"I Am Heresy", a song by I AM HERESY, the new band featuring members of BOYSETSFIRE (Nathan Gray), CHAMBERS (Gregg Kautz), MAY 4TH MASSACRE (Simon Gray, Jonah Latshaw), and THE DEAD AND GONE (Jay Konieko, Crumbs Konieko), can be streamed below.

What happens when your band falls apart and everything you worked toward is abruptly thrown away? You start a new one! That is exactly what Nathan Gray (BOYSETSFIRE, THE CASTING OUT) decided to do once his last musical effort, THE CASTING OUT, ceased to exist. Not one to sit around and cry about the situation, he decided to move forward and form something completely new. He didn't have to look far though, realizing that his son Simon Gray and fellow bandmate Jonah Latshaw both were very talented musicians in their own right, he recruited them to start a new band. Going back to the roots of what made BOYSETSFIRE such a powerful force in the punk/hardcore scene, mixed in with the younger metal influence of Simon and Jonah, I AM HERESY was formed. To help complete the band and take it to the next level, brothers Jay and Crumbs Konieko were added on bass and drums, respectively. The last piece to the puzzle to help reinforce such and imposing sound was former CHAMBERS guitarist Gregg Kautz.

As a whole each, bandmember brings their own unique musical style to form an imposing wall of sound that has and will continue to grow and evolve.

For more information, go to this location.

Riverside, California-based Christian death metallers IMPENDING DOOM will release their fourth full-length album, "Baptized In Filth", on March 13. The CD was produced by Andreas Magnusson (THE BLACK DAHLIA MURDER, THE FAMINE) and was mixed by Machine, who has previously worked with LAMB OF GOD, SUICIDE SILENCE and DEMON HUNTER, among others.

Commented guitarist Cory Johnson: "We're proud to say that after many months of working on the new record, it's finally done. This is by far our favorite material to date and we can't wait to share it with everyone and hit the road!"

Former SKID ROW singer Sebastian Bach and his solo band opened for GUNS N' ROSES on December 30 at the Hard Rock Hotel in Las Vegas, Nevada.

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

Bach also supported GUNS N' ROSES on December 27 at Comerica Theatre in Phoenix, Arizona and on December 31 at The Joint at the Hard Rock Hotel in Las Vegas.

As previously reported, Sebastian will play three "special concerts" in New York City at the end of January with BILLY IDOL guitarist Steve Stevens. The shows will take place on January 27, January 28 and January 29 at at The Iridium and will see Bach and Stevens "doing two sets a night," including "some special unexpected songs." Sebastian says, "I have always wanted to play with Steve, so I am really looking forward to it."

Bach's new album, "Kicking & Screaming", sold 6,600 copies in the United States in its first week of release to land at position No. 73 on The Billboard 200 chart. The singer's previous CD, "Angel Down", opened with 6,400 units back in November 2007 to debut at No. 190.

"Bad Motivator", the new video from CITY OF FIRE — the band featuring Burton C. Bell (FEAR FACTORY), bassist Byron Stroud (FEAR FACTORY, STRAPPING YOUNG LAD), guitarist Terry "Sho" Murray, and drummer Bob Wagner — can be seen below (courtesy of Metal Hammer magazine). The clip was filmed in Toronto, Ontario, Canada with director Cody Calahan, who previously co-created, produced and directed a pilot for a television show called "The Rusty Kitchen".

Commented Burton: "The video was created through the program MuchMusic in Canada — it is Canada's MTV. Every year, they give grants to new bands to make a video. We applied and got the grant. The video was made through all Canadian videographers, directors etc. . . It was the first time I met Cody Calahan, and I look forward to working with him again. He is very ambitious and I like his creative ideas."

"Bad Motivator" comes off CITY OF FIRE's sophomore album, "Trial Through Fire", which is scheduled for release in March/April 2012. The CD was recorded at The Factory studios in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.

Check out photos from the studio at this location.

In a recent interview with The Sanctuary Of Rock, Bell stated about CITY OF FIRE's forthcoming CD, "The writing process is very similar to other bands. The guys had music ideas and were recorded on a demo. I would sit with Terry in the studio and just sing out ideas. I usually have some words to 'throw down' and I try to incorporate them into the song. A lot of times, I just say things that come out, like speaking in tongues.

"There is no theme, but everything we were writing about was happening in our lives, so that is why we call the album 'Trial Through Fire'.

"It was a very difficult writing process. We were all going through personal issues, and also the band was dealing with business issues.

"I am very proud of the work we have done. We 'found' our sound on this record."

He added, "The main difference [between the recording process for 'Trial Through Fire' compared to that of CITY OF FIRE's 2010 self-titled debut] was that we knew what we wanted to achieve. We knew what are strong points were with the band's music. We all had a great understanding of the band itself. Terry has a great sense of what my voice can do, so he and the guys were able to write the music that suited everyone. We were very 'cohesive' as a band. We knew everyone's strong points."

Funding for the new CITY OF FIRE CD was 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.

Said Burton: "That was our [manager's idea]. She found success in it with another band she has worked with. It was a fantastic idea. Not only did it generate the funds we needed, it also created a grass-roots fan base that is important for a new band. It created a personal network between the band and our new fans, and they are a very happy, as we are."

Last fall, METALLICA started writing the studio follow-up to 2008's "Death Magnetic", working from riffs and licks taped during the band's tuning-room jams over the past three years of touring.

"We're about seven, eight songs into it," METALLICA drummer Lars Ulrich tells Rolling Stone magazine about the record, which will once again be produced by Rick Rubin. "We do it in rounds. We come up with something, we leave it, go to the next thing, come up with something basic, leave it and circle back around. Next month we'll go back and start embellishing: 'Let's double that one part and come up with a middle bit.'"

"If 'Death Magnetic' was a logical successor to [1988's] '…And Justice For All', the next album will be a heavier Black Album," METALLICA guitarist Kirk Hammett tells Rolling Stone, using the popular nickname for 1991's "Metallica". "We're not going to the depths of complexity that we did for 'Death Magnetic'. The stuff we're coming up with is more groove-oriented, a heavier version of what we were doing in the early Nineties."

"When people talk about the old stuff, they think 'Justice'," Ulrich tells Rolling Stone. "But look at 'Harvester Of Sorrow' on that album. It's a fairly simple five-minute song. And 'Fuel' [on 1997's 'Reload'] is an absolute scorcher live. Right now, I'm thinking shorter, more to-the-point."

A 3D movie starring METALLICA is in the early stages of production, with a projected release date of summer 2013. The film does not have a title yet, a finished script or a director. "Imagine if you took 'The Song Remains The Same'," Ulrich tells Rolling Stone, referring to the 1976 LED ZEPPELIN movie, "which is 75 percent concert, 25 percent other stuff, and flipped it around. And all the nonconcert footage, instead of being about the band members, is a story that unfolds, set against the backdrop of the concert."

According to Ulrich, the METALLICA members are financing the film production on their own. "We tend to pay for these things ourselves," he says. "The minute you take somebody else's money, you have to consider their opinions. And that's no fun."

"We didn't want to do it at first," Hammett tells Rolling Stone about the 3D flick. "We were sold on it by our managers, that it would be a lot of fun and we would have a big-ass stage to play on — the biggest METALLICA live show we've ever done, next-level stuff."

METALLICA will release a physical CD edition of its current digital EP, "Beyond Magnetic", on January 31. The four-song EP, which featured songs recorded during the sessions for "Death Magnetic", was issued digitally on December 13, shortly after the band premiered all four songs live during its quartet of 30th anniversary shows in San Francisco earlier that month.

The tracks are "Hate Train", "Just A Bullet Away", "Hell And Back" and "Rebel Of Babylon".

METALLICA issued a collaborative album with Lou Reed called "Lulu" in November, but the conceptual disc was a commercial and critical flop.

The band is scheduled to perform the Black Album in its entirety at several European festivals this summer, and has hinted at several other big events on tap for 2012.

Singer Johnny Gioeli, drummer Mike Terrana , keyboard player Ferdy Doernberg, bass player Volker Krawczak and guitarist Axel Rudi Pell entered the studio in late November with engineer and co-producer Charlie Bauerfeind, to record the next AXEL RUDI PELL studio album, titled Circle Of The Oath.
Recordings are finished now and the final touches regarding mixing and mastering will be made this week.

Circle Of The Oath will be released through SPV/Steamhammer on March 23rd in Germany, March 26th in Europe and on March 27th in the USA/Canada.

Tracklisting:
'The Guillotine Suite (Intro)'
'Ghost In The Black'
'Run With The Wind'
'Before I Die'
'Circle Of The Oath'
'Fortunes Of War'
'Bridges To Nowhere'
'Lived Our Lives Before'
'Hold On To Your Dreams'
'World Of Confusion (The Masquerade Ball Pt. II)'

Configurations: limited edition digipak incl. bonus live track plus poster, double gatefold LP with coloured vinyl, standard version and download. Watch out for the box set incl. two-LP, digi, poster, postcard, sticker and much more - limited to 1,000 copies worldwide.

ENEMY REMAINS, the band featuring former FATES WARNING drummer Steve Zimmerman, has released its debut album, "Two Faces Two Minds".

According to a press release, fans of FATES WARNING both old and new will enjoy this album to its entirety, as "Two Faces Two Minds" is being made available in a number of different formats, including full-length CD and digital download through iTunes with a bonus track called "The Blame".

"Two Faces Two Minds" sees ENEMY REMAINS adopting "the influences of others" but molding them to create its own identity, thanks for the songwriting chemistry between Zimmerman and longtime bandmate/guitarist Tommy Blardo (formerly of MOLTEN'S LORE).

"Two Faces Two Minds" track listing:

01. Remember Tomorrow
02. Live For Today
03. Upside Down
04. Never Forget
05. Breathe Again
06. Fallen
07. Seasons
08. Buried
09. Holdin' On
10. Drift Away
11. The Blame

Reunited '80s cult metal outfit SANCTUARY — which features in its ranks current NEVERMORE frontman Warrel Dane and bassist Jim Sheppard — performed rthis past Saturday, January 7 at Club Nokia in Los Angeles, California.

Photos of the concert can be found at this location. Video footage is available below. (All photos and video clips by Stephanie Cabral.)

In a recent interview with Rock My Monkey TV, Dane stated about SANCTUARY's future plans, "We're gonna do a new record. We've got a lot of new songs written and we're working on a deal with Century Media; it's kind of an imminent thing. I've been with that label since 1995, so I know the people that work there, I trust them, and I have a very good working relationship with them, so it makes the most sense for me right now. And for the rest of the guys, too. So we'll see. Nothing's ever written in stone, but it looks like that's what's gonna happen."

Regarding how SANCTUARY's reformation came about, Dane said, "[SANCTUARY guitarist Lenny Rutledge and I] always talked to each other, but never really been friends again. And when the whole thing came about, that we were actually friends again, that's when we started talking more about doing it. And it definitely wasn't because NEVERMORE was imploding... which it was, at that point . . . We all just started talking with each other again. That was kind of the groundwork for it. And then we started saying, 'Well, gosh, let's make music again.' And my god! Lenny is writing some stuff that is so friggin great! Obviously, he's been bottling this up for years, because he really hasn't been doing anything... Well, he's had bands here and there. But he's really writing some great stuff that's really inspiring me, and making me fall in love with music again, with the creative process... everything that revolves around that. Really inspiring me to write really evil lyrics."

Regarding the sound of SANCTUARY's upcoming studio album, tentatively titled "The Year The Sun Died", Dane said, "This record is not going to sound like the other two. It might sound very similar to the second one ('Into The Mirror Black'). It's definitely not going to sound like the first one, because we're all a little bit older and I can't come up with a c-clamp for a scrotum and a helium tank . . . It's not going to sound like the old ones... it's 2011. It's still gonna be that good, I think, and there's gonna be high-pitched screaming. I'm making sure of that. With NEVERMORE, high-pitched screaming was never really called for. You know, with SANCTUARY... of course it is."

SANCTUARY recently tapped Brad Hull (FORCED ENTRY) to play second guitar for the band.

Hull and Shannon Sharp, one of the moderators at Metalguitarist.org, were the top picks for the SANCTUARY second-guitarist position. Brad, having previously toured with SANCTUARY, was given the opportunity to play the dates in Atlanta (ProgPower USA XII festival) and Greece.

Hull has spent the last two years playing the role of "James Hetfield" in the METALLICA tribute band BLISTERED EARTH, which plays "classic songs ranging from 1983's 'Kill 'Em All' to 1991's self-titled 'Metallica'."

SANCTUARY's current touring lineup:

Warrel Dane - Vocals
Lenny Rutledge - Guitar
Brad Hull - Guitars
Jim Sheppard - Bass
Dave Budbill – Drums

Video footage below by Stephanie Cabral

Fan-filmed video footage of KRUX — the Swedish band featuring CANDLEMASS bassist Leif Edling, ex-YNGWIE MALMSTEEN singer Mats Levén, ex-ENTOMBED drummer Peter Stjärnvind, guitarist Jörgen Sandström (also in THE PROJECT HATE, ex-ENTOMBED/GRAVE), OPETH/ex-ARCH ENEMY guitarist Fredrik Åkesson and keyboardist Carl Westholm — performing the song "The Hades Assembly" on December 29, 2011 at Debaser in Stockholm, Sweden can be seen below.

"The Hades Assembly" comes off KRUX's third album, "III - He Who Sleeps Amongst The Stars", which was released late last year via Mascot Records/GMR Music Group.

In a recent interview with Queens Of Steel, Sandström stated about "III - He Who Sleeps Amongst The Stars", "We didnt wanna repeat ourselves from the previous albums even though it sounds like KRUX. Also, it has been some years since we recorded the last album and our mindset is different at this moment and time... although our minds are always set towards the heavy side of metal when it comes to creating KRUX material."

When asked if KRUX has incorporated new influences into its sound on the new album, Sandström said, "I guess when being overall music lovers there are new influences coming in from everywhere, be it rock or metal in any form (doom, black, death, etc.). I can definitely hear some influences from bands that Leif has mentioned over the years… HAWKWIND, early MANOWAR, JUDAS PRIEST, etc."

Queens, New York progressive instrumental trio DYSRHYTHMIA has inked a deal with Profound Lore Records. The band will enter the studio this spring with DYSRHYTHMIA bassist Colin Marston handling production duties to begin recording its next album for a late summer/early fall release. The group states, "We're gonna do our most to make this the best DYSRHYTHMIA [effort] yet."

DYSRHYTHMIA's latest album, "Psychic Maps", was released on CD and LP in July 2009 in via Relapse Records.

DYSRHYTHMIA is:

Jeff Eber - Drums
Kevin Hufnagel - Guitar
Colin Marston - Bass

LAMB OF GOD frontman Randy Blythe performed with CANNABIS CORPSE at the Cory Smoot (GWAR) memorial concert on Saturday, January 7 at The Canal Club in Richmond, Virginia.

Blythe's appearance with CANNABIS CORPSE was a one-off event following the recent departures of the band's vocalist Andy "Weedgrinder" Horn and guitarist Nick "Nikropolis" Poulos.

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

Blythe previously stated about his performanace with CANNABIS CORPSE: "Cory was the guitarist in GWAR who passed away recently and was a friend of mine who recorded my guest vocals on the JASTA CD. He leaves a pregnant wife behind (their first child) and a mortgage.

"Cory didn't have life insurance and his wife is going to need every penny she can get with a kid on the way and bills to pay.

"Although GWAR is a relatively large band and are doing all they can for Mrs. Smoot, the fact of the matter nobody is rich and times will be hard.

"My friends in CANNABIS CORPSE were scheduled to play the benefit show, but suddenly are having lineup difficulties (lost the singer). So what the fuck and why not?

"On January 7, CANNABIS CORPSE WILL play — but I will be singing!

"Come check out some brutal death metal for a good cause! I'll be working on my death metal voice 'till then, pretending to smoke weed and getting deeper than fuck.

"I'm quite confident I can properly do the CANNABIS CORPSE tunes justice AND add something new. Now I need a 'weed metal' name!"

Smoot, a.k.a. Flattus Maximus, was found dead as GWAR was about to enter Canada on November 3. He was 34 years old.

CANNABIS CORPSE is currently seeking replacements for Horn and Poulos. Interested parties can contact the group at Landphilbass@hotmail.com.

Oakland, California thrashers DEFIANCE have officially called it quits.

Commented the band: "After coming to the realization that the music industry was falling apart, and without the internal bond that DEFIANCE had in back in their heydays, it was decided by [guitarist] Jim [Adams] to shut down all activities to avoid being completely financially wiped out. Jim has since moved on and joined SEVERED FIFTH and will be releasing a full length album in February 2012 titled 'Liberate'.

The final lineup of DEFIANCE was as follows:

Jim Adams - Guitar
Shawn Bozarth - Guitar
Keven Albert - Vocals
Mike Kaufmann - Bass
Burton Ortega - Drums

DEFIANCE played its first show since 1994 on December 19, 2009 at Blake's on Telegraph in Berkeley, California.

Mark Hernandez (drums) and Steev Esquivel (vocals) left DEFIANCE in 2009 to concentrate on their primary bands, FORBIDDEN and SKINLAB, respectively.

DEFIANCE's latet album, "The Prophecy", was released on October 19, 2009 via Candlelight Records. The first collection of new music from DEFIANCE in over 15 years was recorded at Trident Studios and Greendot Studios in East Bay, California.

An e-card for "The Prophecy" can be accessed at this location.

Part of the so-called "second wave" of Bay Area thrash (which also included the likes of FORBIDDEN, VIO-LENCE, DEATH ANGEL, and TESTAMENT), DEFIANCE officially disbanded in 1993 after the departure of vocalist Steev Esquivel (who would go on to form SKINLAB, and later RE:IGNITION), while the remaining members, with the addition of vocalist Dave Godfrey White (HEATHEN), formed INNER THRESHOLD, which would also eventually disband.

Video footage of DEFIANCE's free in-store performance on March 12, 2010 at Rasputin Records in Mountain View, California can be seen below.

German thrash metal veterans KREATOR have entered Studiomega in Varberg, Sweden with producer Jens Bogren (OPETH, AMON AMARTH, PARADISE LOST) to begin recording their new album for a late spring 2012 release.

When asked about the musical direction of KREATOR's new material, the band's guitarist/vocalist Miland "Mille" Petrozza stated in a recent interview, "The songs are coming along great and I think it's OK to say that this will be our most epic album so far. There's some classical, a lot of traditional metal, and, of course, a huge dose of thrash metal influences in the new stuff. Everyone in the band is very excited at this point. The demos sound killer so far. We have about 10 songs we're working on so far.

Regarding the lyrical and visual concept for the forthcoming CD, Petrozza said, "It's too early to talk about the lyrics yet; many are written, but they keep changing all the time. Visually, we have tapped Wes Benscoter [BLACK SABBATH, DIO, SLAYER, CATTLE DECAPITATION, BLOODBATH] for the cover art. I can tell you this much: The artwork will be insane!"

In an interview with Aftonbladet journalist Mattias Kling, Petrozza stated about KREATOR's collaboration with Jens Bogren, "He's really good; I like him. I like the sounds that he gets. And I think the combination — Jens Bogren and KREATOR — it will be pretty heavy."

On the topic of how the new material is different from KREATOR's previous output, Mille said, "It's always a little hard for me to talk about music has been written but is not released yet. It will definitely have all the KREATOR trademarks. The lyrics will talk about nowadays stuff, as usual, so it will be like a photography of the year 2012. Also the lyrics will deal a lot of things that are actually happening at this point in time. It will be like reading a newspaper or something [laughs], with all the stuff happening. And, of course, the music will be typical KREATOR, and we also wanna expand the sound and progress as musicians. I mean, this lineup has been the strongest lineup KREATOR ever had since ten years, and now I think we're ready to come out with an album that blows everyone away."

KREATOR is:

Miland "Mille" Petrozza – Vocals, Guitrar
Sami Yli-Sirniö - Guitar
Christian "Speesy" Giesler - Bass
Jürgen "Ventor" Reil - Drums

Austrian symphonic extreme metal outfit HOLLENTHON is making professionally filmed video footage of its entire December 4, 2010 concert at Szene in Vienna available for streaming in five parts. The first clip can be seen below, with the second part set to follow on January 15.

HOLLENTHON's latest EP, "Tyrants and Wraiths", came out in 2009.The CD featured four new tracks and two live videos from the 2008 Graspop Metal Meeting in Dessel, Belgium.

HOLLENTHON's most recent album, "Opus Magnum", was released in June 2008 via the Austrian record label Napalm Records. The CD featured eight songs and a cover version, plus a video.

HOLLENTHON issued two critically acclaimed albums a decade ago — "Domus Mundi" (1999) and "With Vilest Of Worms To Dwell" (2001).

After a seven-year break, Italian metallers PANDAEMONIUM will release a brand new studio album, entitled "The Last Prayer", on January 27 via IceWarrior Records. According to a press release, the group "once again manages to create an extraordinary, first-class epic/melodic power metal album while keeping all their established trademarks like great melodies, fantastic guitar riffs and the unique vocals from singer Daniel Reda." The cover artwork was created by Diego Ferrarin, wo has previously worked with WHITE SKULL, WILD STEEL and SHADOWS OF STEEL, and who was responsible for the art on the first two PANDAEMONIUM albums. The layout was designed by Oscar Petersson (KATANA, EYE, OSUKARU, BYFIST).

01. Alone In The Dark
02. Two Spirits One Heart
03. Through The Wind
04. Holy Voice
05. Tower Of Fears
06. The White Voice
07. Go Your Own Way
08. Today
09. Braveheart
10. Epitaph
11. Until The End

PANDAEMONIUM is:

Daniel Reda - Vocals
Lorenzo Zirilli - Bass
Steve Volta (PERPETUAL FIRE) – Guitar, Keyboards
Federico Ria (ex-PERPETUAL FIRE, SKYLARK) - Drums

German thrash metal veterans DESTRUCTION have commenced work on their 30th-anniversary album. The CD is tentatively due before the end of the year.

Inspired by IRON MAIDEN, MERCYFUL FATE, MOTÖRHEAD and VENOM, DESTRUCTION was formed as KNIGHT OF DEMON in 1982. The band's original lineup included vocalist and bassist Marcel "Schmier" Schirmer, drummer Tommy Sandmann, and guitarist Mike Sifringer. They soon changed their name to DESTRUCTION and released a demo titled "Bestial Invasion Of Hell" in 1984.

"Day Of Reckoning", the latest album from DESTRUCTION, sold around 800 copies in the United States in its first week of release. The CD landed at position No. 58 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.

"Day Of Reckoning" entered the German Media Control chart at position No. 95. The CD was released in Europe on February 18, 2011 via Nuclear Blast Records. The first limited edition of the album did not feature the band's logo on the booklet while the vinyl version and second pressing of the CD showed a red DESTRUCTION logo on it.

"Day Of Reckoning" was the first album to feature DESTRUCTION's new drummer Vaaver (INDUKTI, ex-UNSUN).

Fuse TV has posted a two-and-a-half-minute lesson in "Sebastian Bach's Scream School" in which the former SKID ROW singer demonstrates various types of heavy metal screams. Check out the footage below.

As previously reported, Sebastian will play three "special concerts" in New York City at the end of January with BILLY IDOL guitarist Steve Stevens. The shows will take place on January 27, January 28 and January 29 at at The Iridium and will see Bach and Stevens "doing two sets a night," including "some special unexpected songs." Sebastian says, "I have always wanted to play with Steve, so I am really looking forward to it."

Bach's new album, "Kicking & Screaming", sold 6,600 copies in the United States in its first week of release to land at position No. 73 on The Billboard 200 chart. The singer's previous CD, "Angel Down", opened with 6,400 units back in November 2007 to debut at No. 190.

According to RadarOnline.com, KORN guitarist James "Munky" Shaffer married actress Evis Xheneti on Monday, January 2 in Paris, France.

"We wanted to get married in Paris because this is our city," Evis told RadarOnline.com. "James proposed at the Eiffel tower, so it just seemed like we were supposed to get married here."

Described as a 1920s-style romantic wedding, it was held inside "a small, 200-year-old church on the Seine river." A small group of family and friends attended the wedding, including the bride's sister, singer Xhoana Xheneti, KORN's manager of twenty years and one of Shaffer's best friends, Jeff Kwatinetz, and KORN's tour manager, Jens Geiger.

The newlyweds will go on a honeymoon in a secret tropical location in a few months.

Former INCANTATION bassist Joey "Fingers" Lombard passed away on January 3, 2012 at the age of 42. A resident of Windber, Pennsylvania, he was most recently employed by Lockheed Martin in Johnstown.

Commented INCANTATION drummer Kyle Severn: "Joey was one of the nicest people you could ever meet.

"Joey had stepped up to the plate and joined John McEntee and myself back in 2000 to create some of INCANTATION's finest blasphemy to date!!! He stuck with us for five-plus long years of writing and traveling the death metal roads!! He was an amazing musician and bass player. He had contributed more than most could imagine to the death metal scene. He had made many new friends through those years on the road; he was such a likable guy. I don't think he had a mean bone in his body. He will be truly missed.

"Services will be held in Johnstown, Pennsylvania Sunday evening."

Joey was preceded in death by mother Gladys (Byrne) Lombard and brother William Lombard. He is survived by father Dennis Lombard and wife Mary, Florida; wife of 16 years Cynthia (Headrick) Lombard; stepdaughter, Ariana Lamer; sisters Cathy, wife of Steve Aviles, Ohio; and Christine Lombard, Florida; and nieces and nephews, Brian, Rebecca and Emily Aviles; Cori Headrick; and Tyler and Karson Headrick; also godson Skyler Stiles.

Lombard's official obituary can be found at this location.

Traditional heavy metal band Lords of the Trident has released an official video for the song “Face of the Enemy”. This track was taken off the Madison, Wisconsin band’s recent second album “Chains of Fire.” The title track from “Chains of Fire” will be included on the free CD that comes in Fireworks Magazine (UK). Lords of the Trident is currently busy writing material for it’s as-of-yet untitled third album. The ten tracks that will be on that album are all partially composed so far.

Former KILLSWITCH ENGAGE singer Howard Jones has released the following statement regarding his departure from the band:

"Well, I guess I will shed a little light without going too deep.

"As some of you may know, I've had a pretty interesting couple of years, to say the least, battling with some personal issues. One of the low points being diagnosed with Type 2 diabetes that went unchecked for years. The rest of the band stuck with me through it, and, to be honest, they are the ones that kept me going. The whole experience definitely put a scare in me.

"Recently we've all been in writing mode, but somehow I couldn't get excited about the new album and all the touring that would go with it. The guys saw it before I did. In hindsight, I now realize that my heart wasn't in it.

"I have had an amazing decade with KILLSWITCH ENGAGE. I love Justin, Mike D, Joel and Adam for hanging in there and standing by me no matter how bad it was. I have so many good memories, and those are the ones that I will keep.

"Will I be involved in music again? Sure. I have been in bands for a little over half my life; can't stop now. Until then, get the new KILLSWITCH ENGAGE album; it's going to be good.

"Thanks, everyone, for letting me try to entertain you, and I wish myself well in my future endeavors.

"Gone fishin', Howard."

Jones, 41, replaced original KILLSWITCHE ENGAGE singer Jesse Leach in 2002, after the release of the band's "Alive Or Just Breathing" album. He also handled lead vocals in the band BLOOD HAS BEEN SHED, with whom he released three studio albums.

Jones sat out KILLSWITCH ENGAGE's North American headlining tour in early 2010, leading to a flurry of rumors and questions about the status of the band. The group subsequently issued a statement addressing the matter, saying, "It became overwhelmingly obvious to all of us around Howard that he is in no condition to be on tour right now and that he needed to get off the road and get himself better. It's a personal matter and while we understand everyone's curiosity and concern for Howard and the band, we appreciate everyone respecting Howard's privacy at this time." Longtime friend, Phil Labonte of ALL THAT REMAINS, was able to fill in and help out the band for the remainder of the tour.

The latest, self-titled album from KILLSWITCH ENGAGE sold 58,000 copies in the United States in its first week of release to debut at position No. 7 on The Billboard 200 chart. The CD was released on June 30, 2009 via Roadrunner Records. It was produced by Brendan O'Brien (AC/DC, RAGE AGAINST THE MACHINE) and co-produced by Adam Dutkiewicz.

Singapore grindcore trio WORMROT was arrested by religious authorities in Malaysia in the early hours of New Year's Day.

According to a posting on the band's Tumblr page, the members of WORMROT were "chlling" at a local hotel after playing a New Year's Eve show in Kuala Lumpur when the Jabatan Agama Islam Selangor (Selangor Islamic Religious Department) came into their room. Azean, the band's manager, writes, "After several questions and telling us that it is wrong for unmarried Muslim men and women to be in one room, they took our passports and we were taken to the police station to give our statements and call someone to bail us.

"Five of us were taken into custody. Arif [vocals], Rasyid [guitars], Fit [drums], his girlfriend, who is Arif's little sister and myself. Rasyid's girlfriend was not taken into custody 'cause she's not Muslim and Fiaz [ASILENT bassist, with them at the time] was from another room.

"When we got out of the hotel to be escorted into the police lorry, which already has some couples who were caught earlier than us, around 30-40 more people from JAIS, passerby and maybe some people from the media took pictures of us as though they had busted the most biggest crime for the night. We were taken to the Taman Muda police station and had to sit on the floor to wait for the organizer, Emi, to come and bail us out. Emi arrived at 4 a.m. and he had talked to one of the JAIS staff. At around 4:15 a.m., we were taken to another police station as there was no high-ranking officer to do up the reports. Again everyone had to be escorted into the lorry to be driven to Pandan Indah police station. However, when we arrived there, we were still held in the lorry as the high-ranking staff from JAIS have not arrived. At around 5 a.m., when they finally arrived, we thought that we will be taken into the police station for our statements. But… in the end… we were let off with just a warning. We were nearly fined $3000 MYR ($950 USD) per person if Emi did not call his lawyer up and we being Singaporeans. Plus we weren't doing any sexual intercourse when they entered our room.

"By the time Emi sent us back to our hotel, it was already 5:30 a.m. We were beyond exhausted as we had been awake since 5 a.m. the day before, performing and then the hotel drama."

WORMROT's latest album, "Dirge", came out in May 2011.