromorbus Studio (WATAIN, DESTRÖYER 666, OFERMOD, PORTRAIT, UNANIMATED, SETHERIAL) in Stockholm, Sweden.

Video footage from the studio can be seen below.

"The Acausal Mass" track listing:

01. Vestals Of Descending Light
02. Arousing Wombs In Nine Angels Pleroma
03. Gospel Of The Void
04. Beati Estis Cum Maledixirint Vobis
05. Hypophanie
06. Obstetrics Of Devourment
07. Worms In The Divine Intestine
08. Abortion Light
09. Liminal Matter Corruption

According to a press release, "The Acausal Mass" is "a milestone of orthodox and brilliant black metal, balancing malicious underground spirit and wickedly simmered maturity."

London, England-based, female-fronted metallers MORTAD are seeking a second guitarist. Interested parties can contact the group at MortadAuditions@gmail.com. More information is available on the flyer below.

MORTAD's "The Voice" video can be seen below. The song comes off the band's debut album, "The Myth Of Purity", which was made available with the February 2012 issue of Metal Hammer magazine. The CD, which will receive a more "official" release later in the year, was recorded last October with producer Russ Russell (NAPALM DEATH, DIMMU BORGIR, EVILE).

"The Voice" honors the memory of Neda Agha Soltan, a young Iranian woman who was killed during the pro-democracy up risings in Iran in on June 20, 2009.

MORTAD will release a follow-up video explaining the song, the making of the video, Neda's life and the Iranian freedom movements on June 20.

Commented MORTAD frontwoman Somi Arian, "Lyrically, 'The Voice' is the most important song in 'The Myth Of Purity' album, also the only song that contains some Persian lyrics. I felt that I had something to say, I want to be 'the voice' of the voiceless and to honour the memory of thousands of men and women who lost their lives in a battle to revive the basic human rights for others."

"The Myth Of Purity" track listing:

01. All That's Born Must Be Destroyed
02. Waste Of My Rage
03. The Heights
04. Mirage
05. Feels Like Suffocation
06. The Myth Of Purity
07. I'm Not Interested In Being Interesting
08. By Default
09. The Voice
10. That Which Is Humane

MORTAD was formed in 2009 by Iranian vocalist Somi Arian , whose lyrics take aim at the hypocrisy of religion and the government as well as seeking inner truth and strength in the face of such oppression.

MORTAD released a music video and an EP, entitled "Pandemic Paranoia", in early 2011. This effort brought the band immense attention on the social media sites, placing the group as the No. 1 metal band on ReverbNation London metal chart, and attracting over 40,000 Facebook fans.

MORTAD's "Waste Of My Rage" video was sponsored by the Alchemy apparel clothing brand and produced by the Manchester-based video production company Video Ink. More than a dozen actors were cast for the clip, including Collette Von Tora, who agreed to have her head shaved for this video shoot.

MORTAD will enter the studio in November with Russ Russell to begin recording its sophomore album for a 2013 release.

An audio sample of "Bury You", a track from 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.) — can be streamed in the YouTube clip below. The song comes off the group's full-length debut, "The Return To Psycho, California", which will be released worldwide on June 12. Other songtitles set to appear on CD include "Taken", "What I've Become" and "Wicked Lines".

Professionally filmed video footage of HOTEL DIABLO's January 28 performance at the Key Club in Hollywood, California can be seen below.

HOTEL DIABLO's "Psycho, California" six-song EP was recorded with producer (and former GUNS N' ROSES/ROCKSTAR SUPERNOVA guitarist) Gilby Clarke and is now available on iTunes and other online music stores. The entire EP can be streamed on the band's official web site, www.thehoteldiablo.com.

"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".

"Bury You" audio sample:

Mikkeli, Finland-based thrashers BLOODRED HOURGLASS (formerly BRHG) have inked a deal with Spinefarm Records. The band's debut album, "Lifebound", will be released in August. The CD was recorded last year and was mixed by Jori Haukio and mastered by Svante Forsbäck.

According to a press release, BLOODRED HOURGLASS is "a mixture of groove, melody, aggression and catchy choruses with basis hanging tight on thrash metal. Straight-forward hardcore elements together with influences from even orchestral music add up to our sound making this something completely unique."

BLOODRED HOURGLASS is:

Jarkko Koukonen - Vocals
Jose Moilanen - Bass
Jarkko Tiilikainen - Guitar
Antti Nenonen - Guitar
Jarkko Hyvönen - Drums

"Pearls Before Swine", a brand new song from Los Angeles-based thrashers ANGER AS ART, can be streamed below. The track comes off the band's fourth album, "Hubris Inc.", which will be released later in the year via OSM Records.

Songtitles set to appear on the CD:

* Hubris Inc. (intro)
* This Is Why I Hate
* Pieces Of Red
* Divided We Fall
* As The Exalted Seethe
* Time Devours Life
* The Evil You Create
* Gods Of Hate
* Pearls Before Swine
* Anger Is the Reason
* Never Forgive, Never Forget
* Head Of The Snake
* Rage And Retribution
* Speed Kills

ANGER AS ART earlier in the year announced the addition of bassist Henry De La Cruz (MANIACAL GENOCIDE, STIGMATA, REVMATIX) to the group's ranks. Henry replaces Angelo Espino, who departed in October.

ANGER AS ART's concert DVD, "Live Dissent", was released last year. The disc features footage from the February 21, 2010 concert at the Galaxy Theatre in Santa Ana, California, clips of the band on tour in Europe and in the USA, and a segment of the recording process for the "Disfigure" album.

ANGER AS ART's third album, "Disfigure", was released in November 2009 via Old School Metal Records. The bulk of the tracking was done at Trench Studio in Corona, California with John Haddad, while the vocals and "extra stuff" was overseen by Chris Trent at CT Audio.

ANGER AS ART's current lineup:

Steve Gaines - Vocals, Guitar
Henry De La Cruz - Bass
Rob Alaniz - Drums
Daniel Oliverio - Guitar, Vocals

Die Frankfurter Thrash-Metal-Urgesteine TANKARD haben den fünften Teil des Covers ihres kommenden Nuclear Blast-Debüts "A Girl Called Cerveza" enthüllt!

Die Platte zum 30jährigen Bandjubiläum wird derzeit im berühmten Studio 23 in Frankfurt gemeinsam mit dem renommierten Produzenten Michael Mainx (BÖHSE ONKELZ, DER W, DISBELIEF, D-A-D) fertig gestellt. Haltet die Augen offen, das komplette Cover Artwork wird nächste Woche veröffentlicht.

"A Girl Called Cerveza" wird am 27. Juli 2012 via Nuclear Blast erscheinen.

"A Girl Called Cerveza" Track List:

01. RUNNING ON FUMES
02. A GIRL CALLED SERVEZA
03. WITCHHUNT 2.O
04. MASTERS OF FARCES
05. THE METAL LADY BOY (feat. DORO)
06. NOT ONE DAY DEAD (But one day mad)
07. SON OF A FRIDGE
08. FANDOM AT RANDOM
09. METAL MAGNOLIA
10. RAPID FIRE (A tyrant`s Elegy)

SIX FEET UNDER werden ihr neues Album mit dem Titel "Undead" am 22. Mai 2012 via Metal Blade Records veröffentlichen. Aufgenommen wurde das Album mit Produzent Mark Lewis (Deicide, Devildriver) und gemischt wurde "Undead" von Jason Suecof (Whitechapel, Job For A Cowboy), in den Audio Hammer Studios in Sanford, Florida. Jetzt wurde der neue Song "Frozen At The Moment Of Death" HIER als Stream online gestellt.

Im Sommer 2010 wurde erstmals ein neues Studioalbum von EMILIE AUTUMN angekündigt, welches bis zum heutigen Zeitpunkt jedoch nicht erschienen ist. Die gute Nachricht für Fans: Es wird definitiv in wenigen Wochen im Handel erhältlich sein. Zeit ihrer Karriere machte die Supergeigerin keinen Hehl aus ihrer bipolaren Störung. Nach einem Suizidversuch vor einigen Jahren wurde sie in eine psychiatrische Klinik eingewiesen.

Die Erlebnisse schrieb Emilie nieder und verarbeitete sie in ihrem literarischen Erstlingswerk, welches auf dem kommenden Album „Fight Like A Girl“ vertont wird. Sie sagt: "Wir müssen aufhören, einfach nur nett danach zu fragen, wenn wir etwas wollen. Sei es die Chance, wählen zu können, oder unser Recht, genauso viel wie ein Mann in derselben Position zu verdienen. Viele Frauen erkennen das nicht einmal. Wir sollen dankbar dafür sein, wie weit wir gekommen sind? Wir sollen uns glücklich schätzen, dass es uns überhaupt erlaubt ist, einen Job zu haben? Fuck you!"

Das komplette Interview lest Ihr in der nächsten Ausgabe von Sonic Seducer, die am 18.05.2012 in den Handel kommt. Nur so viel bereits vorab: Die besagte Geschichte wird auf "Fight Like A Girl" nicht ansatzweise vollständig erzählt. Mindestens ein weiteres Album zum Thema wird noch folgen, worauf man dann hoffentlich nicht wieder so lange warten muss!

Die erste Single zum Album Titel Song "Fight Like A Girl" könnt HIER bestellen.

"Fight Like A Girl" Single Track list:

1. Fight Like A Girl
2. Time For Tea

Fig

U.S. progressive metal icons FATES WARNING tapped Mike Portnoy (ADRENALINE MOB, TRANSATLANTIC, DREAM THEATER, AVENGED SEVENFOLD) to sit behind the kit for their first-ever visit to South America as special guests for QUEENSRŸCHE on April 14 at HSBC Brasil in São Paulo, Brazil. Multi-camera fan-filmed video footage of the performance can be seen below.

Commented FATES WARNING: "We had a great time playing with Mike back in 2005 at the Headway festival in Holland and [we were] happy that [he was] able to help us out again. We'd also like to make it clear that Bobby Jarzombek is still the drummer for FATES and will be . . . on [our] new record we're currently working on. Unfortunately, Bobby committed to another gig on the same day (ironically, in the same city) before this show was planned."

In a recent interview with Bulgaria's Tangra Mega Rock, FATES WARNING singer Ray Alder stated about the progress of the songwriting sessions for the new CD, "We're trying as hard as we can. We have these shows [in Europe] and then we go to Brazil in April. And in the meantime we are working as hard as we can to finish the album. Hopefully we'll have it out by the end of this year, If not, the beginning of next year. We're trying our best."

He added, "We need to finish writing right now. We finished the first song. The demo version is already done. We'll continue writing as we have a lot of ideas that we need to put together. But the first song is done and I can tell you it's seven minutes long. The recording process itself usually takes about two months and then after that it's another three more months before the album is released. So, we are talking five months out there after the album has been written."

The "Parallels" lineup of FATES WARNING played a number of shows in 2010 in support of the released special edition of the album, which was made available through Metal Blade Records. In addition to remastered audio, there is a second audio disc of live and demo material. The package also includes a DVD with nearly three hours of material, including a complete live show from the 1992 "Parallels" tour and a documentary on the making of "Parallels" which includes live, studio, and current day interview footage with all the band members, Terry Brown (producer) and Brian Slagel (CEO of Metal Blade Records).

FATES WARNING's latest CD, "X", was released in 2004 on Metal Blade Records. The follow-up to 2000's "Disconnected" was recorded at Carriage House studios in Stamford, Connecticut and features cover artwork by renowned record-cover artist Ioannis (DREAM THEATER, SEPULTURA, DEEP PURPLE, BLUE ÖYSTER CULT, YNGWIE MALMSTEEN, KING CRIMSON, BIOHAZARD, VOIVOD, UFO, OVERKILL).

Multi-camera fan-filmed video footage:

ARCH/MATHEOS — the new progressive rock band featuring FATES WARNING/OSI guitarist Jim Matheos and former FATES WARNING singer John Arch — played its first-ever U.S. show last night (Saturday, May 5) at the Webster Theater in Hartford, Connecticut.

The band's lineup for the performance was as follows:

* John Arch (FATES WARNING) - Vocals
* Jim Matheos (FATES WARNING, OSI) - Guitar
* Joey Vera (ARMORED SAINT, ANTHRAX, FATES WARNING, SEVEN WITCHES) - Bass
* Bobby Jarzombek (HALFORD, FATES WARNING, SEBASTIAN BACH, RIOT) - Drums
* Frank Aresti (FATES WARNING) - Additional Lead Guitar

The setlist was:

01. Neurotically Wired
02. Midnight Serenade
03. The Sorceress
04. Stained Glass Sky
05. Damnation
06. The Apparition
07. Any Given Day/Strangers Like Me
08. Guardian

Encore:

09. Epitaph
10. Exodus

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

ARCH/MATHEOS made its live debut on April 28 at the Keep It True XV festival Tauberfrankenhalle in Lauda-Königshofen, Germany.

ARCH/MATHEOS last year filmed a video for the song "Midnight Serenade" with director David Brodsky of MyGoodEye (DEVIN TOWNSEND, HELMET, IN THIS MOMENT). The track comes off the group's debut album, "Sympathetic Resonance", which sold around 1,800 copies in the United States in its first week of release. The CD landed at 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.

"Sympathetic Resonance" entered the official chart in Germany at No. 27, in Austria at No. 67, and in Switzerland at No. 78.

The cover art for "Sympathetic Resonance" was fashioned using an image created by light painting photographer Dennis Calvert, who has described light painting as "The ability to see in four dimensions, time traveling, and creating fantasy using only what we base all reality on, light."

Released on September 13, 2011 via Metal Blade Records, "Sympathetic Resonance" features the following track listing:

01. Neurotically Wired
02. Midnight Serenade
03. Stained Glass Sky
04. On the Fence
05. Any Given Day (Strangers Like Me)
06. Incense and Myrrh

Comments Matheos: "I think John and I work really well together. There's a lot of mutual respect and trust in what we do. But we're also both very critical of ourselves, and each other. This can make for a long and sometimes tedious process. But ultimately it's one I enjoy because I think it brings out the best in both of us."

BLACKGATES — the new East San Francisco Bay Area/New York metal outfit featuring former ANTHRAX singer Dan Nelson, drummer Paul Bostaph (ex-TESTAMENT, EXODUS, SLAYER, FORBIDDEN) and guitarist Jeremy Epp (THE VENTING MACHINE) — made its live debut last night (Saturday, May 5) at Rooster's Roadhouse in Alameda, California as part of the Cinco De Mayo Metal Throwdown with guests MUDFACE, FALLING TO PIECES and ANOTHER VOID. Video footage of the performance can be seen below.

BLACKGATES recently parted ways with bassist Uriah Duffy (ex-WHITESNAKE) and replaced him with Luis Barillas (THE VENTING MACHINE).

Commented Bostaph: "Luis is a veteran of the Bay Area metal scene and a welcome addition to the band." Von Epp added, "[Barillas has] got that Steve Harris/Geezer Butler vibe on the bass which fits perfect with what were doing, not to mention that he's a solid dude." Nelson stated, "Luis is an amazing bassist and a perfect fit for the BLACKGATES sound. He's a true bro who you know from day one will have your back in the trenches."

BLACKGATES last year entered the studio to begin work on its debut album.

Bostaph previously stated about BLACKGATES's musical direction, "Our sound is drawn from all of our influences. Mostly, we don't want to be a thrash metal band, although we draw from that genre as well. There is something in our music for everyone. Heavy grooves, good hooks and Dan's killer pipes. I think we have an independent sound that will stand on its own." Nelson added, "It's thrashy and heavy, so it will appeal to ANTHRAX and TESTAMENT fans. But has the groove and brutality of PANTERA, and is also very melodic. The guitarist is a kid from the Bay Area named Jeremy Epp, who's an unknown, but sensational. People are gonna love him."

BLACKGATES's first demo was recorded in the San Francisco Bay Area with producer Tim Narducci (SYSTEMATIC, SPIRALARMS).

BLACKGATES is:

* Dan Nelson (ANTHRAX): Vocals/guitar
* Paul Bostaph (TESTAMENT, SLAYER, FORBIDDEN, EXODUS): Drums
* Luis Barillas (THE VENTING MACHINE): Bass
* Jeremy Von Epp (THE VENTING MACHINE): Guitar/Vocals

METALLICA guitarist/vocalist James Hetfield and drummer Lars Ulrich were interviewed for a cover story in the May 2012 issue of U.K.'s Metal Hammer magazine. A couple of excerpts from the chat follow below.

On the progress of the songwriting sessions for the next METALLICA album:

Lars: We're circling the new stuff. We've started writing a little more in stages. There's so many projects that we do all the time When we wrote the 'black album,' we started writing it and we finished writing it without anything else [going on] — it was three months, boom. We don't do it like that anymore. We'll write for awhile and we'll go to Brazil and then we'll come back and go do a week's worth of shows with Lou Reed, and then we'll write for two weeks and then we'll pick our noses and we'll do something else and then we'll play the Fillmore, you know what I mean? So it's difficult to be cohesive in an interview about it. I don't really have any direction yet, and I've heard most of it. It sounds heavy and energetic and very METALLICA-like, but whether it's more like 'Death Magnetic' or more like this or that, I don't know."

On whether METALLICA is planning on working with producer Rick Rubin again on their next studio album:

Lars: "Rick is a lot about creating comfort and atmosphere and a vibe, and right now that's kinda how it's looking. We haven't sat down and gone to the next level on direction and practical elements and all that type of stuff. I saw Rick in L.A. two weeks ago and we talked about him coming up to San Francisco in March or April to start talking about the process, but as yu know, we've got another couple of balls in the air with our movie and live dates and the Orion festival. It never ends, and right now some of these balls are quite time-consuming. Rick is not a one-trick pony; he builds a particular ease around whatever your task is, so I think whatever we want to do for this next record, he will help us with that, whatever it may be."

James: "He's a different kind of producer. He's challenging. He's a very cut-and-dried, to-the-point kind of producer, but he's also very open, and open to lots of ideas. He does have lots of great ideas of his own as well. But I think that the main thing for us was getting to the core and essence of METALLICA, and that's the reason we chose to work with him. He gets the best out of artists that have been around for a while, I believe. And he helps you get back to that essence. That's what we wanted him for."

On whether they were successful in getting back to the essence of METALLICA on "Death Magnetic":

James: "I believe so. And, you know, that was just part of the goal. We don't really sit down and plan it outm like, 'What do we want this album to be?' It just happens. That's the way art's supposed to work. It is what it is. We don't try to mould it too much, because the more you try to mould it and the more you try to please, the more you have to compromise and the less of a statement it becomes. So these things that we do, they are what they are and people like 'em or don't like 'em. That's part of having an ever-changing fanbase, I guess. [Laughs] We do things because we feel the need to do them. Simple as that."

Lars: "We have an absurd thirst for going into uncharted territory, and there are obviously some hardcore people in the metal community who have a disdain for that, but that's OK It's something that we have to do, because it would kill us to keep doing the same thing and stagnate. A festival, a movie, a Lou Reed album, and spinkled in between those, all the live dates and records, is something that, for better or worse, we have to do for ourselves."

According to The Pulse Of Radio, Slash has teamed up with Guitar Center to give 20 unsigned bands the chance to open for the legendary guitarist on an upcoming tour. As part of Guitar Center's "On Stage" program, each of the groups will be personally selected by Slash to perform at a stop on the trek closest to their hometown. One of the acts will be selected at the end of the tour as the grand prize winner, which entitles them to take home $10,000 in guitars from Gibson and Epiphone, a $5,000 shopping spree at Guitar Center and more.

Slash told The Pulse Of Radio that with the traditional music industry in decline, young bands need to expose their music any way they can. "Right now, for kids starting a band and all that, it's like the Wild West out there," he said. "There's no set path. There's a lot of great opportunities, there's a lot of different avenues that are available to you now that weren't available back in the day, but they're all hit or miss. You know, you've just got to take your chances."

All 20 bands will receive tour support prize packs that includes gear from Ernie Ball, Zoom, Dunlop, Monster Cable, Pro-Mark, and Converse.

The cities in which groups will be chosen to play include Atlanta, Los Angeles, Austin, Chicago, Cleveland, Dallas, Detroit, New York, Phoenix and others.

Bands looking to get on the tour can submit their music for consideration at the official "On Stage" web site, with June 30 the deadline for entries.

Slash will release his second solo album, titled "Apocalyptic Love", on May 22. The new disc was recorded with the members of his touring band, which features ALTER BRIDGE singer Myles Kennedy.

The guitarist, who was inducted into the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame last month as a member of GUNS N' ROSES, kicked off a tour to promote the new CD on Thursday night (May 3) in Baltimore. He plays Friday night (May 4) in Virginia Beach.

Photo credit: Travis Shinn

NACHTMYSTIUM haben soeben ihr drittes Century Media Album (die letzen beiden Alben wurden bereits durch Century Media in den USA veröffentlicht) „Silencing Machine“ fertig gestellt. Vor den Aufnahmen zu dem neuen Album hat die Band auch noch an ein paar weiteren Tracks gearbeitet.

Das Resultat dieser zusätzlichen Aufnahmen ist eine streng limitierte, zwei Tracks enthaltende 7-inch Single mit einer Auflage von 500 Stück (200 schwarz, 200 weiß, 100 mintgrün). Hol dir die 7” bei CM Distro: http://www.cmdistro.de/Search?q=nachtmystium

Der Track “As Made” von der Single ist nun bei InvisibleOranges.com erstmalig zu hören. Der zweite Track der Single ist eine exklusive Coverversion - „The Eternal“ - von Joy Division, mit Guest-Vocals von Chris Connelly (Revolting Cocks, Ministry). Diese beiden Tracks werden ausschließlich auf der Single und nicht auf dem Album „Silencing Machine“ enthalten sein. „As Made” kann man sich hier anhören: http://www.invisibleoranges.com/2012/05/io-exclusive-track-stream-nachtmystiums-as-made/

Legendary Canadian rockers RUSH were among those who received prestigious Governor General's Performing Arts Awards, given out by Governor General David Johnston, on Saturday, May 5 at Rideau Hall in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. All three members of the band were in attendance. Each laureate received a cash award of $25,000 from the Canada Council for the Arts and a commemorative medallion struck by the Royal Canadian Mint.

RUSH bassist/vocalist Getty Lee said it was a privilege to be at the gala.

"I'm so proud of Canada for doing such a thing," said Lee. "To value artists and to celebrate art is a real pat on the back for artists."

"We're going to take a run on a really fun take on a RUSH song," show producer Kari Cullen told CTV.ca. "We're going to experiment a little bit with their music, with their permission, and see how much they enjoy it."

Check out a photo gallery at this location.

Video footage of the choir version of "The Spirit Of Radio" along with the NAC Orchestra's rendition of "Tom Sawyer" from yesterday's ceremony can be viewed below.

"Puolikas Ihminen", the new video from Lemi, Finland-based metallers STAM1NA, can be seen below. The clip, which was directed and edited by Jouni Kallio, features an appearance by actress Linda Zilliacus, who is best known for her role in the Oscar-nominated movie called "Ondskan" (nominated in the "Best Foreign Language Film" category).

"Puolikas Ihminen" comes off STAM1NA's fifth album, "Nocebo", which will be released in the U.S. on July 17 via Bieler Bros. Records.

Commented Bieler Bros. co-founder Jason Bieler: "STAM1NA encapsulates everything Bieler Bros. looks for when signing a new artist. Musically ferocious, melodically brilliant and structurally boundless, STAM1NA is the most exciting band in metal to me at the moment."

"Nocebo" in February entered the official Finnish album chart in the band's home country at position No. 1. The CD has been certified gold in Finland for sales in excess of 10,000 copies.

The members of STAM1NA were presented with gold plaques for "Nocebo" on February 18 during their appearance at the Finnish Metal Expo where they also performed the album in its entirety.

"Nocebo" was released in Finland on February 8 via Sakara Records. The CD was recorded at Petrax studios with producer Joe Barresi (TOOL, BAD RELIGION, APOCALYPTICA, QUEENS OF THE STONE AGE, WOLFMOTHER).

"Nocebo" track listing:

01. Pirunpaska
02. Valtiaan Uudet Vaateet
03. Tavastia Palamaan!
04. Puolikas Ihminen
05. Aivohalvaus
06. Rabies
07. Lepositeet
08. Nomad
09. Ei Encorea
10. Arveton On Arvoton

The digipack version of "Nocebo" comes with an extended booklet and a DVD containing a half-hour "making-of" documentary, filmed at Petrax studios and produced by STAM1NA's bassist, Kai-Pekka Kangasmäki.

According to a press release, the collaboration between Barresi and STAM1NA came about as a result of a meeting the producer had with the band in February 2010 when Joe was in Helsinki working on the latest APOCALYPTICA album.

STAM1NA was honored in the "Metal Album Of The Year" and "Band Of The Year" categories at last year's Emma Gaala (Finnish Grammy equivalent), which was held on February 26, 2011 at Barona Areena in Espoo, Finland.

"Valtiaan uudet vaateet" video:

DANZIG will premier the track "Devil's Angels" from his new covers CD on radio stations in some of the cities where he will perform on his upcoming tour. It was originaly the theme song for the late '60's biker film of the same title.

Commented Glenn: "I've wanted to record this song since 1979 and this is exactly the same arrangement I had for it back then, so it pretty much sounds like that late '70s style of mine. I'm really happy with the way it turned out; it actually came out much better than I had hoped it would. We're going to be playing it live on these upcoming shows."

DANZIG is currently in the studio putting the finishing touches on the as-yet-untitled covers record for a late summer/early fall release.

When asked about the reports that he was recording an album of covers, Glenn said in a 2011 interview, "It's [got] lots of different stuff [on it]. Of course there's an Elvis [Presley] song on there, there's a BLACK SABBATH cover… Then I took some old biker-movie theme songs and made them all old punk-sounding or whatever… Just fucking around, really — just having a good time taking songs and giving them a different life or a different dimension. I just do what I feel like doing, as long as I don't just cover it, because that's boring to me. I wanna take it and change it and give it some other kind of thing. Otherwise just leave it alone."

Glenn Danzig will perform his "Legacy" career-spanning set featuring songs from DANZIG, SAMHAIN and MISFITS, in a number of U.S. cities in late May and early June. In addition, he has announced four DANZIG shows where he will be joined by ex-MISFITS axeman Doyle Von Frankenstein as a "special guest."

Reunited grunge legends SOUNDGARDEN made a surprise apearance on stage as the special guest at the 20th annual KROQ Weenie Roast Y Fiesta on Saturday, May 5 in Irvine, California. The band hit the stage at 8:30 p.m. and blazed through a short seven-song set which includes the first-ever live performance of the new song "Live To Rise".

The band's setlist was as follows:

01. Spoonman
02. Rusty Cage
03. Outshined
04. Jesus Christ Pose
05. Fell On Black Days
06. Live To Rise
07. Slaves And Bulldozers

Professionally filmed video footage of the "Live To Rise" performance can be seen below.

"Live To Rise", the first SOUNDGARDEN song in almost 16 years, can be seen below. The track was made available as a free download on iTunes beginning April 17 as part of the promotion of "Marvel's The Avengers". The seven-day promotion included an exclusive clip, "The Face Off", from the superhero team-up movie coming out on May 4.

"Live To Rise" was written specifically for "Marvel's The Avengers" after SOUNDGARDEN was approached about contributing a song to the film.

"The hard part of writing a song for a film is it has to act as a SOUNDGARDEN song, first and foremost, then obviously, it has to coexist with the film," SOUNDGARDEN singer Chris Cornell told Billboard.com.

Cornell told Seattle radio station KISW that fans should not think of "Live To Rise" as an indication of what the rest of the group's new record will sound like. Chris explained, "Some of the songs on our new album are pretty far left of center, and sort of zero in on more of a hardcore SOUNDGARDEN fan and not necessarily a family that goes to see a film like that. Although ['Live To Rise' is] not really what I think of as a necessarily family-friendly song, but it's as close as we've ever come."

The singer added that the tune wasn't specifically based on the movie, saying, "I think a film like this appeals to little kids all the way to old people because it's an action film, it's comic book characters, but it's also pretty witty dialog and accomplished actors doing it. So it had to be somewhat open to all of that. But also first and foremost it has to be a SOUNDGARDEN song."

SOUNDGARDEN officially reunited in early 2010 after disbanding in 1997. Since then, the group has played one full-length North American tour, a batch of festival and club gigs, and some overseas shows.

The group also released a career retrospective called "Telephantasm" as well as a concert album titled "Live On I5", which was recorded on its last tour before breaking up.

A release date and title for the new SOUNDGARDEN album have yet to be announced.