Dokken, the legendary hard rock band, is back with a special release of their 1996 live album, One Live Night, now available for pre-order for the first time on 180-gram vinyl. The album, which was recorded before a live audience at The Strand in Redondo Beach, California, features the classic Dokken lineup of Don Dokken, George Lynch, Mick Brown, and Jeff Pilson.


This limited edition double album, limited to only 250 copies, includes intimate performances of "Tooth And Nail," "Into The Fire," and "Alone Again", as well as covers of the Beatles' "Nowhere Man" and Emerson, Lake & Palmer's "From The Beginning". 


Both the Sunspot and Black variants will ship in June 2024.







Tracklisting:


SIDE A 


"Into The Fire"
"Unchain The Night"
"The Maze"


SIDE B


"Nothing Left To Say"
"From The Beginning"
"Tooth And Nail"


SIDE C


"Just Got Lucky"
"I Will Remember"
"Alone Again"


SIDE D


"In My Dreams"
"Nowhere Man"
"It’s Not Love"





 

The Venezuelan death metal band Mind In Lost, now based abroad, has released their new and second studio album Disrupted, available now on digital platforms and on CD and cassette on April 9th. Disrupted is accompanied by a new music video from the band, titled "Displaced To Oblivion".





Disrupted presents a notable evolution in sound and composition compared to the first album from Mind In Lost. Power and depth take center stage, with strident and fast rhythms, sharp guitars with unmistakable distortions, violent percussions and bass played with dense and enveloping harmonies. Aggressive vocals and abstract lyrics immerse the listener in erosive and hostile environments.




The album is a manifesto of desperation, a twisted vision of the world divided into eight tracks loaded with pure old school death metal. Each story narrates events and actions that lack control when mental stability is absent. 





Tracklisting:


"Fall On Concrete"
"Enter The Swarm"
"Psychotic Resurgence"
"Neurodrome"
"Displaced To Oblivion"
"My Will"
"Ritual Of Silence"
"Sedation Abuse Delirium"


For further details, visit Mind In Lost on Facebook.


 

In a new interview with Mexico's ATMósferas Magazine, IRON MAIDEN singer Bruce Dickinson discussed the changes in the music industry over the last four decades. He said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "The music industry has done two things. On the one hand, if you're an artist, it's contracted, as in it's shrunk in terms of the amount of money you get paid for your art — unless you are some massive social media thing, or whatever it is, or unless you're a DJ who turns up with a memory stick and gets paid five times what a band gets paid. And they have to split it eight ways, and he just turns up with his memory stick and pretends he's doing something, and goes away with a huge amount of money. So the world has gone on its ass from that perspective. And there's not a lot that any one individual can do about that. You just have to work with the way the world is."

He continued: "I have no desire whatsoever to be a DJ. I'm a singer, I'm a musician, I have bands and people like that, and they all have to make a living playing with me. So I do the best I can to make sure that everybody's happy, everybody's making a living and we can go out and play great music.

"In terms of the way that records are sold — well, records, downloads, things like that — I think it's a lose-lose situation for everybody," Dickinson added. "I mean, you have all the things like Spotify and stuff like that who are basically ripping off musicians by paying them next to nothing for playing their work. And still, [Spotify] can't make money. So they're not making money [and] the musicians aren't getting paid. New bands can hardly afford to start up, but they do. Why? Because they love what they do. It's that that drives them. It's that that motivates them. So, if the streaming services could manage to actually pay people properly for when people listen, which probably means that people listening have to pay more, which I frankly don't object to, and I don't think probably most listeners would. Maybe less people would listen, but it would be people who care, not people who just do it because it's cheap."

Asked if he thinks the skyrocketing concert ticket prices are having a negative impact on the music industry, Bruce said: "Well, two things. One, it depends what the show is and kind of who the audience are. I mean, I'm not gonna go around and say specific artists, because most of the artists that are charging, like, 1,200 dollars a ticket — like in Las Vegas, if you wanna go and see the U2 show, I think it was 1,200 dollars per seat in the sphere. I've got no interest in paying 1,200 dollars to go and see U2 in the sphere — none. A hundred bucks, maybe. But for me, what's important is to try and keep, on the one hand, the right type of tickets at the right price. So by that I mean the right type of tickets, I mean, the tickets that are in front of the stage, which everybody says should be the most expensive tickets. Actually, no, they should be the most reasonably priced tickets, 'cause the people who are gonna go there to the front of the stage are gonna be people who are real fans, people who are kids, people who can't afford the crazy money, but they are the people that need to be down the front; they're the people that are gonna keep this music alive. And then you get the people that they might be fans, but they wanna bring their wife and they don't wanna get too hot and sweaty and all the rest of it. So, there's some seats at the top or something else like that, what they're gonna pick, and those get priced differently."

Bruce continued: "I understand how promoters try and do it to try and not lose money, because promoters are part of the whole ecosystem. Without promoters, there would be no shows. The promoters have somehow gotta make their money back. So, it's a delicate balance, but in general, ticket prices have gone through the roof. And some of the ticket prices that people pay, well, some of the prices people pay, for me, it's insane. I would never pay that price, but then again, I'm probably not a fan of that particular artist. People who are, maybe they think it's worth it. I mean, certainly with my shows, we've always tried to keep the ticket prices within the normal, normal boundaries. And the same with MAIDEN."

Dickinson's new solo album, "The Mandrake Project", was released on March 1. Bruce and his long-term co-writer and producer Roy "Z" Ramirez recorded the LP largely at Los Angeles's Doom Room, with Roy Z doubling up as both guitarist and bassist. The recording lineup for "The Mandrake Project" was rounded out by keyboard maestro Mistheria and drummer Dave Moreno, both of whom also featured on Bruce's previous solo studio album, "Tyranny Of Souls", in 2005.

Featuring the singles "Afterglow Of Ragnarok" and "Rain On The Graves", the ten-track collection has been receiving swathes of critical acclaim, with rave reviews running around the world.

"The Mandrake Project" is Dickinson's seventh solo album and is released via BMG worldwide on multiple formats.

Last month, Bruce revealed the addition of two new guitarists to his solo touring band. Swedish-born guitarist, songwriter and multi-platinum-credited producer Philip Näslund and Swiss session and touring guitarist Chris Declercq (who incidentally played on Dickinson's current single, "Rain On The Graves") will accompany previously announced members Moreno, Mistheria and Tanya O'Callaghan (bass). Roy Z will not be part of the touring lineup.

The first chance to see the six-piece live will now be at The Observatory in Orange County, California on April 15.

Roy played guitar on Dickinson's 1994 album "Balls To Picasso" and went on to produce, co-write and perform multiple instruments on Bruce's subsequent three solo albums, "Accident At Birth" (1997),"The Chemical Wedding" (1998) and "Tyranny Of Souls" (2005).

O'Callaghan is an Irish musician who joined WHITESNAKE in 2021 and toured with the David Coverdale-fronted outfit the following year. She also hit the road with Dickinson last year as part of a performance of Jon Lord's "Concerto For Group And Orchestra" on nearly a dozen dates in Europe and South America.

Californian drummer Moreno previously played on "Tyranny Of Souls" and has worked with BODY COUNT, Jizzy Pearl, Dizzy Reed and Steve Stevens, among others.

Italian keyboard wizard Mistheria has collaborated with an array of artists live and in the studio, including Rob Rock, Mike Portnoy, Jeff Scott Soto and Joel Hoekstra.

Dickinson made his recording debut with IRON MAIDEN on the "Number Of The Beast" album in 1982. He quit the band in 1993 in order to pursue his solo career and was replaced by Blaze Bayley, who had previously been the lead singer of the metal band WOLFSBANE. After releasing two traditional metal albums with former MAIDEN guitarist Adrian Smith, Dickinson rejoined the band in 1999 along with Smith.

On their recently launched "Metal Masters" U.K. tour with SAXON and URIAH HEEP, British heavy metal legends JUDAS PRIEST are offering a special "Backstage Experience" where fans can take a guided tour backstage and get an exclusive peek at what goes on behind the scenes at a PRIEST show; get a close up look at instruments and gear, try on Rob Halford's jacket, taken individual photo with the famous motorbike, and more. Speaking to the "Everblack" podcast about the VIP backstage tour, PRIEST bassist Ian Hill said: "There'll be an area of exhibits, clothes, instruments and things that have been used over the years and a tour backstage and let people get some idea of what it takes to put that show on. A lot of people don't realize that that's done in a day. People get there early in the morning and they start putting it up and it's all folded down again. And it's on its way somewhere else the next day. And I don't think many people understand that. It's very much a mobile affair. It's not like being in [Las] Vegas and doing a month somewhere where everything stays where it is. Everything's gotta go down and go back up again the next day exactly the same or about as close as you can. So [it's an opportunity] to give some people insight [into] what goes into putting the show together and how many crew are involved. It just doesn't happen overnight. It always does happen overnight, but it just doesn't sort of appear. [Laughs] There's a lot of work goes in — a lot of people do a lot of heavy work, in some instances."

JUDAS PRIEST is touring in support of its latest album, "Invincible Shield", which has entered the U.K. chart at No. 2, just behind Ariana Grande's "Eternal Sunshine".

Prior to "Invincible Shield"'s arrival, PRIEST's highest U.K. chart achievement was with 1980's "British Steel", which reached No. 4.

PRIEST's 2018 album "Firepower" entered the chart at No. 5.

"Invincible Shield" is JUDAS PRIEST's fifth Top 10 album, after the aforementioned "British Steel" and "Firepower", as well as 2014's "Redeemer Of Souls" (No. 6) and the 1979 live album "Unleashed In The East" (No. 10).

"Invincible Shield" has landed at No. 1 in Germany, Finland, Sweden and Switzerland, as well as No. 5 in France, No. 8 in Italy and No. 16 in Australia.

Hill is the sole remaining original member of PRIEST, which formed in 1969. Singer Rob Halford joined the group in 1973 and guitarist Glenn Tipton signed on in 1974. Rob left PRIEST in the early 1990s to form his own band, then came back to PRIEST in 2003. Original guitarist K.K. Downing parted ways with the band in 2011, and was replaced by Richie Faulkner.

Backstage experience on sale now!

https://www.judaspriestinvincibleshield.com/events/

Posted by Judas Priest on Thursday, December 21, 2023

In a new interview with RichardMetalFan, former DEICIDE guitarist Jack Owen was asked what it was like to share guitar duties with Kevin Quirion for Jack's final album with the band, 2013's "In The Minds of Evil". He said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "Kevin's awesome. He is a guy that would do anything for you. And he is so motivated as far as writing and contributing and helping out on the road with anything… But, yeah, Kevin is awesome. He wrote killer stuff on there — very thrashy, but me and him worked well together. There's a lot of co-writing on there between me and him."

Regarding how his split with DEICIDE came about, Jack said: "Oh, it was a problem with new stuff I was writing. I walked into practice and Steve [Asheim, DEICIDE's drummer and main songwriter] had re-recorded it and changed notes here and there for three or four songs that I had. It was stupid at the time. But he's, like, 'Hey, I changed the notes so I get writing credit.' And I'm, like, 'That's not how the songs go, though.' And Glen's [Benton, DEICIDE frontman], like, 'It is now.' [Laughs] So I literally walked out and ghosted them. [Laughs] Later on, it was like, 'Hey, dude, you're out.'"

One of the founding members of CANNIBAL CORPSE, Owen joined DEICIDE in 2004 and played on four of the latter band's studio albums: "The Stench Of Redemption" (2006),"Till Death Do Us Part" (2008),"To Hell With God" (2011) and the aforementioned "In The Minds Of Evil".

In a 2017 interview with Metal Wani, Asheim stated about Owen's departure from DEICIDE: "We were just kind of writing the record, and we were going over the songs. Me and Glen, we were, like, 'We wanna redo the songs.' It's like we had completed them — about nine or twelve, whatever how many songs. They were all right, but we weren't really psyched about them. So we decided to rewrite them. And Jack didn't really like it. And he kind of left one day and just never came back. So that was that."

In 2017, Owen joined SIX FEET UNDER, the death metal band fronted by his ex-CANNIBAL CORPSE bandmate, singer Chris Barnes.

SIX FEET UNDER's fourteenth studio album, "Killing For Revenge", will arrive on May 10 via Metal Blade Records.

DISTURBED has shared video of the March 24 performance of the "Divisive" album track "Don't Tell Me", featuring a guest appearance by HALESTORM's Lzzy Hale, at Knotfest Australia in Brisbane, Australia. Check out the clip below.

DISTURBED played "Don't Tell Me" with Lzzy for the first time three days earlier at Knotfest Australia in Melbourne. A short time later, DISTURBED singer David Draiman shared a couple of backstage and onstage photos of him with Lzzy and he included the following message: "Thanks so much to @officiallzzyhale of @halestormrocks for absolutely nailing @annwilson 's part in #donttellme last night at @knotfestau".

In January, DISTURBED released the Matt Mahurin-directed music video for "Don't Tell Me". The song, an epic emotionally charged duet with HEART's Ann Wilson, marked the first time the band had included a guest feature on an LP.

Regarding how the collaboration with Wilson came about, DISTURBED drummer Mike Wengren told Terrie Carr of WDHA-FM 105.5 FM: "That was always supposed to be the 'power ballad,' per se. And as we were tracking it in the studio, David just threw out the idea, 'Hey, let's do a duet on this song.' We've tossed around the idea before, but there wasn't ever either the right material or the right time. So in this particular case, we kind of said, 'Well, who you've got in mind?' And he didn't even have a list; he just had one person, and that was Ann. It was a no-brainer. 'Hey, let's hit up Ann. Let's see if she'd be into it.' And she was on board right away; we didn't have to convince her."

Mike continued: "[David and Ann] sort of struck up a bit of a friendship, a little bit of a rapport. When [DISTURBED cover version of] 'The Sound Of Silence' came out years back and had its success, she was one of many artists and celebrities that took it up themselves to go on Twitter and praise the song and praise our version of it, which we couldn't have been more honored. Iconic, legendary Ann Wilson thinks that we did a great job with a SIMON & GARFUNKEL cover. That's pretty incredible, a pretty great honor. So when we reached out to her, she was more than willing to jump on board. And she came in and she killed it… And she's super cool and down to earth too, and just incredibly talented. It's such an honor to have her be on our record. And to me, the blending of her voice and David's voice, they really, really work so well together. I'm so proud of David and just so honored to have her a part of our record."

In September 2022, DISTURBED guitarist Dan Donegan, whose divorce inspired "Don't Tell Me", told Meltdown of Detroit's WRIF radio station about the band's collaboration with Wilson: "Early in our career, we wanted to really establish ourselves without having any guests. We didn't really talk about it much, but just [felt], 'This is the band.' Not that we were ever against it, but this far along in our career… We're always pushing ourselves, trying to do stuff that's different musically. And there's so much talent out there and so many people we would love to do collaborations with now or later in our career.

"Ann Wilson had mentioned before — she tweeted about us before," he continued. "A few years back, somebody asked her in an interview or whatever if there's anything new out there, or newer, musically that she's heard that she's fan of, and she mentioned she really loved our version of 'The Sound Of Silence'. And that kind of opened the door to a social media friendship between her and David a bit. And then when we wrote this song, it just seemed like it would lend itself to Ann's voice and then trying to see that merge between her and David's voices together. She jumped on the opportunity. Immediately she responded, and we were, like, 'Holy shit. She just said yes to this.'"

Asked by Meltdown if "Don't Tell Me" is a more mellow track than the standard DISTURBED fare, Dan said: "I can't give it away, but their voices, it's like Fergie and Jesus — a little 'Step Brothers' [2008 movie] quote there… It was a pretty magical moment to be in the room and to hear the two of them harmonize together.

"We tracked David's vocals in Nashville, and we wanted to make it easy and convenient for her, 'cause we were, like, she said yes, she's gonna do it," Donegan continued. "Let's make it as easy as possible on her.' We flew out to California to meet with her. We went into a studio out there for just a couple of hours, and she sang against David's tracks. And he was there kind of going over the harmonies with her and stuff too. So it was kind of a really magical moment to see the two of them working on those harmonies together. It was pretty impressive. And she's such a pro, and she's so damn good. She's a legend. So it was pretty exciting. And it's not like she sits there and jumps on people's albums either, so we take that as a badge of honor to think that there's not many times where somebody as big a legend as she is that she would jump on any album. She doesn't have to, and she chose to be on this one. And she loves the track. And it just came together great."

Released in November 2022, "Divisive" was recorded earlier that year with producer Drew Fulk (MOTIONLESS IN WHITE, LIL PEEP, HIGHLY SUSPECT) in Nashville, Tennessee.

According to Billboard, "Divisive" sold 26,000 equivalent album units in its first week of release, with 22,000 units via album sales.

On the all-format Billboard 200 chart, "Divisive" debuted at No. 13.

DISTURBED has had five No. 1s on the all-genre chart, beginning with "Believe" in 2002.

In a new interview with Colombia's Radioacktiva, THE OFFSPRING guitarist Kevin "Noodles" Wasserman spoke about the progress of the recording sessions for the band's follow-up to 2021's "Let The Bad Times Roll" album. He said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "We're already almost done with the next [LP]. We're hoping to be done by the end of [April]. We're going back in the studio when we get home with, working with [producer] Bob [Rock].

"It's not like we go in and work for a whole bunch of months with Bob and then don't see each other for a couple years," he explained. "We get together every couple of months and go in the studio and work for a week to two weeks. That's just how we like to work. And it's always fun hanging out with Bob. He's just a great guy. And we just talk about music, talk about ideas, what makes a song great — that sort of thing."

Bob Rock who previously helmed three THE OFFSPRING LPs, including "Let The Bad Times Roll".

Last October, Noodles was asked by Rock Sound if there was anything he and his THE OFFSPRING bandmates learned from the making "Let The Bad Times Roll" that they wanted to "lean more into" this time around. Noodles said: "What we learned is when we are not able to go out and play live, we really miss it. And we learned to make the most of our time in the studio and just have fun. It was a really, really creative time for us, actually. Right at the end of making 'Let The Bad Times Roll', ideas were just coming, and we've just been having a good time in the studio since then — and on the road too. It's so good to be back playing live music again."

In September 2023, Noodles was asked by "The Jesea Lee Show" if the new OFFSPRING material follows an "old-school" vein or if it represents "a new era of OFFSPRING". He said: "It's a little bit of both — all that. The last song we did definitely sounds like an old-school — sounds kind of like 'Come Out Swinging'. Definitely some old-school stuff and then some rocking stuff and then some kind of poppy punk stuff too, for sure."

In August 2023, THE OFFSPRING singer Bryan "Dexter" Holland told The Orange County Register about the overall musical and lyrical direction of the new THE OFFSPRING material: "Sometimes you just start writing songs and you don't realize how an album is coming together until it's almost there. Like on 'Americana'. 'Americana' was one of the last songs I wrote because I didn't realize until then all the other songs like 'Why Don't You Get A Job?' and 'Pretty Fly', they were describing American society. I didn't really realize that's what the album was about until I got almost done and thought well, I'll call it 'Americana' because that's like 'Americana' means American culture. This was my vision of what I thought American culture was doing in the late '90s. We're kind of still in that phase with the songs, but we've always liked the energy of punk music and the rebelliousness. What I'm focusing right now on is just melody. I want the songs to be really good."

"Let The Bad Times Roll" was a huge global success, hitting career-high chart debuts with seven Top 5 and ten Top 10 international debuts and nine Top 10 debuts in the U.S. The album peaked at No. 3 on the U.K. chart and hit No. 1 on the Alternative Albums chart in the U.S.

THE OFFSPRING first achieved worldwide success in the 1990s with the release of their album "Smash", which sold over 11 million copies. Following "Smash", they continued to release hit after hit, popularizing rock at a mainstream level.

Throughout THE OFFSPRING's career, they've sold over a staggering 40 million albums, and toured arenas, and built a global fan base. "Let The Bad Times Roll" marked the band's tenth studio album and third album produced by Rock.

Originally formed under the name MANIC SUBSIDAL, THE OFFSPRING's lineup consists of Holland, Wasserman and bassist Todd Morse.

Three former members of DIMMU BORGIR — bassist/clean vocalist ICS Vortex (real name: Simen Hestnæs),keyboardist Mustis (real name: Øyvind Mustaparta) and drummer Tjodalv (real name: Ian Kenneth Åkesson) — rejoined the Norwegian symphonic black metallers on stage last night (Saturday, March 30) during their set at the Inferno festival at the Rockefeller Music Hall in Oslo, Norway to perform the song "The Insight And The Catharsis" from their 1999 album " Spiritual Black Dimensions". Fan-filmed video of their appearance can be seen below.

When DIMMU BORGIR parted ways with ICS Vortex and Mustis in August 2009, the band said in a statement that "the creative force in the band" was "highly intact, perhaps even more so than ever." Around the same time, Mustis issued a statement claiming that his dismissal from DIMMU BORGIR was caused by his efforts to "address the fact that many songs written by me had not been registered properly under my name in their credits. Without naming every single track, let us just say that a good majority of albums like 'Puritanical Euphoric Misanthropia' and 'In Sorte Diaobli' would have been vastly different had I not composed and created as much as I actually did," he said. "Sadly, based on terrible gaps in the communication process and a failure to find logical rationale for why this had been done this way found me hitting wall after wall as opposed to finding a professional and reasonable solution to the problem. My inquiries and investigation into the issues which I wished to resolve and move on from would in the end find me being fired from the group. No discussions about it, just 'goodbye' (via text message)."

A day later, ICS Vortex released his own statement in which he called Mustis "the true creative force in DIMMU for the last ten years".

For their part, the remaining members of DIMMU BORGIR fired back at their former bandmates, saying that they had "put up with unprofessionalism and bad live performances for years." They also claimed that they had been "falsely accused in statements posted online by recently fired members based on their ignorance, bitterness and greed."

DIMMU BORGIR's current lineup is officially a trio comprising Shagrath (Stian Tomt Thoresen) on lead vocals, Silenoz (Sven Atle Kopperud) on rhythm guitar and Galder (Tom Rune Anderson) on lead guitar. They are joined by session musicians Dariusz "Daray" Brzozowski on drums (since 2008),Geir "Gerlioz" Bratland on keyboards (since 2010) and Victor Brandt on bass (since 2018).

DIMMU BORGIR's latest album, "Eonian", came out in 2018. The LP was released right in time for the band's 25th anniversary in 2018, about eight years after its predecessor, "Abrahadabra". Since then, the infernal core trio consisting of Shagrath, Silenoz and Galder has played various tours all around the world, including shows at leading metal festivals such as Wacken Open Air and Hellfest.

DIMMU BORGIR released a collection of its cover songs, "Inspiratio Profanus", in December 2023 via Nuclear Blast Records. "Inspiratio Profanus" features the thunderous first single, "Black Metal" by the extreme metal pioneers VENOM, the genre-defining "Perfect Strangers" (DEEP PURPLE),fan favorite "Burn In Hell" (TWISTED SISTER),and electrifying renditions from the legendary CELTIC FROST, as well as other immensely influential artists.



Exclusive Dimmu Borgir Reunion!

Posted by Petar Yordanov on Saturday, March 30, 2024

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Thank you @infernofestivalnorway , Oslo for the great support 🖤 ..Special thanks to Tjodalv-Mustis -Vortex for joining in on «The Insight and the Catharsis 🙌🏻 :📸 Finn Håkon.

Posted by Dimmu Borgir on Sunday, March 31, 2024

Mike Portnoy has completed recording the drums for DREAM THEATER's sixteenth studio album. The upcoming effort will mark the progressive metal legends' first LP since Portnoy's return to the band last October.

Earlier today (Saturday, March 30),Mike took to his social media to write: "Today is my last day behind this kit for a while…yes indeed, my drums for #DT16 are done!! But that is just the beginning…work will now continue in the coming months ahead on guitars, bass, keys, vocals, percussion (not to mention writing lyrics, mixing, mastering etc etc)

"I really can't divulge anything more as we are (purposefully) keeping a very tight lid on any & all info at this early stage…but I will say we are all BLOWN AWAY and sooo extremely excited about what we've created! We cannot wait for you all to hear this…but patience, all will be revealed in due time…"

Portnoy co-founded DREAM THEATER in 1985 with guitarist John Petrucci and bassist John Myung. Mike played on 10 DREAM THEATER albums over a 20-year period, from 1989's "When Dream And Day Unite" through 2009's "Black Clouds & Silver Linings", before exiting the group in 2010.

This past January, Petrucci told GuitarWorld.com editor-in-chief Michael Astley-Brown that he and his DREAM THEATER bandmates were "looking forward to" working on new music.

"It's really exciting to have [Portnoy] back in the band," John said. "We started the band together. I talked [earlier in the interview] about being 18 at Berklee [College Of Music]; that's where we met. And we've been friends ever since. So, having him back in the band is really special to all of us. I know he's really excited as well.

"We haven't started [working on new music]. We haven't written a note yet, but I'm sure when we get together, it's just gonna be like old times. So, I'm really looking forward to doing that and diving in."

Asked where he wanted to take his guitar playing on the next DREAM THEATER album, Petrucci said: "Uh, you know what? To me, making a new record is an opportunity to kind of say, like, 'All right, what haven't I done before? What can I do that's gonna be interesting to me, that's gonna sort of make me excited?' And usually, if you start out with that kind of goal, it'll happen. You'll come up with stuff. You'll explore. And I try not to be satisfied right away and try to like just change things up.

"So, I don't know the answer to that," he explained. "We'll find out. But I think what's gonna be fun is just all getting together in the studio and seeing where things go and kind of reuniting with that sort of classic magic that started the band. It's exciting. And I think that's gonna dictate where things go. But on the guitar, man, I don't know. I can't wait. I love it. I love being in the studio."

Portnoy talked about his return to DREAM THEATER last December in an interview with Drumeo. Regarding how he ended up back in the band, Portnoy said: "It's been 13 years, and I think time heals all wounds, as the expression goes. It's been many, many years now of kind of rekindling my relationships with the guys, starting with John Petrucci… Maybe five, six, seven years ago or so, we just reconnected. Our families — his wife and my wife were in a band together even before we knew our wives. Our kids have grown up together. My daughter and John Petrucci's daughter shared an apartment together in New York for the last five years. So the families were still close. So John and I inevitably reconnected on a personal level. And I guess it really started to gain some traction during COVID lockdown because I couldn't tour and DREAM THEATER couldn't tour, so John decided he wanted to do a solo album and he asked me to play on it. So that was the first step, I guess, in this direction. So I played on John's solo album. And then a few months later, we did an LTE [LIQUID TENSION EXPERIMENT] album with, with JohnandJordan [Rudess, DREAM THEATER keyboardist]. So that brought three of us back together. And then the following year I ended up doing John's solo tour, and our wives' band were opening for us. So we had the wives out with us. So it just seemed like it was all starting to come together on a personal level and then the musical level as well. And then I think the final piece was me reconnecting with [DREAM THEATER singer] James LaBrie 'cause James and I hadn't spoken for over a decade."

He continued: "I went to see DREAM THEATER play in New York, I guess around 2022, and that was my first time seeing James in over a decade. And literally, I'm not exaggerating, within five seconds of seeing each other, it was hugs, kisses and it was like any of the drama and bullshit that happened during all of those years of the split, it just melted away immediately. And with James and I buddying up again, it kind of just… it began to seem like an inevitability. It wasn't ever, I don't think, in either of our plans to eventually reunite. In fact, if you would have asked me this five years ago, I probably wouldn't have put money on it. But with the developments of everything I just laid out for you, then it started to really feel like, well, maybe this is inevitable. It just seems like we're in the right place and the right time at this stages of our lives. All those years of DREAM THEATER, we were in our twenties and thirties and forties. And now here we are, most of us in our fifties and some of the members in their sixties, and it just seems like life is too short to not be with the people you love and play the music that is part of your life and your heart and soul. So, yeah, here we are."

 Portnoy went on to say that he had no hard feelings for now-ex-DREAM THEATER drummer Mike Mangini, who has been publicly very supportive of Portnoy's return to the band.

"It was nice to see something like this happen with taking the high road and class and grace and dignity and not a war of words and drama and B.S.," Portnoy said. "This was really handled so well, and I have to give Mike Manginiall the credit in the world for that, 'cause it's not easy being replaced. I can't imagine. He handled it really well, and I guess the things he said were so classy. So, yeah, I was really glad to see how well he took it. 'Cause I was a little concerned about that. But it couldn't have come off any better."

Portnoy noted that he had been "friends with [Mangini] before he even knew any of the guys in DREAM THEATER. He and I were friends in the '90s when he was still playing in EXTREME and stuff like that and we would do clinics together and stuff," he said. "So, yeah, he's an old friend. And I could never get mad at the guy for taking the gig. I mean, how could you not? It was a great opportunity and a great gig. So, yeah, it was nice when all those resentments and all that stuff melted away, because it was a tough couple of years in the start of the split."

As for Portnoy's role during DREAM THEATER's new era, the drummer said: "I think that was the one discussion that John Petrucci and I had. We still to this point even haven't talked about business or money or finances or any of that. It was all about, okay, we know we love each other. We know we wanna play together again. But what is the new dynamic gonna be? Because for all those first 25 years, John and I produced the albums together. We kind of led the band together. I was handling the bulk of the responsibilities and decisions making and things like that. And so when I left the band, I was very much a control freak. And then now the last 13 years or so, obviously they've had to re-design their inner structure and how they function, how they work. I think John produces the albums himself now. So it remains to be seen how the 'new old' DREAM THEATER will function. But I think we're all older and wiser."

He continued: "When I left the band 13 years ago, I was a control freak — absolutely. I'll be the first to admit it. And I think as time has gone on, I've loosened up on all that. All the bands I've done over the last 13 years, I've had to learn how to compromise, how to collaborate, how to let go of things. I've even had these hired-gun gigs with TWISTED [SISTER] and AVENGED [SEVENFOLD] where I just play drums. So, we're just gonna have to find our feet in the new dynamic. I think there will be many areas that I hope I could regain some control, like writing the setlists, it was always a big one for me. But then there's other areas that I'm more than happy to step away and not even be involved with. I'd be happy to not write any lyrics again, which is what I used to always write a lot of lyrics back in the day. But I'd be fine with not doing that. It's a lot of things — designing the artwork or the merchandise. You've gotta pick your battles, and I guess we'll find our feet and see where everybody kind of fits into the structure of the new dynamic."

Portnoy attended DREAM THEATER's concert in March 2022 at Beacon Theatre in New York City. It was the first time he witnessed his then-former bandmates perform live since his exit from the iconic progressive metal outfit 13 years ago.

When Portnoy's return to DREAM THEATER was first announced on October 25, 2023, Mangini said in a statement: "I understand DREAM THEATER's decision to get Mike Portnoy back at this time. As was said from Day 1, my place was not to fill all the roles that Mike held in the band. I was to play the drums in order to help the band carry on. My main role of keeping our live show working tightly on a nightly basis was an intense and rewarding experience. Thankfully, I got to experience playing music with these iconic musicians, as well as some fun times laced with humor."

Mangini joined DREAM THEATER in late 2010 through a widely publicized audition following the departure of Portnoy, who co-founded DREAM THEATER 38 years ago. Mangini beat out six other of the world's top drummers — Marco Minnemann, Virgil Donati, Aquiles Priester, Thomas Lang, Peter Wildoer and Derek Roddy — for the gig, a three-day process that was filmed for a documentary-style reality show called "The Spirit Carries On".

Photo credit: Travis Shinn

Today is my last day behind this kit for a while…yes indeed, my drums for #DT16 are done!! But that is just the...

Posted by Mike Portnoy on Saturday, March 30, 2024

Video of ELEGANT WEAPONS performing the songs "Bitter Pill" and "Horns For A Halo" live at Sweetwater Studios can be seen below.

ELEGANT WEAPONS features JUDAS PRIEST's Richie Faulkner on guitar and Ronnie Romero (RAINBOW, MSG) on vocals, alongside Dave Rimmer (URIAH HEEP) on bass and Christopher Williams (ACCEPT) on drums.

ELEGANT WEAPONS' debut album, "Horns For A Halo", was released on May 26, 2023 via Nuclear Blast. The LP was recorded with bassist Rex Brown (PANTERA, DOWN) and drummer Scott Travis (JUDAS PRIEST) and was helmed by acclaimed British producer Andy Sneap, who has previously worked with JUDAS PRIEST, ACCEPT, EXODUS and MEGADETH, among many others.

In a recent interview with Jorge Botas of Portugal's Metal Global, Faulkner spoke about a possible second album from ELEGANT WEAPONS. He said: "We've already started. We've recorded drums for the second record. We got together in March, I think, of [2023]; I think it was March — I'm not sure. We got together in the studio and played together to record the drums, get the drums recorded. So it's been started."

Asked if the second ELEGANT WEAPONS LP will arrive in 2024 or 2025, Richie said: "I don't know. Maybe [in 2024]. Back in the day, bands used to release a record every year, sometimes two in a year. I know we don't do things under the same cycle anymore. But the ideas are there for the songs. We all were together, and we thought why not get at least the drums going. We got the drums and we got the guitars, and stuff like that, so why not start the process?

"It was important for me, really, when I started the band… It was a band that it wasn't just a one-record type thing," Faulkner explained. "It was a band that plays live and records — hopefully — multiple records and grows and evolves together moving into the future. So the next record is just a part of that sort of process, really."

Richie went on to say that he plans on focusing on ELEGANT WEAPONS full-time once PRIEST has officially called it a day.

"PRIEST music is gonna be around a lot longer than we are," he said. "It's legendary music. They're genre-defining musicians and it's a genre-defining band. It will be around for a long time. But none of us gets out of this alive. That's just the reality of it. So if one day that call comes in and that's the last tour or the last album, whatever it is… I mean, I joined the band on what was the farewell tour. Luckily it wasn't, and we're still here 12 years later. [It's] fantastic. But at the time, I think I would have been silly not to consider what I was gonna do after the band, because of the circumstances of the tour. It was a farewell tour — it was [supposed to be] the last tour — so what am I gonna do after? So it's always been in the back of my mind. And this is a band that seems natural to me to continue with if that call ever came in."

ELEGANT WEAPONS played a number of shows in Europe in June and July 2023, including performances with PANTERA, festival appearances and headlining gigs.

ELEGANT WEAPONS made its first two festival appearances on June 16, 2023 at Hellfest in Clisson, France and on June 18, 2023 at Graspop Metal Meeting in Dessel, Belgium.

The clips below feature German metal legends, Helloween, performed at the Tokyo Budokan on September 16th, 2023 . The live footage below is taken from a WOWOW network livestream couŕtesy of antere5.


Setlist:


"Skyfall"
"Eagle Fly Free"
"Mass Pollution"
"Future World"
"Power"
"Save Us"
"Walls of Jericho"
"Metal Invaders / Victim of Fate / Gorgar / Ride the Sky"
"Heavy Metal (Is the Law)"
"Forever and One (Neverland)"
- guitar solo - (Sascha Gerstner)
"Best Time"
"Dr. Stein"
"How Many Tears"




Encore:
"Perfect Gentleman"
"Keeper of the Seven Keys"


Encore 2:
- drum solo - (Dani Löble)
"I Want Out"














Reigning Phoenix Music (RPM) announces the signing of legendary power metal institution, Helloween, for their upcoming studio album. Since their formation in 1984 and the spectacular reunion in 2017, Helloween are undoubtedly one of the world's outstanding representatives of the genre.


RPM comments on the signing: "It is a true milestone for Reigning Phoenix Music to welcome Helloween to our family of artists. Helloween are not just a band, they epitomize the energy and passion of power metal. Their music has inspired generations, and we are proud to collaborate in order to reach new heights."


Helloween themselves are equally enthusiastic about the new partnership: "Sven Bogner and his team have convinced us with their ideas and enthusiasm. They live and love metal, and this is what connects us - we look forward to be working with them!," explains singer Andi Deris.


The combination of Helloween and Reigning Phoenix Music promises a powerful synergy between one of the world's most influential power metal bands and a label that is passionate about promoting up-and-coming talents as well as established artists. Fans can look forward to thrilling musical experiences and innovative projects. Specifically, Helloween will start working on new material from the summer and are planning to release a new studio album in 2025.


Helloween are:


Michael Kiske - vocals
Andi Deris - vocals
Kai Hansen - guitars, vocals
Michael Weikath - guitars
Sascha Gerstner - guitars
Markus Grosskopf - bass
Daniel Löble - drums

Keeping in mind that it IS April 1, King Crimson founder Robert Fripp has announced that he has joined OnlyFans. OnlyFans is an internet content subscription service based in London, UK. The service is used primarily by sex workers who produce pornography, but it also hosts the work of other content creators, such as physical fitness experts and musicians.


Check out Robert's video below. A message attached to the video states: "Many online posters and commentators have referred to Fripp's cruel unavailability to fans. This has now been addressed."










Yesterday, Fripp and his wife, Toyah Willcox, released their latest Sunday Lunch video, stating: "Time for a new Sunday Lunch for you  - and OMG you are going to love this!!"

Cemetery Skyline have released their debut single, "Violent Storm", via Century Media Records. Stream/download the single here, and watch a music video below.


Says the band: "Cemetery Skyline. A band crawling out from the Scandinavian nightless nights. Formed somewhere in time in 2020, from the idea to create ageless dark music with respect to our generation’s biggest influencers. This Nordic collaboration was born with the plan to create something which has not been out there before, something different to all the music the band members have ever done. A unique combination of heavy riffs and emotions packed in a dark and deep creative context. You may call it gothic rock, dark rock or even heavy metal. We just call it Nordic Gothic."







In regards to the "Violent Storm" single, the band adds: "This song is highly inspired by the late nightly empty roads of GOTHenburg and their desperate stories of loneliness and getting lost to the unique beautiful misery and sorrow of Nordic gothic. It’s about a built-up frustration and how it can get out of hand, the feeling of helplessness and how it can take over. It’s a simple, rocky song that represents the band perfectly. "





Cemetery Skyline is:


Vocals: Mikael Stanne (Dark Tranquillity, The Halo Effect, Grand Cadaver)
Guitars: Markus Vanhala (Insomnium, Omnium Gatherum, I Am The Night Horde)
Keyboards: Santeri Kallio (Amorphis)
Bass: Victor Brandt (Dimmu Borgir, Witchery, ex-Entombed, ex-Satyricon)
Drums: Vesa Ranta (Sentenced, The Abbey)

In celebration of the upcoming 50th anniversary of the legendary Motörhead, Z2 has gathered a staggering lineup of icons to narrate their personal encounters with the man that came to define the sex, drugs, and rock & roll lifestyle, Lemmy Kilmister.


No Remorse: The Illustrated True Stories Of Lemmy Kilmister And Motörhead kicks off this 176-page tribute with a deeply personal foreword by his dear friend Dave Grohl (Nirvana, Foo Fighters) and a truly touching afterword by his longtime friend and collaborator Ozzy Osbourne.







The book pairs 25 rockstar contributors with 25 acclaimed illustrators to tell the stories of their true and unbelievable personal encounters with the heralded founding father of Motörhead. Recounting their history with Lemmy over the span of his life and career are the greatest living musicians - Ozzy Osbourne, Lars Ulrich, Slash, Chrissie Hynde, Dee Snider, Dave Navarro plus world-class writers Neil Gaiman, Michael Moorcock, pro-wrestling giants Triple H, Corey Graves, TV & Film luminaries including Matt Pinfield, Penelope Spheeris, Riki Rachtman, as well as his bandmates Phil Campbell, Mikkey Dee, and Slim Jim Phantom.


With a gorgeous variety of visual approaches the artists of No Remorse: The Illustrated True Stories Of Lemmy Kilmister And Motörhead; including Dave Chisholm, Bob Fingerman, Jay Jay Jackson, and Jim Mahfood capture the many facets of these incredible true tales of Lemmy Kilmister. The cover art is illustrated and designed by comic book legend Tim Bradstreet (Punisher, Hellblazer) and features the gleam of a holographic coating on Lemmy’s classic aviator specs!


“Anyone who ever crossed paths with Lemmy Kilmister left with a very unique experience and stories to share for a lifetime,” says Josh Bernstein, Z2 President and the book’s co-editor/designer. “The outpouring of those stories from his friends and family, paired with some of underground art’s greatest illustrators, brings Lemmy and Motörhead roaring back to life on every page.”





Like all Z2 collaborations, this book comes in a variety of highly-collectible editions, including the 1:5 “All-Access” Edition which features a framed AAA Artist Pass from Lemmy’s 70th birthday party at the Whisky A Go-Go; and the 1:25 “Backstage” Edition that comes with a framed original 2012-2013 Motörhead tour laminate. All of these artifacts are from the personal collection of Lemmy Kilmister. The “No Remorse” editions of the book will come with an exclusive white vinyl variant of the legendary Motörhead double LP, No Remorse, a poster triptych set by renowned designer Hydro74, and a three-card collectors set presented in a custom frame featuring the art of the iconic thrash-metal painter Ed Repka (Megadeth, Super7).





All collector editions will include the oversized deluxe volume of the No Remorse: The Illustrated True Stories Of Lemmy Kilmister And Motörhead book contained in a metallic foil embossed slipcase, with die cuts that reveal the holographic coating on Lemmy’s classic aviator specs on the cover of the book. All editions available for pre-order now!


From his early years, Lemmy gravitated to the live-fast attitude of rock & roll, starting out as a roadie for Jimi Hendrix, joining the seminal space-rock outfit Hawkwind and famously getting fired from the band for “doing the wrong drugs." Forming Motörhead in 1975 after his dismissal, he set out to kick things up and create an aural assault, the likes of which had not been heard. Lemmy Kilmister became the unequaled standard for the Rock & Roll lifestyle.


Of their first meeting, Dave Grohl recounts, “until then I'd never met what I'd call a real rock 'n' roll hero before. Fuck Elvis and Keith Richards, Lemmy's the king of rock 'n' roll. A living, breathing, drinking, snorting, fucking legend. No one else comes close.” It’s the life of a Rock & Roll legend, and No Remorse: The Illustrated True Stories Of Lemmy Kilmister And Motörhead captures it all.


Story Contributors: Sir Neil Warnock, Wayne Kramer, Michael Moorcock, Ozzy Osbourne, Phil Campbell, Chrissie Hynde, Kim McAuliffe, Slim Jim Phantom, Lars Ulrich, Neil Gaiman, Dee Snider, Slash, Steffan Chirazi, Lita Ford, Riki Rachtman, Penelope Spheeris, Dave Navarro, Mikkey Dee, Mikael Maglieri Jr., Todd Singerman, Lar Frederiksen, Dave Grohl, Paul ‘Triple H’ Levesque, Matt Pinfield, Josh Bernstein, Steve Luna, Corey Graves


Artist Contributors: Piotr Kowalski, Pat Moriarity, John Bergin, Joe Simko, John Bivens, Chris Visions, Fred Harper, Bob Fingerman, Steve Chanks, Dave Chisholm, JayJay Jackson, Felipe Sobreiro, Gideon Kendall, Ron Joseph, Steve Kurth, Shane Patrick White, Jim Mahfood, Luke McGarry, Ryan Dunlavey, Koren Shadmi, Jeff McClelland, Jeff McComskey, Wes Hargis, Brent Engstrom, Erik Rodriguez, Sean Pryor, Josh Bernstein, Frank Powers, Tony Parker, Tim Bradstreet, Ed Repka, Hydro 74


No Remorse: The Illustrated True Stories Of Lemmy Kilmister And Motörhead will be available in hardcover via Z2 (Simon & Schuster) for a list price of $35.00 and at retailers everywhere this summer.

In a new interview with Jeff Gaudiosi of MisplacedStraws.com, Rik Emmett of Canadian rock legends TRIUMPH was asked if he think he and his bandmates will ever get inducted into the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame. He responded (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "I think you're dreaming in Technicolor. And the reason is because — first of all, in Canada… I mean here's the truth about TRIUMPH in Canada: We never won a Juno Award. We did get to go in the Juno Hall Of Fame, but it was really because the Juno, the CARAS [Canadian Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences, which administers the Juno Awards] people kind of went, 'Well, they've stuck around and they lasted so long and they got back together again. And yeah, they did that. And the [Canadian Music] Industry Hall Of Fame took 'em… So, okay, we should give 'em a Hall Of Fame award.' So, we got that, and I think it was literally just for persistence, for living long enough. And the reason for that was because in the Canadian pool, in the early days, it was, like, 'Well, you're not gonna win. RUSH is gonna win.' Of course, RUSH is gonna win. And then it was more, like, the Canadian music business had shifted, and it was, like, 'Well, you're not gonna win. GLASS TIGER is gonna win.' 'You're not gonna win. PLATINUM BLONDE is gonna win.' Things shifted."

He continued: "Years later, I did a thing where I did a tour and I did an album with Pavlo and Oscar Lopez. It was like a guitar trio kind of a project, and we toured the country and we were up for an instrumental Juno of the year. And I said to those guys, I looked at the thing, and I said, 'We're never gonna win.' And they went, 'Oh, Rik, you're so pessimistic.' I go, 'No, I'm not.' I'm actually not. Professionally, I'm known as an optimist. 'The reason that I'm pessimistic about this is,' I go, 'there's a couple of people from ARCADE FIRE that did a little offshoot thing, and they have a voting block of a much larger label than the distributor for ours. We're never gonna even get close. We won't get within sniffing distance politically."

Emmett added: "In the United States, the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame politically… I mean, we were on RCA Records, which was — of the seven major labels, they were number six. And then we sued them, and we lost, and then we moved to MCA, and they were the seventh largest. They were the smallest and they had the least impact of all the labels. Now, once they combined their publishing division with their record division, and then they went on this spree where they bought Motown and they just kept acquiring catalogs and they became — now the only game in town is Universal; most of the other labels don't even exist. But at the time, we were with these small labels — not small, but the weakest ones. So voting-wise, we were never that big, we didn't sell enough records, we didn't have enough of a commercial, industrial kind of impact to have it be that the people go, 'Oh, yeah. Well, I remember when they went quadruple platinum.' We never did go quadruple platinum. We struggled to get gold up to platinum, and it would eventually happen with some of the records, but not very many of them. And then you're in a world where there's JOURNEY. Well, they went, like, seven times platinum, 10 times platinum. Oh, there's FOREIGNER. There's some noise this year about FOREIGNER. I don't think there's probably nothing in their catalog that was under five or six times platinum. They deserve to be in there; they really do. There's a good reason why [Paul] McCartney is swearing [in producer Mark Ronson's compilation of videos from famous friends vocalizing their support for FOREIGNER's induction into the Rock Hall]… They should have been in a long time ago. But there was a huge prejudice that [Rolling Stone co-founder] Jann Wenner, it bled throughout the entire board of that thing, which was, 'No, we're only gonna recognize the truly great, and the thing that defines truly great is what I say is truly great.' And he thought FOREIGNER and RUSH and STYX and TRIUMPH, he thought all that stuff was crap. And he would hire writers to write stuff in Rolling Stone that would say, 'Yeah, these bands are shit. They're terrible. They're crap.' And so that became the sort of the standard thing of, 'Yeah, well, no, we're not gonna put them in the Hall Of Fame. They're shitty.' There you go."

Emmett recently completed radiation treatment for prostate cancer.

Rik, who quit TRIUMPH — acrimoniously, in 1988 — over music and business disputes, went on to pursue a solo career, while TRIUMPH carried on with future BON JOVI guitarist Phil X for one more album, 1992's "Edge Of Excess", before calling it a day the following year.

Emmett was estranged, both personally and professionally, from the two other members of the legendary Canadian classic rock power trio for 18 years before they repaired their relationship.

Rik's memoir, "Lay It On The Line - A Backstage Pass To Rock Star Adventure, Conflict And Triumph", came out last October via ECW Press.

After 20 years apart, Emmett, Gil Moore (drums) and Mike Levine (bass) played at the 2008 editions of the Sweden Rock Festival and Rocklahoma. A DVD of the historic Sweden performance was made available four years later.

As Creed readies to embark on their first headlining shows in over a decade, Craft Recordings celebrates the recently reunited band and their enduring catalog of music with the first wide vinyl release of their multiplatinum-selling Greatest Hits collection.


Originally issued in 2004 as a limited-edition pressing, the 13-track compilation spans the Grammy and American Music Award-winning band’s first three albums (1997’s My Own Prison, 1999’s Human Clay, and 2001’s Weathered) and features such chart-topping singles as “Higher,” “One Last Breath,” “With Arms Wide Open,” and “My Sacrifice.” As a special bonus, the 2-LP set features an etching on Side D that mirrors the cover art.


Arriving May 24 and available for pre-order today, Greatest Hits can also be found in a variety of limited exclusives, including Green Smoke vinyl (via Creed’s official store), Orange Smoke (Craft Recordings), Red Smoke (Target), Gray Smoke (Best Buy), and Blue Smoke (Walmart).The collection is also available to stream/download now.




With over 53 million albums sold worldwide, Creed remains one of modern rock’s most successful acts. Formed in 1994 by the prolific writing team of Scott Stapp (vocals) and Mark Tremonti (guitar), plus bassist Brian Marshall and drummer Scott Phillips, the Tallahassee, FL band skyrocketed to international fame, thanks to their winning combination of anthemic hooks, rousing guitar riffs, and introspective lyricism.


Greatest Hits captures Creed’s unparalleled journey through memorable singles from their first three albums. The collection opens with selections from the band’s 1997 debut, My Own Prison. The album, which was later certified 6x Platinum, introduced Creed with tracks like “One,” “What’s This Life For,” and “My Own Prison” - all of which broke the Top Ten of Billboard’s Alternative and Mainstream Rock charts. With more than 15 million copies sold worldwide, My Own Prison stands among the most successful debuts of all time.


The story continues with 1999’s Human Clay. One of the best-selling albums of all time in the US, the Diamond-certified LP made Creed one of the biggest acts in the world, thanks to such stratospheric hits as “With Arms Wide Open,” which earned a Grammy for Best Rock Song and marked the band’s first No.1 on the Billboard Hot 100, and “Higher,” which spent an astonishing 57 weeks on the US pop chart, where it peaked at No.7. The album, which has sold over 20 million copies worldwide, also includes the fan favorites “What If” (featured in the soundtrack to Scream 3) and “Are You Ready.”


2001’s Weathered - which marked the band’s final studio album until 2009’s Full Circle - found Creed pushing the boundaries of their work through deeply personal lyricism and some of their heaviest material yet, including the Top 10 hits “My Sacrifice” and “One Last Breath,” as well as tracks like “Bullets” and “Weathered.” The album, which sat atop the US charts for a historic consecutive eight-week run, has since been certified 6x Platinum.


Now, 30 years into their incredible journey, Creed are bigger than ever. Late last year, the Texas Rangers made “Higher” their unofficial anthem, as it spurred them to their first World Series win. More recently, the song appeared in a high-profile Paramount+ Super Bowl commercial, while a NASCAR Daytona 500 campaign also incorporates the hit single. Along the way, Creed have gained a new generation of fans, thanks to countless TikTok videos that feature their songs.


In July 2023, after an 11-year hiatus, Creed announced their long-awaited reunion. In the months ahead, fans will have multiple opportunities to see the band live, beginning with a headlining spot on the sold-out Summer of ’99 Cruise. They’ll continue their headlining run on the Summer of ’99 Tour, where they will be joined by such acts as Finger Eleven, 3 Doors Down, Hinder, Fuel, and Daughtry. Later this year, Creed look forward to celebrating the 25th anniversary of Human Clay, while touring North America throughout the end of the year. Visit the band’s official here for tickets and more info.





Creed’s Greatest Hits tracklisting:


Side A:
"Torn"
"My Own Prison"
"What's This Life For"
"One"


Side B:
"Are You Ready?"
"Higher"
"With Arms Wide Open"
"What If"


Side C:
"One Last Breath"
"Don't Stop Dancing"
"Bullets"
"My Sacrifice"
"Weathered"


(Photo - Chuck Brueckmann)







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ANTHRAX singer Joey Belladonna's JOURNEY tribute band called BEYOND FRONTIERS performed at Keswick Theatre in Glenside, Pennsylvania on Wednesday, March 27. Fan-filmed video of the concert can be seen below, courtesy of the LORDOFTHE80S YouTube channel.

In a recent interview with Ernest Skinner of Canada's Border City Rock Talk, Belladonna was asked if he was serious when he said that he would love to sing with JOURNEY one day. He responded: "I've been around [the JOURNEY] guys, my wife and I.. God, I know Deen [Castronovo, JOURNEY drummer], and I've had dinner with Neal [Schon, JOURNEY guitarist], and soundchecked with the crew. I mean, I'm so far into knowing the whole band and crew that I always would have loved to have done that. 'Cause I just like the music. The music is really appealing to me. I love all the melodic [aspects of it]. I love the musicianship. There's so much there. Without really outright looking for that gig, without asking, you know what I mean? Yeah, I love the music and that's why I put we put BEYOND FRONTIERS together because I've always thought it would be a fun night and I like singing the music."

Joey went on to say that he and rest of BEYOND FRONTIERS are currently working on "studio versions" of their "whole set. And it sounded pretty good," he said. "It just hasn't really been mixed yet to where I want it."

In September 2023, Belladonna was asked point blank by Mike Hsu of the 100 FM The Pike radio station what he would say if he was contacted right now and asked to front JOURNEY. Joey responded: "You know, I would definitely be really interested in doing that. That would be great. Not that I think that that's gonna happen, but, yeah, it would be great. I'd love that challenge. It would be great."

Regarding why he chose to launch a JOURNEY tribute band, Belladonna told 100 FM The Pike: "Well, I've been singing JOURNEY stuff throughout the years, but never had a band that I thought that would be, you know, willing to do it correctly and lengthy like where I could keep it going. I've always liked the music so much. I've owned all the music. I liked JOURNEY long before Steve [Perry] even came. I have all those records, so I was really into the band a lot. But of course, when Steve came along, I was down with singing that live somewhere. And [I] just put it together and said I wanted to do a whole night of it. I just thought it would be fun, and it looked like a blast. And we do have a blast doing it."

Belladonna's JOURNEY tribute also features keyboardist Doug Carter, bassist Paul Arntz, guitarist Matt Basford and drummer Justin Ward.

In an April 2020 interview with SiriusXM's "Trunk Nation With Eddie Trunk", Belladonna stated about his approach to singing material that was originally written and recorded by Steve Perry: "Obviously, when you do [something like this], there's always open ground for [people to say], 'You didn't do that part, 'You didn't do this.' [But] I didn't wanna copy it note for note. Sometimes I just like to do my own thing with it. Represent it and do what you can, but I love to mess around with things. Not so much to try to be too different, but just make it cool and do it your own way versus trying to get every note. I'm sure some guys study every second of it. Even with ANTHRAX, I do songs different a lot of times. It's just fun that way. To do things off the cuff is fun for me versus trying to follow everything… I can study it all day, but I just don't feel like doing that. I wanna have a little fun doing my own thing with it."

Belladonna's JOURNEY tribute made its live debut in March 2020 at The Beacon Theatre in Hopewell, Virginia.

In a 2005 interview with MusicDish, Belladonna was asked about the rumor that he came to the table with a JOURNEY tune during his 1985 audition for ANTHRAX. "Actually, what happened was I went into the room and they said, 'Just go on in,' and they hadn't heard me sing," he said. "They'd heard of me and they asked me to come in, but we were going in to start tracking and stuff, to get the mic set up and all that and they said, 'Let's get you in there and get you warmed up.' I hit the mic and belted out some JOURNEY… I think it was [the song] 'Lights'. I didn't know what the hell I was getting into in the first place. I just wanted to lay some vocals or something. Just to kinda give an idea and that's what happened. It wasn't really anything more than that. I just kinda belched it out. I think I did 'Oh Sherrie' [written by Steve Perry], too, or something. I dunno why, but I just did. It was something off the top of my head I could do a cappella and it was kinda challenging. I thought maybe in range or something that would be kind of intriguing. It was definitely one they weren't expecting."

ANTHRAX's 2013 EP "Anthems" EP included the band's cover version of JOURNEY's "Keep On Runnin'" alongside classics by RUSH, THIN LIZZY, AC/DC, CHEAP TRICK and BOSTON.

Satanik Royalty Records has issued a new two-track digital single from Seattle, Washington-based dirge trio, Old Iron.


The songs -- “Ahnighito” and “Fractal Storm” -- were originally recorded for Old Iron’s 2014-released Cordyceps full-length with Brandon Ramsey on drums. Reimagined with current drummer Trent McIntyre, these recordings stand as the best documentation of these songs in both performance and fidelity.


Thematically, they serve as bookends to the concept loosely running throughout Cordyceps: that human consciousness was affected by ancient exposure to extraterrestrial fungi by way of meteorites. Ten-thousand years ago the Cape York meteorite broke into three pieces as it hit Greenland. Named after one of these pieces, “Ahnighito” chronicles its descent to earth and the harvesting of its iron. Maybe there was more than just rock and metal in that meteorite!




The exposure inevitably leads to fungal growth inside the host finishing with a psychedelic crescendo. Sit back and relax as the layers of your mind peel away into the “Fractal Storm.”


“Ahnighito” and “Fractal Storm” were recorded by Nicholas Wilbur, mixed by the inimitable Matt Bayles, and mastered by Brad Boatright.


Stream/purchase on Bandcamp.


Old Iron:
Jesse Roberts - vocals, guitar, samples
Jerad Shealey - bass, vocals, samples
Trent McIntyre- drums


(Photo – John Malley)

In a new interview with Appetite For Distortion, ACCEPT guitarist Wolf Hoffmann weighed in on a debate about people using an A.I. (artificial intelligence) music generator as a tool to create melodies, harmonies and rhymes based on artificial intelligence algorithms and machine learning (ML) models. Wolf said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "Well, the potential good is that, yeah, you can create sometimes… Like, for instance, I tried it for lyrical ideas, and it's scary good, to be honest. You can just say, 'Hey, write me a song lyric' or something, [and] it spits out some pretty amazing stuff. But, of course, you have to say, 'Is this really what I wanted to say? And is it me? Well, then how would I really say it?' So you still have to tweak it and stuff. And we ended up never using any of it, but for songwriting and demoing stuff, I was quite intrigued; I found it intriguing. It gives you a bunch of ideas that you hadn't thought about. And, of course, I've seen some images that were done with A.I. that I thought, 'Whoa.' A designer or a human would have to spend a lot of hours creating that thing, but it spits it out like that."

He continued: "The shadow and downside of this is, of course, that people might lose their jobs over it. And the downside is also that it's not really, truly original. A.I. doesn't really think of this stuff. It just looks at all the other stuff that was created by people and turns it into a different, new version. It uses, in the case of music, for instance, existing songs and creates a new version kind of like it, but it doesn't do it out of the blue sky; it looks at your stuff that somebody created. And there's all kinds of legal issues that come up. So I'm a little concerned about all that, yeah."

Asked if he and the rest of ACCEPT would consider using A.I. in the future to make a music video, Wolf said: "Actually, we are making one right now. It's gonna be released — I don't know — in about a month or so. But you'll see it, and it's interesting. I think it's fantastic just to see it. Of course, we thought, even the first video [for ACCEPT's upcoming album, 'Humanoid'] we made, [for the] 'Humanoid' [title track], has got, in the background — we're performing in front of a gigantic video wall, and the artwork that runs in the background, that was all created by A.I., just because here we are. That's what we're talking about on this album, 'Humanoid', so it seemed to be just a fitting tool to use."

Circling back to the idea that artificial intelligence poses some risks to humanity, Wolf said: "We still haven't quite figured out how this is gonna turn out, how this is gonna pan out in the future. How much of it is good, how much of it is bad. We're still at the infancy."

He added:  "This digital revolution, as they call it, I think it's bigger than the industrial revolution was, and I think it has more far-reaching consequences on society than anything… One thing is for certain: we can't stop it. It's gonna happen whether we want it to or not. It's out, and it's gonna get used. We just have to see how to deal with it. That's what we haven't figured out yet, 'cause technology is so fast. We can't keep up with how society deals with it."

Due on April 26 via Napalm Records, "Humanoid" was once again produced, recorded, mixed and mastered by critically acclaimed heavy metal producer Andy Sneap.

Fans can immerse themselves in the upcoming album on an interactive web site, where they can reprogram the robot that is featured on the album cover, and discover different parts of the album in the process. Pre-save "Humanoid" now to gain access to the web site here.

ACCEPT recently announced a massive European headline tour, with more than 20 shows across the continent for autumn 2024. This summer, ACCEPT will also return to some of the world’s most important rock and metal festivals, like Wacken Open Air, Hellfest and more, following their South American spring tour.

In February 2022, it was announced that ACCEPT had inked a worldwide deal with Napalm Records.

ACCEPT's latest album, "Too Mean To Die", came out in January 2021 via Nuclear Blast. The LP was the group's first without bassist Peter Baltes, who exited ACCEPT in November 2018. He has since been replaced by Martin Motnik. ACCEPT's lineup has also been expanded with the addition of a third guitarist, the aforementioned Philip Shouse, who originally filled in for Uwe Lulis during 2019's "Symphonic Terror" tour, before being asked to join the band permanently.

"Too Mean To Die" was recorded in Nashville with Sneap (JUDAS PRIEST, MEGADETH),who has been responsible for the studio sound of ACCEPT since 2010.

Mark Tornillo joined ACCEPT in 2009 as the replacement for the band's original lead singer, Udo Dirkscheider. He can be heard on ACCEPT's last five studio albums, "Blood Of The Nations" (2010),"Stalingrad" (2012),"Blind Rage" (2014),"The Rise Of Chaos" (2017) and "Too Mean To Die".

Prepare to be hammered by a sonic force of modern metal. Hailing from Switzerland and formed in 2022, Korrupted - singned to Wormholedeath - explodes onto the scene with their new single and video, "Choices," out now on all digital platforms worldwide.


Mixed and mastered by Raphael Crivelli, "Choices" is a sonic assault that expertly blends infectious melodies with bone-crushing breakdowns. Korrupted always manages to find a way to place some catchy melodies before drowning them in a massive, violent ambiance.


The song's concept centers on urging people to take responsibility for their actions and accept the outcomes. It highlights how many individuals tend to avoid facing the consequences of their choices. The song challenges this mindset, encouraging listeners to confront their decisions, even if it's uncomfortable.




The band teamed up with graphic talent Seam (@sarrowarseam) to craft the video for the single. Check it out below.

Trivium frontman Matt Heafy has shared  a guitar playthrough video for  "A Crisis Of Revelation", which can be viewed below. The song is taken from Trivium's 10th album, In The Court Of The Dragon, released in October 2021.





Bullet For My Valentine recently checked in with the following update:




"We are thrilled to announce that in 2025 we present to you The Poisoned Ascendancy UK Tour, alongside our brothers in Trivium. Both bands will be celebrating the 20th anniversary of their debut albums by playing them in full. Get excited people, it's gonna be special and we can't wait to celebrate with you all."


Trivium, meanwhile, have posted the following message:


"Bullet for My Valentine’s The Poison and Trivium’s Ascendancy are two records whose influence can be heard to this day - in the DNA of modern metal. It’s incredible to think of the impact the albums had when they came out in 2005. They were both like bolts of lightning. Both bands grew up independently of each other in different countries and separately from any movement or scene but both shared a common love of melodic heavy metal at the core; and both had similar meteoric rises right out of the gate. Trivium and BFMV were in such whirlwinds when our respective albums came out that we each never truly got to play together or sit back and celebrate during the maelstrom of constant touring, recording and globetrotting. But that’s what this anniversary tour is. It’s a celebration by the bands to the fans of an important era, and most importantly it’s an invitation to fans come and have an epic night with us and sing and rage and celebrate the awesome power of the music. Tickets on-sale next Friday, March 1."

Tommy's RockTrip, the hard rock outfit surrounding drummer Tommy Clufetos (Ozzy Osbourne, Black Sabbath, Rob Zombie, Alice Cooper, Ted Nugent), played four US shows between March 26th and 29th. Fan-filmed video from the March 28th show at Token Lounge in Westland, MI canbe viewed below.


Clufetos is backed by Max (vocals / guitar), Victor Adriel (guitar) and JT Shea (bass)













Clufetos spoke with The Detroit News about Tommy's Rocktrip, saying "It’s a melding of the styles I enjoy, updated with a youthful rock ‘n’ roll attitude. It is pile-driving hard rock ‘n’ roll. My own tunes are hard rock with a little more blues than what's going on with modern rock radio."


Read more here.