The final night of MEGADETH's historic month-long "Rust In Peace" 20th anniversary tour has been captured for the upcoming "Rust In Peace Live" Blu-ray, DVD and CD, due out September 7 on Shout! Factory.

On March 31, 2010, at this incredibly special show at the legendary Hollywood Palladium, not far from where Dave Mustaine formed the band in 1983, MEGADETH played their landmark, genre-defining 1990 "Rust In Peace" album in its entirety, in addition to other MEGADETH favorites. "Rust In Peace Live" also marks the return of original bassist David Ellefson (MEGADETH 1983-2002) to the iconic multi-platinum group after eight years. Ellefson (bass), joins Mustaine (lead vocals, guitar), Shawn Drover (drums) and Chris Broderick (guitar).

"Rust In Peace Live" features the entire "Rust In Peace" track listing, including all-time classics "Holy Wars...The Punishment Due" and "Hangar 18" along with bonus fan favorites from various other MEGADETH releases such as "Symphony For Destruction", "Peace Sells" and "Skin O' My Teeth".

MEGADETH founder/frontman/guitarist Dave Mustaine explains, "We are pumped to be able to share the 'RIP Live' concert with you all around the world. The anniversary and David Ellefson coming back was better than a facelift and a bottle of Viagra for old [MEGADETH mascot] Vic."

The 80-minute "Rust In Peace Live" DVD (5.1 Dolby Surround 16:9 Widescreen) and Blu-ray (5.1 DTS Master Audio 1080p High Definition) were directed by Kerry Asmussen (GREEN DAY, JAY-Z, Coachella). The DVD and Blu-ray will also include behind-the-scenes footage, including a rare glimpse of the band rehearsing in their dressing room as they prepare to take the stage.

"Rust In Peace" is considered one of the best metal albums of all time by fans and critics and debuted at #23 on the Billboard Top 200 Album Chart in the U.S. and #8 in the U.K. The album showcased a much tighter sound, with Mustaine's writing style adopting a rhythmically complex progressive edge, prompting All Music Guide to cite "Rust In Peace" as "MEGADETH's strongest musical effort." The album received Grammy nominations in 1990 and 1991 for "Best Metal Performance." Emphasizing the massive impact of "Rust In Peace" in the July 2010 issue of Guitar World, writer Richard Bienstock calls it "one of the pinnacles of the first wave of thrash metal." He continues, "A defining quality of MEGADETH's sound — and the one that perhaps most sets them apart from their 'Big Four' thrash brethren, METALLICA, SLAYER and ANTHRAX — has always been the band's fiery mix of speed-metal ferocity and progressive instrumental virtuosity… nowhere has this combination been displayed better than on 'Rust In Peace'."

The full track listing for the "Rust In Peace Live" CD, DVD and Blu-ray is as follows:

"Rust In Peace" Live:

01. Holy Wars...The Punishment Due
02. Hangar 18
03. Take No Prisoners
04. Five Magics
05. Poison Was The Cure
06. Lucretia
07. Tornado Of Souls
08. Dawn Patrol
09. Rust In Peace...Polaris

Bonus Content:

10. Skin O' My Teeth (Countdown To Extinction)
11. In My Darkest Hour (So Far, So Good…So What!)
12. She-Wolf (Cryptic Writings)
13. Trust (Cryptic Writings)
14. Symphony Of Destruction (Countdown To Extinction)
15. Peace Sells (Peace Sells…But Who's Buying?)
16. Holy Wars – Reprise (Rust In Peace)

James LaBrie's guitarist Marco Sfogli, who joined the metal circle in 2005 with LaBrie's Elements Of Persuasion album, has checked in with the following update on bandmate Ray Riendeau's new solo album:

"Ray's new record titled Atmospheres is out. It's available only as a download and you can buy from CDbaby.com at this address. I play on 'Cosmic Dust', 'Parasite' and 'The Alchemist'. Other guests are Alex Argento, Matt Guillory, Lalle Larsson, Derek Taylor, Jeff Kollman, Greg Koch, Alex Machacek, Rob Michael, Ron Jarzombek, Nat Janoff, Ward Aycock, David Haynes and Martin Diamond. Ray is an amazing bass player from Arizona who played for Halford, Scott Mishoe and many great names as well as being the new bass player for the James LaBrie band. Support the record and buy it!"

For information on Riendeau go to this location. Riendeau has issued a preview clip for the forthcoming album below. Audio samples from the album are available at the link above.

According to Helsingin Sanomat, the band HEVISAURUS is the hottest thing in Finnish children's music at the moment.

Many parents like the band as well, as it differs from adult heavy metal only with respect to the lyrics, and the fact that instead of musicians adorned with heavy metal attire and makeup, the music is performed by four dinosaurs and a dragon.

"Adults have come to say that now their summer road trips have been saved," says HEVISAURUS spokesman and drummer Mirka Rantanen.

The snowball started rolling last autumn with the release of the band's debut album, after which HEVISAURUS played to full houses. "Purppuramysteeri" ("Purple Mystery"), a musical produced together with the Comedy Theatre Arena, drew big audiences in the early summer. Now their album has hit No. 5 on the chart, and a new CD is said to be in the works.

UNSUN — the Polish female-fronted gothic metal band led by ex-VADER guitarist Maurycy "Mauser" Stefanowicz — has signed a worldwide deal with Mystic Production. The group entered the studio this past spring to begin recording its sophomore album, tentatively titled "Clinic For Dolls", for a October 11 European release. According to a press release, the vocal tracks were recorded at Studio X in Olsztyn and all the instruments were laid down at Hertz Studio (BEHEMOTH, VADER, DECAPITATED) in Bialystok. After five weeks of hard work, the CD is currently being mixed and mastered.

UNSUN's new album will feature 10 new songs (and a bonus track forthe Japanese edition).

Commented the band:"Work on our second album is almost finished.

"We recorded 10 fantastic songs.

"At the moment we are listening to first mastered tracks. It's metal, it's powerful, heavy but at the same time melancholic and thrilling. You can expect also some softer tunes [and] one moving ballad.

"We are 100% satisfied with what we've done — so the plan was fulfilled. Now we are also focusing on photo session, video, etc.

"After fantastic reactions on our first album, 'The End Of Life', we signed a contract for the second album with Mystic Production, which is our exclusive European partner.

"Mystic Production is not only a successful music label, this is a bunch of fantastic people totally devoted to music and their artists. These are people with lots of experience who do their best to promote and support the bands.

"We are sure that this contract guarantees us the straight way to success. The faith in us and the support that Mystic Production gives us made UNSUN even more motivated and determined."

Fan-filmed video footage of reactivated British industrial metal pioneers GODFLESH performing the song "Crush My Soul" on June 18, 2010 at Hellfest in Clisson, France can be viewed below. The Hellfest concert marked GODFLESH's first appearance since the band disbanded in 2002.

GODFLESH — featuring Justin Broadrick (ex-NAPALM DEATH and HEAD OF DAVID) and Benny Green (ex-FALL OF BECAUSE) — will be returning to its roots to play the band's first U.K. show in over 10 years at the 2010 edition of Birmingham's acclaimed annual Supersonic Festival, set to take place on October 22-24.

Justin explained to U.K.'s Terrorizer magazine the reasons behind the band's return to the live stage.

"It wasn't remotely planned," he said. "Whenever it's been mentioned previously, I'd stated categorically not, regardless of the color of the offers. But, somehow, this started to make sense late 2009, and once I put it to Ben 'G.C.' Green in no unceertain terms, it made sense to him, too. Not having to support a record or a label and just do as we wish on our terms is exciting, and to play as GODFLESH were originally designed is even more thrilling."

When asked what the odds are of any new GODFLESH material being released in the near future, Justin said, "That is fairly minimal. We are more than happy to return to our old sound for a show, but uncertain how we could do this in the context of new material. We've both moved on so much, but we will not rule out any possibility currently."

GODFLESH split up in April 2002 — six months after Green announced his departure from the group. "Regrettably it took until the day of leaving for a lengthy U.S tour for the realization [that the band was over] to finally take its toll on me," Broadrick stated at the time. "Unfortunately, the finality of the decision and the responsibilities of making the decision proved too much for me to bear, and I collapsed under the weight. I found that without G.C. Green, GODFLESH is not GODFLESH, and him leaving proved to be an omen for me. I also feel that everything we originally intended or even imagined with GODFLESH we have done."

Even though British heavy metal legends IRON MAIDEN opted to away a new song, "El Dorado", as a free MP3 download via the band's official web site, the group's frontman Bruce Dickinson wants to make it clear that the finished product sounds much better.

After announcing to the crowd at IRON MAIDEN's June 22, 2010 headlining concert at the White River Amphitheatre in Auburn, Washington that the band wanted to perform a new track from its much-anticipated new studio album, "The Final Frontier", Dickinson said, "I do apologize to those of you who've downloaded [the song], ripped it, done whatever... 'cause it's a freebie on the web at the moment. I do apologize to those of you who have downloaded it, not for any other reason but stuff that is on the Internet sounds like shit — it just does. MP3s, how to take all the balls out of the song... It's like, MP3s to music is what zombies are to Shakespeare — absolute bullshit. It's terrible. All these people listening to songs with cotton buds stuffed in their fucking ears. What is that all about? So for all those of you poor victims who downloaded it and thought, 'Oh, right. Yeah.' Well, the song is called 'El Dorado' and if you buy the record, it should sound like this."

Swedish metallers SOILWORK among the growing list of musical acts that have joined KORN's ban on using fuel sold by BP or its affiliates in the wake of the company's catastrophic oil leak in the Gulf of Mexico. SOILWORK will not use any BP or BP-affiliated products and facilities on the band's upcoming 2010 North American headlining tour.

"We're outraged about BP's obvious profit-over-safety policy leading to this terrible disaster and their extremely poor handling of the oil spill," SOILWORK said in a statement. "In joining the boycott and calling all our fans to do the same, we can collectively make a statement strong enough to bring this shameless, careless corporation to its knees, and to avoid such catastrophes in the future."

"Night Of The Undead", a brand new track from reactivated Swedish old-school death metallers INTERMENT, is available for streaming at this location. The song comes off the band's debut album, "Into The Crypts Of Blasphemy", which will be released later in the year via Pulverised Records. The CD was recorded at Erebos Studios with Peter Bjärgo (TYRANT, CRYPT OF KERBEROS). The cover artwork, which can be viewed below, was created by Polish artist Rafal Kruszyk.

Cleveland, Ohio metallers CHIMAIRA have posted a trailer for their "Coming Alive" DVD, which is scheduled for release on July 20 via Ferret Music. The set includes a four-part documentary filmed over the course of a year and a half while the entire package includes over seven hours of exclusive content. The DVD, filmed entirely in HD, showcases CHIMAIRA in the studio while recording the "The Infection" album, and chronicles the band's recent, worldwide touring season.

AFM Records has announced plans to release a double CD compilation titled "Metallic Dawning" featuring some of the hottest true, power and heavy metal tracks recorded during the last few years. The album will be sold at a special price, and will include cover artwork by Dimitar Nikolov as well as three previously unreleased songs.

The track listing is as follows:

CD 1:

01. U.D.O. - Black And White
02. MASTERPLAN - Time To Be King
03. HAMMERFALL - Any Means Necessary
04. NIGHTWISH - Master Passion Greed
05. ORDEN OGAN - All These Dark Years
06. AXXIS - Last Man On Earth
07. TRIOSPHERE - Driven
08. PRIMAL FEAR - Riding The Eagle
09. JON OLIVA'S PAIN - Death Rides A Black Horse
10. CRYSTAL VIPER - Stronghold: Under Siege
11. RHAPSODY OF FIRE - Reign Of Terror
12. ATHORN - Humanize The Demon
13. MANIMAL - The Life We Lived
14. JORN - Road Of The Cross
15. ALMAH - Beyond Tomorrow

CD 2:

01. SABATON - Ghost Division
02. ROSS THE BOSS - Dead Man's Curve (previously unreleased)
03. ELVENKING - The Cabal (previously unreleased)
04. CIRCLE II CIRCLE - [new track] (previously unreleased)
05. AXEL RUDI PELL - Devil Zone
06. STORMWARRIOR - Heading Northe
07. BRAINSTORM - Shiver
08. AT VANCE - Salvation Day
09. MOB RULES - Trial By Fire
10. HERMAN FRANK - Father Buries Son
11. MAGICA - Anywhere But Home
12. HEAVENLY - Ashen Paradise
13. NIGHTMARE - Legions Of The Rising Sun
14. SINNER - Crash & Burn
15. SAVAGE CIRCUS - Of Doom And Death
16. RAM - In Victory
17. ROB ROCK - Savior's Call

Daytona Beach, Florida's THE AUTUMN OFFERING will release its new, self-titled album on August 31 via Victory Records. According to a press release, the new CD — which is described as "the band's most crushing release to date" — is "chock-full of blast beats and twin guitar wizardry" while "vocalist Matt McChesney sounds as if he is being burned at the stake."

McChesney and drummer Brian Sculley met while both were in the New England grind band CADAVERYNE. Tommy Church did his time in the death metal outfit END OF ALL, which later went on to become KILL WHITNEY DEAD. Newcomers Jesse Nunn and Carl Bensley both served in Los Angeles bands SCUM OF THE EARTH and SILENT CIVILIAN.

Commented McChesney: " I always thought we were unfairly lumped in with the 'metalcore' bands. I always thought we did much more musically and were a bit more sophisticated than your typical good-cop/bad-cop band. It takes balls to admit this, but yeah, we wrote a few songs that were mistakes. We made a push, half heartedly, for the mainstream. Yet I feel like a few bad choices don't taint two albums that I love dearly.

"There were a million reasons to make a record like this. Also, sensing the death of that genre of metal, it made no sense to make a record that resembled it. I think we came out of it all, integrity intact."

"The Autumn Offering" track listing:

01. Synapse
02. Born Dead
03. Exhale The Locusts
04. Fed To The Lions
05. Hessian Blade
06. Death Mask
07. Viral
08. Among Wolves
09. Bloodlust
10. Myriad Black
11. A Return To Ashes

According to Hits Daily Double, the companion web site of music industry tip sheet HITS, OZZY OSBOURNE's new album, "Scream", is on track — based on one-day sales reports — to sell between 65,000 and 70,000 copies in the United States in its first week of release.

Osbourne's last album, "Black Rain", opened with 152,000 units back in May 2007 to debut at No. 3 on The Billboard 200 chart. That number was in line with the 153,000 first-week tally registered by 2001's "Down to Earth", which entered the Billboard chart at No. 4.

After playing what vocalist Alan "Nemtheanga" Averill of Irish dark metal masters PRIMORDIAL has called the band's "worst show in 20 years" on June 5, 2010 in Athens, Greece, the group has officially parted ways with drummer Simon O'Laoghaire and is currently seeking a replacement. PRIMORDIAL says in a statement, "We need someone who is determined, committed to their craft, stepping up to the plate of touring and playing big festivals. Previous experience would, of course, be preferable. No half measures, no glass-is-half-empty attitudes. Someone who will bring their style and energy to the band and, of course, a fucking killer drummer. Nothing less.

"There is a new album in the offing, the possibility of standing on the stages of some of the biggest metal festivals in 2011 and, of course, some form of income from those….

"It's preferable they know extreme metal, of course; that's where we came from, but more importantly, the MAIDENs, SABBATHs, MOTÖRHEADs and THIN LIZZYs of this world as that's where the drumming in PRIMORDIAL has for the most part been holding court.

"We rehearse in Dublin, of course, so a proximity to there is preferable, but we are not adverse to someone from abroad who can work hard when the time comes and is near enough to a Ryan Air terminal, or a relocation to Dublin is also a possibility."

For more information on the circumstances that led to PRIMORDIAL's split with Simon O'Laoghaire, read this post from Averill on the Rocking.gr web site.

As previously reported, Metal Blade Records has set a July 5 European release date (July 2 in Germany) for the third in the reissue series from PRIMORDIAL. "Spirit The Earth Aflame" was originally released in 2000 and will now be re-released as a two-disc digipack.

PRIMORDIAL released its first-ever DVD, "All Empires Fall", in the U.S. on March 16 via Metal Blade Records. Disc 1 of the two-disc set is the centerpiece of the DVD and features a full PRIMORDIAL headline show recorded live on January 24, 2009 in the band's hometown of Dublin, Ireland. The concert was filmed with five cameras and has an exceptional vintage look due to the hard work in post-production. Disc 2 features live clips from the band's appearances at Ragnarök Festival (Germany), Hove Festival (Norway) and Graspop Metal Meeting (Belgium) in 2008. The second disc also contains a band documentary with all the inside stories and loads of ancient footage from the early stages of the band. The documentary has a playing time of approximately 60 minutes. Interviews with all band members and rehearsal footage complete the second disc of the set.

Florida-based death metal veterans MORBID ANGEL entered Mana Recording Studios in St. Petersburg, Florida on June 22 with engineer Erik Rutan (former MORBID ANGEL guitarist and producer for such bands as CANNIBAL CORPSE, MISERY INDEX and GOATWHORE) to begin recording their ninth full-length album. Due late 2010/early 2011 via Season Of Mist, the new CD will be the band's first to be recorded without longtime drummer Pedro "Pete" Sandoval, who recently underwent back surgery for a deteriorating disc problem. Filling in for him on a temporary basis is Tim Yeung, who has previously played with DIVINE HERESY, ALL THAT REMAINS, NILE, HATE ETERNAL and VITAL REMAINS).

"Population Zero", the new video from Ontario, Canada-based metallers ODIUM, can be viewed below. The live clip was shot in ODIUM's hometown of Hanover with director Chad Archibald (ARISE AND RUIN, EYES SET TO KILL, FAREWELL TO FREEWAY) of Black Fawn Films. The track is the second single from ODIUM's debut album, "At The Bottom", which was released through Year Of The Sun Records. The CD was produced by Greg Dawson (THE END, MONEEN).

British extreme epic power metallers DRAGONFORCE have announced the release of their first live album.

Titled "Twilight Dementia" and produced by longstanding DRAGONFORCE collaborator Karl Groom, along with band guitarists Herman Li and Sam Totman, this double live set is now confirmed for a September 13 release on Spinefarm Records (Europe) and Roadrunner Records (U.S., Canada).

Featuring 13 tracks, including such pivotal numbers as "Fury Of The Storm", "Operation Ground And Pound", "My Spirit Will Go On", "Valley Of The Damned", "Heroes Of Our Time" and "Through The Fire And Flames", this exercise in soaring vocals and advanced guitar pyrotechnics was recorded across 19 U.K. shows, with the very best takes lovingly compiled and mixed by Groom, Totman and Li.

Says Herman: "For years, fans have been asking us to record a live album, but honestly, we never really had the time due to our worldwide touring commitments and studio album recording. However, due to the overwhelmingly positive feedback from fans on the 'Ultra Beatdown World Tour', we decided to finally put some real thought into it…

"The idea was to record every single show from the last leg of the tour, so we could pick the best take of each song without needing to do any overdubs in the studio; keeping the whole thing 'live,' like all the classic live metal albums.

"These recordings really capture the raw sonic energy of a DRAGONFORCE show in fine detail. It is so real that you can hear the noise of the crowd and experience the show as it was that night — you can even hear the guitar pedals being stepped on!"

Formed in 1999, DRAGONFORCE – a multi-national amalgam of players at the very top of their game — has spent the past decade proving that virtuoso musicianship and strong songwriting values can appeal to rock fans right across the board; it's a journey that has seen the band playing sold-out headline shows around the world, including in markets as far afield as China, Hawaii, New Zealand, Russia and Colombia, forging a telling relationship with the "Guitar Hero" franchise, and tucking four strong studio albums under its collective belt, with sales currently topping the two-million mark worldwide.

And now, whilst seeking a replacement for recently departed singer ZP Theart, the band has delivered a set of recordings that successfully highlight the non-stop energy and entertainment-or-bust ethos of the DRAGONFORCE musicians in full live flow.

"Twilight Dementia" (обложка) track listing:

Disc 1:

01. Heroes of Our Time
02. Operation Ground and Pound
03. Reasons to Live
04. Fury of the Storm
05. Fields of Despair
06. Starfire
07. Soldiers of the Wasteland

Disc 2:

01. My Spirit Will Go On
02. Where Dragons Rule
03. The Last Journey Home
04. Valley of the Damned
05. Strike of the Ninja
06. Through the Fire and Flames

Three-quarters of KYUSS — the influential American stoner rock/metal band, originally from Palm Desert, California — reunited for an appearance at last weekend's Hellfest, which took place in Clisson, France. Bassist Nick Olivieri and drummer Brant Bjork joined singer John Garcia to perform the songs "Gardenia" and "Green Machine" during a headlining appearance by Garcia's GARCIA PLAYS KYUSS project.

Massachusetts' metal mammoths THE ACACIA STRAIN have confirmed the appearance of three guest vocalists on "Wormwood", their new album, due July 20 on Prosthetic Records. HATEBREED's Jamey Jasta, 100 DEMONS' Bruce LePage and Kyle Chard of BORN LOW all lend their vocal stylings to the CD, which was recorded at Planet Z Studios in Hadley, Massachusetts with Chris "Zeuss" Harris (HATEBREED, CHIMAIRA, SHADOWS FALL) handling producing, mixing and mastering.

The track listing is as follows:

01. The Beast (feat. Jamey Jasta)
02. The Hills Have Eyes
03. BTM FDR
04. Ramirez
05. Terminated
06. Nightman (feat. Bruce LePage)
07. The Impaler
08. Jonestown (feat. Kyle Chard on iTunes and vinyl version only)
09. Bay Of Pigs
10. The Carpathian
11. Unabomber
12. Tactical Nuke

Jasta commented on the album's opening track, "The Beast", which he appears on: "The song is brutal; kids will lose their minds."

THE ACACIA STRAIN has also just released the first installment in a new series of videos documenting the mysteries surrounding the band since the completion of "Wormwood". Check out the first video featuring the band's longtime friend and tour manager Swis below.

Polish extreme metallers BEHEMOTH recently shot a video for the song "Alas The Lord Is Upon Me", taken from the band's latest album, "Evangelion". The clip was produced and directed by Rafal Szermanowicz and Grupa 13, which previously helmed BEHEMOTH's videos for "Ov Fire And The Void" and "At The Left Hand Ov God".

Behind-the-scenes footage from the making of the "Alas The Lord Is Upon Me" video can be viewed below.

SYSTEM OF A DOWN frontman Serj Tankian will release a new studio album, titled "Imperfect Harmonies", on September 7 via Serjical Strike/Reprise Records. The follow-up to his critically acclaimed 2007 solo debut "Elect the Dead" was once again produced by Tankian himself at his home studio in Los Angeles.

A track from the forthcoming CD, "Borders Are", is now available for free download at www.serjtankian.com (e-mail sign-up required).

KICKHUNTER, the German rock band featuring HELLOWEEN bassist Markus Grosskopf, will release its new album, "All In", on July 23 via AFM Records.

The track listing for the CD is as follows:

01. Mine All Mine
02. Revolution
03. Another Tear
04. Feels Like Home
05. All In
06. Shy Shy Shy
07. Check's In The Mail
08. Boogie Town
09. Deep In My Heart
10. Call Me
11. Ocean

A video for the song "Revolution" was recently shot and will make its online debut soon. Check out an audio excerpt by clicking on the player below.

Swedish progressive/experimental metallers THERION will release their new album, "Sitra Ahra", in September via Nuclear Blast Records. The CD was mixed at the legendary Polar Studios in Stockholm by Lennart Östlund (LED ZEPPELIN, ABBA), who commented, "What you have made here is truly unique." will end up on the final record.

"Sitra Ahra" was mastered in New York and it features the following track listing:

01. Sitra Ahra
02. Kings Of Edom
03. Unguentum Sabbati
04. Land Of Canaan
05. Hellequin
06. 2012
07. Cu Chulain
08. Kali Yoga III
09. The Shells Are Open
10. Din
11. After The Inquisition: Children