MOTÖRHEAD singer and bassist Lemmy Kilmister has admitted to Q magazine that money was the sole reason behind him allowing the band's classic track "Ace of Spades" to be used in a TV commercial.

Heineken U.K. brought Kronenbourg 1664 back to the small screens with the first TV support for the premium lager brand since 2006 with the launch of "Slow the Pace", a new integrated advertising campaign which broke last fall.

The first execution in the new campaign showed MOTÖRHEAD performing a slowed down version of "Ace of Spades".

30 years to the month since it was first written, the track was specially re-written by the band for a Kronenbourg 1664 campaign that encompassed TV, press and digital advertising, a short-film documentary and a social media activity.

"It's a sign that we got paid a lot of money by a beer company. They asked us to do it and I said yes," Lemmy said. "How much? None of your business."

"Slow the Pace" is rooted in the idea that Kronenbourg 1664 is a beer with a lingering complexity that deserves to be savoured slowly. The concept will be brought to life over the next year in a series of executions based on unique musical collaborations with leading artists commissioned to re-write and record a slowed down, chilled out version of one of their most famous fast tracks.

The ad, which launched as a 60-second TV execution, was shot in a French bar and shows patrons relaxing and chatting while MOTÖRHEAD play the new version of the song, with founder member and lead singer Lemmy on harmonica rather than his familiar electric bass guitar.

The film documentary charts the process of the band re-writing the track in the studio through to the ad shoot.

Lucas Bergmans, Senior Brand Manager - Kronenbourg 1664 at Heineken U.K., said, "Showing MOTÖRHEAD performing a memorably different version of their legendary 'Ace of Spades' track as they enjoy Kronenbourg 1664 is a powerful and innovative way to deliver the consumer message that Kronenbourg 1664 is a beer that is brewed to be enjoyed slowly — in any circumstances."

U.K-based metallers POWER QUEST will release their new album, "Blood Alliance", via Napalm Records on the following dates:

Japan, Southeast Asia: January 26 (through Marquee/Avalon)
Spain, Finland, Sweden: March 23
Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Benelux, Italy: March 25
Rest of Europe: March 28
USA, Canada: April 5

"Blood Alliance" was recorded at Foel Studios (PAUL RODGERS, NAPALM DEATH, THE WILDHEARTS) in Wales next . Eleven songs were laid down for the follow-up to 2008's "Master Of Illusion", including one bonus track. The CD cover artwork was once again designed by Felipe Machado (BLIND GUARDIAN, SILENT FORCE) and can be viewed below.

Commented keyboardist Steve Williams: "Well, it has been a long time coming but finally the fifth POWER QUEST album is done and I don't think I have ever been so excited about releasing an album. All the guys have given 110% to this record and I'm proud of them all. It's without doubt the heaviest POWER QUEST album yet but without sacrificing the POWER QUEST melodic tradition. I just can't wait for you all to hear it!"

"Blood Alliance" track listing:

01. Battle Stations
02. Rising Anew
03. Glorious
04. Sacrifice
05. Survive
06. Better Days
07. Crunching The Numbers
08. Only In My Dreams
09. Blood Alliance
10. City Of Lies
11. Time To Burn (Japanese bonus track)

"The Living End", a brand new song from AVA INFERI, the Portugal-based band whose lineup includes Norwegian guitarist Rune Eriksen (a.k.a. ex-MAYHEM guitarist/songwriter Blasphemer), is available for free download at this location. It can also be streamed using the audio player below. The track comes off the group's fourth album, "Onyx", which will be released on February 14 (February 15 in the U.S.) via Season Of Mist.

This message was posted on GNAW THEIR TONGUES MySpace page:

"Upcoming: In the works are two split LP's as Gnaw Their Tongues. Been also busy working on providing sounds/intro's/collabs for three other bands/projects.

Februari will see the new DE MAGIA VETERUM album 'The Divine Antithesis', which will be out on Transcendental Creations (can). And (probably) a month later the first of two new ADERLATING cd's, which will be released on belgium label Consouling Sounds, entitled: 'Spear of Gold and Seraphim Bone' (part 1 and 2).

Also in the work is an collab album with noisemaster NEKRASOV. That project is yet untitled.

Work has also began on the next GNAW THEIR TONGUES full lenght.

Finally the 'L'arivee..' album reached number 19 in TERRORIZER's top 40 albums of 2010!".

Finnish rock cello quartet APOCALYPTICA has released a statement clarifying a report that was originally published on the German web site Anwalt24.de which indicated that the band was forced to pay 45,000 euros (approximately $59,000) in damages to German industrial rockers RAMMSTEIN. According to the site, the legal action arose in connection with a German advertising campaign for APOCALYPTICA's 2007 album, "Worlds Collide", which featured guest vocals from RAMMSTEIN singer Til Lindemann. The record was reportedly sold in Germany with a sticker across the cover that said, "featuring RAMMSTEIN." The Regional Court of Berlin ruled against APOCALYPTICA in the case for trademark infringement.

APOCALYPTICA's official statement regarding this matter reads as follows:

"The [Anwalt24.de] article's headline [which suggested that APOCALYPTICA was forced to pay damages to RAMMSTEIN] is substantially wrong: neither the band APOCALYPTICA nor their management are or were involved in the described lawsuit. However, the parties involved are the band RAMMSTEIN and Sony Music Entertainment GmbH, as the successor of the by now-defunct affiliated label GUN Records.

"APOCALYPTICA and Halbe Miete Management regret the events, but neither had any influence on a violation of trademark and naming rights, nor any part in whatsoever resulting agreements.

"It is correct that GUN Records published advertisements with the stated endorsement disregarding existing agreements, and the band RAMMSTEIN subsequently filed a lawsuit against Sony Music Entertainment GmbH as the parent company. It is furthermore correct that Sony Music Entertainment GmbH and RAMMSTEIN have agreed on a settlement, the details of which, however, are unknown to APOCALYPTICA and Halbe Miete Management. We ask that further articles on the topic correctly reproduce the facts."

This incident adds to a recent stretch of bad news about APOCALYPTICA. As previously reported, the band has been forced to pull the vocals of SHINEDOWN frontman Brent Smith off the group's new single, "Not Strong Enough", after the band failed to secure the right to release the song to radio with Smith's voice on it from SHINEDOWN's label, Atlantic Records.

APOCALYPTICA member Eicca Toppinen told The Pulse Of Radio that making records which feature multiple guest vocalists, like the band's last two efforts, is often a logistical nightmare. "It's really a big, complex process, because it's so much company policies and so much schedule problems and people can't come to APOCALYPTICA record and release a single with us if they have own release coming at the same time," he said. "So it's a lot of this kind of thing."

Smith's vocal track remains on the version found on the group's latest album, "7th Symphony", while the radio version will feature vocals from HOOBASTANK's Doug Robb.

Finally, health issues on the part of member Perttu Kivilaaskso forced APOCALYPTICA to postpone a U.S. tour and a number of European dates, all of which have been rescheduled.

German metallers WOLFCHANT will be releasing their fourth studio album, Call Of The Black Winds, on February 25th via Massacre Records.

The album was was produced, mixed and mastered by Markus Stock (THE VISION BLEAK, EISREGEN, MAROON) at the Tonstudio E in the Kreuzberg district of Berlin, Germany.

Call Of The Black Winds will also be available as limited edition with bonus DVD, which contains a complete live show.

Call Of The Black Winds tracklisting:

'Black Winds Rising (Prelude)
'Stormwolves'
'Eremit'
'Black Fire'
'Naturgewalt'
'Heathen Rise'
'Never Will Fall'
'Die Nacht Der Wölfe'
'The Last Farewell'
'Der Stahl In Meinem Feinde'
'Call Of The Black Winds'

Das neue ROTTEN SOUND Album "Cursed" kommt am 15. März 2011 via Relapse Records in den Handel und jetzt wurde vom Label nach dem Cover Artwork auch die Track List enthüllt! Das neue 16 Track Album wurde in den Nordic Audio Labs Studios aufgenommen und HIER könnt Ihr das Album vorbestellen.

01. Alone
02. Superior
03. Self
04. Choose
05. Hollow
06. Ritual
07. Green
08. Machinery
09. Power
10. Plan
11. Declare
12. Addict
13. Exploit
14. Terrified
15. Scared
16. Doomed

Das neue DEICIDE Album kommt am 15. Februar 2011 mit dem Titel "To Hell With God" via Century Media Records in den Handel und jetzt hat Century Media Records auch das Cover Artwork und die Track List enthüllt. Aufgenommen wurde das Album mit Produzent Mark Lewis (THE BLACK DAHLIA MURDER, CHIMAIRA) in den Audiohammer Studios in Sanford, Florida. Heute haben die Kollegen von MetalSucks den neuen Song "Hang in Agony Until You're Dead" zum probehören online gestellt.

"To Hell With God" Track List:

01. Save Your
02. Empowered by Blasphemy
03. Conviction
04. Hang in Agony Until You're Dead
05. To Hell with God
06. Servant of the Enemy
07. Witness of Death
08. Angels in Hell
09. Into the Darkness You Go
10. How Can You Call Yourself a God

SLIPKNOT/STONE SOUR singer Corey Taylor has once again spoken out in defense of illegal music downloading, insisting that no one wants to pay for "crap" new music. He tells Britain's Kerrang! magazine, “I have a completely different take on this from a lot of other people. A lot of people in the industry want to blame downloading for the state of [the music business], but I think that if most music wasn't shit to begin with people wouldn't be downloading this stuff for free."

He continues, "Seriously, who the fuck wants to risk hard-earned money on music that's maybe 98 percent crap? I'm not going to. And I still buy new albums. People ask what my favorite new album is and nine times out of 10, I don't fucking have one. Music is garbage."

Taylor's latest comments echo those he made back in 2008 when he told Kerrang!, "Why would you blame [people who download music]? Half the fucking albums that are out there are shit. I don't download, but at the same time, I don't buy new music 'cause it all sucks. Okay, there's a handful of bands that I buy, but other than that, I just buy old shit because old shit is good. Sorry!"

"People wanna blame the decline of album sales on downloading, I think it's actually the record companies' fault," he added. "I think it's the quality of the product. If record companies would stop giving any fucking mook on the street with a fringe a record deal or their own record label, maybe you would sell more fucking albums, dipshits."

A trailer for "One Night Of Insurrection", the first-ever live DVD/CD from French power metallers NIGHTMARE, can be viewed below. Due on February 25 via AFM Records, the set was filmed/recorded in Grenoble, France and contains NIGHTMARE's special 30th-anniversary show, including guest appearances by the band's former members. Also included us footage of NIGHTMARE's performance at Summerblast in Israel.

"VII The Fraudulent", a brand new track from the North Texas death metal outfit THE FAMINE, can heard in the YouTube clip below. The song comes off the band's new album, "The Architects Of Guilt", which will be released on February 15 via Solid State Records. The follow-up to 2008's "The Raven And The Reaping" was produced by D. Braxton Henry (ex-DEVOURMENT) and was mixed by Jason Suecof (THE BLACK DAHLIA MURDER, TRIVIUM, DEVILDRIVER).

"The Architects Of Guilt" track listing:

01. The New Hell
02. Ad Mortem
03. We Are The Wolves
04. Turner Classic Diaries
05. Bigger Cages, Longer Chains!
06. The Crown and The Holy See
07. VII The Fraudulent
08. A Pavement Of Good Intentions
09. A Fragile Peace
10. Pyrithion House
11. To The Teeth

Sergio Pereira of South Africa's MusicReview.co.za web site recently conducted an interview with guitarist/vocalist Matt Heafy of Florida metallers TRIVIUM about the band's forthcoming studio album, due later in the year via Roadrunner Records. A couple of excerpts from the question-and-answer session follow below.

MusicReview.co.za: "Shogun" featured several mythological themes. Is the new album going to be a continuation of this?

Heafy: "Shogun"'s mythological themes were something that felt called for by the music. Every CD has been so different with its lyrical inspiration that this next album will definitely be its own thing. So, it won't be carrying the mythological feel of "Shogun".

MusicReview.co.za: Musically, what can we expect? Is it a combination of everything TRIVIUM has already done?

Heafy: It's tricky to describe. We want it to be that this next album just sounds like "TRIVIUM." We may have — probably have — said that every record's goal is that, and it has been, but this time it's without question. There have always been experimental songs, since [2005's] "Ascendancy", on our albums, and this time the CD will only have what it is meant to have.

MusicReview.co.za: TRIVIUM's previous albums have included longer instrumental-only tracks. Can we expect the same this time around?

Heafy: Unfortunately, as of right now, there doesn't seem to be an instrumental song that will be on the album. However, there will be songs that do things we have never had as a song formula before.

MusicReview.co.za: It seems like the moment a metal band achieves moderate commercial success, such as TRIVIUM, BULLET FOR MY VALENTINE and AVENGED SEVENFOLD, suddenly they become hated by elitists and, especially, Internet trolls. How do you handle this negativity and abuse? Do you just switch off after a while?

Heafy: Honestly, nowadays, the hate feels less than it's ever been. In actuality, there are probably far more people that DON'T like us, but our population of people who love us is so much bigger than it used to be; so it's a much smaller percentage of negativity, even though it's technically more of a voice. I feel that any band that has some sort of mainstream success — not calling us a mainstream band, [but] meaning being in magazines, radio, etc. — will have haters out of principle. But you can't think of that; there is too much good.

Decibel magazine recently conducted an interview with bassist/vocalist Thomas "Angelripper" Such of German thrash metal veterans SODOM. An excerpt from the chat follows below.

Decibel: The story is that you started SODOM to escape working in the coal mines. Have the recent mine collapses in Chile and West Virginia made you feel especially lucky lately?

Tom: Yeah, and those guys in Chile were really lucky also, but I didn't like how they made it too commercial, like a big show when they came out of the mine. When I was in the coal mine, I remember thinking a lot of my friends were gonna die in there. We were 1,000 meters deep, and that is a very hard job, you know. I was so glad that they survived. But coal mining, that was my home. At these times, there were a lot of unemployed people, so they all go to the coal mine for work. My father went to the coal mine, my grandfather also, and my father took the decision for me to work in the coal mine as a blacksmith. I worked for 10 years, but it was a good time. It was like a big family; I got my money every month. Then in '89 I stopped doing this because [SODOM's] "Agent Orange" [album] came out and I get a lot of money from a record company to be a professional musician. So, I can make my living from the music. That was my aim, my dream, you know. And from that time I never went to work. But being a musician and managing the band for myself, it's a full-time job. It's not just writing songs and playing concerts. There's so much behind what we have to do.

Decibel: Did you have any close calls when you worked in the mines?

Tom: No, I got some scratches and cuts on my fingers and arms and things like that. The job is very dangerous, I know, but I always take care of myself. Security was first for me. A lot of coal miners, they never mind about security, but it is very important. So, I survived all those years with just some scratches. I worked at the Hugo mine. It was the first one in this area [the Ruhr industrial region of Germany]. They started mining there in 1873, I think. Nowadays, if you look in our area, almost all the coal mines are gone. In the whole district, just one or two coal mines are alive. That's why the people get unemployed here. The coal mines close and the people don't know where to go. You never find any good jobs here in this area.

Singer Michael Seifert and bassist Tomi Göttlich have decided to rebuild the German metal band REBELLION following the recent departures of Uwe Lulis (guitar), Gerd Lücking (drums) and Simone Wenzel (guitar),

Commented Seifert: "We have received many positive e-mails from fans. REBELLION are now looking for a drummer and a guitarist. Send applications to the band at the following e-mail address: rebellionfromhell@yahoo.com."

Added Göttlich: "We want to start the band from scratch. Micha and I would like to practice regularly. Future rehearsals will be near Giessen. The new musicians should not we live too far away."

Gerd and Uwe have plans to form a new band while Simone has joined VERNISSAGE.

REBELLION's latest full-length album (the third part of the "History of the Vikings" saga), "Arise: From Ragnarök to Ginnungagap - The History of the Vikings Volume III", came out in July 2009 via Massacre Records.

Poland's Metal Mind Productions has set a January 31 release date for reissues of the last three studio albums from WARLOCK — the band fronted by German metal queen Doro Pesch — "Hellbound" (1985), "True As Steel" (1986) and "Triumph And Agony" (1987) albums. Each title will be made available in a new digipak edition limited to 2,000 copies.

"Hellbound" reissue bonus tracks:

01. Hellraiser
02. Hellbound (live)

"True As Steel" reissue bonus tracks:

01. You Hurt My Soul
02. Turn It On
03. Evil

"Triumph And Agony" reissue bonus tracks:

01. East Meets West (live)
02. Angels With Dirty Faces
03. Under The Gun
04. Something Wicked This Way Comes

Swedish metallers SABATON have recruited DRAGONFORCE bassist Frédéric Leclercq to play guitar on their upcoming European tour. He will be filling in for regular SABATON guitarist Rikard Sundén, who "has decided to multiply himself and will have his first kid at this time," according to a statement released by the band.

The group adds, "Of course, it's the highest wish of SABATON to tour with all six members, but this time Rikard wanted to pass and to ensure that the fans that come to these shows will get a good show we wanted to bring in a person with both great musical talent as well as a great stage act together with a chemistry that we know fits in SABATON. We are sure that Frédéric is that person. This is, of course, a temporary situation, Frédéric is still a full member of DRAGONFORCE and Rikard is still the guitar player of SABATON. For the American tour that starts in April, Rikard will be on stage again, ready to rock and a hopefully a bit richer in life."

SABATON's "World War Tour 2011" of Europe is scheduled to kick off on March 3 in Esch-sur-Alzette, Luxembourg.

"Uprising", the new video from SABATON, was filmed in Warsaw, Poland and is described as "a powerful and emotional tribute to those who lost their lives in the Warsaw uprising in 1944." The clip features an appearance by Swedish actor Peter Stormare ("Prison Break", "8MM", 'Fargo') as SS-Obergruppenführer von dem Bach and was directed by Jacek Raginis (who is related to decorated WWII hero Wladyslav Raginis).

"Uprising" comes off SABATON's fifth album, "Coat Of Arms", which sold around 450 copies in the United States in its first week of release. The CD landed at position No. 124 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.

"Coat Of Arms" was released in Europe on May 21, 2010 via Nuclear Blast Records.

"Religion For The Weak", the first studio material from the new lineup of the Croatian metal band RISING DREAM — featuring recently added female singer Ines Tanceva — has been made available as a free download at Rising-Dream.com. It can also be streamed using the audio player below.

Recorded at Megaphone Studio in Croatia, mixed at Sweetspot Studio in Sweden by Rickard Bengtsson (ARCH ENEMY, OPETH, TESTAMENT, FIREWIND) and mastered at Audio Harakiri Studio in Slovenia, "Religion For The Weak" serves as a sneak preview of the next RISING DREAM album, according to a press release.

Former TNT and current TONY HARNELL & THE MERCURY TRAINvocalist Tony Harnell has issued the following update:

"2010 was definitely better than 2009 by a long shot! I continued healing from my mother's passing and my own health scare and subsequent surgery in spring 2009. It knocked me down for a bit and I haven't spoken about it much 'till a couple of months ago but all is good now.

"It feels great that we actually got an album released, did some shows in New York, Norway, Spain and Florida and I'm almost back to my old self.

"My bands both in New York and in Sweden really helped me through some tough times. I love them all very much.

"2011 should be interesting. We are working on new material. We're not sure if we'll release a full album or a few songs at a time. We'll have to see how things go.

"I hope to do a lot more shows this year, either solo or with THE MERCURY TRAIN or maybe in some other unforeseen situation, such as last year's Queen Symphonic Rhapsody, which was a huge success and a lot of fun.

"I'll be announcing a New York show soon and hopefully more good things to come."

"Northern Lights", the debut video from Harnell's new project, TONY HARNELL & THE MERCURY TRAIN, can be viewed below. The track comes off the group's debut album, "Round Trip", which was released in Europe on July 2, 2010 and in the USA on July 27, 2010 via Frontiers Records.

"Round Trip" is a very special record: a stripped down, reinvented retrospective of Tony Harnell's past classics originally recorded with his previous bands TNT, WESTWORLD and STARBREAKER, with one brand new song, "Anywhere But Here", recorded exclusively for this release.

Canadian doomsters PASSAGE, featuring former members of MOONLYGHT and SORCIER DES GLACES, are preparing to enter the studio to record their second album, "II", for a late 2011 release. The band states, "Most of the songs were composed in 2005-2006, but we finished everything recently.

"As the first album was a kind of melancholic doom-rock, expect this second
offering to be different. We wanted it slow and painful. This is much more
doom, sad, progressive and atmospheric."

"II" track listing:

01. Melancholy Under Darkened Skies
02. Dismal
03. The Sadness That Haunts Me
04. Grievance (Instrumental)
05. As Darkness Comes
06. Degradation Of Deliverance
07. Passage

PASSAGE's self-titled debut album was released in 2005 via the Portuguese label Exorcize Music.