A video interview with SOULFLY mainman Max Cavalera (ex-SEPULTURA), conducted by Face Culture on February 13, 2006 at the Paradiso in Amsterdam, the Netherlands, has been posted online at FaceCulture.nl. Topics range from the new SOULFLY album, "Dark Ages", to album titles, to Orthodox priests, to BAD BRAINS, and much more. Another interview with Cavalera, conducted by Asice.net on February 12, 2006 in Tilburg, the Netherlands before the show at 013, can be found at this location. This article focuses on Max's influences and favorite artists, particularly those from the furious hardcore and punk scenes.

SOULFLY will embark on a U.S. mini-tour in late April, with support from INCITE (featuring SOULFLY mainman Max Cavalera's stepson Ritchie), Century Media recording artists MANNTIS, and Victory Records' A PERFECT MURDER. The band are continuing to promote their latest album, "Dark Ages", available now on Roadrunner Records. The follow-up to 2004's "Prophecy" was produced by Cavalera and was mixed by Terry Date, who has previously worked with PANTERA and DEFTONES, among others.

IRON MAIDEN have commenced the recording sessions for their new album with producer Kevin Shirley. A posting on Shirley's official web site reads as follows:

"My equipment rolled in Monday night, the MAIDEN truck rolled in Tuesday, and we set the studio up — it's a big job but by Tuesday night were almost ready to go. Wednesday, Nicko [McBrain] and Steve [Harris] came in about noon, the other lads about three, Bruce [Dickinson] about 4. I fiddled with the sound, and it's really coming up really good. Everyone has come to a similar place about where we're going, and it's been hard work, and a lot of fun. There is a lot of laughing, and a little bit of frustration when things get difficult. We've cut three basic tracks, and got a fourth ready to go tomorrow [Monday, March 6]. "

Check out pictures from the recording studio at this location.

IRON MAIDEN's follow-up to 2003's "Dance of Death" is tentatively scheduled for release in October.

As previously reported, Sanctuary Records/Sony BMG has been forced to delay the North American release of IRON MAIDEN's "Death On The Road" DVD, originally scheduled for February 21, as a result of unforeseen production issues.

SPV Records has released six new SEPULTURA e-cards, each featuring a different track from the band's upcoming "Dante XXI" CD in the background, and each one connected to the other. You have to answer the questions right and enter the code to get to the next one. And if you make it to the end, you're entered to win a signed Jackson guitar! Check it out at this location.

As previously reported, SEPULTURA filmed a video for the song "Convicted in Life" (mp3) over a two-day period in February in SГЈo Paulo, Brazil. Check out pictures from the shoot at this location.

"Convicted In Life" comes off the group's upcoming album, "Dante XXI" (view cover here), due in North America on March 14 via SPV.

SEPULTURA will embark on their European tour with IN FLAMES without drummer/founding member Igor Cavalera, who is taking a break from the group's touring activities to spend time with his second wife and their new son, who was born in January. Former SOULFLY drummer Roy Mayorga, who played with Igor's brother Max for several years in the late '90s and again in 2001-2003, has been enlisted to do the European tour, with the possibility that he will stick around for further touring activities beyond the spring.

SEPULTURA's European tour will not be the first time that the band have performed without Igor Cavalera. Back in April 2005, SEPULTURA completed a short tour of Mexico with the help of roadie Guilherme Martin (ex-VIPER, TOYSHOP) after Cavalera was unable to make the dates.

Long-running Florida death metal warriors MALEVOLENT CREATION are currently in pre-production for their tenth studio album, "Doomsday X", due this fall via Nuclear Blast Records. The band are currently home writing and demoing material for the new CD, to be recorded in May and mixed in June. Recordings will take place at Mercury recording studios in Pompano Beach, FL with producer/engineer Gus Rios, with the mixing set to take place at Antfarm studis on Aaarhus, Denmark with producer Tue Madsen. "This will mark the first time in the band's career that an overseas producer has been brought in for mixing, but Tue's track record speaks for itself and we feel that we will be in good hands with Tue mixing the new album," the group write in a press release. "We need to have a massive production for this 10th record because this recording means a lot to us and we plan on touring for the next two years in support of it. All the bandmembers are contributing to the writing of this new album, so there will be a lot of different influences on this record. The music will be extremely heavy and insanely fast."

MALEVOLENT CREATION's current lineup includes original bandmembers Brett Hoffman on vocals, Jason Blachowicz on bass, Jon Rubin on guitar, Phil Fasciana on guitar and drumming powerhouse Tony Laureano (NILE, DIMMU BORGIR) on drums. Laureano has toured several times in the past with MALEVOLENT CREATION but now will make his debut studio recording with the band which is sure to be interesting. This lineup will also do all upcoming tours in support of "Doomsday X", which is expected to be released in September, followed by a massive European trek with DISGORGE and SKINLESS in support. Other touring options are being looked at as well. There is talk about a U.S. tour with BOLT THROWER in July-August, but nothing is confirmed yet.

In other news, MALEVOLENT CREATION recently returned from a six-week tour of Europe with BOLT THROWER, NIGHTRAGE and NECROPHAGIST and "would like to say that this tour was the best tour we have ever been part of in the last 15 years," the band write in a press release. "Most of the shows were sold out and BOLT THROWER is hands down the best band we have ever toured with and without their help, this tour would never have happened for us. We would truly like to thank BOLT THROWER's tour manager Graham and Jo, Martin, Baz, Gavin and Karl from the band for all their help. An extra special thanks goes out to Phil, Andy, Keith and Sabrine from BOLT THROWER's crew for all their help throughout the 'Those Still Loyal Over Europe Tour 2006'.You guys fucking rule!!!! Also, a big hello to our new friends in NIGHTRAGE and NECROPHAGIST for being so cool and making this the best tour yet!!!!"

Sweden's WOLVERINE have posted the following message on their official web site:

"We can at last announce that WOLVERINE has signed with Candlelight Records. We've been in touch with various labels and as it turned out Candlelight came up with the best offer by far.

"The past 6 months have been really hard for the band and with the split from Earache topping it all off it's extremely nice to have found a new 'home.'

"There is no release date set for 'Still' yet but we'll announce it really soon. It's about time the album sees the light of day because we all promise you that some of our best songs are on that album. We definitely want to share them with our fans as soon as humanly possible."

As previously reported, "Still" was recorded in part at Spacelab studio in Tönisvorst, Germany. The follow-up to 2003's "Cold Light of Monday" was produced by Oliver Philipps, Christian "Moschus" Moos and WOLVERINE and was mixed at the end of August.

"Still" track listing:

A House of Plague

Bleeding

Taste of Sand

Nothing More

Sleepy Town

Liar on the Mount

Hiding

This Cold Heart of Mine

And She Slowly Dies

Danish melodic progressive power metal band ANUBIS GATE will enter the studio this summer to record their third album. The CD will be produced by Jacob Hansen (RAUNCHY, INVOCATOR), who is also the new lead singer in the band. This will be Jacob's first vocal preformance with ANUBIS GATE.

In other news, ANUBIS GATE won the Internet-based contest Heavy Metal Eurovision, beating out more than 40 participating bands from all European countries. The group's 2005 album, "A Perfect Forever", is now out in South America via the Brazilian label Encore Records. The South American version of the CD features a bonus track.

"A Perfect Forever" was released in Europe last September via Locomotive Music. The follow-up to 2004's "Purification" was produced by Hansen and features cover artwork by Mattias NorГ©n.

Swedish metallers STEEL ATTACK have finished filming a video for the song "Diabolic Symphony" with director Owe Lingvall (NOCTURNAL RITES drummer). The clip will be included as a bonus feature on the band's fifth full-length album, "Diabolic Symphony", due on April 21 via Massacre Records. The follow-up to 2004's "Enslaved" was recorded at Black Lounge Studio in Sweden with engineer Jonas Kjellgren and features "hard riffs combined with rich melodies and brilliant metal," according to guitarist Johan Jalonen Penn.

"Diabolic Symphony" track listing:

1. Diabolic Symphony
   
2. Dead Forever
   
3. Shallow Seas Of Hatred
   
4. Dreaming
   
5. Embraced By Fear
   
6. Invisible God
   
7. Sanctimonious
   
8. Haunting
   
9. Show Me The Way
   
10. Winter Hell
    
11. I Bow My Head In Shame
    
12. The Other Side
    

STEEL ATTACK's fourth album, "Enslaved" was issued in October 2004 via Arise Records. The album was supported by a 12-day European tour with Germany BLACK ABYSS and Canada's EXCITER.

STEEL ATTACK is:

• Anden Andersson - Bass
  
• John Allan - Guitar
  
• Ronny Hemlin – Vocals
  
• Johan Jalonen Penn - Guitar
  
• Tony Elfving – Drums
  

Beginning today, you can download the new single from PEARL JAM, "World Wide Suicide", for free at the band's official "bootleg" site, bootlegs.pearljam.com. This MP3 version of the song contains no Digital Rights Management, so you can share it with your friends.

Due on May 2, PEARL JAM's self-titled new album will be the band's studio debut for J Records. It's the follow-up to 2002's Epic swan song "Riot Act", which has sold less than 500,000 copies in the United States, according to Nielsen SoundScan. The CD was produced and mixed by Adam Kasper and PEARL JAM at Studio X in Seattle.

"Pearl Jam" track listing:

1. Life Wasted
   
2. World Wide Suicide
   
3. Comatose
   
4. Severed Hand
   
5. Marker In The Sand
   
6. Parachutes
   
7. Unemployable
   
8. Big Wave
   
9. Gone
   
10. Wasted Reprise
    
11. Army Reserve
    
12. Come Back
    
13. Inside Job
    

VICIOUS ART, the Swedish death/thrash metal band featuring former DARK FUNERAL members Matias Mäkelä and Robert Lundin, along with Jorgen Sandstrom (THE PROJECT HATE, ex-ENTOMBED, GRAVE) on bass, have posted a brand-new three-song EP, "Weed the Wild", on their official web site, ViciousArt.se. The tracks available for download are as follows:

1. Weed the Wild
   
2. Tanja Joins the Beating
   
3. Exit Wounds
   

"Weed the Wild" was recorded at the Offbeat studios in Stockholm in February 2006 and contains material that "will not be re-recorded [for] a future release," according to the band.

VICIOUS ART's debut album, "Fire Falls and the Waiting Waters", is now available via Threeman Recordings (Europe) and Candlelight Records (U.S.).

Former PAIN OF SALVATION bassist Kristoffer Gildenlow (younger brother of PAIN OF SALVATION frontman Daniel Gildenlow) has issued a statement regarding his departure from the band. It reads as follows:

"It is with big sadness that I have to walk away from one of the greatest bands I've ever come in contact with.

"I wish the situation was different, I wish there was another solution but the show must go on and this is the crossroad.

"After more than eleven years as a member, I pretty much lived my life around the band and it's going to feel very empty without it.

"I want to take this moment to thank all the fans out there. Thank you for your passion, thank you for your support and thank you for staying with us for all this time. I wish I had met more of you, I wish I could have played for more of you."

As previously reported, PAIN OF SALVATION have set "Scarsick" as the title of their new album, tentatively due in late 2006/early 2007. The group's most recent studio album, "BE", came out in 2004.

Swedish "heavy doom progressive" metallers MORGANA LEFAY have uploaded a preview of their "I Roam" video at this location. The clip was produced/directed by Owe Lingwall (NOCTURNAL RITES drummer) and was filmed in late December.

"I Roam" is the second video off MORGANA LEFAY's latest album, "Grand Materia", which was released in April 2005 via Black Mark Records. The follow-up to 2000's "SOS" (released under the LEFAY band moniker) is a concept album about Nicholas Flamel, a 14th-century alchemist who supposedly lived on forever.

MORGANA LEFAY have been confirmed for the Chicago Powerfest 2006, set to take place on Friday, April 7 and Saturday, April 8 at Mr. Kelley's Music Box in Chicago Heights, IL. Also scheduled to perform at the event are NOCTURNAL RITES, ION VEIN, TWELFTH GATE, ELDRITCH, BIOMECHANICAL, AGENT STEEL, GRACEPOINT, WITHERING SOUL and MIRROR BLACK.

NIGHTWISH were honored in the "Best Finnish Artist" and "Top-Selling Album" categories at the Emma-Gaala (Finnish equivalent of the Grammys), which was held on Saturday, March 4 at the Kulttuuritalolla in Helsinki.

NIGHTWISH's "Highest Hopes - The Best Of Nightwish" release was the top-selling album in Finland in the year 2005, with sales of over 65,000 copies. Second on the list was ROBBIE WILLIAMS' "Intensive Care" (61,366 copies) and third YГ–'s "Kuolematon" (60,458 copies).

"Highest Hopes - The Best Of Nightwish", which was released in two different formats (the normal version, and limited edition, featuring a bonus disc containing three video clips filmed at the Mera Luna Festival in Hildesheim, Germany in 2003: "She Is My Sin", "Dead to the World" and "Kinslayer"), features a cover of PINK FLOYD's "High Hopes" and a new recording of the song "Sleeping Sun", for which the band shot a video in Prague, Czech Republic. The clip was directed by Jörn Heitmann, who has previously worked with such artists as RAMMSTEIN ("Keine Lust", "Amerika") and THE RASMUS ("No Fear").

As previously reported, Spinefarm Records has set a June 7 release date for the upcoming "End of an Era" CD/DVD release from NIGHTWISH.

"End of an Era" will contain footage of NIGHTWISH's final concert with singer Tarja Turunen, which took place on October 21 at the Hartwall arena in Helsinki, Finland.

NIGHTWISH fired singer Tarja Turunen via an "open letter," which was given to the singer immediately following the band's final concert of the "Once" world tour, which took place on October 21, 2005 at the Hartwall arena in Helsinki, Finland. The group are currently seeking a replacement vocalist before entering the studio in September 2006 to begin recording the follow-up to 2004's "Once", tentatively due in mid-2007.

A recent audio interview with IN FLAMES frontman Anders Friden, conducted by RabaFlab Rab of Northern Storm Records, has been made available for download at the IN FLAMES international fan site Everdying.com.

IN FLAMES have just completed a North American headlining tour in support of their new release, "Come Clarity", which debuted at No. 58 on The Billboard 200 chart with sales of just under 24,000 copies. The CD has sold a total of 45,000 copies in its first three weeks of release, according to Nielsen SoundScan.

IN FLAMES will be kicking off a European tour with SEPULTURA on March 12 in Oslo, Norway.

Swedish doomsters CANDLEMASS have recorded four new songs with producer Andy Sneap (NEVERMORE, ARCH ENEMY, MACHINE HEAD). The recordings took place last weekend at the new Polar studios in Stockholm, Sweden and the band say that they are very happy with the result. “The songs are pretty much in the same vein as the stuff on the [self-titled 2005] reunion album, maybe a bit darker," says bassist/songwriter Leif Edling.

CANDLEMASS's next studio session will take place in May. The band's new album is tentatively scheduled for release in October 2006 via Nuclear Blast Records.

CANDLEMASS last month won a Swedish "Grammy" award in the "Best Hard Rock" category, beating out the likes of HAMMERFALL, HARDCORE SUPERSTAR, MESHUGGAH and OPETH. The Swedish doom legends were honored for the "Candlemass" opus, which is available on Nuclear Blast Records. Five back-catalog items from the band — "Epicus Doomicus Metallicus", "Ancient Dreams", "Doomed for Live", "Nightfall", and "Essential Doom" — were issued in the U.S. via Candlelight in February.

Danish extreme metallers PANZERCHRIST have entered the studio to begin recording their new album, "Batallion Beast". The band have issued the following update on the progress of the CD's recording sessions:

"Guitars, drums and bass are all done. Reno [Kiilerich, drums; DIMMU BORGIR, VILE, DEW-SCENTED] did an excellent job, as usual. Everything has up to now been recorded at Smart 'n Hard studios with Jakob Bredahl. Vocals and keyboards will be recorded later this month at Zigsound with Ziggy who will also mix the album. Dea [Lillelund; also in FAIRYTALE ABUSE] is no longer a member of PANZERCHRIST. She has been replaced by Karina Bundgaard, who played bass on 'Soulcollector'."

PANZERCHRIST's follow-up to 2003's "Room Service" (Mighty Music) will apparently contain lyrics written entirely in German, according to a posting on the band's web site. A late spring/summer release through Neurotic Records is expected.

HATEBREED's new song "To the Threshold" has been posted online at www.myspace.com/hatebreed. A video for the track was shot on Saturday, February 25. "The video tells a story of young kid who uses our music to escape the abuse of a man his mother is seeing," says HATEBREED frontman Jamey Jasta. "We shot our performance stuff at a really cool place called Fastlane Studios in Brooklyn [New York] and the majority of shots for the narrative part of the video were shot at Igor from GRAVESEND's apartment. His is the man for letting us take over his crib!"

Check out pictures from the video shoot at this location.

"To the Threshold" will be appearing on the upcoming third installment of the "MTV Headbanger's Ball" compilations, entitled "MTV Headbanger's Ball - The Revenge", due on April 11 via Roadrunner Records. More information on this collection is available at this location.

As previously reported, a HATEBREED track, entitled "Bound to Violence", has also been posted online at www.myspace.com/hatebreed. The song will be included on the band's upcoming follow-up to 2003's "The Rise of Brutality", tentatively due later in the year via Stillborn Records. Other tracks set to appear on the CD include "Spitting Venom" and "Defeatist". A DVD is also in the works.

"Bound to Violence" was previously included on the soundtrack to the movie "Punisher", which came out in March 2004 through Wind-Up Records.

HATEBREED will be embarking on a tour of Australia with headliners KORN beginning in late April. Also appearing on the bill will be DISTURBED and 10 YEARS.

NAPALM DEATH bassist Shane Embury has posted the following message on the band's official web site:

"We have been out on the road now for about 10 shows with KREATOR. Everything's going well. Canada was a blast, for sure, and we are looking forward to the next couple of shows up there, which are on Tuesday and Wednesday. We had a cool show in Lawrence, Kansas at the Botleneck yesterday, but, man, they gotta sort that smell out. Even my onstage gas emmisions couldn't disguise it... Phew!!! But yeah, here in Denver on a Friday night, so hopefully should be fun. Our friends from CEPHALIC CARNAGE will be heading down, so it's going to be cool to see those guys as I had fun with them on the BRUJERIA tour I did just recently.

"But anyways, we got three more weeks on this tour before we had back to the U.K. to start rehearsing or the new NAPALM album. We have a ton of riffs and it's shaping up good. No signs of letting up on the intensity at all."

NAPALM DEATH are continuing to tour in support of their latest album, "The Code Is Red… Long Live The Code" (Century Media), which was recorded at Foel Studios with producer Russ Russell and features guest appearances by Jello Biafra (ex-DEAD KENNEDYS), Jamey Jasta (HATEBREED) and Jeff Walker (ex-CARCASS). The band are scheduled to enter the studio in May to begin recording the follow-up effort, tentatively titled "Smear Campaign". A late 2006/early 2007 release is expected.

ANOTHER LIFE, the Swedish project featuring Andreas Karlsson (ex-PAGANIZER, RIBSPREADER) and Dan Swanö (EDGE OF SANITY, BLOODBATH, PAN THY MONIUM), will release their debut album, "Memories from Nothing", on March 20 via VIC Records. A teaser MP3 containing selections from the album can be downloaded atthis location.

"Memories from Nothing" (view cover here) projected track listing:

01. Firstborn Unicorn
02. Falling Apart
03. The End Of Days
04. I Am Nothing
05. Cotton Pines
06. Everlasting
07. The Last Goodbye
08. The Everflow
09. Poltava (Part I, Part II, Part III)

Asian female singer WING (photo), who is originally from Hong Kong and now lives in New Zealand, has published a two-track CD entitled "Wing Sings AC/DC", featuring very "unique" renditions of two AC/DC classics, "Highway to Hell" and "Back in Black". An audio sample of WING's version of "Back in Black" is available for download at this location (MP3, 300 KB).

To order a copy of "Wing Sings AC/DC", click here.

A Real Audio streaming preview of the track "And...You Will Die", taken from BEYOND FEAR's upcoming self-titled debut album, has been posted online at this location.

BEYOND FEAR features in its ranks former JUDAS PRIEST and current ICED EARTH frontman Tim "Ripper" Owens alongside guitarist John Comprix (SPAWN, 13 FACES), Dennis Hayes (ex-WINTERS BANE, SEVEN WITCHES) on bass, Dwane Bihary (MISSING SKIN) on rhythm guitar, and drummer Eric Elkins (CRYPTKICKER, ALL YOU FEAR).

"Beyond Fear" is scheduled for release on May 9 (one day earlier internationally) via SPV Records. The CD was recorded at the legendary Morrisound Studios in Tampa, Florida, under the direction of producer Jim Morris. The album consists of 12 haunting metal numbers, which, according to Owens, "show unmistakably where my musical roots lie: in the classic heavy metal of the Eighties. However, I've transported that traditional metal style into the present, lending it its own touch."

"I always knew that I would bring out an album featuring my own compositions one day," Owens explained in a press release. "But I didn't feel like a solo recording, I'd much rather perform my songs with a permanent band. That's how BEYOND FEAR came about."

"Beyond Fear" (view cover here) track listing:

01. Scream Machine (5:33)
02. And...You Will Die (3:53)
03. Save Me (3:46)
04. The Human Race (3:36)
05. Coming at You (3:14)
06. Dreams Come True (4:42)
07. Telling Lies (3:21)
08. I Don't Need This (3:30)
09. Words of Wisdom (3:47)
10. My Last Words (3:24)
11. Your Time Has Come (4:49)
12. The Faith (3:38)

LOCH VOSTOK, who call themselves "Sweden's most extreme progressive metal act," will release their sophomore album, "Destruction Time Again", in April via Escapi Music. The follow-up to 2004's "Dark Logic" (Magnetism/CD Maximum) features guest appearances by Ron Jarzombek (SPASTIC INK, WATCHTOWER, MARTY FRIEDMAN), Lawrence Mackrory (ex-DARKANE, F.K.Ü., ENEMYISUS) and Tina Gunnarsson, and is described by the band as "a mix between SOILWORK, KING DIAMOND, EMPEROR and FATES WARNING."

"The album is more focused, more thrashy and has a big fat production that will kick your ass," stated vocalist/guitarist Teddy Möller. Added guitarist Niklas Kupper, "There's more of fast and hysteric solos by me and Teddy than on the first disc." "I grind, jazz, groove and thrash this album apart," said drummer Alvaro Svanerö. The LOCH VOSTOK lineup is rounded out by bassist Tomas "Tym" Jonsson and keyboardist Fredrik Klingwall.

"Destruction Time Again" (view cover here) track listing:

1. Humanitix
   
2. Rebound
   
3. Jonestown Slumber Party
   
4. Xerox Nation
   
5. Autumn Lord
   
6. Destruction Time Again
   
7. Symbiosis
   
8. Falself
   
9. Talk
   
10. True Deceiver
    
11. Gestalt
    

Los Angeles-based progressive thrash metal band PROTOTYPE will release their sophomore effort, "Continuum", on April 25 via MetalAxe Records in Europe and Nightmare Records in the U.S. The CD is the follow-up to the band's full-length debut, "Trinity", which was issued in 2004 via Massacre Records.

"The material covers more varied aspects of what the band is capable of, from more thrashy moments to acoustic and prog passages," stated vocalist/guitarist Vince Levalois. Added guitarist Kragen Lum, "Working with Neil Kernon on the mix was a pleasure and really helped to bring out nuances in the sound that were previously absent." "The artwork really captures the feel of this album... Travis Smith did an incredible job," said bassist Kirk Scherer. Drum duties this time around were handled by former PROTOTYPE member Damion Ramirez (from 1995's "Seed" demo), with one track also featuring former drummer Pat Magrath.

"Continuum" (view cover here) track listing:

1. The Way It Ends
   
2. Probe
   
3. Devotion
   
4. With Vision
   
5. Synthespian
   
6. Sea Of Tranquility
   
7. Transcendent Velocity
   
8. Seed
   
9. Undying
   
10. Heart Machine
    
11. Cold Is This God
    

The following update has been posted at CHILDREN OF BODOM's official web site:

"Last night [March 4] in the annual Emma-Gaala (Finnish equivalent of the Grammys), CHILDREN OF BODOM were presented the Export Emma 2006 for their accomplishments in exporting Finnish music. The whole award ceremony was aired live on national TV.

"In other news, the band recently shot a new promo video for the title song of their newest album 'Are You Dead Yet?'. The quintet ended their European tour in Tavastia, Helsinki on February 11th and returned the same club two days later to shoot the playing parts for the aforementioned video. The story parts of the video were shot beforehand in America."

CHILDREN OF BODOM will be teaming up with SLAYER, LAMB OF GOD, MASTODON and THINE EYES BLEED for the Unholy Alliance Tour beginning in early June. So far, only one date has been announced: June 16 at the Continental Airlines Arena in East Rutherford, NJ. Tickets for the Continental show will go on sale on Saturday, March 11. As previously reported, the trek will make stops in most major cities, although the actual routing of the run is still being fleshed out.

The title track of JUDAS PRIEST guitarist Glenn Tipton's collection of recordings with the late, great THE WHO bassist John Entwistle and drummer Cozy Powell (RAINBOW, BLACK SABBATH), entitled "Edge of the World", has been made available for streaming at MP3.com.

"Edge of the World" is scheduled for release on March 7 via Rhino Records. Tipton recently told Rockdetector.com that he "was really happy when I found out [Entwistle] wanted to get involved because he told me he was always a bit of a metalhead at heart too. . . He turned up with twelve bass guitars. There were quite a few weird ones too. John really had a unique sound. He could do anything too. Very versatile because he could play that steady groove but he could also play some amazing jazz and finger-picking too. Anything you asked of him, John could do it. He just blew us away with what he could do. There's a song on 'Edge Of The World' called 'Give Blood' that John really made his own. I remember we were having trouble with it until John put the bass down. I remember Cozy and I looking at each other with a big grin because John just made it really kick. As a bass player, John was a rare breed. He's actually a very busy player but he is still able to drive the track. His bass just sits there giving that backbone but at the same time he's able to make it distinctive too."

J. Bennett of Decibel magazine (web site) recently conducted an interview with DEICIDE frontman Glen Benton. An excerpt from the chat follows:

Decibel: Has it been weird writing songs without the Hoffman brothers [Eric and Brian, former DEICIDE guitarists]?

Benton: "It's been the fucking greatest thing in the world. Those two are a couple of idiots, man. I hate Eric and Brian Hoffman more than anything in this world, and I will not rest until I put shit straight with the fans. Up 'til now, everybody thinks I kicked them out of the band, but nobody kicked anybody out. They quit on their own, and I wanna set the record straight in regard to those two fuckin' pricks."

Decibel: What happened exactly?

Benton: "It's real simple: Eric Hoffman has a fucking steroid problem, and he's bi-polar. Brian married some young broad who's running his life for him. What initially happened is that when our publishing deal ended with Roadrunner, and our new deal started with Earache, we put them on notice that our publishing was no longer gonan be split four ways — it's gonna be based on who writes what. That's the industry standard. Brian writes one song for the album, Eric writes two songs and they wanna get paid for all the songs Steve [Asheim, drums] wrote. That's not fuckin' fair. And I wrote all the lyrics, so I'm entitled to 50% of the publishing. Why should I give those two money? They've been losing thousands of dollars for me and Steve for ten years now. If it was one of those things where they showed up and did their jobs, we wouldn't have a fucking problem. That's why the deal we signed [with Roadrunner] in '90 was set up like that. Back then, everybody wrote and contributed and it was a fuckin' group effort. But now me and Steve are the Lennon and McCartney of the band, doing all the writing, and those two wanna get paid for our hard work. Fuck that."

Decibel: So they quit?

Benton: "When they got their first publishing checks and didn't get paid for all the songs me and Steve wrote, they fucking quit. And now we gotta deal with Eric threatening Steve, driving to his house and screaming outside his window at 10:30 at night, making threatening phone calls, talking shit on Blabbermouth about Steve's dad dying, and all this other bullshit. Eric knows better than to come over here, though — he knows I shoot first and ask questions later."

Decibel: Didn't he get busted for steroids?

Benton: Yeah, Eric got busted, and when it happened, he put the drugs in his brother's bag and then his brother got busted. [Laughs]"

Decibel: Amazing.

Benton: "Yeah, they're real nice guys. We're in the process of suing them right now — for slander and everything else, dude. They're going around telling people I'm addicted to methamphetamine. You know what? Who hasn't experimented with a few things in their life? Big deal. So what if I experimented? They did, too! But, look, I don't even drink anymore, man. I mean, I'll have a Heineken every once in a while, but I was drinking a bottle of Jack Daniel's every night before I went onstage and another bottle while I was playing. That starts catching up with you real quick, and I started going blind in my right eye. So after a nice scare at the doctor's office about four years ago, I stopped."

Decibel: Aren't the Hoffmans suing you for the rights to the band name?

Benton: "They can't do a goddamned thing to me, dude. I own the fucking name. They went behind my back and filed on my trademark, so I'm in the process of suing them to get their names off it. And I will win. They abandoned their jobs, and now they wanna come back. Well, there's no coming back, man. Sorry. It's a better band now because they're gone. They're just a couple of losers, and they rode on me and Steve's coattails for all these years."

Decibel's entire interview with Glen Benton can be found in the magazine's April 2006 issue, available on the newsstands right now.

Blasting-Zone.com recently conducted and in-depth interview with legendary VENOM frontman Cronos. Several excerpts follow:

Blasting-Zone.com: How do you respond to the controversy surrounding the decision to name the album "Metal Black"? It would seem some people feel the title is simply a rip off of the "Black Metal" name!

Cronos: "It's our name to rip off (laughs). At the end of the day, it's ours to do with what we want. I heard people say 'Fuckin' hell! Could you have thought of a better title?' There are fourteen songs on the album, ya know? We could have called the album 'A Good Day To Die'. We could have called the album 'Burn In Hell'. Of course we could have thought of a different fuckin' title. There's a reason why it's called 'Metal Black'. It's because it's in the style of 'Black Metal'. It's VENOM returning back to our roots after twenty five years. People will always say there is no VENOM like the 'Black Metal' VENOM. But we could never do that same thing again. We've moved on as musicians and studio technology has changed… We can't make a muddy album, an album that sounds like crap. If people want that, they should take 'Metal Black', put it on the stereo, turn off all the treble, put all the bass on full and put their headphones in a bucket of water (laughs). Then it will sound like crap. Do they like it better like that? I think some people make comments about things without thinkin' about what they're sayin'. Nobody wants a crap-sounding album."

Blasting-Zone.com: At this point in your career, what are your feelings on Satanism? Do you feel your beliefs have benefited your career?

Cronos: "I live my life kinda how people would imagine the Devil living his life. I make my own rules and choose to do with my life what I please. I don't follow no fuckin' church dogma about 'believe this, say that…jump when I say jump.' The whole point of Satanism is to have your own head. We've taken that through every aspect of our career. You need to be so fuckin' headstrong because people are gonna tell you, 'Oh, you're doin' it wrong. you gotta do it like this.' Everybody thinks they've got great ideas. Fuck them. The whole point of being a Satanist is not running a round attacking people and being an idiot. That's where the Norwegian guys got it all wrong. Burning churches has nothing to do with Satanism, really. One of the laws is responsibility to the responsible. That's so easy to understand. Walk down the street and bother nobody. If somebody stands in your way, tell them to move. If they don't move, destroy them. How easy it that to understand? People don't even believe in God anymore. The churches are being used as community centers for children who come from poor backgrounds. It's as if there's something wrong with you if you believe in God, ya know? The whole Satanic image is perfect for heavy metal. This is the Devil's music. I don't like all of these lame bands that call themselves metal like SAXON and SAMSON. Shoving' stuff down your pants and putting lipstick on."

Blasting-Zone.com: What is your overall opinion of the current state of the black metal genre?

Cronos: "Well, it's certainly gone in some weird directions. For me, I think the whole genre should have gotten a new tag anyway. I'm very humbled that VENOM has gotten credited with being the influence behind it all. I really think a lot of these guys invented something of their own. For years, people have talked about how VENOM has started this and VENOM had started that. We don't necessarily look at it like that. We look at is as if we were more of a catalyst. It was going to happen anyway, we just came along and kicked it in first. We just kicked the door down and everybody ran it after that. Every scene has its peaks and its troughs. I don't think the scene has gone completely, I just think it's waning a bit. It's going to be up to the bands that are involved with it to either make something of it or roll over because shit happens and nothing last forever. Every extreme scene kinda loses its impact after a while. As soon as you show people how the magic trick works, it's no longer magic, is it? That's kinda how the death and black metal scenes are goin' at the minute. These bands haven't come up with anything new. It's just the same old, same old."

Blasting-Zone.com: What are your current touring plans?

Cronos: "Quite a lot, actually. We've always believed that people didn't want see VENOM if we didn't have the show. It just seems that so many people's opinions have changed because there are some many places where VENOM has never been. Not all of our fans can travel a thousand fuckin' miles to come see us. It just seems so odd that after twenty five years, there a just so many places that we've never even been. It's time for us to open our ears and take in a little bit of what's going on around us. We've got a lot of festival dates lined up and of course we're gonna do all the pyro and the whole shebang, but I think we should also try to do some of these other concerts as well, just to see how it goes. Some kid who can barely afford the price of the ticket can't come a long way to come see us. We're gonna try to get the best of both worlds when it comes to playin' live. One of the things that has been getting' talked about is a tour of the States with VENOM, SLAYER and EXODUS. How cool would that be? When people start talkin' about things like that, things they haven't seen in forever, we're just like, 'Get SLAYER on the phone so we can set it up!

Blasting-Zone.com: I think that tour would do very, very well!

Cronos: "I do believe so. We could even see if METALLICA wanted to open for us. Actually, we couldn't do that because they're crap (laughs). I think they need to take the word 'metal' out of the name."

Read the entire interview at Blasting-Zone.com.

A .ZIP file containing the title track from FRAGMENTS OF UNBECOMING's upcoming sophomore album, "Sterling Black Icon", has been made available for download at this location. Due on March 24 via Metal Blade Records, the follow-up to 2004's "Skywards – A Sylphe's Ascension" was recorded at PMT and Sound Tunnel studios and will contain the following track listing:

1. Carmine Preface
   
2. Sterling Black Icon
   
3. Weave Their Barren Path
   
4. Dear Floating Water
   
5. Breathe In the Black To See
   
6. Ride for a Fall
   
7. A Faint Illumination
   
8. Live For The Moment, Stay 'Till The End
   
9. Scythe Of Scarecrow
   
10. Onward to the Finger Of God
    
11. Stand The Tempest
    
12. Chambre Noire
    

FRAGMENTS OF UNBECOMING's full-length debut, "Skywards – A Sylphe's Ascension", came out in January 2004 through Metal Blade Records. The German death metal group had previously issued a self-financed EP, titled "Bloodred Tales".

Even though UNEARTH guitarist Ken Susi confirmed to the Alternative Press on Feb. 14 that the New England metallers would be one of the rotating co-headliners on the second stage at this summer's Ozzfest, Susi told MTV.com in a brand-new interview that he can't say for sure what his band's going to be doing ("I've heard rumors we may be attending, and it would be great if we're lucky enough to do it," he said). What Susi does know is that next week UNEARTH will board a plane bound for Seattle, where they'll spend the next two months recording their forthcoming, yet-untitled LP — which hits stores August 8.

UNEARTH chose producer Terry Date (PANTERA, DEFTONES) to helm the project — a decision made over some of Susi's mother's home cooking.

"We had other producers in mind, and we'd locked in a producer who's an amazing talent and shall remain nameless," Susi explained to MTV.com. "But Terry stepped in at the right time and had the right things to tell us. He had dinner over my family's house, and we just sat around talking about music and life. He just seemed like he's laid-back enough to help us find what it is inside that needs to come out on tape, but he also has the type of stern attitude where he'll tell you if something's wrong."

When UNEARTH started writing the follow-up to 2004's "The Oncoming Storm", "we just wanted to simplify a little bit," Susi said. "We wanted to do what we normally do, as far as writing intricate riffs and really hard things to play — things that come together really well. But we wanted to strip everything down and have a more organic record — just a more natural feeling, with fewer triggers and more power and realness. We've always been a live band more than a recorded band, and I think we need to start transporting what we do live onto record."

While in Seattle, Susi said the band plans to record a cover of "It's Clobberin' Time", which will appear on an upcoming tribute to New York hardcore legends SICK OF IT ALL.

SEPULTURA members Andreas Kisser (guitar) and Derrick Green (vocals) recently spoke to the U.K.'s Terrorizer magazine about the persistent rumors of a possible reunion with founding member and current SOULFLY frontman Max Cavalera for a spot on this summer's Ozzfest.

"This rumor has been going round for fucking years, man," answered Andreas with a world-weariness that suggested he'd been asked this question many times before. "Max had been out of the band for five minutes and people [were asking us], 'When are you guys getting back with Max?' So many people are jumping on the [reunion] bandwagon at the moment — you know, JUDAS PRIEST and ANTHRAX — they've thrown away all the stuff they've done recently and gone back 15 years to the classic formations. It's total bullshit. With Max, it's hard to listen to anything he says in the press, because it's all so contradictory. He says he'll never play with us again, then he's saying that maybe he'll only play with Igor [Cavalera, SEPULTURA drummer and Max's brother]. You don't know what to believe. I think SEPULTURA has too much respect for their fans and for Derrick to do something like that just for money. The rumors will always be there as long as we're still playing." But if someone were to offer them a million pounds to do it? "No, I don't think so. Something like that could totally destroy our reputation. I do miss Max. I have three kids now and he only knows one of them, same with Igor, who has four kids now. We built something beautiful together and all this fucking stupid stuff gets in the way. I haven't spoken to him in almost ten years now, since the Brixton Academy gig [in London in December 1996] when he quit."

Added Derrick: "I found these rumors absurd and I'll tell you why. You look around at these bands like MÖTLEY CRÜE and ANTHRAX, who have reformed the so-called 'classic lineups.' It lacks any originality, it's like they're furiosly backpedaling, playing old songs and trying to recapture the old days. I guess once you've done the tour, what's left? If you record a new album, it will suck. In my eyes, bands like this are dead to me. People ask about Max all the time. To get Max back would be like a punch in the face for me and the band, for the work we've done since he left, and a slap in the face for the fans. You know, never say never, but I don't think that will ever happen. It's like the label think it's an easy way to make money, it's a sure bet. 'Fuck the band! This is about cashing in.' Fuck that! That's why I fucking hate the music industry."