In a new interview with Neil Jones of TotalRock, singer Andrea Ferro of Italian goth metal veterans LACUNA COIL weighed in on a debate about people using an A.I. (artificial intelligence) music generator as a tool to create melodies, harmonies and rhymes based on artificial intelligence (A.I.) algorithms and machine learning (M.L.) models. Andrea said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "I think you can't fight the progress. Evolution is gonna come no matter what. But you can try to be smart about it. I'm not against artificial intelligence if it's used as a tool to help you, to make your life easier, to make your life better. But don't overuse it. I think there's times to use it, there's time not to use it. And it's a thin line, which is not easy to understand for many people."

Referencing the fact that an A.I.-generated band called VELVET SUNDOWN recently raked in more than 900,000 listeners on Spotify alone just one month after releasing its first songs in June, Andrea said: "I think artificial bands — not very useful to me, because they're always gonna take inspiration from something that already exists, while I think the human mistakes are what makes art unique. When you make a mistake and you go a direction you [weren't] expecting to go, that's where it gets interesting and curious and extreme. And so that's the missing part for something artificial to be creative, I think."

Andrea previously talked about the use of artificial intelligence in music this past March in an interview with Keefy of Ghost Cult magazine. He said at the time: "I think technology, as usual, is not good or bad. It depends the way you use it. If it's an extra tool to make your life easier and faster, that's okay. But if it has to substitute the creativity of a person, that I don't like personally. I prefer to use human creativity because humans are great because they make mistakes, and from a mistake, usually that's where great things happen. Whatever you do — you write a book, you write a song, you write a movie — when you fuck up or you make a mistake, and you can go there and see and realize what's special, how special it becomes with the mistakes, that's where you find a new way. You learn something new, you create something new and unique because you never would have thought about it in the correct way. So I think that can't be replaced by machine, at least not yet. And so I think human touch is very important. And there's no need to use A.I. [art for album covers]. If you find the right artist, it's not even that expensive. I think it's reasonably expensive and it's deserved and you can still make money on the merchandise and other things. So it's an excuse for laziness to don't use a real artist, I think, I think A.I. is cool and it can be helpful, but it has to be used with your brain."

Last year, Andrea's bandmate, LACUNA COIL singer Cristina Scabbia told Brazil's Sonoridades Inc. about A.I. in music: "I still have to know more about A.I. My first impression is that I hate it deeply. I think that it could be interesting and useful in many ways. But what humans are capable of, it's never 100 percent good. So I know that it will go downward. I mean, we could use it to explore galaxies, we could use it to get better in medicines and science, but I know that a lot of people will be using it for bad reasons.

"Speaking about music, I am confident that the creativity that a human being with emotions, with a soul can have will not be comparable, hopefully ever, to A.I.," she continued. "I think about songs like — I don't know — the one of THE POLICE, 'De-do-do-do, de-da-da-da, is all I want to say to you.' And A.I. would be scratching the forehead, if it had one, and say, like, 'What is this? What does it mean?' But it sounds good. It's rhythmically good. It works with that voice.

"There are so many things you have to bring together to write music, to [put] emotion [across to] other people, to give the emotion that for A.I., it's difficult to bring this emotion because it doesn't have one — yet," Scabbia added. "But my actual opinion is just, like, I want to continue to write music without A.I. for a long time… Maybe it can be helpful. This is my first opinion because I don't know that much. Maybe I don't want to know that much about A.I. I just want to keep it there, just like, 'Eh. I don't know if I wanna know you.'"

LACUNA COIL's latest album, "Sleepless Empire", came out on February 14 via Century Media Records. Inspiration to create the LP came during the sessions for "Comalies XX" (2022),the acclaimed remake of LACUNA COIL's breakthrough third record "Comalies".

Last October, Italian guitarist/producer Daniele Salomone confirmed that he has joined LACUNA COIL as the replacement for the band's longtime guitarist Diego Cavallotti.

Salomone made his live debut with LACUNA COIL on August 4, 2024 at the Rockstadt Extreme Fest in Râșnov, Romania.

In June 2024, LACUNA COIL announced Cavallotti's departure. Diego, who joined LACUNA COIL in 2016, initially as a fill-in guitarist following the exit of Marco "Maus" Biazzi, later said in a social media post that "this decision is not the result of my dissatisfaction or desire to explore new opportunities."

Cavallotti and Salomone played together in the Italian metal band INVERNO, which released its debut album, "Stasis", in December 2023.

SYSTEM OF A DOWN paid tribute to Ozzy Osbourne by performing a cover of the BLACK SABBATH classic "Snowblind" during the Serj Tankian-fronted band's concert last night (Wednesday, August 27) at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey.

Prior to launching into the track, SYSTEM OF A DOWN guitarist/vocalist Daron Malakian told the crowd: "When we first started out, they put us on the road and we toured. And New York [and] New Jersey are some of the first places we toured in the United States. And there was one tour that never did more for SYSTEM OF A DOWN: the Ozzfest. We did a few Ozzfests. Some of you are old enough that you were there. Some of you weren't even born yet.

"I wanna thank Ozzy Osbourne. We wanna thank Ozzy Osbourne."

Amid loud chants of "Ozzy! Ozzy! Ozzy!", Daron added: "We're gonna do a number now about cocaine. It's called 'Snowblind'."

SYSTEM OF A DOWN's rendition of "Snowblind" at MetLife Stadium marked the band's first performance of the track since 2002.

SYSTEM OF A DOWN's cover of "Snowblind" originally appeared on 2000's "Nativity In Black II" compilation, the second of a series of a series of BLACK SABBATH tribute albums.

Malakian previously told Metal Injection that the members of BLACK SABBATH liked SYSTEM OF A DOWN's version of "Snowblind" so much that they requested that the Armenian-American nu-metal band play it onstage when SYSTEM OF A DOWN was supporting the Birmingham metal originators.

"We got a chance to open up for SABBATH in Birmingham [in December 1999], which that was supposed to be their last show, years back," he recalled. "And we used to do the SABBATH cover of 'Snowblind'. And Shavo [Odadjian, SYSTEM OF A DOWN bassist] comes to me and he goes, 'Hey, they want us to do the SABBATH cover.' And I go, 'We ain't doing a SABBATH cover before SABBATH.' I'm, like, 'Are you fucking crazy?' And I was, like, 'No, man. We can't do that. We're going to get booed off the fucking stage. And it's not going to — it's not a good look. It's arrogant.' And then [SABBATH drummer] Bill Ward comes to our dressing room and he goes, 'You guys gotta do it. You gotta do it, man.' And I'm looking at him and I'm, like, it's fucking Bill Ward, man."

He continued: "Anyone who knows me knows that I'm more — I love VAN HALEN, but my favorite part of VAN HALEN is Alex [Van Halen]. I love drummers. I always wanted to be a drummer. The guitar was by accident. But anyway, I was, like, 'Okay, if he's saying it, and he's saying all the rest of the band wants us to do it, [we'll do it].' So we did it. We played 'Snowblind', and our version is so fucking different. It was the SYSTEM OF A DOWN version of 'Snowblind'. So there was that."

During the same chat, Daron spoke about the influence SABBATH and Ozzy's music had on him during his formative years. He said: "First riff I ever learned was 'Iron Man' when I was a kid, and I was obsessed with Ozzy Osbourne when I was six or seven years old — just obsessed. He'd appear in my dreams having dinner with my parents and me when I was a kid. And he was this larger-than-life, crazy guy. And in the '80s, you had the whole satanic panic kind of thing."

Regarding BLACK SABBATH's legacy, Malakian said: "What could you say about SABBATH that hasn't been said a million times? Obviously they're the beginning of metal. You can bring in DEEP PURPLE, you can bring in LED ZEPPELIN, you can bring other bands, but the darkness, the heaviness that's that originates from SABBATH."

Referencing last month's "Back To The Beginning" event, which marked Ozzy and SABBATH's final performance, Daron added: "We weren't a part of the whole thing, and I was texting Shavo the other day. I was, like, 'We should have been fucking a part of this. What the fuck?' But they mean a lot to me just like they do to a lot of other people."

During an appearance on a recent episode of the "Beardo & Weirdo" podcast, hosted by FIVE FINGER DEATH PUNCH bassist Chris Kael and comedian Craig Gass, SYSTEM OF A DOWN drummer John Dolmayan spoke about where he was when he found out about Ozzy's passing. John said: " I was probably setting up for Comic-Con and the condolence texts started to come in to me. And first of all, I didn't know anybody knew what my feelings were towards Ozzy or the family, and I didn't know what they were talking about, because I was setting up for Comic-Con in San Diego, and then I looked on Instagram and, of course, it's the barrage of [posts about Ozzy]…"

John continued: "You always think, like, 'Okay, maybe it's false,' because it was so soon after the last show that [Ozzy and BLACK SABBATH] did that it was, like, 'Okay, maybe this is bullshit,' or, 'Maybe he went to the hospital. Hopefully he's okay.' And then I got the confirmation from my manager."

Reflecting on his initial reaction to the news of Ozzy's death, John said: "It's one of those things where you know that he is older and he had a lot of health issues over especially the last five years. And I always feel like no matter what it is, the feelings that we have about somebody that passed are the feelings where we're dealing with the fact that we are also mortal and we only have a certain amount of time left. I try to reflect more on the amazing times that I had with somebody, 'cause they're gone. And the only thing left are the memories you have of them. And I try not to get sad, but more uplifted by the fact that, number one, I was lucky enough to know him. Number two, he made a bunch of incredible music. [Ozzy and his wife and manager Sharon] created a really cool and fun tour [Ozzfest] that is a staple from many people's youths and a fond memory for them, whether they were attending or where they were performing on it. Tens of thousands of people have positive memories from those shows. And he was a big influence on all the members of SYSTEM OF A DOWN, and we're all saddened in our own way. I know Daron [Malakian, SYSTEM OF A DOWN guitarist/vocalist] in particular was really grief-stricken by it and cried many times. He's a much more sensitive than I am when it concerns things like this. I look at it in a more pragmatic way. Life is finite. We're all gonna die. And my kids are gonna have to experience this one day. And my loved ones are gonna have to deal with the loss of me one day, and all these things. And we're all trying not to get too saddened by it, but you have your moments where you think, like, 'Fuck, I wish I had spent a little bit more time.' Or we kind of lost touch for a long time, 'cause SYSTEM went one way and then we broke up, then we got back together and you have kids and all these things. But I still keep in contact with [Ozzy and Sharon's son] Jack, and I did reach out to Jack, who I look at as kind of a little brother, and I sent him a private message of condolences. And he responded right away."

Dolmayan added: "So, the world is saddened by it and the fans are saddened by it, but there is a private matter here. These people lost their father, and Sharon lost her husband of four decades or however long they were married, and they're the ones that are going to have to grieve, and we have to give our sympathies to and our support to, if they need it."

Asked if he remembers hearing BLACK SABBATH's or Ozzy's music for the first time, John said: "I think I actually heard [a solo album from] Ozzy before I heard SABBATH, if my memory serves me correctly. And it was the live album ['Tribute'], the one with [a photo of] Ozzy lifting [late guitarist] Randy Rhoads off the ground. That was the first time I heard any of Ozzy's solo career. But I think maybe I'd heard one or two SABBATH songs before that. This was also before I played drums. I didn't start playing till I was 15, and I think I was like 13 or 12 around that time. It's a little foggy, 'cause the years go by pretty quick and we can't remember everything."

Ozzy died on July 22 of a heart attack, his death certificate revealed. The certificate also reportedly said the 76-year-old musician suffered from coronary artery disease and Parkinson's disease.

A week ago, THE PRETTY RECKLESS released a new single, "For I Am Death". The song arrived following THE PRETTY RECKLESS's support slot on AC/DC's massive "Power Up" stadium tour across North America and Europe, which saw the Taylor Momsen-fronted outfit play to over three million people in iconic venues such as Los Angeles's Rose Bowl, Chicago's Soldier Field, London's Wembley Stadium, and Paris' Stade de France, among others.

Speaking to Audacy Check In about "For I Am Death", Momsen said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "I'm super excited about it. It has been a long time coming. I think it's our first song in — what has it been? Almost four years, five years, four and a half years, something. Time is flying by. So it feels really incredible to have new music out in the world."

Asked what inspired the lyrics for "For I Am Death", Momsen said: "To be honest, I wanna know what it means to you. And I think that, to me, that's what music is. 'Cause I could sit here and tell you exactly where I was when I wrote it and what I was thinking about and all of those things, but that doesn't actually give you the meaning of the song. That can kind of help explain how I got there. But the meaning of music, it transforms over time. And honestly, what it means to me isn't what it means anymore because it's out in the world. Once it's out in the world, it doesn't belong to me anymore. It belongs to you and to anyone who's listening to it. And I think that that has become my favorite part about doing interviews when we put out new music now, is getting other people's takes on it, because I wanna know how it relates to you."

She added: "Personally, I think anytime I've heard the artist explain a song in detail, of an artist that I love, it destroys it for me. 'Cause now something that was precious and that I had equated to myself and to my life and to the way I see the world and whatever is now wiped out and every time I hear it, I just think about what they said. And so I don't wanna do that with our music. I wanna let it mean whatever it means to you."

As for what fans can expect from THE PRETTY RECKLESS's upcoming fifth album, Taylor said: "Well, I've gotta tell you… We've had a crazy couple past years. So we have been on tour with AC/DC for the past two years. And so we've been in the recording studio in between tours, is basically how we've been working. And we're not finished yet. We're not finished with the tour — I'm in Paris right now — and we're not finished with record, but I couldn't wait any longer. And 'For I Am Death', this is the first thing I want people to hear, and so it is out in the world. So there's a lot of stuff I can't tell you yet, is my point. But what I can tell you is the next 12 months of THE PRETTY RECKLESS world is gonna be insane. So just stay tuned. There's a lot coming. This is just the beginning."

The music video for "For I Am Death", directed by Lewis Cater, was released alongside the single, which sees Taylor transform into a malevolent and haunting figure. Surrounded by sinister forces, she represents the personification of death that she embodied when writing the song.

In January 2024, THE PRETTY RECKLESS shared a photo of Taylor in the studio with Jonathan Wyman, who co-produced THE PRETTY RECKLESS's latest album, 2021's "Death By Rock And Roll", apparently confirming that Wyman has re-teamed with the group for the upcoming LP.

In a May 2023 interview with Ronni Hunter of the 99.7 The Blitz radio station, Momsen revealed that she and her THE PRETTY RECKLESS bandmates had commenced work on the follow-up to "Death By Rock And Roll".

"We're in a great headspace," she said. "We're just having fun with it, and wrapping up the tour cycle of 'Death By Rock And Roll'. And then new record — and it's next chapter. We've already kind of started it… We've gotten into a studio; we've stepped foot into a studio. So that's saying something for us."

In November 2022, THE PRETTY RECKLESS released a new collection of music, "Other Worlds", via Fearless Records. The effort saw the group delivering its first proper acoustic recordings, unexpected covers and other reimaginings.

"Death By Rock And Roll" was made available in February 2021 via Fearless Records in the U.S. and Century Media Records in the rest of the world.

Upon release, "Death By Rock And Roll" topped multiple sales charts — including Billboard's Top Albums, Rock, Hard Music, and Digital charts. The record also yielded three back-to-back No. 1 singles — "Death By Rock And Roll", "And So It Went" (featuring Tom Morello of RAGE AGAINST THE MACHINE) and "Only Love Can Save Me Now" (featuring Kim Thayil and Matt Cameron of SOUNDGARDEN). The band has tallied seven No. 1 singles at the rock format throughout its career.

"Death By Rock And Roll" was THE PRETTY RECKLESS's first album to be made without longtime producer Kato Khandwala, who died in April 2018 from injuries sustained in a motorcycle accident.

THE PRETTY RECKLESS formed in 2009 and consists of Momsen, guitarist Ben Phillips, bassist Mark Damon and drummer Jamie Perkins.

In 2021, Momsen — who rose to fame portraying the character of edgy little sister Jenny Humphrey on The CW's "Gossip Girl" — described "Death By Rock And Roll" in an interview with ABC Audio as a "battle cry for life and for hope."

"I think that that's something that we can all use a little bit more of, especially right now," she said. "We could always use a little more hope, and we could always use a little more rock and roll."

Photo credit: Lewis Cater

Rock icon Ann Wilson, singer-songwriter and founder of HEART, will unveil her remarkable life story in the forthcoming feature documentary "In My Voice". Told in Ann's own words, the film traces her extraordinary 75-year journey, from a nomadic childhood to the stages of the world's biggest arenas, and into a bold new creative chapter. With additional commentary from family, friends, artists, bandmates, and industry executives, the documentary focuses on the authenticity of Ann Wilson.

Drawing from a deep personal archive of home movies, photographs, journals, and never-before-seen footage, "In My Voice" offers fans an unprecedented window into Wilson's life and artistry. For the first time, audiences will hear how she found her voice, sustained it across five decades, and allowed it to guide her through fame, adversity, and reinvention.

"This film is my story in my own words, told the way I've always wanted to tell it," says Ann. "It's about finding my voice, keeping it alive, and sharing the journey with the people who've been part of it all along."

The documentary is directed by Barbara Hall, a Primetime Emmy-nominated producer and director celebrated for her passion for remarkable human stories and music. With more than 25 years of experience in developing, producing, and directing original programming, Hall has built a career on authentic, immersive storytelling. She has helmed award-winning specials, series, long-form documentary films, concerts, and thematic music documentaries, and is known for securing rare, exclusive rights to bring untold narratives to the screen. A member of the Producers Guild Of America, the Guild Of Music Supervisors and the Documentary Producers Alliance, Hall has also been honored with the 2025 Women In Film/Nashville Alice Award Trailblazer Award.

"What an honor to tell the story of one of our greatest rock music voices of all time," says Hall. "Her voice notwithstanding, her story exceeds a scriptwriter's imagination, and her courage to share her story is inspiring. She is a master of her craft and is not defined by genre or gender."

"In My Voice" promises to be a landmark documentary that brings Ann Wilson's singular journey to the screen with honesty, power, and of course, heart. More details, including release information and exclusive content, will be announced soon.

In July 2024, Ann announced HEART was canceling its tour so that she could undergo a course of preventative chemotherapy following a cancer diagnosis. In September, Ann returned to her social media channels to share the news that her chemotherapy treatments were complete, and she was ready to tour in 2025.

Widely regarded as one of the greatest voices in the history of rock and roll, Ann is a true icon, known far and wide as lead singer and songwriter of the groundbreaking rock band HEART. Led by Wilson's extraordinary vocal power, HEART has thrilled audiences for five decades, earning sales of more than 35 million and well-deserved induction into the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame in 2013. Indeed, as lead singer of the first female-fronted superstar hard rock band, Wilson blazed a trail for generations of women to come, while her songs — including "Barracuda", "Crazy On You", "Straight O" and "Magic Man", to name but a few — have become part of the very fabric of popular culture.

The current members of HEART feature Nancy Wilson (rhythm, lead and acoustic guitar, backing and lead vocals),Ann Wilson (lead vocals and flute),Ryan Wariner (lead and rhythm guitar),Ryan Waters (guitars),Paul Moak (guitars, keyboards and backing vocals),Tony Lucido (bass and backing vocals) and Sean Lane (drums and bike).

SLIPKNOT recently announced "Slipknot (25th Anniversary Edition)", a deluxe reissue celebrating the release of their iconic eponymous debut album which catapulted the band in 1999. This special release immortalizes the band's creative process at the time when the Iowa nine went from a newly signed fledgling metal act, to an unexpected and unstoppable cultural force that redefined heavy music for a new generation.

"Slipknot (25th Anniversary Edition)" will be available in stores and across digital retailers on September 5, 2025 via Roadrunner Records. Last month SLIPKNOT released a special edition of the box set directly to fans. Limited to 100 blood-filled vinyl copies via their secret site 742617000027.net, the edition sold out in seconds, crashing the web site in the process. Available for pre-order are a 6LP box set with blood-splattered vinyl (limited to 1899 copies),2LP and 2CD in addition to digital on streaming services. Depending on the format (see a full list and packshots below),this release includes the original Ross Robinson-produced album plus recordings which only the band and their inner circle heard at the time of the production. All collected from the original sources, these include unreleased takes, alternate versions, and mixes from SR Audio, Indigo Ranch and more, as well as "test mixes" from alternate mixers. Not only are these recordings the full story behind the recording of this now-iconic album, they also chart the course of choices made and paths taken, and how the SLIPKNOT the world knows today came to be.

Today SLIPKNOT shares the unreleased demo of "Me Inside" which was recorded before the band entered Indigo Ranch with Ross Robinson. The demo was then refined in the studio, ultimately landing on their debut album.

As much as the debut album set the stage, SLIPKNOT was also a band unleashed on live audiences in 1999, who had never seen anything like it. Performances on their first world tour cycle are legendary, and the band's impact was swift as global audiences bore witness. Word of mouth spread like a virus. This package includes recordings of shows that bookend one chaotic year: the 1999 show in Hartford, Connecticut captures the unbridled raw power of a small stage, while the 2000 U.K. recordings document the band's ability to harness the small stage energy and deliver to a mainstage crowd. The audio was pulled from the soundboard's digital audio tapes, carefully remixed and mastered for the first time — all chosen by the band to best represent the intensity and spirit of the band's earliest days.

LP 1: Slipknot - Track Listing:

The seminal debut album from SLIPKNOT.

Side 1

01. 742617000027
02. (Sic)
03. Eyeless
04. Wait And Bleed
05. Surfacing
06. Spit It Out
07. Tattered And Torn
08. Me Inside

Side 2

01. Liberate
02. Prosthetics
03. No Life
04. Diluted
05. Only One
06. Scissors

*LP 2 & 3: Indigo Ranch Mixes - Track Listing:

The legendary Indigo Ranch mixes. In 1999 the band gathered at Malibu's Indigo Ranch to record their breakthrough debut. These early rough mixes showcase the raw energy and chaotic vibe before the final Ross Robinson mixes.

Side 1

01. (Sic)
02. Eyeless
03. Surfacing
04. Tattered And Torn

Side 2

01. Only One
02. Liberate
03. Suck These Nuts (Get This)
04. Killing Leslie

Side 3

01. Me Inside
02. Wait And Bleed
03. No Life
04. Interloper (Diluted)

Side 4

01. Spit It Out
02. Eeyore
03. Scissors

LP 4: Demos and Alternate Mixes - Track Listing:

Side One: Demos - These are the original demos recorded before the band entered Indigo Ranch with Ross Robinson. These demos were then refined in the studio to become the debut album. Some of the actual tracks from the demos were used in the final mixes.

Side Two: Jay Baumgardner and Ulrich Wild mixes - The band and label wanted to have test mixes done before finalizing the album and connected with two other renowned mixers to see what they would do to the mixes. Each has a different take on the tracks.

Side 1

01. Wait And Bleed (Demo)
02. Snap (Demo)
03. Interloper (Demo)
04. Despise (Demo)
05. Only One (Demo)
06. Me Inside (Demo)
07. Prosthetics (Demo)

Side 2

01. Surfacing (Jay Baumgardner Mix)
02. Only One (Jay Baumgardner Mix)
03. No Life (Jay Baumgardner Mix)
04. (Sic) (Ulrich Wild Mix)
05. Purity
06. Eeyore

* LP 5 & 6: Live - Track Listing:

Months after the debut album, the band took to the road and these live recordings showcase the band's atmospheric rise from headlining Hartford, Connecticut's legendary 1,200-seat Webster Theater in September of 1999, to playing in front of massive crowds in the U.K. and Iowa in late 2000.

Side 1

01. Wait And Bleed (Live In Hartford 1999)
02. Surfacing (Live In Hartford 1999)
03. Purity (Live In Hartford 1999)
04. Spit It Out (Live In Hartford 1999)
05. Eeyore (Live In Hartford 1999)

Side 2

01. (Sic) (Live In The UK 2000)
02. Eyeless (Live In The UK 2000)
03. No Life (Live In The UK 2000)
04. Eeyore (Live In The UK 2000)
05. Liberate (Live In The UK 2000)

Side 3

01. Purity (Live In The UK 2000)
02. Prosthetics (Live In The UK 2000)
03. Spit It Out (Live In The UK 2000)
04. Wait And Bleed (Live In The UK 2000)
05. Get This (Live In The UK 2000)

Side 4

01. Surfacing (Live In The UK 2000)
02. Me Inside (Live In The UK 2000)
03. Scissors (Live In Iowa 2000)

* LP exclusive to box set only

Released on June 29th, 1999, SLIPKNOT's self-titled debut, now double platinum, was a smash hit with critics and an instant classic with fans. It was, and is, a molotov cocktail signaling a revolution– embracing a creative direction that eschewed metal traditions in favor of fresh ideas. While the jaw-clenching riffs coupled with Robinson's venomous production were crucial to the album's success, it was the care and attention to detail in the songcraft that moved the needle from "great" to "benchmark."

"We loved what we did with the first record but we didn't even know if there was gonna be anything after that," recalls SLIPKNOT guitarist Jim Root. "We just wanted people to hear it. Selling out of records and shows, having successful tours– those are goals for any band. But the dream scenario in some ways, came true for us."

In the years following, SLIPKNOT's popularity nipped at the heels of elder statesmen and even the band's heroes, eventually navigating this brave new world with unending drive, fresh ideas and a bloodlust for odometer clicks. Tens of billions of streams and tens of millions of subscribers and followers later, the accolades tell the story: 64 award nominations and 27 wins including a Grammy for "Before I Forget" from "Vol. 3". A seemingly endless number of tour dates. Headlining slots at the biggest festivals in the world such as Download, Rock In Rio, Hellfest, Wacken and many more. Not to mention RIAA certifications by the truckload — 14 platinum certifications and 40 gold across more than 30 million in record and video sales.

In addition, SLIPKNOT positioned themselves for success with the creation of their own festival Knotfest in 2012, a traveling, multi-stage and experiential event that has appeared 28 times across several countries and locations. The festival has since spun off into a successful entertainment media hub — Knotfest.com, which became a juggernaut of its own making, giving a platform to young freethinkers and like-minded artists.

All of SLIPKNOT's achievements have helped them claim their rightful seat as pioneers and thought leaders, establishing them as a generational talent — loved by parents and their children alike. And of course with all those incredible live performances, all that influence, and all that history of playing all those incredible songs, SLIPKNOT has only attracted the most dedicated of fans, reaching all the way back to that fateful self-titled effort.

SLIPKNOT is approaching this 25th anniversary by making the conscious decision to connect to fans as closely as possible, in a similar way to how they encountered SLIPKNOT all those years ago.

"Every time I've walked on stage, it's never been about how many people have been there because my culture, the maggots, always show up," says SLIPKNOT percussionist and founding member Shawn "Clown" Crahan with a smile.

Photo above: SLIPKNOT circa 1999 by Dean Karr

MEGADETH drummer Dirk Verbeuren's long-running BENT SEA project will release its debut album, "The Dormant Ruin", in September via Give Praise Records. The LP is now available for pre-order at this location.

The official music video for the latest BENT SEA single, "My Fall", featuring a guest appearance by Kevin Sharp (VENOMOUS CONCEPT, ex-BRUTAL TRUTH),can be seen below.

Dirk siad: "This is a very meaningful song to me. It was written about my late mom."

BENT SEA began its offensive in 2011 by crash-landing the "Noistalgia" EP, an explosive homage to the beginnings of grindcore. Led by drummer/guitarist/songwriter Verbeuren with cohorts Sven de Caluwé (ABORTED) on vocals and Shane Embury (NAPALM DEATH) on bass — replacing Devin Townsend, who guested on "Noistalgia" — BENT SEA churned out three more split releases and the guest-studded "Instagrind" series before suddenly falling silent.

BENT SEA anno 2025 mangles the blueprint of classic grind by infusing it with death/black/industrial elements, topped off with unhealthy doses of dissonance and an undeniable sense of urgency. This crushingly heavy record skillfully transcends the band's early output. In twenty songs and 33 minutes, just like the inevitable wrath of Mother Nature, no one will escape BENT SEA unscathed!

"The Dormant Ruin" was produced by Daniel Bergstrand (MESHUGGAH, DARK FUNERAL) and features guest appearances by Sharp, John Cooke (NAPALM DEATH, VENOMOUS CONCEPT) and Sylvain Coudret (SOILWORK, SCARVE).

Track listing:

Side A

01. From The Beast's Mouth
02. Apathy And Irony
03. Tidal Fire
04. Curtailer Of Conceit
05. A Scopic Radiance
06. Shapeless Ones
07. My Fall
08. Meat Trade Misery
09. Final Corridor
10. Paragon Of Inhumanity

Side B

11. Locked In Glitch
12. Ominous Reversal
13. Prodigious Blight
14. Vermin Burning
15. The Voice They Cannot Be
16. Below The Cold Void
17. Sharpen The Blade
18. Stifled And Dreaming
19. Erased From The Earthly Crust
20. The Dormant Ruin

The official music video for "A Scopic Radiance" can also be seen below.

In a 2016 interview with All About The Rock, Dirk stated about BENT SEA: "BENT SEA is a spur-of-the-moment type thing without any business plan. The idea from the get-go was basically 'no pressure' and I intend to keep it that way."

Back in 2012, Dirk told PureGrainAudio about BENT SEA's formation: "It just sort of happened. I used to play guitar, but in recent years my focus was exclusively on drums. My wife had been encouraging me to write my own music, so I decided to give it a shot. The result turned out to be BENT SEA."

Regarding the project's name, the 50-year-old Belgian-born-and-now-Los-Angeles-based musician said: "It's taken from a song by British experimental duo ENDVRA which I accidentally came across in my tape-trading days. Their music has absolutely nothing to do with grindcore, but somehow BENT SEA popped up in my mind. I like that it's atypical, and that it conjures apocalyptic images echoing the intensity of my music."

Verbeuren had been playing with SOILWORK for more than a decade before joining MEGADETH in 2016 as the replacement for Chris Adler (LAMB OF GOD),who called Dirk "probably [one of the] top three drummers in the world."

In interview with the KATT Rock 100.5 FM radio station, MEGADETH leader Dave Mustaine described Dirk as "one of the most pleasant, easy-to-get-along-with guys I've ever met in my life. I'll walk up to him and he'll smile and lean forward and pat me on the back. He goes [adopts thin accent], 'How's it going, buddy?' I could say, 'Oh, man…'… anything. 'Oh, okay, buddy.' [He] smiles and pats me, 'cause he's just a happy guy. I've never, ever, ever seen him not smile."

The "Mandylion" lineup of Dutch rockers THE GATHERING — including singer Anneke Van Giersbergen — officially kicked off their run of reunion shows last night (Wednesday, August 27) at Doornroosje in Nijmegen, The Netherlands. Fan-filmed video of the concert can be seen below.

According to Setlist.fm, the setlist for the show was as follows:

01. Mandylion
02. Eléanor
03. Fear The Sea
04. In Motion #1
05. On Most Surfaces (Inuït)
06. Broken Glass
07. Waking Hour
08. Great Ocean Road
09. Probably Built In The Fifties
10. Analog Park
11. In Motion #2
12. Leaves
13. Sand And Mercury

Encore:

14. Strange Machines
15. Travel
16. Saturnine

The "Mandylion" lineup of THE GATHERING previously played a kick-off "try-out" concert on June 29 at Dynamo in Eindhoven.

THE GATHERING's third studio album, "Mandylion" was released in August 1995 via Century Media Records. It was the band's first LP to feature Van Giersbergen.

In a recent interview with Femmetal - Goddesses Of Metal, Anneke spoke about THE GATHERING's 2025 reunion concerts to celebrate the 30th anniversary of "Mandylion". She said: "Well, actually, I'm quite excited… This idea came kind of spontaneous. We were having conversations, we had just coffee and talking about life, other things, and then we talked about 'Mandylion' turning 30 and because time flies, we didn't really think about it. And then we said, 'Maybe we can do something nice with it,' because it's such an important album for us personally because we had a great time at the beginning of THE GATHERING career with me, of course. And we said, 'Well, if we do something, we have to do it now, because next year it's not such a good reason because now 'Mandylion' is 30 years old, and let's do something nice.' And so we made this plan, and we made these ideas for these shows. And then a lot of people wanted to come to the shows. I mean, I know THE GATHERING is still a popular band and I know it's alive — people really like THE GATHERING's music now and back then. But we didn't expect this many people to react on it and want [to buy] a ticket [to see us perform live again]. And so we are so happy. And we're gonna make a few beautiful shows and gonna have lots of fun playing together again, 'cause it's been a long time. It's been 10 years, I think."

When the interviewer inquired about the possibility of a show from THE GATHERING in Spain, Anneke said: "Everybody's asking. I mean, it's fantastic. It's a great problem to have, that a lot of people want us to come to their country. But we focus on these shows here, and a lot of people are traveling for it, so that's really, really wonderful. And then we'll see. But we just focus on these shows and take it from there."

Asked which THE GATHERING song she is most excited to play again, Anneke said: "It's kind of a wide variety of atmospheres on this album ['Mandylion'], but I like songs like 'On Most Surfaces' [from 1997's 'Nighttime Birds'], because they're heavy and we can let all the energy flow on this one. I like the more heavy songs as well, but 'In Motion #1' and '[In Motion] #2' are, for instance, very, very melodic — they're carrying you through a story — and I also like that so much. So, different vibes on the album, and I like all of it. But I like also the heavy songs, especially for playing live, 'cause I can sing really loud and headbang and have fun."

The "Mandylion" lineup of THE GATHERING will also reunite for five exclusive sold-out shows in August at Doornroosje in Nijmegen, the Netherlands.

Upcoming shows:

August 28 - Nijmegen, Netherlands @ Doornroosje
August 29 - Nijmegen, Netherlands @ Doornroosje
August 30 - Nijmegen, Netherlands @ Doornroosje
August 31 - Nijmegen, Netherlands @ Doornroosje

THE GATHERING previously said in a statement: "After so many years, we are very excited to celebrate this anniversary together, an album that still means so much to us."

The lineup for the concerts consists of the following musicians:

* Anneke Van Giersbergen - vocals
* Hugo Prinsen Geerligs - bass
* Frank Boeijen - keyboards, backing vocals
* Hans Rutten - drums
* René Rutten - guitar
* Jelmer Wiersma - guitar

In November 2014, THE GATHERING celebrated its 25th anniversary with a one-time special show at Doornroosje in Nijmegen. All past and present members of THE GATHERING — from 1989 until 2014 — appeared on stage and performed in this unique show together.

Van Giersbergen announced her departure from THE GATHERING in 2007. She has since released several albums on her own and with her AGUA DE ANNIQUE solo project.

In 2005, Century Media celebrated the 10th anniversary of "Mandylion" by releasing a special deluxe edition of the album. The double-CD set featured new artwork, a 16-page booklet with song-by-song liner notes from the band and never-before-seen photos from the album's recording sessions. CD2 contained the first demo recordings THE GATHERING did with Van Giersbergen in June 1994 and early 1995. "Solar Glider" was a previously unreleased instrumental while "Third Chance" appeared two years later in a different version on the "Nighttime Birds" album.

In a 2007 interview with PopMatters, Van Giersbergen stated about her decision to leave THE GATHERING and launch AGUA DE ANNIQUE: "I had been in THE GATHERING for 13 years, and I had never done anything for 13 years in my life. It's been my whole adult life, so to leave that, on one hand, was a very clear decision and a very strong feeling, and I was ready. In 13 years, things had changed in my personal and musical life. It was difficult as well, because the guys, they were like brothers, so to leave that and to change that relationship has been a long process and was probably one of the hardest things I did.

"I told them at the beginning of March, and so we really took some time to assess the situation," she continued. "Also, the guys, they wanted to see what their plans would be next. Of course they were not happy with my decision, but they are respectful and they have good spirits to continue. Of course, I put a big stamp on the sound and the look of THE GATHERING, but on the other hand I'm not the only singer in the world, so it's going to change, but it's not going to stop."

Regarding her reasons for leaving, Anneke said, "There were a lot of physical reasons, but they all came out of one big feeling in my heart that it was time to change. I was supposed to do this record besides THE GATHERING, and I was given time and it was all okay, but I like to do other small projects and work with other people a lot. I had some plans, and the feeling became stronger to develop that more seriously and also especially to be with my family a little bit more. Now, I can direct everything I do from this one agenda, and it feels very good to be the director of your own life. In a way THE GATHERING was officially a bigger band, and we were day and night constantly working with it, and it was quite intense, all the processes. So a lot of small things became one big feeling, like, 'Okay, I'm ready.'"

In a new interview with Andrew McKaysmith of the Scars And Guitars podcast, former MOTÖRHEAD guitarist Phil Campbell was asked what he thinks the biggest misconception was about his guitar playing as it relates to his role in MOTÖRHEAD. He responded (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "Well, most of the [MOTÖRHEAD] riffs [during my time with the band] are mine all the way through. They'd change 'em a bit and whatever, but basically, 'cause when we were the three-piece, everyone was waiting for me to come up with something to start the songs. [MOTÖRHEAD leader] Lemmy would have one or two of his own rock songs, rock and roll songs ready usually. But the majority of the stuff… I mean, it's all credited to the three of us anyway, apart from Lemmy's individual songs. But, yeah, people think — I don't know what they think. They don't read the credits, obviously, a lot of people, the writing credits. And I'm definitely not a heavy metal player. People think I might be a heavy metal player. I think they're wrong there."

Campbell was also asked about the "morphing of the MOTÖRHEAD iconography from being all about the music to being a brand", with brand licensing from the band's more than 80 licensing partners across various categories, channels and territories, marking MOTÖRHEAD's 50th anniversary. He said: "Well, MOTÖRHEAD should be remembered, I think. It was such a unique band. Lem was such a unique person and the music was so unique as well, why shouldn't it be remembered, along with the music? People don't have to buy anything if they don't wanna buy anything, but if they walk around with MOTÖRHEAD written on this or that or whatever and they think it's cool, that's fine. I'm proud to have MOTÖRHEAD written on anything that I would wear. Not all at once, though — not five items with MOTÖRHEAD written on it all at once."

Campbell was a member of MOTÖRHEAD from 1984 through 2015, and for the last 20 years of the band's existence was its sole guitarist, appearing on classic releases such as "Orgasmatron", "1916" and "Bastards", among others. With Lemmy's 2015 passing, MOTÖRHEAD came to an abrupt end.

In his current band PHIL CAMPBELL AND THE BASTARD SONS, Phil is joined by his sons Todd, Dane and Tyla.

PHIL CAMPBELL AND THE BASTARD SONS released their third album, "Kings Of The Asylum", in September 2023 through Nuclear Blast Records. It was PHIL CAMPBELL AND THE BASTARD SONS' first studio release to feature singer Joel Peters.

In October 2019, Phil released his first-ever solo record, "Old Lions Still Roar". The album, which had been in the works for more than five years, included guest appearances by Rob Halford (JUDAS PRIEST),Dee Snider (TWISTED SISTER) and Alice Cooper, among others.

Lemmy died on December 28, 2015 at the age of 70 shortly after learning he had been diagnosed with cancer.

MOTÖRHEAD had to cancel a number of shows in 2015 because of Lemmy's poor health, although the band did manage to complete a European tour a couple of weeks before his death.

In June 2020, it was announced that Lemmy would get the biopic treatment. The upcoming film, "Lemmy", will be directed by Greg Olliver, who previously helmed the 2010 documentary of the same name, "Lemmy".

A custom-made urn containing Lemmy's ashes is on permanent display in a columbarium at Forest Lawn Cemetery in Hollywood, California.

Image credit: Framus & Warwick

Ohio metalcore favorites MISS MAY I are back with new music. Today, they have shared the video for "Pray For Silence". Watch it below.

"Pray For Silence" is described in a press release as "a vocally dynamic anthem, with a chorus that will instantly embed in your brain, heavy artillery riffing, and floor-shaking breakdowns. It's ultimately classic metalcore that swells with modern flourishes, ushering MISS MAY I into their next exciting era."

MISS MAY I comments: "I don't think we could have chosen a more honest and heartfelt song for our first release as the new lineup than 'Pray For Silence'. As life grows heavier and the world feels like it's at a breaking point, this song captures something we all crave — some peace, even just for a moment."

And this is just the first taste. Fans can expect a new album from MISS MAY I in 2026.

MISS MAY I will hit the road next month, touring as direct support to fellow 2010s faves BLESSTHEFALL. MISS MAY I will also appear at the Orlando edition of Warped Tour in November.

Last year, MISS MAY I joined the Solid State Records roster and released "Apologies Are For The Weak (Re-Recorded 15th Anniversary Edition)", the awesomely ambitious 15th-anniversary edition of the band's classic, beloved debut album "Apologies Are For The Weak". The LP was entirely re-recorded and featured cameos on every single song, including from Jake Luhrs of AUGUST BURNS RED, Brandan Schieppati of BLEEDING THROUGH and Scott Lewis of CARNIFEX.

In 2024, founding MISS MAY I guitarists B.J. Stead and Justin Aufdemkampe left the band. In their place, guitarist Elisha Mullins was welcomed into the MISS MAY I family.

MISS MAY I frontman Levi Benton told Rolling Stone Australia about Mullins: "He comes from being a producer. All this new music we're doing, it's stuff we've never had before, because we've never written with someone like this."

On a personal level, Benton said Mullins and the rest of MISS MAY I are "all cut from the same cloth. Elisha's from the Midwest, he's the same age [as us]. We listen to the same local bands. It's a natural fit. It's very cool."

Regarding what it was like working on new MISS MAY I material without their main songwriters, Benton said: "The funny thing was, it was a total lost thought. We weren't even thinking about it. We went into the studio and the rest of the guys were, like, 'Oh my God. Justin and B.J. were the main writers — we've got to change something up.' We went back to the drawing board, and that's when the anxiety hit. After years of touring, we didn't even think about writing [like that]. We spent a whole month with Elisha in the studio, just doing one song to get the vibe of how we write together. It was a mock-up of sorts, just a practice run; we ironed everything out."

Photo credit: Nate Black

At this year's Bloodstock Open Air festival in the United Kingdom, MASTODON's Brann Dailor and Bill Kelliher took some time out with Bloodstock TV host Oran O'Beirne to talk about their experience performing at the "Back To The Beginning" event, celebrating the life of Ozzy Osbourne and BLACK SABBATH. Asked if they knew about the concert far in advance, Brann said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "It was probably about six months, I think, before [it took place]. Maybe there was an original six bands that got chosen or whatever before some other bands got added later. And so we got an e-mail asking about it, if we were interested. And at first it was, like, 'Are you sure? Are you sure you don't have the wrong people or something?' Our manager actually joked that it was the fastest reply that they had ever gotten from us collectively." Bill quipped: "We replied, like, I think 0.10 seconds before they actually asked us to do it. We had already replied 'yes.'"

Brann went on to say that it was "the honor of a lifetime" to be asked to perform at "Back To The Beginning". "It's better than a Grammy," he said. "It's better than anything that anybody could ever bestow upon you to be called upon by the giant oak tree that is BLACK SABBATH. In other genres of music, the founders, they're not alive. So it was really, really an incredible honor just to picked to do it. And, yeah, so then it was the arduous task of picking the [SABBATH] song [to play at the event]."

Regarding how MASTODON ended up choosing "Supernaut" to play at "Back To The Beginning", Bill said: "'Supernaut', I've loved that song. I mean, all their songs are great, but that one I couldn't imagine coming to practice one day as [SABBATH guitarist] Tony Iommi and saying, 'I've got a good riff, man. You guys wanna see what I've got', and playing that riff, and just being like… You must have sold your soul to learn that riff. The devil gave you that riff. So to see that it wasn't chosen yet was — 'That's the one. Let's do that.'"

Added Brann: "So, obviously, there was the songs that SABBATH themselves were gonna do. And so they were doing their biggest hits and their biggest songs. Initially I wanted to do 'Children Of The Grave' just 'cause our band, we live in 6/8 [tempo], that heavy metal shuffle that that 'Children Of The Grave' invented for us. We have a lot of songs that are in that; that's a very, very comfortable wheelhouse for us. But I saw LAMB OF GOD had already picked that, which I figured it would be scooped up — that one — pretty quickly, being such an amazing song. But then [we saw] 'Supernaut' [was available], and I was, like, 'What about 'Supernaut'?' I felt like I could sing it, so it was kind of gonna kind of maybe come down to that, if I could pull it off, playing drums and singing it. And then when we got picked to open, I was, like, 'Man, I think if we crush this, it's gonna be the perfect opening kind of song.' It's a high-energy one. Some of the doomier ones might have been a little too slow to really kick things off. But this was the perfect one, I think."

Asked if MASTODON has recorded a studio version of "Supernaut", Bill said: "Not yet, but we've been talking about it, for sure. We have to. We've been playing it every night. We've recorded it a few times live, and it's come out… Who knows? Maybe we'll do a live version, do a studio version." Brann added: "We're definitely recording it."

Three days after MASTODON performed at "Back To The Beginning", Dailor took to his social media to share a few photos from the event, and he included the following message: "Such an unbelievable outpouring of love, friendship and gratitude. We were so honored to be asked to perform.

"For months I've been trying to conjure up in my mind what it was going to be like, but it ended up being unlike anything I had ever experienced in my life, a new feeling. It was such a beautiful experience. From the stage, the side stage, the dressing room and out in the audience, the love was just pouring out of everyone for the last time that we will all be able to let [BLACK SABBATH] and [Ozzy Osbourne] know just how very much they mean to every one of our lives.

"All the performers gave their all trying to make Dad SABBATH proud! When Ozzy hit the stage, there wasn't a dry eye in the stadium. It stayed like that until the fireworks went off after SABBATH.

"What an incredibly emotional day for everyone. I'll be riding this high for a long time and I will cherish these memories for the rest of my life. I'm so very grateful for this life experience.

"Thank you BLACK SABBATH for giving us a space to be creative and the greatest genre of music there is, heavy metal. Ozzy Osbourne, I love you, thank you for everything!! You mean the world to me. Also a major thank you to Mario Duplantier [GOJIRA], Eloy Casagrande [SLIPKNOT] and Danny Carey [TOOL] for jamming with me during 'Supernaut', three of the best drummers in the world and some of the finest human beings, you made the day even more special, I love you. Thank you Bill Ward for showing us the way. You're my greatest inspiration!

"What a day! Music never felt so powerful. Going to carry this into our next recording coming up soon!"

According to The Guardian, "Back To The Beginning" was livestreamed to more than five million fans worldwide (with peak audience of 5.8 million fans watching the livestream).

Ozzy played a five-song set with his solo band — consisting of guitarist Zakk Wylde, bassist Mike Inez, keyboardist Adam Wakeman and drummer Tommy Clufetos — before being joined by fellow original BLACK SABBATH members Tony Iommi (guitar),Geezer Butler (bass) and Bill Ward (drums) for four classic SABBATH songs: "War Pigs", "Iron Man", "N.I.B." and "Paranoid".

Ozzy's solo set consisted of four songs from Osbourne's 1980 solo debut album "Blizzard Of Ozz" — "I Don't Know", "Mr. Crowley", "Suicide Solution" and "Crazy Train" — along with his 1991 "No More Tears" ballad "Mama, I'm Coming Home".

The 76-year-old heavy metal singer sang while seated on a black throne and appeared overcome with emotion at times. "You have no idea how I feel. Thank you from the bottom of my heart," he told the crowd.

At the end of SABBATH's set, Ozzy said: "It's the last song ever. Your support has enabled us to live an amazing lifestyle, thank you from the bottom of our hearts." Osbourne was then presented with a cake, while fireworks lit up the stadium from overhead.

A message on screen then read, "Thank you for everything, you guys are fucking amazing. Birmingham Forever," before the sky lit up with fireworks.

More than 40,000 fans attended the event, which also saw performances from METALLICA, SLAYER, PANTERA, LAMB OF GOD and ANTHRAX, among others. Profits from the show will be shared equally between the charities Cure Parkinson's, Birmingham Children's Hospital and Acorn Children's Hospice.

There was also an online auction benefiting those charities. Items up for bid included two Gibson guitars signed by performers, a GUNS N' ROSES pinball machine, several gold record and CD displays including BLACK SABBATH's "Paranoid", LED ZEPPELIN's "Physical Graffiti" and METALLICA's "Master Of Puppets", plus more than a dozen travel packages.

A livestream of the daylong event was announced in June. While it was called a livestream, the video was delayed two hours from the in-arena start time.

The all-day event at Villa Park, produced by Live Nation, was hosted and compered by American actor Jason Momoa.

Curated by RAGE AGAINST THE MACHINE guitarist Tom Morello, the event featured arguably the greatest lineup of rock and metal bands ever assembled on one day.

Two hastily assembled supergroups — dubbed Supergroup A and Supergroup B — performed at the event, with EXTREME's Nuno Bettencourt taking part in a five-song set of covers, while ex-Ozzy guitarist Jake E. Lee made an appearance for covers of "The Ultimate Sin" and "Shot In The Dark". Former JUDAS PRIEST guitarist K.K. Downing joined Morello, Billy Corgan (SMASHING PUMPKINS) and Adam Jones (TOOL) for a rendition of PRIEST's "Breaking The Law", while LIVING COLOUR's Vernon Reid hopped onstage for a cover of Ozzy's "Bark At The Moon", with GHOST's Papa V Perpetua (a.k.a. Tobias Forge) handling lead vocals.

MUDVAYNE has released its first new single in 16 years, "Hurt People Hurt People". The track, which was produced by Nick Raskulinecz (RUSH, KORN, ALICE IN CHAINS, DEFTONES, FOO FIGHTERS, EVANESCENCE) and mixed by Josh Wilbur (KORN, MEGADETH, GOJIRA, TRIVIUM),marks MUDVAYNE's first new release through Alchemy Recordings, a record label created in partnership between Dino Paredes, former American Recordings vice president of A&R, and Danny Wimmer, the founder of Danny Wimmer Presents, the premier production company for rock music festivals in the United States. Other Alchemy artists include STAIND and CHEVELLE.

MUDVAYNE frontman Chad Gray stated about the track: "I think I wrote this song as a reminder to myself to break the cycle. We create our own suffering, our own hurt. It's time for us to create self-love and let go of the pain. It was never ours to begin with."

Prior to the arrival of "Hurt People Hurt People", the reunited metallers hadn't put out any new material since 2009, which means more than a decade and a half had gone by without a single fresh MUDVAYNE song.

MUDVAYNE formed in 1996 and has sold over six million records worldwide, earning gold certification for three albums ("L.D. 50", "The End Of All Things To Come", "Lost And Found"). The band is known for its sonic experimentation, innovative album art, face and body paint, masks and uniforms.

Gray spent 15 years fronting HELLYEAH, which released its sixth studio album, "Welcome Home", in September 2019 via Eleven Seven Music. The disc marked the group's final effort with drummer Vinnie Paul Abbott, who passed away seven years ago.

MUDVAYNE did not tour behind its fifth album, which was barely promoted and sold weakly upon release.

In July 2024, Gray was asked by Pablo of the Minneapolis, Minnesota radio station 93X if he and his MUDVAYNE bandmates had done any "file sharing" to create their new music. Chad responded at the time: "We've done it pretty much every fucking way you can do it at this point. But we did some file sharing and stuff like that. Greg [Tribbett, guitar] sent around some risks and then Matt [McDonough, drums] — 'cause Matt does a lot of like ambient-style music on his own, so he can definitely program. So he programmed some drums, and, obviously, when I get that… All I need is basically the guitar riff and I can start kind of feeling it out for melody and lyrical direction and shit like that. I don't need necessarily the whole thing. I can just have very basic shit for me to start writing… But I'll have the nuts and bolts, and, ultimately, that's what file sharing is all about. It's about getting the nuts and bolts of what you're wanting to do. And then from there, you go in the studio and you fucking tweak it, and you fucking add harmonies and you add fucking layers and fucking overdubs, and you can go crazy and then really make it special. So I'm excited about that. We haven't done that yet. That's the one thing we haven't done yet, is got in a room with a fucking producer."

Addressing the pressure he and his bandmates felt to make music of a high-enough quality to live up to the fans' expectations, Chad said: "Honestly, dude, if we were to go into a studio situation and we were to record something, if every single fucking person on our team — us, the producer, our fucking manager, our fucking lawyer — if everyone on our team is not fucking jumping up and down and high-fiving, then it ain't worth putting out. That's just me — I only wanna put out fucking great shit. And with great shit, [I mean] timeless. You wanna create timeless music, and you have to ask yourself the question, 'Is that timeless? Is this timeless music or is this a fucking fad? Are we following something here or are we leading something here?'"

Gray also talked about the relationship he has with his MUDVAYNE bandmates, particularly as it relates to the creative process. He said: "We are who we are. How we are with our personalities is almost the dynamic of what makes MUDVAYNE great. And it's not conflict or whatever, but we test each other. But I think that that comes across in the music we create. And I think we've always had that since the beginning or whatever. And I think that that's one of the things that kind of makes it great. Obviously, we overcome it and we get through it, but there are like times when we start writing, man, where it's, like, 'Do we want the same thing?' We're trying to mold it. But the good thing is that everybody in the band is really open-minded, and that's what it takes. But when we start, like, I have a vision, Matt has a vision, Ryan [Martinie, bass] has a vision, Greg has a vision, and they're not always the same. Through that, you bring it together, but you've gotta give a little, take a little, give a little, take a little, but you've gotta be willing to do that.

"But, yeah, it's really cool," he continued. "I like the dynamic we have. I like the personalities that we have in the band, and I think that, honestly, that's one of the things that makes it great. And I think that's one of the things that make it special.

"Our music is emotional music, whether it's helplessness or fucking anger or aggression or any fucking gamut — our music definitely covers the gamut of all emotions — and I think that those emotions are what bring people close to our music, because they can build a relationship with it," Chad added. "'Cause I'm not the kind of writer that's, like, 'This is what the song is. This is what the song's about.' I kind of get you going down a road, maybe reel you in a little bit so you kind of get the vibe on where I'm at, but I'm giving you off ramps all the way through it where you can take it and make it applicable to your life. But that's what makes it special, 'cause now you're building your own relationship with it and not what I'm telling you the relationship has to be. There's no boundaries on it, so it's pretty boundless."

In March 2024, Chad told The Jesea Lee Show that he and his MUDVAYNE bandmates were still "trying to figure out" where they wanted their new material to go. "Right now, we've got some, you can call them whole songs 'cause they have a start and a finish, but I feel like they're kind of half-songs," he said at the time. "I just don't think they're realized yet. I don't think we have figured out exactly how we want this to play out with what we're doing in our business or how we want it to sonically sound."

Gray continued: "Nothing inside of me wants to be the MUDVAYNE of [the band's 2000 debut album] 'L.D. 50'. I think that the more albums we wrote, the better we got as songwriters. A lot of people would probably disagree with me, but [2008's] 'The New Game' is probably one of my favorite fucking albums. It's got like 'Dull Boy' on it, it's got just some really quintessential MUDVAYNE stuff that's not anything like anybody else was doing. I feel like we fucking finally had kind of found our groove. 'L.D. 50', to me, was a very gratuitous, individual workshop, and we put all four pieces together and called it an album."

In October 2023, Gray told Australia's Heavy that he and his MUDVAYNE bandmates had "started putting some new stuff together a little bit and people that have heard [some of the early demo] stuff are really excited about it. Only the people that are closest to us have heard anything, and, like I said, it's really rough; it's demos," he explained. "But you can tell it's special. And I think that we have to make sure it's MUDVAYNE. We have to make sure that it's what we want. So we'll just have to see. We were working on it, working on it, working on it a little bit here and there.

"We all live states away from each other — nobody lives even close to each other — so it makes it a little bit difficult," he explained. "But we were able to get some stuff demoed up or whatever, but with us being so far apart, it's a little slow going. And then we just kind of hit a wall. We were, like, 'Okay, we've gotta get back into touring.' So we put everything together and we went back out [in the] summer [of 2023]."

In August 2023, Chad told The Oakland Press that he and his MUDVAYNE bandmates had "four [songs] in the pipe. I've written each one of them probably three different times, 'cause it's like nothing's good enough," he revealed. "We're gonna keep pushing. We're all getting along really good. We're all talking. Hopefully we all want the same thing from our music, so we'll see. It's definitely the thing that makes the most sense to do now."

As previously reported, MUDVAYNE will celebrate the 25th anniversary of "L.D. 50" on a U.S. tour in late summer and early fall. Support on the trek will come from STATIC-X and VENDED.

Released in 2000 via Epic, "L.D. 50" produced three singles — Dig", "Death Blooms" and "Nothing To Gein". "L.D. 50" peaked at No. 1 on the Billboard Heatseekers chart and No. 85 on the Billboard 200. It was certified gold by the RIAA for shipment in excess of half a million copies in the U.S. alone.

MUDVAYNE completed its first headlining tour in over 14 years, "The Psychotherapy Sessions", in the summer of 2023. Support on the 26-city trek, which was produced by Live Nation, came from COAL CHAMBER, along with GWAR, NONPOINT and BUTCHER BABIES.

Previously, MUDVAYNE made waves in 2022 when they embarked on the "Freaks On Parade" tour co-headlined with ROB ZOMBIE. The 2023 tour, however, marked MUDVAYNE's first headlining endeavor since 2009.

Gray told The Oakland Press that his "main motivation for putting [MUDVAYNE] back together and coming back was our fans", including those who discovered the band during its absence. "There's so many younger kids that are coming up and coming into our world, the metal world, and they're learning about MUDVAYNE," he said. "So you have this, like, the ground's kind of rumbling and it goes out and touches more and more people, but we weren't out there to scratch that itch. You still have your actual fan base but you're accumulating new people. So when we came back it was very exciting for us. It was about our fans and giving those new fans the experience."

In a new interview with EMP, Eicca Toppinen of Finnish cello rockers APOCALYPTICA spoke about the band's decision to record and release "Apocalyptica Plays Metallica, Vol. 2", the hotly anticipated sequel to their legendary debut record, "Plays Metallica By Four Cellos". Released in June 2024, the LP, produced by longtime collaborator and studio supremo Joe Barresi (QUEENS OF THE STONE AGE, SOUNDGARDEN, TOOL, NINE INCH NAILS),continues the journey that began in 1996 when cellists from Helsinki's world-renowned Sibelius Academy played symphonic tribute to the biggest of the big four–heavy metal titans METALLICA.

"Since the very first album, we were thinking one day we want to make another one," Eicca said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET). "There were so many cool METALLICA songs we couldn't play at that time, when we did the first album. But it took all this time, almost 30 years, and it started to feel like an exciting challenge. Now suddenly, after 'Cell-0' album, it felt like making a new METALLICA album is a step forward and not backwards. It's kind of a big challenge, how to reinvent what it means when APOCALYPTICA plays METALLICA in 2024, '25. It started to excite us because we still love the music and there were so many songs we wanted to play. And it was interesting that some of the songs we really wanted to play, they didn't end up in the album because we found that our version is nothing special. It's good, because it's a good METALLICA song, but an APOCALYPTICA version is not really exciting enough. So it became really like reinventing the wheel."

The first single from "Apocalyptica Plays Metallica, Vol. 2", "The Four Horsemen", a song that originally appeared on METALLICA's 1983 debut "Kill 'Em All", featured a guest appearance by current METALLICA bassist Robert Trujillo. Meanwhile, the "One" single saw METALLICA frontman James Hetfield joining proceedings for a soul-stirring, spoken word of those inimitable, now-immortal lyrics. Elsewhere, "The Call Of Ktulu" featured the original bassline laid down by METALLICA bassist Cliff Burton, who tragically lost his life in a tour bus accident in 1986.

"In general, when we started to work on this album, we had no plans to involve METALLICA in any way, except just we told them that, 'Okay, we are working on the album,'" Eicca explained to EMP. "Then when working on the music, some cool ideas started to pop up, and, for example, the Cliff Burton thing. For me personally, 'The Call Of Ktulu' has been one of my favorite tracks from METALLICA. And just a couple of years ago, I realized that all these cool sounds, well, they're magical, and I realized that those sounds are actually from Cliff Burton. And [I thought], like, 'Wow, it would be so cool if we could get the original track and make [our version] around it.'

"When we had all these ideas, having a narrator in 'One' and a bass feature in 'The Four Horsemen', I messaged [METALLICA drummer] Lars [Ulrich] and I said, 'Can we have a chat? I want to tell you what's going on.' And I was just presenting these ideas to him that, 'Okay, we've been thinking this and that and that,' just to check if they like the I ideas. And Lars, especially for Cliff Burton, he was, like, 'I always love that you guys think out of the box. But it might be impossible, because we need to figure out the permission from Cliff Burton's family, we need to figure out the label rights.' There are so many contractual things that are around his recording from '84. Stars were aligned and things happened, and we got it. It's never heard. Even Trujillo — Rob told me when he was in the studio recording bass for 'The Four Horsemen', he was, like, 'These guys, they really must love you, Eicca, because this is never heard, that this kind of thing would happen.' But I think we have built with METALLICA, over these decades, a very respectful relationship, a good friendship with them. And we've always been very grateful since the very first album. METALLICA gave a lot of great comments, positive comments. They praised the first album and stuff. So we've been always very grateful for everything we have gotten from METALLICA. And we never felt that we want anything from them. And even this time, we didn't go, 'Hey, guys, do you want to participate?' It was more, like, 'Hey, we think this would be fucking cool. What do you guys think?' And they were, like, 'Oh, yeah. Let's make these things happen.'"

At this past June Download festival at Leicestershire, United Kingdom's Donington Park, Toppinen spoke to Alex Alicia about APOCALYPTICA's plans for the coming months. He said: "We've been really focused on touring [in support of 2024's 'Apocalyptica Plays Metallica, Vol. 2']. In five months, we played 80 shows, in Europe and North America. So there was not so much energy to think about what happens next. And then I was busy in the spring. I scored one movie, a long feature. It's a really cool movie. So now when we started festival season, now we've started to talk, 'Okay, what could be the next thing?' Still we will tour with this METALLICA set till the end of next year at least. So I think we will do what we've been doing for a while already, that we will do singles, just individual collaborations with some people. And at the same time, we'll work towards something that's more wholesome, like an album kind of thing. But I think also we started to think about the album also from the perspective of what would be ultimately the greatest APOCALYPTICA show like, what all aspects it would include."

He continued: "Now it's great fun to play METALLICA, but this is so straightforward, like straight in your face all the time from the beginning to end. But APOCALYPTICA has so many more dimensions and I think, in a way, I don't know any other band that can go from so sensitive, so classical, so minimalistic into such a really powerful chaos and everything in between. So, we haven't done that kind of project. For example, a couple of years ago we did a tour in churches in Finland in the COVID times. And we made a special program for the church thing. I was, like, 'Okay, this is really cool to do as well,' and totally different thing than what we're doing now. And I think kind of a hybrid of those where there would be space for all kind of qualities that APOCALYPTICA has. So that's something what we are thinking… APOCALYPTICA can be this and that and that and that and then so many things. So it's exciting."

Also at this year's Download, APOCALYPTICA lead cellist Perttu Kivilaakso was asked by Daniel Steer of Mike James Rock Show if there are any musicians left on his "wish list" for possible collaborators on the band's future recordings. He responded: "We have worked with an incredible amount of amazing artists. And [METALLICA's] James Hetfield [who guested on APOCALYPTICA's cover of METALLICA's 'One' from 'Apocalyptica Plays Metallica Vol. 2'], of course, has probably been the top of the list, kind of the dream that it would be unbelievable if he someday does something for us. But, of course, there are still so many fascinating artists. For example, I think that the charisma and incredible person of Nick Cave, for example, could be something really cool to make a dark, gloomy thing with the cello and his expression. Or whomever, like Pink or somebody with a really, really great attitude.

"The lovely thing about APOCALYPTICA is that we are very versatile with our music, that it could go from very beautiful classical elements to brutal thrash metal," he explained. "And even still I would love to work more with the greatest growers — Alissa White-Gluz [ARCH ENEMY] or whomever — great artists there are. So the good thing is that the ideas never kind of end. You only end up having the problem with too many ideas and somebody in a business saying that, 'Not all is possible, guys. Come on.'"

Kivilaakso went on to say that he and his APOCALYPTICA bandmates are grateful to still have a global audience with their unique fusion of classical cello music with hard metal elements. "So far, that has been really working," he said. "And I just somehow started to appreciate more and more the fact that we still can do this for a living and entertain people around the world. And it makes us feel, I guess, blessed in that sense. And that gives you the sparkle to still continue and try to figure out more cool things."

As previously reported, Hetfield attended APOCALYPTICA's March 3 concert at the Paramount Theatre in Denver, Colorado.

Photo credit: Riki Murto

The Ayreon camp has shared a message from vocalist / longtime collaborator Edward Reekers, who has been a part of the Ayreon legacy as a guest singer since the project’s first record, The Final Experiment, released in 1995.

Reekers has issued the following statement:

“Dear all, I have some very sad news.

I was diagnosed with metastatic lung cancer. A cure is not an option anymore, only life-prolonging treatment(s). I will, with the utmost reluctance, have to withdraw from public life. The doctors are working on a treatment schedule and I expect to have some more clarity in the beginning of September.

I would like to thank all my friends and fans for their support and enthusiasm during the time I was given to do what I love to do most : making music.

And all my colleagues who accompanied me on my musical journey : thank you so much. Without you it wouldn’t have been half as much fun.”

Reekers was due to appear at Ayreon’s An Amazing Flight Through Time 30th Anniversary Shows in Tilburg, Netherlands this September. He has appeared on the following Ayreon releases: The Final Experiment (1995), Actual Fantasy (1996), Into The Electric Castle (1998), Universal Migrator Part 1: The Dream Sequencer (2000), Ayreonauts Only (2000), Ayreon Universe (2018) and Electric Castle Live And Other Tales (2020).

Founding WHITE LION singer Mike Tramp will release "Songs Of White Lion - Vol. III", the third album in a series where he reinterprets songs from his former band WHITE LION, on September 19 via Frontiers Music Srl. As was the case with "Songs Of White Lion - Vol. I" and "Songs Of White Lion - Vol. II" once again sees Tramp accompanied by his current solo band.

Asked in a new interview with the Thunder Underground podcast if there are any plans for him to release another studio album of all-new material, Mike said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "Yeah, well, of course, it's a natural and a great question. I already have sort of… I mean, listen, I don't sit and write every day and I'm not in my studio every day and things like that — I definitely need breaks away from it — but over the last couple years while we were doing the volume one through three, I've completed a new Mike Tramp solo album. When that is coming out and how it's coming out, that's probably more the bigger question of how one releases an album today."

Mike went on to say that his record company has offered to release a new "hard rock" solo album from him, but he admitted that "that's a whole different can of worms because to write a new hard rock album, knowing that you're not going to play the songs live because you are touring as WHITE LION, you have to make that decision. What is the point? What is the point? Because I haven't written a hard rock album since 2009, and my heart isn't there. Going out and playing the WHITE LION songs is one thing, but as an artist, I'm not diehard hard rock. I have my classic albums that I listen to once in a while and that I grew up with, but to sit down and write 'Fight To Survive' at age 65…

"I have a few things in my mind that it might actually have to be maybe a little bit more of a project," Tramp explained. "It could be a concept album where the stories may be told through hard rock songs. But just to sit down and say, 'This is the new Mike Tramp hard rock album,' and that I truly believe in it, might not be something that I can do. And I will definitely bring in a few of my comrades out there in the world that I feel that I would wanna write this with. Because when I write my solo albums, it is the true style of Mike Tramp. I'm not the one who wrote the guitar riffs in WHITE LION. So it's a whole different can of worms. But it's all on the desktop. There's a lot of sticky notes on the refrigerator. [Laughs]"

When the interviewer noted that the record company would probably want a Mike Tramp hard rock album to be in the style of WHITE LION", Tramp concurred. "Yeah, they would want it for what they think is their audience," he said. "Of course, the albums would have to be released under 'Mike Tramp'. One thing is that I play live shows under WHITE LION. There won't be any album released with new music under the name WHITE LION."

Earlier this month, Mike was asked by Stefan Nilsson of Roppongi Rocks if he has any plans to release new music under the MIKE TRAMP'S WHITE LION banner. He responded: "Well, you're obviously not the first one who has [asked about] that. The difficult part is, and we all know that from all our favorite bands, what do they play live? The greatest hits — all the big songs. And it's just the thing — I mean, how is MIKE TRAMP'S WHITE LION going to sound? And MIKE TRAMP'S WHITE LION on stage is going to play songs from the four [WHITE LION] albums. We're not gonna say 'we're gonna play a new song' because that new song, it cannot be represented by the name. WHITE LION are the four albums. So, you know what? It would have to be a completely different project under another name. And I'm highlighting the word 'project', because it's not going to be a band. We're not gonna be able to tour under a new name when I can't go on stage without the WHITE LION name… And the money is also not big enough."

In a separate interview with Dawn Osborne of TotalRock, Tramp was asked if "Songs Of White Lion - Vol. III" is the final album in the series. Tramp responded: "I think when the first one came out, I was still very unsure about really what it was I was doing. To be honest, I think that I somehow both pushed myself into it and felt somehow obligated that since I couldn't go anywhere, regardless of if I showed up on stage with an acoustic guitar or two monkeys, they still will put WHITE LION on the poster. And so I had to find a way to deal with that. And I was speaking with Marcus [Nand], which now does the fine guitar work, and I had asked him if this was possible to sort of [put together] a refurbished version of the classic WHITE LION songs that sounds like how I sound today but at the same time is as close to the original as possible. So when we had done the first one, the first thing any interviewer did was, [they asked] will there be a number two? And, obviously, I started thinking about that. And as we got into number two, I knew there was gonna be a number three."

Asked if he has now re-recorded all the WHITE LION songs or if there are still some that he left out, Mike said: "No. No. And I really had hoped that I wouldn't get confronted with this, because somebody actually spoke to me the other day. He says, 'You know what? I know you you're talking about the completion of the trilogy.' He says, 'I think you [should] just record all the songs so that all the songs have been re-recorded and then that's that.' And I started thinking, 'Wow, okay.'"

Tramp continued: "It's sort of an easy thing to take on because most of the work is already there. Now jumping aside, doing the number three, we went in to do that album completely different than we did the first one. And had I known that we were going to do all three, I wouldn't have made the first one being like a 'greatest hits'. I would've balanced it. I wouldn't have put 'Tell Me', 'Wait' and 'Little Fighter', the big WHITE LION songs, on one album; I would've spread them out. Now as we're doing volume three, a lot of people have already said, when they hear this, this feels like a fresh new album. It's very heavy, it's the dark songs, et cetera, et cetera, and it doesn't just feel like you've just gone in there… Because there's a lot of songs that might not have been the familiar songs with the sort of average rock fan, the WHITE LION fan that knows the three songs. But for those who know the darker tracks from 'Fight To Survive' and 'Big Game' and things like that, this is an album that I really, really actually enjoy myself listening to."

In July, Tramp spoke about how this series of recordings came together, stating in a press release: "For me, the point of re-recording the old classic WHITE LION songs was all about letting the audience know how the band would sound if they come to see us live. Bringing the sound up today and away from a world no more.

"When I started with 'Vol. I', I must admit, I never thought I'd do 'Vol. II' and now 'Vol. III'," he continued. "But having done it all now, makes all the more sense to me. If I have to be active playing WHITE LION in 2025 and onward, there's got to be a natural progression in every way. That is exactly what this trilogy is all about."

In this final installment, Tramp revisits and reimagines ten more essential songs from the WHITE LION catalog, bringing them back to life with the passion, perspective, and authenticity that only decades of experience can deliver.

Once again backed by his trusted bandmates — Marcus Nand (guitar),Claus Langeskov (bass) and Morten Hellborn (drums) — Tramp offers fresh but respectful renditions of these classic tracks, capturing their spirit while elevating them with a more refined, seasoned sound.

"Songs Of White Lion - Vol. III" track listing:

01. Dirty Woman
02. Warsong
03. Fight To Survive
04. She's Got Everything
05. In The City
06. If My Mind Is Evil
07. Cherokee
08. All Burn In Hell
09. Don't Say It's Over
10. Radar Love

When "Songs Of White Lion - Vol. II" was first announced last year, Tramp said in a statement: "Would Leonardo Da Vinci have re-painted 'Mona Lisa', if he had gotten a second chance? That we will never know, but I can say for sure, that I am beyond thrilled to have gotten a second chance to re-record and sing the songs I wrote between 1983 - 1990. Today I have such a better understanding of how I want to express the songs in my voice than I had when I was in my 20s, it's just a fact, and I've grabbed the chance. 'Songs Of White Lion' is a whole new chapter. [As a] matter of fact, it is current."

Tramp spent most of 2024 and the first half of 2025 touring the U.S. and Europe with his band MIKE TRAMP'S WHITE LION, which doesn't included any other members of the original WHITE LION group.

Back in 2019, Tramp revealed in an interview that he had apologized to guitarist Vito Bratta for trying to resurrect his former band without his onetime songwriting partner and bandmate.

The Danish-born singer hasn't played with Bratta since WHITE LION performed its last concert in Boston in September 1991.

In the 34 years since WHITE LION broke up, Bratta's public profile has been virtually nonexistent, while Tramp has remained active, recording and touring as a solo artist and with the bands FREAK OF NATURE, THE ROCK 'N' ROLL CIRCUZ and, more recently, BAND OF BROTHERS. Tramp also attempted to revive WHITE LION with the 2008 album "Return Of The Pride", featuring new members. Two years later, Tramp ceded ownership of the name WHITE LION to Bratta in an out-of-court settlement.

Mainly active in the 1980s and early 1990s, WHITE LION released its debut album, "Fight To Survive", in 1985. The band had its breakthrough with the double-platinum-selling "Pride" album, which produced two Top 10 hits: "Wait" and "When The Children Cry". The band continued its success with the third album, "Big Game", which achieved gold status.

By the time WHITE LION released its final album, 1991's "Mane Attraction", alternative rock was in the ascendancy, leading to a swift decline of the so-called "hair metal" scene in terms of sales, popularity, radio play, and most importantly, relevance.

Mike released "Songs Of White Lion", in April 2023 via Frontiers Music Srl. "Songs Of White Lion - Vol. II" followed in August 2024.

Photo credit: Michael Anthony

In a new interview with Rock 100.5 The KATT FM's Cameron Buchholtz, TRIXTER bassist P.J. Farley, who has been performing semi-acoustic TRIXTER shows with TRIXTER guitarist/vocalist Steve Brown, confirmed that a new TRIXTER album is in the works. He said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "Yeah, we have some songs written. We don't have a schedule or a label — we're not that far along yet — but we've been putting stuff together. And we have songs. So, we'll see what happens. Hopefully, if it makes sense — but I think it will. I think it's time [to release something new]."

Asked about "the vibe" of the new TRIXTER songs, P.J. said: "Just TRIXTER, man. Good rock and roll music. Really no other message than kick-ass rock and roll music."

Farley also offered an update on a documentary-style film which has reportedly been in the works for at least a couple of years and will cover P.J. and Steve's "journey together". He said: "The documentary is slowly in the works there. A good friend of ours, it's kind of a pet project of his. Again, [it's] another thing not on a schedule or any type of agenda other than — we'll get it together."

Brown and Farley's live performances also feature Ben Hans on percussion.

This past June, Steve told The Hair Metal Guru about TRIXTER's new music: "I have about 15 songs worked up and I'm really, really excited. I think when we do get around to making the record, it is gonna blow people away, I can honestly say, because I know I'm excited about it. So I know when I'm excited, by the time you hear it and the fans all around the world, they're gonna be blown away."

Brown continued: "The problem is that I always get booked to do other stuff. And it's, like, I've gotta make money. But also, P.J. and I, we started filming a documentary that's gonna be a partner with the record. And it's not a TRIXTER documentary, though it has a lot of TRIXTER in it. It's about the story of P.J. and I, of our musical journey together, that we've been playing together close to 40 years now. And though we still are in TRIXTER, he's done so many different things — he was in the band RA, he was in Lita Ford, he's in FOZZY, he's in this, he's in that. And likewise with me, whether it's playing with DEF LEPPARD, Dennis DeYoung, Eric Martin, all the stuff that we do. But we always come back together and that brotherhood and that bond that we have. So that's also the other thing. So there's a lot of great stuff happening. I tell all the fans, you've just gotta be patient."

This past March, Steve told Youngstown Studio's B.J. Lisko about the progress of the songwriting sessions for a new TRIXTER album: "Yeah, I'm actively working on songs right now. P.J. has got some ideas. We have some stuff in the works. We started shooting some documentary footage — not for a TRIXTER documentary, but something about P.J. and I, our journey together. It's gonna be really unique. And hopefully we're gonna have that done for next year or maybe the year after. And we're definitely gonna have a new TRIXTER record that accompanies that."

He continued: "I could easily put out another TRIXTER record in another couple of weeks, if I had to. It needs to be something that has more special meaning. And especially because it's sort of a different configuration now. So it needs to be that much more extra special for me to wanna commit to do that. But it's definitely in motion. And I will say I probably have 15 new songs that are that I'm extremely excited about and I can't wait for the world to hear it. Because, like everything that I do, I try to make it the best thing that I've ever done. So I'm really happy with this, where it's coming. And P.J. has come up with some great ideas, and I actually had him sing on a song that I wrote that I thought would be perfect. And it came out a hundred percent better than I thought it was gonna be."

Asked what, in his opinion, makes a good TRIXTER song, Brown said:"I think all the classic stuff. What I love is I love pop music that's got great guitars, of course. It's what I always tell people — it's like if you took VAN HALEN, KISS, CHEAP TRICK, BON JOVI and DEF LEPPARD, put it all together, those are probably my biggest influences as far as making records and what I envisioned TRIXTER to be when I was a little kid. That was the concoction that I put in the cauldron. And over the years, that's really it. So I think for me, it's always about melody, a great vocal hook melody, a lyric that you can get behind. I definitely think I took a strong influence from BON JOVI. And I remember when I started getting TRIXTER going, Jon's [Bon Jovi] advice was always, 'Make sure you have a good lyric and something that's powerful.'"

The original TRIXTER lineup — also featuring drummer Mark "Gus" Scott and singer Pete Loran — reunited in 2008 and lasted until 2017, during which time the band released two studio albums via Frontiers Music Srl — 2012's "New Audio Machine" and 2015's "Human Era".

TRIXTER toured extensively in the United States, Canada and Japan in support of its five major label releases. They have performed live in arenas and amphitheaters with crowds up to 35,000 people, appearing with such rock superstars as KISS, SCORPIONS, POISON, TED NUGENT, NIGHT RANGER, CINDERELLA, TWISTED SISTER, DOKKEN, WARRANT, GREAT WHITE and FIREHOUSE.