Guitarist Alex Beyrodt (Primal Fear, Voodoo Circle) has revealed he is working on his first ever instrumental album, a project that started in January.

Beyrodt: "A huge challenge, but lots of fun. Can’t wait for you guys to hear it. It’s a lot of work and totally different from anything I have ever done but it’s something I always wanted to do!"

Stay tuned for updates.

On January 15th, Voodoo Circle released their highly anticipated new album, Locked & Loaded, via AFM Records. An official video for the title track can be viewed below.

The band features Primal Fear members Alex Beyrodt (guitars, vocals) and Mat Sinner (bass), as well as Davd Readman (vocals) and Markus Kullmann (drums).

A lyric video for the album's first single, "Devil With An Angel Smile", can be found below.

Locked & Loaded will be available as digipak & ltd. colored vinyl. Pre-order here.

Tracklisting:

"Flesh & Bone"
"Wasting Time"
"Magic Woman Chile"
"Locked & Loaded"
"Devil With An Angel Smile"
"Straight For The Heart"
"Eyes Full Of Tears"
"Devil’s Cross"
"Trouble In The Moonlight"
"This Song Is For You"
"Children Of The Revolution"

"Devil With An Angel Smile" lyric video:




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Swedish melodic death metal combo Silent Verdict has signed a deal with WormholeDeath for the release of their debut album Condemned, out on April 30, 2021 on all digital platforms worldwide.

A band statement reads: "Silent Verdict are a melodic death metal band from Sweden. After releasing our first EP, Azrael, and playing some gigs, we felt the next step was to start writing material for our debut full-length album. Just at the very beginning of this writing process, we were lucky to be discovered by producer Jonathan Mazzeo, who connected us with record label WormholeDeath. After having done approximately five songs, both parts felt it was the right time to sign a record deal. We proceeded to record the album with Jonathan Mazzeo (The Grid Europe) in Pistoia, Italy and the final product is the album Condemned."

Tracklisting:

"Pure" 
"Cinder" 
"I Am Forsaken" 
"Before You Were Hated" 
"Panic" 
"Gone" 
"Kings Of Heresy" 
"The Living Are Truly Dead" 
"Nocturnal Law" 
"Unholy Arrival"

Condemned Album Trailer:

Silent Verdict are:

Ricky Magnusson - drums
Johan Schill - guitar 
Mattias Gunnarsson - bass
Mattias Kulas - vocals

 

 




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New Jersey-based rock n' roll trio The Atomic Bitchwax released their eighth studio album, Scorpio, in August 2020 via Tee Pee Records. The group, which originally formed in the mid-90s, consists of lead vocalist / bassist Chris Kosnik, drummer Bob Pantella, and guitarist Garrett Sweeny, all of whom are past or present members of the band Monster Magnet. 

Earlier today, The Atomic Bitchwax issued a lyric video for "Energy", the fourth single from Scorpio. Get your copy of Scorpio here. 

Scorpio acknowledges the two-decades milestone in its opening revamp of the first song the band ever wrote with vocals, “Hope You Die,” the crash-in of which will be immediately familiar to anyone who’s seen them live. A generation later, it still gets the message across.

From then on, it’s all-go on nine fresh-made burners, founding bassist/vocalist Chris Kosnik, guitarist Garrett Sweeny, and drummer Bob Pantella toying with tempo subtly to lace songs like “Betting Man” and “Easy Action” and “Energy” with signature-style memorable hooks amid instrumentals “Ninja,” “Crash” and “Instant Death,” the head-spinning turns of which push ahead in the aggressive stance The Bitchwax began to present in 2015’s Gravitron while still remaining imbued with new character and the loyalty to classic heavy rock that underlies all their work.

Tracked in January 2020 at Sound Spa in Edison, NJ, with Stephen DeAcutis engineering, Scorpio is a righteous next stage of the momentum The Atomic Bitchwax have been building through hard touring and release after release of gauntlet-throwing-down rock and roll. This is a band that never stops moving, and only ever moves forward.

Tracklisting:

"Hope You Die"
"Energy"
"Ninja"
"Scorpio"
"Easy Action"
"Crash"
"Super Sonic"
"You Got It"
"Betting Man"
"Instant Death"

"You Got It":

"Scorpio":

"Easy Action":

 




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On December 28, 2015, four days after his 70th birthday, Motörhead frontman Lemmy Kilmister passed away at his apartment in Los Angeles, California.

Earlier today, March 22, 2021, former Headbanger’s Ball host Riki Rachtman took to social media with the following revelation:

"Before his death, Lemmy asked for his ashes to be put in some bullets & handed out to his closest friends. Today I received a bullet & was literally brought to tears. Thank you Motorhead."

Before his death #Lemmy asked for his ashes to be put in some bullets & handed out to his closest friends Today I received a bullet & was literally brought to tears Thank you @myMotorhead pic.twitter.com/gnI9aWe4iU
— Rev. Riki Rachtman (@RikiRachtman) March 22, 2021

In other news, on April 23, Silver Lining Music will release Motörhead - Louder Than Noise... Live in Berlin on CD with bonus DVD, double vinyl and via your favoured streaming platforms.

Motörhead and Germany... it was always a love affair.

Throughout the Grammy-Award winning band’s illustrious 40-year career, Germany never wavered in its loyal and fanatical support of Motörhead’s untouchably loud rock ‘n’ roll, with the band regularly selling out tour after tour. And on December 5, 2012, at the Berlin Velodrom, Motörhead played one of their biggest-ever German gigs to 12,000 delirious, delighted and demented Motörhead fans during the Kings of The Road Tour.

Featuring Ian ‘Lemmy’ Kilmister, Phil Campbell and Mikkey Dee, Louder Than Noise... Live in Berlin is a crowning, definitive statement as to the power the trio had long held. Theirs was a line-up which had spent decades cracking sound barriers, bending ears and decimating lawns worldwide, consistently delivering the Motörgospel to hundreds of thousands of fans, and this line-up was Motörhead’s longest serving by a considerable distance (Phil joined in 1984, Mikkey in 1992, and the band played as a trio from 1995 until the band’s final show in 2015).

Throughout Louder Than Noise... Live in Berlin their powerful synergy boots its way through the speakers with the boisterous charm and dirty, dangerous, sweaty gusto that was the Kilmister/Campbell/Dee trademark. From the unapologetically furious “I Know How to Die” to a deliciously raucous “Going to Brazil”, Louder Than Noise... Live in Berlin is all about the thick, raw and liberating power of Motörhead live, with longtime producer Cameron Webb bringing his mixing skills to the party as well as doing a 5.1 mix of the DVD. Further highlights include a favorably feral “Rock It”, a rudely raunchy “You Better Run” and a classic one-two haymaker of “Ace of Spades” and “Overkill”.  The leading track from the album will be a cranium-cracking “Over the Top”, a song which must be as close to definitive of this band as you’ll ever find.

The whole night was captured by Herwig Meyszner, who has also produced concert films for the likes of Saxon, Exodus and Kreator, with a multi-camera no-shot-missed shoot that captures not just the energy onstage but the energy on the floor. In so many ways, Louder Than Noise... Live in Berlin is a joyous celebration of Lemmy, Phil, Mikkey and this special night in Germany, and whether a collector completist or newbie to Motörhead’s music, Louder Than Noise... Live in Berlin is a welcome reminder of what real rock ‘n’ roll is truly about.

Formats:

* CD Album with Bonus DVD in Digipak [Worldwide]
* Double Black Vinyl Album, 180 gm, in Gatefold [Available at Retail World Ex. US & CA and Worldwide via D2C]
* Boxset [GSA Retail Exclusive and via D2C Worldwide Ex GSA], containing:
  - CD Album with Bonus DVD in Digipak
  - Double Black Vinyl Album, 180 gm, in Gatefold
  - Motörhead Branded Passport Cover
* Digital Album & Streaming [Worldwide]

Pre-order here.

Tracklisting:

"I Know How To Die"
"Damage Case"
"Stay Clean"
"Metropolis"
"Over The Top"
"Doctor Rock"
"String Theory"
"The Chase Is Better Than The Catch"
"Rock It"
"You Better Run"
"The One To Sing The Blues"
"Going To Brazil"
"Killed By Death"
"Ace Of Spades"
"Overkill"

"Over The Top" video:

 




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Don’t Believe In Ghosts have signed to Imagen Records / ADA Warner. The band will release their first single, "Put Your Head Back", which was mixed by Mark Needham on April 16. The band's full album, Solutions, will arrive this spring on May 14.

“As a big fan of DBIG for a few years, I am thrilled to sign them to Imagen Records and excited for everyone to hear their new record Solutions,” says Imagen Records President Bob Winegard.

"I’ve been a fan of this band for years. Clever, fun, and songs filled with hooks. It puts me in a good mood every-time I listen to them. I’m so excited to have them on Imagen," says Morgan Rose, Head of A&R for Imagen Records.

“We are so incredibly stoked to be signing with Imagen Records, not only are they truly passionate about what they do but they are genuinely great people to have in our corner. There’s no doubt that the future for Don’t Believe In Ghosts is bright,” says Dan DelVecchio, guitarist of Don’t Believe In Ghosts.

The night the world shutdown in 2020 Don’t Believe In Ghosts was set to headline Brooklyn's Knitting Factory. This on the heels of two sold-out headline shows at New York City’s Iconic Bowery Ballroom and the band's first US tour, 2020 was lining up to be a breakout year for the band. With touring put on hold just as the band's single "Living Like This" began taking off at radio, singer Steven Nathan and his family were dealt a direct hit as his brother Robert Nathan passed away from COVID-19.

"This band has always been about seeing the light in the darkness. It’s always been about optimism, growth, and lifting people up. There were a few months there where I couldn’t even lift myself up anymore, it became very hard to focus. ‘Put Your Head Back’ is a defiant statement about no longer going down that path and re-aligning who you are and where you are going," says vocalist Steven Nathan when describing the motivation for the bands new single.

“We have so much new music that is ready to be released and we couldn’t be happier to have Imagen supporting us with their experience in the Music Industry,” concludes the band's bassist Alex Goumas.

“Don’t give energy to the ghosts of your past,” says Steven Nathan when describing the meaning behind the bands' name. “Worrying about what other people may think can be draining and debilitating.”




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Born Of Osiris recently released their new single, "White Nile". Get it here, and check out a new drum playthrough video for the song below.

Says the band: "We are so excited to bring you the first taste of new music with our track 'White Nile'. It has been a hard year for everyone but we’ve been fortunate to lean on each member and each piece of this community we call BoO. Perseverance flows like the Nile, as so we push on. With the release of this track also comes the transition of Nick Rossi to guitar. We are thrilled to go forward with this lineup and have so much more to come."




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Alberto Rigoni's For The Love Of Bass, simply put, it’s bass heaven.

After the success of his latest prog rock album Odd Times, Italian bassist & composer Alberto Rigoni (BAD As, Natural Born Machine, The Italians, Vivaldi Metal Project), now releases his 10th solo album. As the title suggests, the instrumentation is exclusively electric bass, spanning ambient, fusion, jazz and new age styles.

“It has been really challenging but the special guests contributed some gorgeous playing and we are all proud of the result,” says Alberto.

For The Love Of Bass is an all-star bassists album featuring some of the best players anywhere: Nathan East, Leland Sklar, Michael Manring, Tony Franklin, Doug Wimbish, Adam Nitti, Lars Lehmann, Cody Wright, Mohini Dey, David Pastorius, Are you ready to face a new bass experience?!

Watch a video for “Masked Souls” feat. Nathan East & Michael Manring below. To purchase AFor The Love Of Bass (Digipack CD & Digital), head here.

Tracklisting:

"Drops Of Memories" (feat. Tony Franklin)
"In The Loop" (feat. David Pastorius)
"Dreamers"  (feat. Michael Manring)
"Alone In The Dark" (feat. Doug Wimbish)
"Paranoia" (feat. Cody Wright)
"The Maze" (feat. Mohini Dey)
"Masked Souls" (feat. Nathan East & Michael Manring)
"Social Distortion" (feat. Adam Nitti)
"Mad World" bass cover (feat. Leland Sklar)
"Killers" (feat. Lars Lehmann)
"Misirlou" bass cover (feat. Lars Lehmann)
"Lost" (feat. Adam Nitti)

"Masked Souls" video:




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In 2019, Cosmic Key Creations issued a long overdue vinyl edition of Dance The Marble Naked, the debut full-length from UK-based cult doom conjurors, Enchantment, initially released in 1994 via Century Media Records. It was soon to be followed by a full reissue of the album on both CD and cassette formats by Transcending Records in 2020.

The renewed interest inspired the band to regroup and to set about completing their second full-length release, which was already written and composed back in 1994/5, but never made it to the recording stage. Enchantment dug up those old rehearsal tapes and finished the album over twenty-five years after the initial process making for an exciting time capsule that will take its listeners back to the heyday of the now legendary UK death/doom metal movement of the early ‘90s.

This very special and unique project will be brought to you exclusively by a joint partnership between Transcending Records in the US and Cosmic Key Creations in Europe. Further details including release date, preordering info and more will be revealed in the coming weeks.




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John Cooper, the frontman and bassist for the Grammy-nominated Christian rock band SKILLET, says that his comments about Cardi B and Megan Thee Stallion's performance of their hit song "WAP" during Sunday's Grammy Awards were "misrepresented."

On Wednesday, Cooper released an episode of his "Cooper Stuff" podcast in which he argued that being "forced to applaud" and "celebrate" the "sexual degradation" of Cardi and Megan's performance was a good example of how humanity has always been dexterous at confusing evil with good. To make his point, Cooper said that dictators like Adolf Hitler also claimed to be "liberators" while performing evil acts.

Earlier today, Cooper released a follow-up video message in which he clarified his original comments and insisted that he never compared Cardi B to Hitler or any dictatorship of any kind.

John said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "Yesterday in my podcast, I reacted to Cardi B's performance at the Grammys. And it has come to my attention that some of my words were misrepresented and taken out of context from their intent. So, please allow me to say this: I did not compare Cardi B to Hitler, and I did not compare her performance to Hitler or any other dictator, and I certainly didn't compare the Grammys or the music industry or any other artist, for any reason, to any dictator.

"Secondly, I wanna say this: I did not conflate the consequences or the gravity of Cardi B's performance at the Grammys. I in no way would ever conflate that to the horrors of the genocide that we saw in 1940 or any of the other violence and murders and all the death and destruction of any dictator that we've had in history. I honestly don't understand how it could be taken that way, but just to be clear and clear of any confusion, I was stating that we are living in a time when it comes to morality where we are redefining what is good and what is evil"

He continued: "Sometimes we have a hard time imagining that someone would do something bad and redefine it and call it good. That's why I was pointing out that there have been many, many examples of dictators or horrific events over the last 100 years where people did really, really bad stuff, but they believed or claimed that they were doing it for good reasons, for moral reasons, for liberating reasons. And as an example of that, I was saying if you were to go back and read some of Hitler's speeches, you would find that he claims to believe that he was liberating people and doing something virtuous. This in no way compared Cardi B to Hitler or any dictatorship of any kind, and it certainly wasn't conflating all of the evil things that have happened to the consequences of Cardi B's performance, or any other performance for that matter. I was speaking philosophically in order to make a point and then using an unequivocal example from the past where someone has traded evil but called it good.

"So I'd like to end this little five-minute talk with the same ending that I used on yesterday's podcast. This Grammy performance is a very small miscrocosm — it may seem trite; it may seem a little bit petty — it's just a microcosm to show something that is a lot bigger. I'm actually not trying to blow this up into a crisis. I'm actually saying we are in a crisis — but not because of the Grammys and not because of Cardi B and not because of a music performance or any other musician or artist or band. That's not why we are in a crisis. And what is the crisis? The crisis is this: we are redefining what is moral and what is immoral, what is virtuous and what is not virtuous, and it is going to have devastating consequences for America."

Cooper recently published his first book, titled "Awake & Alive To Truth (Finding Truth In The Chaos Of A Relativistic World)". It "tackles the reigning philosophies of our day of post-modernism, relativism, and the popular view of the goodness of man-and combats these viewpoints by standing on the absolute truth of the Word Of God," the book's description reads.

In various interviews over the years, Cooper has said that he "always had faith in God" and that his mother was a "Jesus fanatic." He also claimed that he was willing to put his career on the line to take a stand for Christ.

The attorneys for ICED EARTH guitarist Jon Schaffer have requested a review of their client's detention order as he awaits trial in Washington in connection with the siege on the U.S. Capitol.

On Friday (March 19), U.S. Magistrate Judge Zia Faruqui ordered the 53-year-old musician, who resides in in Edinburgh, Indiana, held without bail on six federal criminal charges related to his alleged involvement with the insurrection at the U.S. Capitol. He ruled that while Schaffer wasn't a flight risk, he does pose a danger to the community.

Schaffer, who is being held in a Washington D.C. jail, appeared before Faruqui via teleconference.

A short time after the hearing, Schaffer's attorney Marc Victor filed a "motion to amend detention order," claiming that "the government failed to establish Mr. Schaffer's dangerous to the community by clear and convincing evidence."

Victor wrote: "Mr. Schaffer is 53 years old. He has no criminal convictions. He does not have a substance abuse or mental health issue. He has no history of violence and was not violent on January 6, 2021. He entered the capitol with pepper spray. He did not threaten anyone with or discharge the spray. He left the capitol after approximately sixty seconds and returned home to Indiana."

During yesterday's hearing, government lawyers presented exhibits consisting of a video interview Schaffer gave in November 2020 at a pro-Donald Trump rally expressing his political views and a video and still photos taken on January 6, showing him inside the U.S. Capitol holding "bear spray."

According to WUSA9, the judge cited Schaffer's comments in the video interview that "if somebody wants to bring violence, I think there's a lot of us here that are ready for it."

Schaffer's attorney argued his client's comments were taken out of context, and that he knows he used bad judgment on January 6 and wishes he had a "do-over." He pointed out that the guitarist has no prior record and insisted that he isn't a danger to the community. He also argued the musician was not responsible for the insurrection and was encouraged by former president Donald Trump.

"People have the right to believe the highest elected official," Victor said, according to Indiana Public Media. "My client is not responsible for what happened on January 6."

Schaffer's attorney admitted Schaffer "used bad judgment that day" by bringing "bear spray" into the Capitol, but insisted he was only intending to use it for protection.

Schaffer will appear in a status hearing next month.

Court documents show Schaffer was originally scheduled to appear before the court on Thursday, but was unable to due to processing at a D.C. jail.

Schaffer waived his preliminary hearing as well as his rights to an identity hearing and production of a warrant in late January in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Indiana, court documents state. He was then transported by a United States marshal to Washington, D.C. where government lawyers and Schaffer's legal team have mutually agreed to handle all proceedings.

Last month, a man resembling Schaffer was seen in security footage from the U.S. Capitol riot that the House impeachment managers obtained and submitted as evidence for former President Donald Trump's second impeachment trial. The clip in question, which was released by CNN on February 15, shows rioters charging through a breached entrance and engaging and pushing officers. Schaffer can be seen near the front of the mob, wearing a blue hooded sweatshirt, a tactical vest and black leather fingerless tactical gloves, and pointing his finger while yelling at the officers.

Schaffer was photographed wearing an "Oath Keepers Lifetime Member" cap during the insurrection. The Oath Keepers describe themselves as an association of former law enforcement and military personnel dedicated to "support and defend the Constitution against all enemies, foreign and domestic." But the Anti-Defamation League describes it as "a large but loosely organized collection of right-wing anti-government extremists who are part of the militia movement, which believes that the federal government has been coopted by a shadowy conspiracy that is trying to strip American citizens of their rights."

Schaffer was held in the Marion County Jail for nearly two months after surrendering to police on January 17. He made his first court appearance the following day.

Just hours after the insurrection, ICED EARTH fans recognized Schaffer in a photo released by federal investigators.

Schaffer is believed to be one of at least 400 people who are being investigated by FBI officials over their roles in the insurrection.

More than 250 criminal cases have been filed so far. Charges include unauthorized access, theft, damage to government property and assault on law enforcement officers.

MOONSPELL singer Fernando Ribeiro has defended LACUNA COIL over the Italian band's decision to take part in an initiative dubbed "L'Ultimo Concerto?" (Last Concert) to highlight the increasingly uncertain future of music venues. Instead of delivering live performances as part of a scheduled free virtual stream on February 27, each of around 130 Italian artists was filmed taking the stage at a different venue and then standing there in silence as a way of commemorating the one-year mark since the first Italian venues closed.

Addressing the fact that some LACUNA COIL fans felt shortchanged by the experience, Fernando told Barbara Caserta of Italy's Linea Rock (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "I understand that sometimes the fans don't mean any bad things about being disappointed. Being disappointed is something that happens every day, and people should grow up and learn that being disappointed is a part of our lives as well and that sometimes bands use their power and use their reach in order to help their community. For instance, here in Portugal, we played four shows in 2020, and only with the musicians community coming together, fighting the government, creating awareness for our situation that we could, in between the lockdowns, play these four shows. Four shows is nothing for a band such as LACUNA COIL or MOONSPELL, but last year, it was everything. So I support them, obviously.

"I understand that no man or woman is an island," he continued. "We belong to a community. We cannot perform without our crew. We cannot perform without our fans. We cannot perform without the clubs. And people, if they like music, they should take this opportunity to understand that music is not only about the bands. We are just the face of a much larger body of people. And obviously, LACUNA COIL, as the great people they are, they wanted to show that to their fans, and I think in the end, when everything comes down, they did the right thing, and I'm quite proud of them. And I think that even though sometimes that happens with MOONSPELL — we get a lot of heat sometimes — but I think they stood their ground, and I think that's what bands are for. We are not just merely entertainers — we are flesh-and-blood people. We need also to put the pasta in the table. So I think [any opportunity] to create awareness is always a great thing, and I wish more metal bands had the guys to create awareness too.

"The first thing MOONSPELL did on the pandemic was not to ask money for ourselves," Fernando added. "We still had [a little bit of money] left from the tour, but we raised money as a fundraiser to the Portuguese league against cancer. Because they didn't have any equipment — no masks, et cetera. So our fans came together with us and we could raise some money.

"There's this part that sometimes people don't like. But I think only doing stuff like LACUNA COIL helps you understand that music is a community and not just fans and bands. They are the top of the community, but we should defend everything else. So, bravo! [Laughs]"

Organized by KeepOn Live, Arci, Assomusica and Live DMA, the "L'Ultimo Concerto?" campaign was announced in January when the venues shared images on social media of their year of foundation and the year 2021 with a question mark, suggesting that their closures due to the coronavirus pandemic could be permanent.

Between March and June 2020, the Italian government imposed a national lockdown by restricting people's movements to contain the pandemic. Thus, museums and cinemas closed and all cultural events were either canceled or rescheduled.

Around 300,000 people working in theaters, music venues, cinemas and cultural spaces in Italy have been rendered jobless since they shut their doors due to the coronavirus crisis.

MOONSPELL's 13th studio album, "Hermitage", was released on February 26 via Napalm Records.

LACUNA COIL singer Cristina Scabbia has released a longer video explaining the band's decision to take part in an initiative dubbed "L'Ultimo Concerto?" (Last Concert) to highlight the increasingly uncertain future of music venues. Instead of delivering live performances as part of a scheduled free virtual stream on Saturday, February 27, each of around 130 Italian artists was filmed taking the stage at a different venue and then standing there in silence as a way of commemorating the one-year mark since the first Italian venues closed.

On Sunday (February 28), Scabbia took to her Twitch livestream to offer a more detailed clarification of LACUNA COIL's reasons for participating in "L'Ultimo Concerto?" and to express her sympathy for fans who felt shortchanged by the experience.

"Sometimes there is a price to pay if you want to stand up for your ideals," Cristina said. "And we wanted to send a very strong message. That's why we decided to be part of this protest that is a way to support live clubs that are closing. They asked us to participate, together with more than 120 bands. And we have decided to accept. So it is not an attack towards our fans. It was not our way to create an illusion and malcontent and discontent and frustrations and sadness and anger, because we didn't mean to play with your expectations, and we know better than a lot of people that this pandemic ruined our lives and it took [a huge toll] on a lot of us.

"Our participation was the response to an invitation," she continued. "The only difference is that, compared to pretty much all the other bands [that took part in the protest], we are known out of Italy. So for us, the problem was, well, if we announce this concert, we have to say it in English as well. Because if we don't say it in English, a lot of people will say, 'Oh, why not for eyes out of Italy?' So we had to announce it. But if you notice, we only posted the virtual poster that we got from the organizers. We never published it. If you notice, you guys asked me a few times, 'What's gonna happen? What do we have to do? Where do we have to look at it?' And I was very, very short with words, with descriptions. We never [promoted it any further], and we didn't do it for a reason, because we already felt bad, because we already felt that we were kind of tricking people. But this was the only way to send a very strong message.

"I read many, many, many of your messages yesterday. Some of them understood, some of them were really pissed off, and I absolutely understand the frustration and the anger. But at the same time, whoever left a harsh message helped us anyway to scream even louder. Because believe me that they talked about it, and it was on Blabbermouth today. A lot of journalists are following LACUNA COIL, so they already wrote me, they want to do interviews, so we can talk about this.

"Some of the people were, like, 'But we are the wrong people to give the message to, because we are supporting you guys; we are buying the merch and we are buying the tickets of the concert.' But the point was to create a reaction that would make a lot of people say, 'What the fuck is going on right now? Why they didn't play? Why they stood there? Why they're sending this message?'

"It is hard to find the proper words, because I understand — I understand the reaction," Cristina added. "Today the tone of the messages [from fans on social media] changed completely, because after the frustration, you just sit down, you breathe in, you breathe out, and you think, 'Okay, it was bad to realize that there was no concert, but I understand why they did it.'"

Organized by KeepOn Live, Arci, Assomusica and Live DMA, the "L'Ultimo Concerto?" campaign was announced in January when the venues shared images on social media of their year of foundation and the year 2021 with a question mark, suggesting that their closures due to the coronavirus pandemic could be permanent.

Between March and June 2020, the Italian government imposed a national lockdown by restricting people's movements to contain the pandemic. Thus, museums and cinemas closed and all cultural events were either canceled or rescheduled.

Around 300,000 people working in theaters, music venues, cinemas and cultural spaces in Italy have been rendered jobless since they shut their doors due to the coronavirus crisis.

Earlier on Saturday, Italy announced it was tightening restrictions in five of the country's 20 regions in an effort curb the spread of the coronavirus.

There have been more than 2.9 million confirmed coronavirus cases and 97,500 deaths in Italy since the pandemic began. It is the second-highest death toll in Europe after Britain and the seventh-highest in the world.

In a new interview with "The Jeremy White Podcast", ex-VAN HALEN bassist Michael Anthony confirmed that there has been talk of putting together a career-spanning box set from his former band, including rare and previously unreleased bonus material. "I know Warner has brought up the question, would we like to do that, as far as like a box set," he said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET). "Obviously, it all happens after Eddie [Van Halen, VAN HALEN guitarist] passed, and it's, like, 'Hey, let's cash in on this and that or whatever,' which I don't want any part of that… But I know there has been some talk about doing a box set and redoing some stuff, but I think it's kind of in the early works, and nobody's really talked that much about it yet. But I'm sure, and I also hope, that that will happen."

Anthony also talked about the possibility of remixing and remastering some of the classic VAN HALEN albums in order to bring out the bass and make the mix sound more "modern." "Of course, it's tough with Ed not being here, to be able to go in, as far as doing anything with the guitar, which you really don't need to, because his guitar sound is always incredible," he said. "But I'm sure, at some point, we'll get together possibly with Alex [Van Halen, drums] and maybe Ed's son Wolfgang and do something like that. I think it'd be a great thing to do."

VAN HALEN and Anthony had not been on good terms for more than a decade, with Anthony not invited to join the reunion with singer David Lee Roth that began in 2007. The subsequent two tours and studio album, "A Different Kind Of Truth", featured Wolfgang Van Halen on bass.

Anthony took a pay cut and signed away all of his rights to the band name and logo in order to participate in VAN HALEN's 2004 tour, which featured Sammy Hagar on vocals.

Last November, Wolfgang' revealed that Eddie had contemplated a "kitchen-sink tour" that would have included Anthony, as well as vocal turns from both Sammy Hagar and Roth. There was even talk about bringing back Gary Cherone, who sang with VAN HALEN on one poorly received album, 1998's "Van Halen III".

Eddie died in October at St. John's Hospital in Santa Monica, California. The iconic VAN HALEN axeman passed away from complications due to cancer, his son confirmed.

Los Angeles alternative metal band GEMINI SYNDROME has released the official music video for its new single, "Die With Me". The clip, which was directed and edited by Brian Cox, can be seen below.

GEMINI SYNDROME vocalist Aaron Nordstrom stated about the song: "23, Shakespeare, The divine wedding of yin and yang… 'Die With Me' is an invitation for the listener to come along on the journey of self-discovery with us, which ultimately leads to the death of the lower self and the resurrection of the higher self. Lao Tzu said, 'The one created the two, the two created the three, and then came the 10,000 things.' 2 and 3 respectively correspond to the male and female energies. 2 being a single line and 3 being a triangle or vessel. Therefore 23 signifies the merging of the seemingly opposite energies of male and female."

GEMINI SYNDROME drummer Brian Steele Medina added: "In our life we have many deaths, and many reincarnations, and these experiences transform us into a more complete version of our true self… Though while we're going through it, it's often uncomfortable, painful, and we tend to avoid these spiritual growth spurts because we're more comfortable sitting in our pain and shit, than walking through it. So, after we've walked through enough of these challenges, we might seek out that person, or tribe whose combined experience could help each other traverse that path to transmutation."

"Our video for 'Die With Me' is designed for the watcher to be exposed to certain signs and symbols and evoke a spiritual experience." continued Medina. "It depicts a young initiate performing a ritual at her sacred altar. The blindfold symbolizes that her quest for truth must begin within. She contemplates time, and she laments death and learns that time is an illusion. She scribes the language of her heart as she cries out to the Universe, (Uni-Verse = The One Song.) And we're all dead, so that's cool too."

"The video for 'Die With Me' shows a different side of death than we've shown before. Even though we're all fatally wounded in some way, we're still performing and extending our invitation. Maybe the girl is performing a ritual to help our souls cross the river styx? Or to keep us animated in our now, dead state," added Nordstrom.

GEMINI SYNDROME spent the better part of 2018-2019 writing the final installment of its long planned three album trilogy. They retreated to Medina's Las Vegas home studio, where they meticulously crafted song after song, relentlessly reworking and rearranging the musical arrangements until they were fully satisfied. After an exhaustive writing process, GEMINI SYNDROME relocated to Good Sounds Studio in Tempe, Arizona, where producer Matt Good would help realize the collection of songs. Medina recalls: "We absolutely loved working with Matt and he completely understood where we wanted to take this album creatively and what it was going to take to bring the third chapter of this trilogy to light. Our actual collective blood, sweat and tears went into its creation."

"Die With Me" follows the release of "IDK" and "Reintegration" and is the band's first new music since the release of their sophomore album "Memento Mori" (2016), which hit No. 1 on Billboard Heatseakers chart and spawned five singles: "Eternity", "Anonymous", "Alive Inside", "Sorry Not Sorry" and "Remember We Die".

GEMINI SYNDROME is Aaron Nordstrom (vocals, keyboards), Brian Steele Medina (drums, programming), Alessandro "AP" Paveri (bass), Meegs Rascon (guitar), and Nicholas Paul Arnold (touring guitar).

Photo credit: Dean Karr

Jon Oliva, the American composer, multi-instrumentalist and singer who is best known as the founder of and keyboardist and lead vocalist for SAVATAGE, has revealed to "80's Glam Metalcast" that he battled COVID-19 for two months last year. "I had it for eight weeks, and I wouldn't have wished it on my worst enemy in the world," he said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET). "I would not have wished it on anybody. It was brutal — it really was. It sucked. But I'm okay now. And I'm gonna be getting my vaccination here in the next week or so. And that's it. So I lived through it. [Laughs] They don't want me in Heaven. Christ doesn't me up there because the first thing I'm doing when I get to Heaven is I'm punching Paul O'Neill [late TRANS-SIBERIAN ORCHESTRA founder and SAVATAGE collaborator] and Criss Oliva [late SAVATAGE guitarist and Jon's brother] in the face."

Oliva also addressed the possibility of new SAVATAGE music in the not-too-distant future, saying: "Since [SAVATAGE's] Wacken [reunion] show in 2015, Chris Caffery, me and Al Pitrelli, we've been trading song ideas for a possible SAVATAGE thing over the phone. I go, 'Hey, this is great. This is great. This is cool.' But I've been writing SAVATAGE material since 2003, and I could do a quadruple double album, if I wanted to. So, yeah, we're trading off things, and we're looking at that. And we're working on a SAVATAGE live thing that we did in Cologne, Germany in 1997, and we're putting that together for a livestream thing. And it's really good. And I've been working on that. Al came down to Florida and we kind of beefed it up a little bit — not a lot, but just beefed it up a little bit, mixed some things."

Jon went on to say that he would personally "love" to see SAVATAGE recurrected, adding that "it's very possible." He said: "If it's gonna happen, we'll make an official announcement, but we have been working together, just because with the pandemic and all that, we're bored; there's nothing to do. So we've been trading ideas through e-mails and on the phone. Me and Al wrote three or four things together. Me and Chris Caffery have worked on a few things together. What else are we gonna do? There's nothing to do. So, yeah, we'll see what happens."

Oliva also revealed that he had been talking about a SAVATAGE comeback since before O'Neill died. "Paul and I had many meetings about it, and we were talking about, 'Well, if we did do it, what would we call it, and how would we operate it?'" he said. "And I said to him, 'Well, if we do it, we should call it 'Still The Orchestra Plays'. And me and Zak [Stevens] should sing a lot of songs together and have certain songs, so it would be the two lead singers.' And we'd feature all kinds of music — all the types of music. 'Cause SAVATAGE was never really one sort of bag, especially when Paul got involved. From 'Gutter Ballet' on, it was all kinds of different things, which was great — I thought it was great. And which led to TRANS-SIBERIAN ORCHESTRA."

Back in 2016, Jon announced on social media that he suffered a stroke in April of that year. At the time, he said: "It was not as serious as it could have been, but it did leave me with some physical recovery challenges often associated with strokes."

Despite his health issues, Jon said that he didn't regret the way he had lived his life. He wrote: "I lived the rock 'n' roll lifestyle since I was 18. It's all I knew and I enjoyed the ride very much. But there comes a time in everyone's life where you have to step back and make some life-changing decisions...which I have."

Shortly after SAVATAGE's reunion performance at the 2015 Wacken Open Air festival in Wacken, Germany, Oliva revealed that felt better than he had in twenty years because he had "stopped drinking and eating" in preparation for the concert. He explained: "It's my voice that's freaking me out, because, even when I was in my late 20s, early 30s, doing songs like '24 Hours Ago' were always really hard to do. And, of course, I didn't realize that it was all the drugs and alcohol I was doing. But, after doing that, getting my act together and stuff, singing '24 Hours Ago', it's actually easy now. [Laughs]"

SAVATAGE's last album release, "Poets And Madmen", in 2001 was highlighted by Jon Oliva's return as lead vocalist, replacing Zak Stevens, who left the band citing family reasons, and the departure of Al Pitrelli, who accepted an offer to join MEGADETH in 2000. Pitrelli did record solos for some songs prior to his departure. Another very limited U.S. tour followed, supported by FATES WARNING in the early shows, and then NEVERMORE for the remainder. Around this time, Jon chose Zak's replacement in the form of Damond Jiniya (DIET OF WORMS). Damond performed Zak's parts on tour, with Jon having an increased vocal role in proceedings.

Dream Theater keyboardist Jordan Rudess has shared another lockdown livestream video from home, which aired in full on his official Pateron page here on March 21st. Check out an excerpt from the stream below featuring Rudess performing on his grand piano.

Rudess has released a video for "Weightless", the opening track of his recently released new solo album, A Chapter In Time. Get the album here, and watch the new clip below.

Tracklisting:

"Weightless"
"I Surrender"
"Light As A Feather"
"The Quiet Mind"
"After The Storm"
"Once Upon A Time"
"Empty Streets"
"And Breathe"
"Into Sleep"
"Flying"
"Patterns Of Thought"
"Touching Light"
"Twilight Rain"
"Stellar Enigma"
"Beyond The Clouds"

"Weightless" video:




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Venom Inc. frontman, Tony "Demolition Man" Dolan, recently announced the upcoming Black Sabbath tribute album from all-star project Sabbatonero, entitled L’Uomo Di Ferro - A Tribute To Black Sabbath. They have released a lyric viceo for their cover of "Symptom Of The Universe" featuring vocalist Rasmus Bom Anderson (Diamond Head), a guitar solo by Marty Friedman (ex-Megadeth), and an acoustic solo by Filippo Marcheggiani (Banco del Mutuo Soccorso). The video was created by Andy Pilkington at Very Metal Art.

Dolan recently checked in with an update on the project, which can be found below.

All funds raised by the projectwill go to frontline COVID workers in Italy. It will be released on digital and followed by vinyl/CD versions.

L’Uomo Di Ferro - A Tribute To Black Sabbath tracklisting:

"Symptom Of The Universe"
"Sabbath Bloody Sabbath"
"N.I.B."
"Killing Yourself To Live"
"Heaven & Hell"
"Paranoid"
"Children Of The Grave"
"A National Acrobat"
"Hole In the Sky"
"War Pigs"

Backing band:

Tony ‘Demolition’ Dolan (Venom Inc) - All bass & vocals on "N.I.B."
Francesco Conte (Necromega) - Guitars
Filippo Marcheggiani (Banco del Mutuo Soccorso) - Guitars
Riccardo Spilli (Balleto Di Bronzo) - Drums

Guest artists:

Vocalists:
Rasmus Bom Anderson (Diamond Head) - Vocals on "Symptom of the Universe"
Steve Sylvester (Death SS) - Vocals on "Sabbath Bloody Sabbath"
Tony ‘Demolition’ Dolan (Venom Inc) - vocals on "N.I.B."
Maksymina Kuzianik (Scarceration) & Mayara Puertas (Torture Squad) - Vocal duet on "Killing Yourself To Live"
Tony D’Alessio (Banco Del Mutuo Soccorso) - Vocals on "Heaven & Hell"
Fleigas (Necrodeath) - Vocals on "Paranoid"
John Gallagher (Raven) - Vocals on "Children of the Grave"
Simone Salvatori (Spiritual Front) - Vocals on "A National Acrobat"
Andrea Zanetti (Monumentum) - Vocals on "Hole in the Sky"
James Rivera (Helstar) - Vocals on "War Pigs"

Guitar soloists:
Marty Friedman - "Symptom of the Universe"
Mantas (Venom Inc) - "Sabbath Bloody Sabbath"
Terence Hobbs (Suffocation)  - "N.I.B."
Prika Amaral (Nervosa) - "Killing Yourself To Live"
Ken Andrews (Obituary) - "Heaven & Hell"
Sonia Nusselder (Crypta/Cobra Spell/ex-Burning Witches) - "Paranoid"
Russ Tippins (Satan) - "Children of the Grave"
Atilla Voros (Leander Rising, ex-Tyr/Nevermore - "A National Acrobat"
Wiley Arnet (Sacred Reich) - "Hole In the Sky"
James Murphy (ex Death/Agent Steel/Obituary) - "War Pigs"

Guest drummers:
Snowy Shaw (Dream Evil/Mercyful Fate, etc) - Drums on "Sabbath Bloody Sabbath"
Mark Jackson (Acid Reign ex-M:Pire of Evil) - Drums on "War Pigs"
Dario Casabona  (Schizo) - Drums on "Hole in the Sky"

Keyboard guests:
Freddy Delirio (Death SS) - "Sabbath Bloody Sabbath"
Heric Fittipaldi (Scenario) - "Heaven & Hell"

Cover Art by @weltyamatattoo
Design/Layout: Maxi Kuzianik/Tony Dolan

Recorded all over the planet, but...

Mixed by Francesco Conte
Stem Pre Mastering by Marco Mastrobuono, Francesco Conte and Filippo Marcheggiani at Kick Recording Studio Italy
Mastered by Jack Control at Enormous Door Mastering Italy

Produced by Tony Dolan and Francesco Conte




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Imonolith features drummer Ryan Van Poederooyen (Devin Townsend Project), guitarist Brian ‘Beav’ Wadell (Devin Townsend Project), Jon Howard (Threat Signal), guitarist Kai Huppunen (Methods of Mayhem, Noise Therapy) and Scott Whalen (Econoline Crush). They have checked in with a new video from the archives:

"In this Imonolith Chronicles we take you back to Jon Howard recording his original demo vocals for what would become our first album, State Of Being. See how it all came together from Jon's perspective." 

Imonolith recently issued the following update:

"We've been getting lots of messages regarding validity of tickets you bought to see us for our March 2020 and February 2021 Tours. Read on below.

To all of you who have purchased tickets to an Imonolith Concert in the UK and Europe... those tickets will be honoured at the same or new venue for the city you chose to see us in for our November / December 2021 Headlining Tour. If your city is now not on the current list of your dates, please contact your ticket provider for further details. "

The schedule is as follows:

November
3 - Stoke, UK - Underground
4 - Glasgow, UK - Broadcast
5 - Edinburgh, UK - Bannermans
6 - Newcastle, UK - Underground
7 - Bristol, UK - Exchange
8 - Sheffield, UK - Corporation
9 - Leeds, UK - The Key Club
10 - Bournemouth, UK - The Anvil
11 - London, UK - The Black Heart
12 - Bilzen, Belgium - South of Heaven
13 - Lyon, France - Rock n Eat
15 - Madrid, Spain - Rockville
16 - Portugalete, Spain - Groove
17 - Montpellier, France - Secret Place
18 - Martigny, Switzerland - Sunset Bar
19 - Mainz, Germany - Schon Schon
20 - Cham, Germany - L.A. Live Club Cafe
21 - Modena, Italy - MK Live
23 - Brasov, Romania - Rockstadt
24 - Budapest, Hungary - ROBOT
25 - Salzburg, Austria - Rockhouse Bar
26 - Geislingen, Germany - MieV
27 - Dobeln, Germany - KL17
28 - Prague, Czech Republic - Rock Cafe
29 - Munich, Germany - Backstage
30 - Bochum, Germany - Die Trompete

December
1 - Hamburg, Germany - Goldener Salon
3 - Stockholm, Sweden - Hus 7
5 - Helsinki, Finland - On The Rocks
6 - Tallin, Estonia - Rockclub Tapper
8 - Riga, Latvia - Melna Piektdiena
9 - Vilnius Lithuania - Club Narauti




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Earlier today, March 21, former KISS guitarist Bruck Kulick took to social media with the following message:

"Here's a great performance of KISS on Conan O'Brian from 1995. I remember being thrilled to be on the show! We were just days away from filming MTV Unplugged. 'Domino' is the second song, and it's really short. Amazing we remembered that arrangement."

"Domino", from 1992's Revenge is preceeded by "Comin' Home", from 1974's Hotter Than Hell.

 




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Blood Red Throne and Son Of A Shotgun's Ivan “Meathook” Gujic has released a cover video for Johnny Cash's "Folsom Prison Blues". Recording and video editing done by Meathook Productions. All rights reserved to Johnny Cash and Columbia Records.

Just recently, Norwegian southern death grinders Son Of A Shotgun unleashed a live video for "All I Got left", taken from the band's performance on November 28, 2020 at Kristiansand Kulturhus in Norway. 

The band's upcoming EP, Be For Oss Alle is coming out soon; it was mixed and mastered by Christian Donaldson (Cryptopsy). Watch the EP teaser below:

 




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Children Of Bodom have launched a line of branded socks featuring graphics from the band's album artwork.

A message states: "First time for everything. Here are the Children of Bodom socks. Slight compression paired with our original album graphics. Choose your colors and sock it up!"

Available in five designs and a bundle, you can shop for the socks here. Watch a video below:




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The Saga Of Skálmöld is a new, official biography, written by the British author Joel McIver and featuring a foreword by none other than keen metal fan and President of Iceland, Guðni Jóhannesson.

All six band-members tell their stories, and the book goes deep into the history of the band, with contributions from almost everyone they’ve worked with along the way. You’ll find a list of every gig Skálmöld has played, their song lyrics translated into poetically faithful English, and tons of behind-the-scenes photos. The first 300 copies come with a Certificate of Authenticity, signed by all band members.

Interviews: Skálmöld's Bjorgvin ‘Böbbi’ Sigurdsson (vocals, guitar), Baldur Ragnarsson (guitar), Thrainn Baldvinsson (guitar), Snaebjorn ‘Bibbi’ Ragnarsson (bass), Gunnar Ben (keyboards), Jón Geir Jóhannsson (drums). Also, Haukur Bragason (Ásatrúarfélagið priest), Merle Doering (manager), Atli Jarl (bassist, Atrum), Stebbi Magg (founder, Eistnaflug festival), Matthias Magnusson (Head Of Music, Iceland National Radio), Ottarr Proppé (Ham singer, former Minister Of Health), Haraldur Sveinbjörnsson (arranger and conductor of Reykjavik Symphony Orchestra), Kristinn Thorarensen (former manager), Arnar Thoroddsen (journalist), Aðalbjörn Tryggvason (Solstafir), Einar Vilberg (producer).

Order here.




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Before the release of his new album Spiritus Mundi on April 9, Nad Sylvan is happy to be announcing yet another single and accompanying video, this time for “The Hawk”.

The song’s lyrics are based on a poem by Nobelprize winning author W. B. Yeats:

The Hawk
'Call down the hawk from the air;
Let him be hooded or caged
Till the yellow eye has grown mild,
For larder and spit are bare,
The old cook enraged,
The scullion gone wild.'

'I will not be clapped in a hood,
Nor a cage, nor alight upon wrist,
Now I have learnt to be proud
Hovering over the wood
In the broken mist
Or tumbling cloud.'

'What tumbling cloud did you cleave,
Yellow-eyed hawk of the mind,
Last evening? that I, who had sat
Dumbfounded before a knave,
Should give to my friend
A pretence of wit.'

The music is based on a primitive guitar/vocal demo by Andrew Laitres, which Nad then developed into the actual song. Watch the video below:

Spiritus Mundi is available as Special Edition CD Digipak (incl. two bonus tracks), 180g Gatefold LP Vinyl Edition (incl. the entire album on CD) and as Digital Download. Pre-order here.

Tracklisting:

“The Second Coming”
“Sailing To Byzantium”
“Cap And Bells”
“The Realists”
“The Stolen Child”
“To An Isle In The Water”
“The Hawk”
“The Witch And The Mermaid”
“The Fisherman”
“You’ve Got To Find A Way” (Bonus Track)
“To A Child Dancing In The Wind” (Bonus Track)

“The Stolen Child”:

“The Fisherman”:




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After the first single, "Aleine", where black metal legend Gaahl contributed as a guest vocalist, Chris Wicked is now ready with the second single, "Sørgebånd". Watch a music video below.

This is the most stripped-down song on the upcoming album, a sensitive and melancholic gem that tears well in the soul. Featuring Taake singer Hoest on bass guitar.




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King Crimson founder Robert Fripp and his singer wife Toyah Willcox are back with another episode in their "Toyah & Robert’s Sunday Lunch" series. This time they take on Motörhead's "Ace Of Spades". Watch below:

Watch Robert & Toyah's renditions of Mötley Crüe's "Girls, Girls, Girls", the Black Sabbath classic “Paranoid”, Metallica's "Enter Sandman", and Alice Cooper's "Poison", below:




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AVENGED SEVENFOLD's sophomore album, 2003's "Waking The Fallen", was officially certified platinum on March 17 by the RIAA (Recording Industry Association of America) for sales in excess of one million copies. On the same day, the LP's lead single "Unholy Confessions" was certified gold for accumulating 500,000 certified units.

The only other AVENGED SEVENFOLD album to achieve platinum status in the U.S. is the band's third LP, 2005's "City Of Evil".

The RIAA developed its gold and platinum awards program in 1958 to honor artists and create a standard by which to measure the commercial success of a sound recording. The program trademarked the gold record and formalized the industry practice of presenting awards to artists for music sales achievements.

Presently, the RIAA awards a gold honor for 500,000 units sold, a platinum honor for 1 million units sold and a diamond award for more than 10 million units sold.

In the streaming age, each permanent digital album or physical album sale count as 1 unit for certification purposes, 10 permanent track downloads from the album count as 1 unit for certification purposes, and 1,500 on-demand audio and/or video streams from the album count as 1 unit. For songs, 150 on-demand audio and/or video streams count as 1 unit for certification purposes.

According to the RIAA, one equivalent song unit is equal to a single digital song sale, or 150 on-demand audio and/or video streams.

Last month, AVENGED SEVENFOLD singer M. Shadows told the Minneapolis, Minnesota radio station 93X that "70 percent" of the follow-up to 2016's "The Stage" album was "done." He said: "We're working on stuff. We have some things we can't finish right now 'cause of COVID — string players, et cetera. We know Andy [Wallace, AVENGED SEVENFOLD's longtime mixer] doesn't wanna travel, or his management doesn't want him to travel because of COVID. So there's just a lot of things going on."

As for when fans can expect to see the new AVENGED SEVENFOLD LP released, M. Shadows said: "It doesn't make sense for us right now to put out a record and not be able to tour it. The world has changed. Putting out a record on Spotify without touring for a rock band, it just doesn't make sense to us. So we're gonna wait till everything is back, then we'll come out with the record, finish it up, and all will be good."

Also in February, AVENGED SEVENFOLD guitarist Zacky Vengeance told Detroit's WRIF radio station that he and his bandmates have done "lots and lots of writing — at a lot slower pacer than usual" — during the coronavirus pandemic. "Now that we are a little bit older, we move around a little bit slower, but [we've done] tons of writing," he said. "We've gone to the studio. It was kind of a weird time to do anything in 2020, but that's when we felt like it was a good time to go out there and start tracking all the stuff that we had in us.

"But, like I said, we're doing it at a slow pace, so we're still in the process of recording," he explained. "We're taking it really, really slow, making sure everything is the way we like it. We're not in a big rush to get anything out, mainly 'cause we wanna get on the road, and we wanna be able to bring it to life. We wanna tour, we wanna travel, we wanna play songs that people wanna hear; we wanna expose them to some new stuff. 'Cause I just feel like rushing to put something out right now and letting it dissipate because of the void, while people are worried about where their next meal is coming from or the paycheck, the last thing in the world on people's minds is, 'AVENGED SEVENFOLD's gonna put out a new album, and that's gonna be the saving grace for us all.' And I feel like we'll take it slow, let the world get a little bit back to normal, and when people are ready, we'll know — we have a good sense of that. We'll slowly finish it up, and then unleash it when the world's ready."

Last December, M. Shadows told Kerrang! magazine about the musical direction of the new AVENGED material: "The [new] record sounds nothing like 'The Stage' — it's a completely new direction, and it sounds nothing like anything we've done. That's all I'll say about it: it's over the top, and it's very eclectic and wild."

AVENGED SEVENFOLD kept a low profile during 2019 and will likely not return to the road until the end of this year or early 2022. A blood blister on M. Shadows's vocal cords forced the band to cancel a summer 2018 tour with PROPHETS OF RAGE and THREE DAYS GRACE.

Asked if he is fully healed up now, M. Shadows told 93X: "I feel good, man. I'm just working on a new technique so that I can make sure I don't have any problems anymore. For the last year, that's what I've been doing — is switching up a lot of things, singing from a different place, and just making sure that when I hit the stage again, I don't resort back to old bad habits."

"The Stage" was surprise-released in October 2016. The release of the disc, which was announced the night it went on sale, earned the lowest sales of an AVENGED SEVENFOLD album in 11 years. It sold 76 thousand copies in its first week, 73 thousand of which were physical.

"The Stage", AVENGED's debut for Capitol, sold less than half as many copies in its first week as the group's two previous efforts, 2010's "Nightmare" and 2013's "Hail To The King"

In a new interview with Kylie Olsson's YouTube show "Life In Six Strings", former DOKKEN and current FOREIGNER bassist Jeff Pilson was asked if he has ever given any thought to writing a book. He responded (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "I am actually working on a book right now, but it has nothing to do with my life. Well, it does indirectly. I'm actually writing a yoga book at the moment. There's a little bit of autobiographical material in it, but I don't think I'm enough of a superstar for anybody to really be interested in my life. I think I'm just being realistic. I feel it would be presumptious to think people would be all that interested in my life. [Laughs] Maybe 10 people would. [Laughs] My family. Some of these [musical] projects I do, who knows if more than 10 people are even listening? [Laughs]"

Asked how he first became interested in yoga, Pilson said: "I've been doing yoga for 43 years — way before it was trendy. I had a back injury. Somebody told me to do it. I spent three hours on my back unable to move, and in that time, I decided I was going to do something. And I was only 20. So I started doing it, fell in love with it. I've made a lifelong commitment to it, and feel that it's been so important for keeping me sane. 'Cause I'm a fairly neurotic individual. [Laughs] But it's really kept me sane and kept me focused and gives me great energy. Yoga and meditation are really important in my life."

He added that he is "writing a book that I think could apply to a lot of people, which is what yoga does on a day-to-day basis."

Jeff went on to say that he is just about "halfway though" writing the book and he has yet to secure a publisher for it. "I do have an editor that has been helping me out immensely, so when the time comes, I'll have something at least legitimate to give them to read," he explained. "But I'm not in any hurry. This is the kind of stuff that the post-touring life is gonna use a little more of. So I'm just working towards that."

In the meantime, FOREIGNER and DOKKEN fans who are interested in Pilson's yoga-related endeavors can see him teaching a meditation class on Monday nights via the Hot For Yoga web site. "It's been very, very cool," he told "Life In Six Strings".

Pilson is best known for playing with DOKKEN and FOREIGNER, but he also toured with DIO in the 1990s and performed on three of the group's albums — "Strange Highways" (1993), "Angry Machines" (1996) and the group's tenth and final studio release, "Master Of The Moon" (2004).








Join Jeff Pilson for his weekly virtual Yoga class, hosted at HotForYogaSCV.com/

Posted by Foreigner on Sunday, August 23, 2020

SWITCHBLADE GLORY, the American hard rock band composed of internationally acclaimed singer/songwriter Lukas Rossi (ROCKSTAR SUPERNOVA, STARS DOWN, THE HALO METHOD), legendary drummer Kenny Aronoff (John Mellencamp, CHICKENFOOT, John Fogerty), songwriter/guitar player Steve Polin and bass player Josh Esther (Austin Mahone, Rihanna, Flo Rida) has returned with its sophomore album, "Human Toys", after a multi-year hiatus.

The official music video for the LP's title track and first single, "Human Toys", which is described in a press release as "a perfect crossover in the hard rock genre that flirts with an alternative rock influence," can be seen below.

Rossi states stated about the single and accompanying visual: "The music video is based on self doubt and our insecurities and how sometimes we focus too much on our outer beauty when all that matters is the beauty inside, and therein lies a dysmorphia of self-worth and image. We are all beautiful, original, and one of a kind for a reason — to share our beautiful differences with each other."

SWITCHBLADE GLORY's self-titled debut release in 2011 shot out of the gate with memorable guitar riffs and amazing melodies driven by Rossi's powerful vocals.

Last summer, Rossi released a music video for "Summertime" from his ninth studio album, chock full of celebrity cameos, including his former ROCKSTAR SUPERNOVA bandmate Tommy Lee, Matt Pinfield, Joey Fatone, RUN-DMC's Darryl McDaniels, members of P.O.D. and THREE DAYS GRACE, actor Paul Schulze, Tiffany, comedian Big Jay Oakerson, and Chris Perez. Rossi was also featured on two tracks from Lee's "Andro", which came out last October.

HOLLYWOOD VAMPIRES have canceled their previously announced summer 2021 European tour due to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.

The band, which consists of AEROSMITH's Joe Perry, actor Johnny Depp and legendary rocker Alice Cooper, was originally set to play the shows in September 2020 but pushed them back to August 2021. They have now confirmed that these rescheduled dates won't happen.

In a statement, HOLLYWOOD VAMPIRES said: "We are beyond disappointed to announce that the HOLLYWOOD VAMPIRES must cancel our rescheduled UK/European tour this Summer. We kept trying to make it happen, but unfortunately due to the uncertainty of COVID-19 travel restrictions, it is just not possible.

"Full refunds will be monored through your original point of purchase. Thank you for understanding, and we WILL be back rocking with you once the world returns to normal!"

The three legends first came together to record in 2015, bonding over a shared love of their favorite songs and a desire to celebrate their "dead, drunk friends" by playing the songs of the fallen heroes. Riotous performances ensued around the world.

In 2019, HOLLYWOOD VAMPIRES completed a triumphant seven-city North American tour which included a sell-out show at the famous Greek Theatre in Los Angeles and were voted the "best performance" of 2018 at London's Wembley Arena.

HOLLYWOOD VAMPIRES' sophomore album "Rise", produced by Tommy Henriksen and the HOLLYWOOD VAMPIRES, was hailed as one of the purest, most unapologetic and enjoyable rock and roll albums of 2019, made by masters of the craft and true fans of the form. Unlike their 2015 debut record, the latest album consisted mainly of original material, written by the band. There are however, in the spirit of the VAMPIRES' original mission, three covers of songs originally written and recorded by legendary rockers who died far too young.




pic.twitter.com/CdMdwdIoEA

— Hollywood Vampires (@hollywoodvamps) March 22, 2021

OF MICE & MEN's fan-favorite single "Second & Sebring" has been certified gold by the RIAA (Recording Industry Association Of America) for accumulating 500,000 certified units. The song appears on the band's self-titled debut, released by Rise Records in 2010, and is that which launched the band's meteoric rise in the metalcore scene.

According to the RIAA, one equivalent song unit is equal to a single digital song sale, or 150 on-demand audio and/or video streams.

"Modern metalcore is not a genre defined by notoriety or accolades but moreso defined by the audience appreciating and connecting with the stories we share about ourselves," says OF MICE & MEN drummer Valentino Arteaga. "This is an incredible achievement made possible by our amazing fans who believe in the power of alternative music. Thank you for the continued support after all these years!"

OF MICE & MEN went on to dominate the decade, releasing "The Flood" (2011) and "Restoring Force" (2014), the latter of which charted Top 5 in the U.S. Overall, the band has gone on to sell over a million albums worldwide across their expansive catalog and has amassed over half a billion streams across DSPs. They've tallied over 200 million YouTube streams and over five million social media followers.

OF MICE & MEN has toured internationally for over a decade, sharing stages with the likes of LINKIN PARK, SLIPKNOT, FIVE FINGER DEATH PUNCH and BRING ME THE HORIZON, while appearing at major festivals globally.

OF MICE & MEN is currently releasing a series of EPs that will eventually comprise their next album. The first EP, "Timeless", is out now. The single "Anchor" was the most played song on SiriusXM's Octane channel last week.

Singer Austin Carlile left OF MICE & MEN in 2016 due to his ongoing battle with Marfan syndrome, a rare genetic disorder that afflicts the connective tissue holding the body's cells, organs and tissue together.

Carlile originally exited OF MICE & MEN in 2010 after his doctor forbade him from touring to undergo heart surgery tied to complications with Marfan Syndrome. He returned in 2011, but his ailments didn't cease, forcing him to depart the band for the second, and presumably final, time five years