LAMB OF GOD will issue a three-disc deluxe edition of last year's critically acclaimed self-titled album featuring the full record with two bonus tracks and a live version of the album, along with a DVD performance of "Lamb Of God" on March 26 via Epic Records.

"This album, and in particular this deluxe edition, is something I'm incredibly proud of," says guitarist Willie Adler. "Throughout the process of writing, recording and the subsequent filming of the live stream, I knew we were creating much more than a collection of songs. Much more than a simple streamed performance. This was focused energy. Energy that, to me, is very tangible. And now, more than ever, in an era where human interaction is so limited, art.... be it music, visual or otherwise, is a human connection point. And we need as much of that as possible! I hope everyone enjoys this deluxe edition as much as we enjoyed creating it. Thank you."

Pre-orders for the set are available now, along with the bonus track "Ghost Shaped People". The live CD and DVD portion of the deluxe edition features the first of LAMB OF GOD's two ultra-successful live stream events from September 2020, in which the band performed their critically acclaimed, self-titled album "Lamb Of God" in full, plus an encore of four songs, including "Ruin", "Contractor", "512" and the debut live performance of "The Death Of Us", a new song the band wrote and recorded in quarantine for the "Bill & Ted Face The Music" movie and soundtrack. The DVD includes a new director's cut with bonus material. Watch the trailer for the deluxe package now below.

Originally, released June 19 of last year, LAMB OF GOD's first new album in five years was met with universal acclaim — not only among major rock journalists, but with all strata of metal fans around the world.

But critics, media and the industry aside, perhaps the most telling statistic is the year-end U.S. metal radio chart, where the new album dominated at #1 by a massive margin (over 2,000 more spins than the album at #2). "Lamb Of God" spent nine weeks in the #1 spot and never left the top 10 since debuting on the chart in February. Metal radio is the lifeblood of the U.S. metal world, largely staffed by college students and regional tastemakers, playing the music that they know their local metal fans want to hear. At iTunes, "Lamb Of God" landed at No. 1 on the overall Rock and Metal album chart upon release.

"Lamb Of God" deluxe edition track listing:

Disc 1: "Lamb Of God" Original Album + 2 Bonus Tracks

01. Memento Mori

02. Checkmate

03. Gears

04. Reality Bath

05. New Colossal Hate

06. Resurrection Man

07. Poison Dream (feat. Jamey Jasta)

08. Routes (feat. Chuck Billy)

09. Bloodshot Eyes

10. On The Hook

11. Ghost Shaped People

12. Hyperthermic/Accelerate

Disc 2: "Lamb Of God - Live From Richmond, VA"

01. Memento Mori (Live)

02. Checkmate (Live)

03. Gears (Live)

04. Reality Bath (Live)

05. New Colossal Hate (Live)

06. Resurrection Man (Live)

07. Poison Dream (Live)

08. Routes (Live)

09. Bloodshot Eyes (Live)

10. On The Hook (Live)

11. Contractor (Live)

12. Ruin (Live)

13. The Death Of Us (Live)

14. 512

Disc 3: "Lamb Of God - Live From Richmond, VA" DVD

01. Memento Mori

02. Checkmate

03. Gears

04. Reality Bath

05. New Colossal Hate

06. Resurrection Man

07. Poison Dream

08. Routes

09. Bloodshot Eyes

10. On The Hook

11. Contractor

12. Ruin

13. The Death of Us

14. 512

Digital copies will contain only Disc 1 and Disc 2. A separate vinyl edition of "Lamb Of God - Live From Richmond, VA" will also be available.

"Lamb Of God - Live From Richmond, VA" vinyl track listing:

Side 1

01. Memento Mori

02. Checkmate

03. Gears

04. Reality Bath

05. New Colossal Hate

Side 2

01. Resurrection Man

02. Poison Dream

03. Routes

04. Bloodshot Eyes

05. On The Hook

LAMB OF GOD eagerly awaits its return to the road to support "Lamb Of God". Their North American co-headline tour with MEGADETH and support from TRIVIUM and IN FLAMES has been rescheduled to begin in July 2021, and their headline tour in the U.K. and co-headline tour with KREATOR in the rest of Europe will take place in November and December 2021.

KISS co-founder and frontman, best-selling author and Rock And Roll Hall Of Famer Paul Stanley will release the debut album from his SOUL STATION project on March 19 (postponed from previously announced March 5) via Universal Music Enterprises. A collection of nine classic soul covers and five original tracks, "Now And Then" will feature the band's acclaimed version of THE FIVE STAIRSTEPS' "O-o-h Child" as well as SOUL STATION's take on THE SPINNERS' "Could It Be I'm Falling In Love", which can be streamed below.

Stanley has spent the last few years developing this project close to his heart. SOUL STATION is a band gathering some of today's leading musicians to pay tribute to the greatest artists and songs from the R&B and soul catalog to keep this vital music current. While a surprise to many, Stanley's early pivotal roots in this music has quietly turned this passion into a celebrated touring and recording band. Stanley's 15-piece ensemble group has toured the U.S. and Japan, and recently recorded an album of nine classic soul songs and five new original songs.

Speaking about the new music, Stanley said: "Between us doing some great SOUL STATION shows and starting the album, I started to think that neither the band or the music we love should depend only on the past so I started writing with the goal of seamlessly taking songs into the present. From what a lot of people I respect have told me, that mission was accomplished."

When Stanley conceived SOUL STATION, the group excelled in the live venue setting, playing smaller, intimate clubs — a setting where Paul Stanley would reflect on those classic hits that were his early inspiration, playing the songs with a reverence and respect for how he and the band believe they should be performed and heard.

"Long before I ever heard the great British bands, I grew up listening to Philly Soul, Motown and so much more," he said. "I was lucky to see Otis Redding and Solomon Burke among others. That music and its storytelling gave me strength and hope even in some tough days. The great classics of that era are magical medicine for most and I felt myself drawn back to that era for some sorcery I think we could all use."

Stanley's bandmembers include Rafael "Hoffa" Moreira (guitar and backing vocals), Sean Hurley (bass), Alex Alessandroni (musical director, keyboards), Ely Rise (keyboards), Eric Singer (drums and backing vocals), RayYslas (percussion), Gavyn Rhone (backing vocals), Crystal Starr (backing vocals) and Laurhan Beato (backing vocals) and Jon Pappenbrook (lead trumpet).

The band is augmented by three string players and two horn players of the same stature enabling SOUL STATION's wall of sound to be firmly rooted in the past while staking claim to both the present and future.

"Now And Then" track listing:

01. Could It Be I'm Falling In Love

02. I Do

03. I, Oh I

04. Ooo Baby Baby

05. O-o-h Child

06. Save Me (From You)

07. Just My Imagination (Running Away With Me)

08. Whenever You're Ready (I'm Here)

09. The Tracks Of My Tears

10. Let's Stay Together

11. La-La – Means I Love You

12. Lorelei

13. You Are Everything

14. Baby I Need Your Loving

Speaking about how the idea for SOUL STATION came about, Paul told Scott Lipps: "I was really lucky, because, before I ever saw [LED] ZEPPELIN or any of the British bands that I grew to love, or the blues bands that I saw, I saw Otis Redding as a kid, I saw Solomon Burke and THE TEMPTATIONS. So that really is the core of what I do. It's not all that I do, but it's in there, and it always has been. SMOKEY [ROBINSON] AND THE MIRACLES; early Stevie Wonder; Philly soul; Kenny Gamble and Leon Huff, all the things that they produced — Thom Bell. So you have THE DELFONICS, STYLISTICS, BLUE MAGIC, THE TEMPS, FOUR TOPS, and on and on. So, for me, that music, unfortunately, has been relegated to becoming samples in somebody's rap songs. Those songs deserve so much more, not only respect, but to be listened to, because when we play those songs live, everybody's faces light up, because they're just great, great songs.

"SOUL STATION is 15 people, and everybody's played with everyone from Smokey to Stevie Wonder to Natalie Cole to TEMPTATIONS, Whitney Houston, and on and on and on," Stanley continued. "And it really is like a family. We hang out at my house and have a great time. But what really bonded us together was this love of that music and wanting to recreate it accurately, respectfully. Even some of those bands, when they wound up playing live, did these uptempo, kind of soulless versions of their own songs. And we're playing those songs the way they're supposed to be, and it's glorious.

"Look, I started doing it selfishly, 'cause I love that music, and to have it surrounding me, and to get to sing those songs, is crazy. And then to also write some new tunes that really marry so well to the old tunes is like writing another page.

"Will it surprise some people? Yeah," Paul added. "But, honestly, I'm not… Somebody said, 'Oh, you're reinventing yourself.' I'm not the champion of blues rock or hard rock or metal or this. I did 'Phantom Of The Opera'. I'm a singer, and I choose to sing whatever I choose to sing at any given time. So, really, honestly, it's as natural for me to sing Philly soul as it is to sing rock. It's just I haven't done it publicly."

Last May, Stanley released a cover version of Smokey Robinson's classic song "Ooo Baby Baby", recorded by SOUL STATION. In a statement accompanying the clip, Stanley said: "These are challenging times. Long before I ever heard the great British bands, I grew up listening to Philly Soul, Motown and so much more. I was lucky to see Otis Redding and Solomon Burke among others. That music and its storytelling gave me strength and hope even in some tough days. The great classics of that era are magical medicine for most and I felt myself drawn back to that era for some sorcery I think we could all use."

He added: "While it's hard to connect physically, some of SOUL STATION decided to reach out and make a virtual and emotional connection on a great Motown and Smokey Robinson classic, Ooo Baby Baby."

In 2019, Stanley told the Real Radio 104.1 radio station that he wanted to wait for the right time to release the SOUL STATION LP. "It really deserves full attention and my full commitment," he explained. "So until we can do great live performances — the band is amazing live — and until we can promote it the way we should, it's just going to simmer."

Asked if he gets any hate from KISS fans for making an album that is stylistically far removed from the music his main band is best known for producing, Stanley said: "I'm sure there are some people who'd rather me doing a KISS album or something like that, but when you sign on with me, you understand that we're both in this together, and sometimes I have to do what I need to do. And that's part of the joy and the reward for me. So I would rather do a great SOUL STATION album right now than tamper with KISS or the KISS legacy and do something that I'm really not feeling at the moment."

According to The Republic reporter Jordan Morey, Jon Schaffer is still being held at Marion County Jail as of Friday morning (February 5), two weeks after U.S. Magistrate for the Southern District of Indiana judge Mark Dinsmore signed an order for the ICED EARTH guitarist to appear in D.C.'s district court.

The 52-year-old musician, who resides in in Edinburgh, Indiana, is facing six federal criminal charges after he was accused of spraying a police officer with a pepper-based bear repellant during the January 6 insurrection at the U.S. Capitol.

Schaffer waived his preliminary hearing as well as his rights to an identity hearing and production of a warrant two weeks ago in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Indiana, court documents state. He will soon be 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.

Schaffer is entitled to a hearing on the issue of pretrial detention upon his arrival in D.C., court documents said.

Two weeks ago, government lawyers asked the judge to not offer Schaffer a bond when he goes in front of U.S. magistrate.

Schaffer must prove to the federal magistrate that he is not a threat to himself or the public before being released on bail. Others who have been charged for insurrection at the Capitol have been given bail but ordered to surrender their firearms, avoid contact with other alleged Capitol rioters and stay away from all state capitol buildings. Some other alleged rioters have been prohibited from using social media and participating in any political rallies.

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 has been held in the Marion County Jail since surrendering to police on January 17. He made his first court appearance the following day.

Authorities say Schaffer was photographed and seen on surveillance video carrying a pepper-based bear repellant and arguing with Capitol Police officers inside the Capitol.

Just hours after the insurrection, ICED EARTH fans recognized Schaffer in a photo released by federal investigators in which he could be seen at the front of a mob, wearing black leather fingerless tactical gloves and pointing his finger while yelling at someone out of the frame.

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

While Schaffer has not yet said anything publicly about his involvement in the riot, his ICED EARTH bandmates put out a statement on Instagram and Facebook opposing the insurrection.

"We absolutely DO NOT condone nor do we support riots or the acts of violence that the rioters were involved in on January 6th at the US Capitol building," they wrote. "We hope that all those involved that day are brought to justice to be investigated and answer for their actions."

Earlier last month, German daily newspaper Die Welt uploaded a video interview it conducted with Schaffer last November at a Washington, D.C. demonstration supporting Trump and protesting the 2020 presidential election results. In the chat, the guitarist said that "a group of thugs and criminals hijacked this country a long time ago" and warned that "they're messing with the wrong people here. Because now we see you, and you're going down. Mark my words."

Schaffer also seemingly threw his support behind Trump, saying "he's not your typical Republican" and claiming that America's 45th president is "dealing with a criminal mafia that has been in the shadows running the world, frankly, for a very long time. They wanna destroy all of our sovereignty and bring about global government," he added. "We're not having it… It will not happen. There will be a lot of blood shed, if it comes down to that — trust me. The American people will not go for that bullshit — once they understand what's actually happening. So, that's where we're at. Nobody wants this, but they're pushing us to a point where we have no choice."




I'm told that Jon Schaffer is still being held at Marion County Jail. He has been there since Jan. 17. https://t.co/fIGbsjxVfl

— Jordan Morey (@JordanAMorey) February 5, 2021

Matthew Kiichi Heafy, the Japanese-American musician best known as the guitarist and lead vocalist for the Grammy-nominated heavy metal band TRIVIUM, has released the "Ascendancy" acoustic EP, featuring reworked versions of four songs from the group's 2005 album of the same name. You can now listen to it in the YouTube clip below.

Featured songs:

01. Rain

02. Dying In Your Arms

03. Suffocating Sight

04. Departure

According to Heafy, there will be an acoustic EP for every record except 2020's "What The Dead Men Say".

Heafy is also an avid gamer who steadily built his Twitch profile to massive success in the past few years. His Twitch efforts have been featured by Microsoft, TechCrunch, Forbes and beyond. He is also a practitioner of Brazilian jiu-jitsu and a food connoisseur. Heafy streams daily on his Twitch channel "matthewkheafy," displaying the behind-the-scenes work it takes to stay in shape to play guitars and do vocals. He plays TRIVIUM songs by request and every day is a new show made by the fans, for the fans.

Some of Heafy's notable accomplishments include hosting the first-ever full metal gaming village at Wacken Open Air, competing against Ninja in the Twitch Rivals Summer Skirmish, competing and celebrating the opening of Full Sail's esports arena, creating Shroud's theme song, being Streamlab's top streamer merch seller of all time, being in the top 100 most subscribed to channels on Twitch, leading the charge as the pioneer of music streaming on Twitch (also partnering with Twitch to make the official how-to guides on streaming music on Twitch's help page), and co-founding the Metal & Honey Foundation, which supports the Orlando Health Arnold Palmer Hospital for children. 100% of the proceeds directly benefit the music therapy program.

Heafy also recently appeared on "The Drew Barrymore Show", where he surprised a fan and gifted him with a guitar.

TRIVIUM's ninth full-length album, "What The Dead Men Say", is available now via Roadrunner Records.

Electric Boys have released a new single and music video, "Super God", featured on the upcoming Ups!de Down album. Watch the video below.

The Electric Boys are much loved for their idiosyncratic combination of hard rock and other forms of music such as funk beginning with their first album, Funk-O-Metal Carpet Ride, in 1989. On April 30, the band will release worldwide their seventh album, Ups!de Down, which continues and advances this fusion of music styles to make something of their very, very own.

Recorded at Ghost Ward studios like their successful previous album, The Ghost Ward Diaries, and co-produced with David Castillo the album showcases the songwriting and performing talents of founder members Conny Bloom on guitar and vocals and Andy Christell on bass, while also introducing "Slim" Martin Thomander on guitar. Jolle Atlagic plays all the drums on the album, as the band’s original drummer Niclas Sigevall - still very much part of the band - could not leave LA due to the pandemic.

The album reflects the turbulent times of this year and spontaneously and organically formed into a concept album tackling adversity and fear mongering and championing the human fighting spirit and ability to transcend even the most difficult situations to find hope and victory over life’s circumstances. As such, the album taps into the collective consciousness of 2020, being contemporary while also drawing on a wide variety of influences such as Jimi Hendrix, Deep Purple, Bowie, '50s Rock and Roll, late Beatles and even the Sisters of Mercy. Probably less funky than some of the band’s earlier material it is no less eclectic and provides a potent cocktail reflecting the history of rock and roll and the light and darkness of existence.

Conny Bloom: “You can see the light at the end of the tunnel rather than simply the runaway train in songs like 'This Is Not The End'. When things are this big and seem out of control you can reverse it and gain control by letting it go.”

The freethinking and rebellious spirit of the band is alive and well in this latest album and the belief in the power of the message of music and its ability to change the world.

People commonly mention to the band that Electric Boys songs have changed their lives, inspiring them to take up instruments and how much the band’s songs have meant to their fans. Known for his fine guitar work and languidly cool persona Conny Bloom is also recognized for his work with Hanoi Rocks and Ginger in the Wildhearts. Andy Christell also joined Hanoi Rocks with Conny and with his distinctive top knot is the epitome of steady, bellbottom-fluttering rock bass.

The band has a tour planned in Sweden and is hoping to widen and include more dates worldwide as circumstances permit.

Ups!de Down will be released in digital, LP (four different formats) and CD formats by Mighty Music on April 30. Pre-order here.

Tracklist:

"Upside Down Theme"
"Super God"
"Tumblin' Dominoes"
"Never Again Your Slave"
"She Never Turns Around"
"Globestrutter"
"The Dudes & The Dancers"
"Twang 'Em & Kerrang 'Em"
"It's Not The End"
"Interstellafella"

"Super God" video:

(Photo - Sven Isaksson)

Whitesnake celebrates the blues sound that helped inspire its multi-platinum career on a new collection that features remixed and remastered versions of the group’s best blues-rock songs. The Blues Album is the third and final release in the band’s Red, White and Blues Trilogy, a series of compilations organized by musical themes that began this year with Love Songs (red) and The Rock Album (white).

The Blues Album is available for pre-order now, and will be available on February 19 digitally and on CD and as a double-LP set pressed on 180-gram, blue vinyl. Like The Rock Album and Love Songs, all the tracks on The Blues Album have been revisited, remixed, and remastered.

A video for the 2021 remix of "Lay Down Your Love" can be seen below:

Whitesnake’s singer-songwriter David Coverdale says, the music reflects how blues artists like Muddy Waters, Howlin’ Wolf, and the three Kings (Albert, B.B. and Freddie) continue to inspire him. In the album’s liner notes, he writes: “It’s hard to find the words to show how profoundly they connected with my soul. But ‘blues’ to me is a beautiful word that describes emotional expression… feelings, be it feelings of sadness, loneliness, emptiness… but, also those that express great joy, celebration and dance, sexiness and Love!!!”

The new compilation delivers a potent mix of hits and deep tracks that originally appeared between 1984 and 2011 on six Whitesnake studio albums and Coverdale’s solo album, Into The Light.

The Blues Album showcases two of the band’s biggest songs: “Slow An’ Easy,” a Top 20 Mainstream Rock hit in 1984 from Whitesnake’s double-platinum album Slide It In, and a brand new guitar based remix of the smash hit “Give Me All Your Love” from the band’s 1987 self-titled album, which was certified multi multi platinum. Other choice tracks from Whitesnake are also featured: “Looking For Love” and “Crying In The Rain,” and “Steal Your Heart Away” (video below).

Restless Heart (1997), Good to Be Bad (2008), and Forevermore (2011) are all represented on The Blues Album by multiple tracks (“Too Many Tears,” “A Fool In Love” and “Steal Your Heart Away”). The collection also includes “If You Want Me,” a studio recording released in 2006 as a bonus track on the live album, Live… In The Shadows Of The Blues. Coverdale also taps his 2000 solo album, Into the Light, for “River Song.”

Pre-order here

CD tracklisting:

“Steal Your Heart Away”
“Good To Be Bad”
“Give Me All Your Love”
“Take Me Back Again”
“Slow An’ Easy”
“Too Many Tears”
“Lay Down Your Love”
“The River Song”
“Whipping Boy Blues”
“If You Want Me”
“A Fool In Love”
“Woman Trouble Blues”
“Looking For Love”
“Crying In The Rain”

LP tracklisting:

Side One
“Steal Your Heart Away”
“Good To Be Bad”
“Give Me All Your Love”
“Take Me Back Again”

Side Two
“Slow An’ Easy”
“Too Many Tears”
“Lay Down Your Love”

Side Three
“The River Song”
“Whipping Boy Blues”
“If You Want Me”
“A Fool In Love”

Side Four
“Woman Trouble Blues”
“Looking For Love”
“Crying In The Rain”

"Slow An' Easy" video:

"Steal Your Heart Away" video:

FOO FIGHTERS have released a music video for their song "No Son Of Mine". The clip, which features audio from a live performance of the track, can be seen below.

"No Son Of Mine" is taken from FOO FIGHTERS' tenth studio album, "Medicine At Midnight", which came out on Friday (February 5) via Roswell Records/RCA Records.

"No Son Of Mine" ignites the second half of "Medicine At Midnight" with a lightning strike of a riff that builds into the album’s most full-on barnstormer. Replete with nods to familiar FF influences from QUEEN's "Stone Cold Crazy" to "Ace Of Spades"/"Iron Fist"-era MOTÖRHEAD to METALLICA's "Kill 'Em All", "No Son Of Mine" features a streamlined, minimalist chassis of searing Dave Grohl, Pat Smear and Chris Shiflett licks atop a steel-trap-tight Taylor Hawkins/Nate Mendel rhythmic frame.

"This is the kind of song that just resides in all of us and if it makes sense at the time, we let it out," Grohl explained, adding, "Lyrically, it's meant to poke at the hypocrisy of self righteous leaders, people that are guilty of committing the crimes they’re supposedly against…"

"Medicine At Midnight" is a nine-song, 37-minute effort which was produced by the FOO FIGHTERS and Greg Kurstin.

The first single from the disc, "Shame Shame", was released in November. An accompanying music video for the song was directed by Paola Kudacki and co-stars Grohl and Sofia Boutella. "Shame Shame" renders in stunning black and white an interpretation of a recurring dream that's haunted Grohl since his childhood days.

Grohl told SiriusXM's Alt Nation about the "Medicine At Midnight" musical approach: "It's our tenth album, and it's our 25th anniversary. We're. like, okay, let's look back at all the stuff that we've done before. We've made that loud sort of noisy punk rock fast stuff. We've made the sleepy acoustic kind of gentle acoustic record stuff. We've done the three- or four-minute-long bubblegum rock and roll, pop, single thing before. And it was, like, well, what haven't we done? And we had never really made a groove-oriented sort of party record.

"It's hard to put the words 'dance' or 'funk' or 'disco' in the same sentence as the FOO FIGHTERS; it scares the shit out of me," Dave admitted. "But all of us grew up loving rock and roll records that you could like bounce around to, like THE CARS. Like, oh my God, we love THE CARS. Or David Bowie's 'Let's Dance'. Or POWER STATION. Or THE [ROLLING] STONES' 'Tattoo You' — things like that. We're, like, 'All right. We've never really explored that territory before. Let's do it.

"We're lucky in that everybody in the band has diverse influences and everybody loves different kinds of music, but I honestly think we're capable of doing almost anything," he said. "So if we put our minds to it, we can kind of chameleon and turn into a death metal band, or we could be like THE CARPENTERS. So we just have to come together and make the decision, like, 'All right, which way do we wanna go? Which way are we gonna turn the wheel?' And this time we did it to make this party record."

Photo credit: Danny Clinch

Drum-cam video of MACHINE HEAD drummer Chris Kontos performing the song "Death Church" with his bandmates on February 5, 2020 at Théâtre Corona in Montreal, Quebec, Canada can be seen below.

The North American leg of MACHINE HEAD's 25th-anniversary tour for the band's debut album, "Burn My Eyes", kicked off in Phoenix on January 16, 2020 and wrapped up on February 22, 2020 at the House Of Blues in Anaheim, California. Each show on the trek consisted of two parts: part one saw frontman Robb Flynn and bassist Jared MacEachern performing alongside new recruits, Polish guitarist Wacław "Vogg" Kiełtyka (DECAPITATED) and British drummer Matt Alston (DEVILMENT, EASTERN FRONT); while part two features "Burn My Eyes" played in its entirety for the first time ever, with original drummer Kontos and guitarist Logan Mader joining in.

Asked what it has been like getting Logan and Chris back on board, Robb told Kerrang! magazine: "Logan and I have stayed in touch. We kinda squashed everything and became friends again as far back as 2004. He comes out to all the shows. We played 'Davidian' together at the 'Roadrunner United' concert in New York. Chris and I haven't spoken in a long time for no reason other than that when I'm off the road, I'm just this boring suburban dad. He kinda quit music for a little while to do some BMX racing. He was in a whole other world. As it happened, Logan reached out to me about [the anniversary tour] and I thought it was a killer idea. Then I think my manager reached out to Chris and he was game, too. We just went out for dinner for two hours and just laughed and caught up. [Chris] just has such a huge personality: he's this loud, funny dude. It was a really good vibe, so we decided to just go for it."

Kontos left MACHINE HEAD before the release of the band's second album, 1997's "The More Things Change", and was replaced by Dave McClain.

Mader contributed to two MACHINE HEAD albums, the aforementioned "Burn My Eyes" and "The More Things Change", before exiting the group and being replaced by Ahrue Luster and, later on, Phil Demmel.

Demmel and McClain left MACHINE HEAD in the fall of 2018.

MACHINE HEAD released a new single, "My Hands Are Empty", in November via Nuclear Blast Records. The track is the latest in a line of singles to be made available by MACHINE HEAD, which issued "Do Or Die" in October 2019, "Circle The Drain" in February 2020, and the two-song "Civil Unrest", consisting of "Stop The Bleeding" and "Bulletproof", in June 2020. "Stop The Bleeding" featured guest vocals from KILLSWITCH ENGAGE frontman Jesse Leach, and was written and recorded just days after the murders of George Floyd and Ahmaud Arbery.

Former PANTERA bassist Rex Brown has told Antihero in a new interview that he just got out of the studio with a good friend of his whom he described as "one of the best guitar players in the business that you would know." Asked if the recordings are going to be used for another Rex Brown solo album or if it is more of a band project, Rex said: "[It's] more for another kind of deal. And I don't want to really talk about it… But the tracks are fucking badass."

After Rex asked the interviewer Mark Dean where he lives, Dean responded "just outside Manchester in the U.K.," to which Brown said: "Then you would know this guy very, very well. He moved to Nashville and became a very, very good friend of mine. And we just cut six just blazing fucking tracks. Un-goddam-real."

Although Brown didn't name his new collaborator, he has been friendly on social media in recent months with JUDAS PRIEST's British-born guitarist Richie Faulkner, who moved to Nashville in 2019.

Rex, who is currently promoting the 20th-anniversary reissue of PANTERA's final opus, "Reinventing The Steel", has completed work on a "a really introspective" follow-up to his debut solo album, "Smoke On This…", which was released in July 2017 via Entertainment One (eOne). The effort marked the first time in Brown's career where he served as both lead vocalist and guitarist in a band.

In a 2019 interview with Loudwire, Rex stated about his upcoming second solo album: "I went through a totally different songwriting process on this one and yes, it's very introspective, but at the same time it's kind of dark… It's a darker record for me, but it's one of those things where you've just got to let it out when it comes out… I'd say it's still bluesy, but the songs are more well rounded. We just wanted to get my feet wet the first time. But this one's got its rockers on there and some doomy kind of [PINK] FLOYD stuff on it — that kind of vibe. I wanted to use the studio kind of more as a palette for what I was doing rather than the other way around… It's a trippy record."




It’s not fun after awhile brother Rich..I’ve stopped looking at FB altogether for years. “Ppl are strange, when you’re a stranger”..

It’s all good man. We get on with more important things in life!!

— REX BROWN (@REJASFROMTEJAS) July 1, 2020








Love the BowTie Blackness!!

— REX BROWN (@REJASFROMTEJAS) January 6, 2020








Good, good!! I’m glad you dig em..Vertex makes some really transparent Dumble-esque drives!! Talk soon..

— REX BROWN (@REJASFROMTEJAS) December 9, 2019

MEGADETH drummer Dirk Verbeuren has released a new song from his long-running BENT SEA project.

"The Instant Grind", a collaboration with Leon Del Muerte (IMPALED, MURDER CONSTRUCT) on vocals and lead guitar, is the sixth in a series of songs Dirk has dubbed "Instagrind".

Nine months ago, Verbeuren released the first "Instagrind" song from BENT SEA, "Grind To A Halt", a collaboration with MIDNIGHT mastermind Athenar on vocals. It was followed by "Sycophant Legions", a collaboration with FEASTEM's Petri Eskelinen on vocals and Jesper Liveröd (NASUM) on bass; "Nothing Blasts Forever", a collaboration with DRUGS OF FAITH's Richard Johnson on vocals; "Quietus", a collaboration with Tomas Lindberg (AT THE GATES) on vocals and Liveröd on bass; and "Anger Mgmt", a collaboration with Keijo Niinimaa (ROTTEN SOUND) on vocals and Liveröd on bass.

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 46-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."

Sebastian Bach has finished demoing 14 new tracks for his next studio album.

On Friday (February 5), the former SKID ROW singer took to his social media to share several photos of a CD-R containing his latest demos, and he included the following message: "14 Brand New Songs to make [an album] from! Thanks @john5guitarist @orianthi @TheRealDevinB @Stevestevens @bjarzombek @brentwoodsmusic @AlienSatan @sanesi @kevinchown & all who helped me out! If u like Skid Slave sUBHUMAN AngelDown Kicking GiveEmHell u will dig this2".

Among the musicians who have assisted Bach during the writing and recording process for his new music are Orianthi (ALICE COOPER, Michael Jackson), John 5 (ROB ZOMBIE, MARILYN MANSON), Steve Stevens (Billy Idol), Devin Bronson, Brent Woods, Eli Santana and Jeremy Colson.

Last month, Sebastian told The Aquarian Weekly that he was working on a new album but he declined to name the record company that will be putting it out. "Yes, I have a new American label and I have been working somewhat on the album during this damned quarantine," he said. "But there is only so much I can do in my house. I have been sending files back and forth [to my bandmates], but it is not as exciting as being together in the same room. Maybe Taylor Swift lives with her whole band. I don’t know how that works."

He added: "My new album is going to be heavy. In many ways it is my follow-up to [2007's] 'Angel Down'. I am trying to make the best record I have ever made. There will be a lot of heavy [music] coming your way."

Back in 2018, Bach told Meltdown of Detroit's WRIF 101.1 FM radio station that he was going to ink a deal with a U.S.-based heavy metal record label that would help him make a "career-defining" new solo album.

Bach hasn't released a full-length disc since "Give 'Em Hell", which came out in 2014. Like its predecessor, 2011's "Kicking & Screaming", the disc was released through Frontiers Music Srl, the Italian label which specializes in what's commonly called AOR, a term that once signified a popular radio format ("album-oriented rock") but nowadays applies to acts whose airplay is marginal.

Although Bach had said in some of his interviews a few years ago that his next record would be less musically aggressive and it would be "more uplifting and fun," he told WRIF that he has since had a change of heart.

"Well, before [the new record deal] happened, I was thinking of doing more of an acoustic-based record because I've done a lot of solo records," he said. "I've done 'Angel Down', which I'm very proud of that album,. Then 'Kicking & Screaming', which is a great album. 'Give 'Em Hell'… Not to mention 'ABachalypse Now', which is a three-record set. 'Forever Wild' DVD, 'Bring 'Em Bach Alive!'… I've put out a lot of records. And putting out the last one, when I put so much time and effort into it and it doesn't get the attention that it deserves, for me as an artist, I'm, like, 'Fuck!' So I was, like, you know what? If I'm gonna put out another heavy metal, hard rock album, I need help. I need a company around me that's gonna put the same kind of attention and time and effort into it as I am. So now that looks like it's happening. So now I'm changing the way I'm looking at things."




*NEW MUSIC UPDATE* 14 Brand New Songs to make ? from! Thanks @john5guitarist @orianthi @TheRealDevinB @Stevestevens @bjarzombek @brentwoodsmusic @AlienSatan @sanesi @kevinchown & all who helped me out! If u like Skid Slave sUBHUMAN AngelDown Kicking GiveEmHell u will dig this2? pic.twitter.com/JhVNZRXYUS

— Sebastian Bach (@sebastianbach) February 5, 2021

Cleopatra Entertainment has acquired North American rights to "Baphomet", a horror film from writer-director Matthan Harris.

"Baphomet" tells the tale of an American family (the Richardsons) celebrating their daughter's pregnancy, but things begin to go awry when Satanic cult leader Henrik Brandr unexpectedly visits their ranch. Henrik offers to pay the family a large sum for ownership of their land, claiming it is sacred to his congregation. Jacob Richardson, the father, rejects the offer due to the sentimental value of his ranch. Henrik, displeased, begins to put curses on the Richardsons, trying to force them off of their own land — even if it means murdering them. After suffering unexplainable tragedies created by the curses, the Richardsons seek help from Marybeth, a white witch high priestess. They soon discover a terrible secret about their house, revealing why their land is so sacred to the cult. They realize that they must protect their house from the cult at all costs, and a violent battle between good and evil ensues.

The film stars Colin Ward ("Mank", "Criminal Minds"), Giovanni Lombardo Radice ("The Omen", "City Of The Living Dead", "Cannibal Ferox"), Nick Principe ("Laid To Rest", "Chromeskull"), Harris ("German Angst", "For We Are Many") and CRADLE OF FILTH frontman Dani Filth as Lon Carlson, an occultist and expert on witchcraft.

Says Harris: "'Baphomet' is a hellish rollercoaster of demonic and supernatural terror. I started pre-production for it back in 2013 and it has been my labor of undying love ever since. I've poured everything I could into this monster of a movie, and I'm so pleased that we can unleash this horrifying beast upon the world this year!"

Adds Filth: "I really liked the idea of it. The script was good. It seemed genuinely interesting, esoteric. The premise is great, and I quite liked the idea of the character I was playing... haggard and highly intelligent. It's kind of apt, you know. I wouldn't say it's tongue-in-cheek, I wouldn't even say it's role reversal, but it's similar in the way that Ozzy [Osbourne] played a priest in 'Trick Or Treat'. It's playing with the genre, mixing it up a little bit, and I think it's cool, yeah. I think that I'm cut out for the role of an occult investigator, occult philosopher, etcetera. I could see myself actually doing that role in real life."

The rights deal was brokered by Cleopatra founder and CEO Brian Perera, VP/GM of Cleopatra Entertainment Tim Yasui and by John Lepper from the Cyfuno Ventures sales agency on behalf of the filmmakers.

"Baphomet" will be released domestically on June 8 on VOD platforms and also as a home entertainment DVD and Blu-ray package.

In a new interview with U.K.'s TotalRock Radio, MEGADETH bassist David Ellefson spoke about the band's plans for the coming months. He said (see video below): "We're working on album number sixteen, and just finishing it up now. We've got a big year of touring lined up — festivals in Europe; the big 'The Metal Tour Of The Year' [with LAMB OF GOD] is rescheduled for July and August this year; Rock In Rio in Brazil in September. And it's all confirmed, but it depends on what — COVID has a say in this matter, unfortunately. So there's this undecided third factor spinning over there with the pandemic that we're just all doing the best we can to play around that. And the same with the MEGADETH release schedule, being able to put things out. We're gonna wanna be able to get on the road and promote it. It doesn't make sense to drop a brand new record in the middle of a pandemic and not be able to support that. And so if that means we have to push things back a little bit so that it can be the most effective to tour it and support it, then I'm sure those are decisions that are being made… Quite honestly, those are decisions that get updated pretty much weekly inside the MEGADETH camp."

Last month, Ellefson told the "Rock 'N' Roll Icons With Bode James" podcast the recently announced working title for MEGADETH's upcoming album, "The Sick, The Dying And The Dead", will likely end up getting changed before the LP is released. "Like Dave [Mustaine, MEGADETH leader] said when he announced it, he goes, 'We usually end up changing the title four or five times before it [is released],'" he said. "We had a saying back in the old days: 'Nothing's final until it's on vinyl.' So everything can change. Probably short of the name of the band, everything can change. It's all just a work in progress, and I think that's the beauty of the creative world. People wanna know answers, like, 'What does it sound like? Does it sound like this album? Does it sound like that album?' And it's, like, 'Hey, man, I can't really tell you.' It's a work in progress until it's done. And then once it's done, you'll hear it, and then we'll all have a little talk about it."

Ellefson also addressed Mustaine's claim that the upcoming MEGADETH album will be "up there with 'Countdown [To Extinction]', 'Rust In Peace' and probably 'Peace Sells' and 'Dystopia'." "I would very much agree," Ellefson said. "Look, MEGADETH has done a lot of stuff over the years. Some fans go, 'Oh, dude, make it thrash, thrash.' And we do — 'Dystopia' proved that. But you can't just be a one-trick pony. We've never been a one-trick pony. Even on the earlier records — 'Killing Is My Business' started with a piano. 'Peace Sells' had a song on it called 'Good Mourning', which went into 'Black Friday'; it was basically kind of an acoustic guitar bit. We've done a lot of different stuff over the years. So with MEGADETH, you get a lot of diversity. And the musicians that are in the group, I think we challenge each other; we raise the bar for each other. And it inspires us to keep creating next-level stuff. So I think that's kind of the beauty of what you get with MEGADETH — is you get a lot. You get a pretty big bang for your buck, I think."

The early sessions for the LP took place in 2019 with co-producer Chris Rakestraw, who previously worked on "Dystopia".

"Dystopia", whose title track was honored in the "Best Metal Performance" category at the 2017 Grammy Awards, marked Brazilian guitarist Kiko Loureiro's recording debut with MEGADETH.

MEGADETH's current lineup is rounded out by 46-year-old Belgian-born-and-now-Los-Angeles-based drummer Dirk Verbeuren, who had played with SOILWORK for more than a decade before joining MEGADETH.

Marilyn Manson's longtime manager has dropped the singer as a client, according to Rolling Stone.

Tony Ciulla, who managed Manson for the past 25 years, stopped working with him this week, just days after several women came forward accusing the rocker of abuse and assault.

Ciulla's decision to quit representing Manson was apparently prompted in part by "Westworld" actress Evan Rachel Wood naming Manson as the previously anonymous abuser she referenced while testifying before the California Senate in relation to the state's Phoenix Act, which extends the statute of limitations on domestic violence from three years to five.

On Monday, Wood claimed in a social media post that Manson "groomed" and "horrifically" abused her for years. After she shared her accusations, at least four other women posted their own allegations against the singer. The women claimed to have endured "sexual assault, psychological abuse, and/or various forms of coercion, violence, and intimidation" at the hands of Manson.

The 52-year-old Manson, whose real name is Brian Warner, later released a statement denying the abuse allegations leveled against him, writing on Instagram: "Obviously, my art and my life have long been magnets for controversy, but these recent claims about me are horrible distortions of reality. My intimate relationships have always been entirely consensual with like-minded partners. Regardless of how — and why — others are now choosing to misrepresent the past, that is the truth."

In the days since Wood came forward with her allegations, Manson has also been dropped by his label, Loma Vista Recordings, as well as the talent agency CAA, which provides representation for individuals across various mediums. Future scenes of "American Gods" and "Creepshow" featuring Manson have also been pulled.

"In light of [the] disturbing allegations by Evan Rachel Wood and other women naming Marilyn Manson as their abuser, Loma Vista will cease to further promote his current album, effective immediately," the label said in a statement. "Due to these concerning developments, we have also decided not to work with Marilyn Manson on any future projects."

"American Gods" network Starz told Deadline: "Due to the allegations made against Marilyn Manson, we have decided to remove his performance from the remaining episode he is in, scheduled to air later this season. Starz stands unequivocally with all victims and survivors of abu

Tune in tonight to SiriusXM's Foo Fighters Radio to celebrate the release of FOO FIGHTERS' tenth studio album, "Medicine At Midnight".

Watch (on the SiriusXM app) and listen as FOO FIGHTERS perform live from the SiriusXM Garage in Los Angeles tonight at 5 p.m. ET on Foo Fighters Radio (Ch. 105 on SiriusXM).

A preview of the performance, including FOO FIGHTERS' first public airing of the song "Cloudspotter" off the new album, as well as a Tom Petty cover and an oldie but goodie, is available below.

Foo Fighters Radio is a limited-engagement channel handcrafted by the the 12-time Grammy-winning rock band. The channel features a new, exclusive live concert performance, as well as unrivaled programming and special commentary from Dave Grohl, Taylor Hawkins, Nate Mendel, Chris Shiflett, Pat Smear and Rami Jaffee.

"From their inception in mid-'90s to their recent performance at the 2021 presidential inauguration celebration, FOO FIGHTERS remain one of America's biggest rock bands," SiriusXM's Scott Greenstein said. "They have achieved critical acclaim for their music and onstage energy, all while building a large and loyal audience. This special extended channel will draw new listeners, and as part of it we are very proud to present a FOO FIGHTERS concert from our L.A. studios next week. They are a rock band that grabs you and won't let go, and we love to bring their music and passion to our listeners."

Foo Fighters Radio features the band sharing insight into their new album and the stories behind some of their biggest songs, demos, b-sides, and rarities throughout their more than two-decade career. The channel features exclusive encores of Dave Grohl Presents Sound City, nine radio shows that feature Grohl discussing the music recorded at the iconic Sound City Studios in Los Angeles, including NIRVANA's "Nevermind", which served as Grohl's introduction to the iconic studio in 1991 when he was NIRVANA's drummer.

Foo Fighters Radio features a weekly series of live concerts from the band's vaults, beginning with their 2018 performance from the "Concrete And Gold" tour at Etihad Stadium in Manchester, England. Other artists and celebrities are also showcased on the channel as they guest DJ, spinning their favorite FOO FIGHTERS music. Listeners can also expect to hear music from other artists, handpicked by the band, on the channel.

Photo by Andrew Stuart

FIRSTBORNE, the band featuring Grammy Award-winning artist Chris Adler and fellow MEGADETH alum James LoMenzo, has just released "Soul Control" as a Bandcamp exclusive track for Bandcamp Friday. This is the first song that FIRSTBORNE worked on as a complete band and traces the roots of its music back to the earliest stages of Chris assembling the group.

"Soul Control" was mastered by Arthur Rizk (POWER TRIP, IRON AGE) and can be streamed below.

FIRSTBORNE singer Girish Pradhan stated about the track: "Chris and I were in the green room after finishing our gig in Bangalore a few years back. He was, like, 'Hey I got some friends making music together. Myrone, James LoMenzo. You wanna try out the vocals?', passed his phone to me and played a demo track. Of course, the thing totally felt like some dream and I was super excited. After a few days, I started sharing vocal demos, mostly gibberish and the first line actually sounded like, 'When everything goes south, I feel alive'. We kept discussing and building on that until eventually we had the track that became 'Soul Control'. Both Chris and Myrone were super encouraging and helpful in the process. We kinda defined how we were gonna work from there on.

"To me, the song is about inner strength and will power. It's about facing the challenges and in life and rising up against the odds."

"Soul Control" is the fourth song to be released following the arrival of FIRSTBORNE's self-titled debut EP, which came out last year and marked the acclaimed drummer's first dedicated band release since his departure from MEGADETH and LAMB OF GOD.

FIRSTBORNE features Pradhan on vocals and guitar, Myrone on guitar, LoMenzo on bass, and Adler on drums.

The FIRSTBORNE self-titled EP included five songs and two lyric videos. The EP represented several years of dedicated introspection and refined effort to the idea of a heavy and positive message.

As might be expected, Adler chose his bandmates in this endeavor meticulously.

Not too long ago, Adler shared the stage across the Middle East with LoMenzo in HAIL! Prior to that, LoMenzo and Adler orbited each other for years traveling together on tours crossing the globe. The connect was inevitable.

Adler and Myrone began collaborating in early 2019 after Myrone noticed Adler's e-mail address attached to a Bandcamp sales notification email. Adler had been a fan of Myrone's talent for years prior and as soon as they connected, it was game on.

A chance meeting in India, almost a second home to Chris after eight visits, was the spark needed to form the international group FIRSTBORNE and for Chris to return to the studio. Adler met and shared the stage with Pradhan during a six-week clinic tour of India in the fall of 2019. After the first show of the clinic tour, Adler immediately called Myrone, noting he'd "struck gold" in their search for a singer for the then-unnamed project.

Girish Pradhan is the glue that united FIRSTBORNE. Pradhan on vocals represents an almost unprecedented international collaboration.

Pradhan is an established and well-known recording and touring artist in India and resides in Bengaluru. His band GIRISH AND THE CHRONICLES made international headlines earlier this year with their new album "Rock The Highway" and music videos "Rock 'N Roll Is Here to Stay", "Identity Crisis" and "Rock The Highway".

Speaking on his experience creating with FIRSTBORNE, Myrone explains: "Every single part of this experience has been extremely surreal for me. Girish is one of the best metal vocalists on the planet, Chris is one of the most influential drummers of the last 25 years, and JLO can play anything from MEGADETH to John Fogerty to Motown and everything in between. I can't believe I get to share space on a .wav with them."

Myrone is a Los Angeles-based producer/guitarist who pioneered the "soft shred" genre. In the last six years, he has released seven albums and two EPs of instrumental guitar music and racked up millions of Spotify streams. In addition to his own recordings, he has collaborated with Rivers Cuomo (WEEZER), SZA, Little Boots, Michael Christmas and Deaton Chris Anthony. Most recently, Myrone was Guitar #1 in the L.A. production of "Rock Of Ages", the 29th-longest running show in Broadway history.

LoMenzo is a veteran touring/recording musician since his multi-platinum band WHITE LION in the 1980s. Lomenzo is one of the most in-demand rock bass players in the world. His list of credits includes WHITE LION, Zakk Wylde's BLACK LABEL SOCIETY/PRIDE & GLORY, MEGADETH, Jerry Cantrell, David Lee Roth, SLASH'S SNAKEPIT, LYNCH MOB, FREHEY'S COMET and more. Recently he's been the touring/recording bassist for the legendary John Fogerty and can be seen in the live concert film "John Fogerty : My Fifty Year Trip" recorded live at Red Rocks.

LoMenzo had this to say about his collaboration within his new band, FIRSTBORNE: "I first met Chris in 2006 on MEGADETH's 'Gigantour'. I was playing bass with MEGADETH at the time. Watching Chris on that tour, I recall being struck by the creativity, speed and power of his drumming with LAMB OF GOD. In contrast, I found him to be a gentle, thoughtful soul. Years later, I had the opportunity to finally play with Chris, performing in the Middle East with the all-star metal band HAIL! We had a great time. At this time, Chris mentioned he was looking forward to exploring making all kinds of music. I suggested he keep me in mind. Next thing I know I'm being introduced to Myrone through a demo that Chris forwarded to me. I was immediately drawn to the music. Myrone's guitar is uniquely untethered to any one style. He's a brilliant and capable amalgam of classic rock, new and classic metal. Girish on top of all this had me stunned! A soaring, powerful voice that while uniquely his own, conjures images of the greatest singers of metal, blues and classic rock. His voice is a powerful, emotive vehicle to inform through his heartfelt and socially conscious lyrics. To my ear, the combination of all this musical talent is wonderfully unique and perfectly familiar. I'm very proud and excited for music fans to hear this new musical collaboration."

Adler added: "I've been incredibly fortunate in my creative endeavors. From the start, I sought out the best players I could find to work alongside. It's been an incredible journey that is clearly not over. Some things have changed. This may not be exactly what people expect from me right now, and I'm aware and embrace that. It's time for something new. I'm have a platform to present something important, true and collaborative. Creating FIRSTBORNE beckons cohesiveness as a mission statement. This is not about being mad all the time, egos or fabricating polarizing drama. 'This is right' is now my alarm clock. Girish, Myrone and James have the exact locker room mentality of 'kill 'em all! but let's make sure everyone is okay and having a kick-ass time' that I try and bring to everything I do. FIRSTBONE is the result of all of my experiences, both positive and negative, and I'm proud of what we are doing together."

Adler is a Grammy-winning American metal drummer from Richmond, Virginia. Chris founded LAMB OF GOD in 1994 and helped usher in what critics have dubbed the "New Wave Of American Heavy Metal." LAMB OF GOD's discography with Chris includes multiple gold records and platinum DVDs as well as five Grammy nominations.

Chris received a Grammy for playing drums on legendary thrash metal band MEGADETH's 2016 record "Dystopia". Chris also toured with MEGADETH in support of the record while juggling and occasionally combining tour dates with LAMB OF GOD.

Chris has collaborated and contributed to records with PROTEST THE HERO, TESTAMENT, THAIKKUDAM BRIDGE, Michael Angelo Batio and Ron Jarzombek.

In 2018, Chris created an artist management firm Kintsugi Management.

FIRSTBORNE is:

Vocals: Girish Pradhan

Guitar: Myrone

Bass: James LoMenzo

Drums: Chris Adler

Soul Control (Bandcamp Exclusive) by Firstborne

BATTLE BEAST singer Noora Louhimo will release her debut solo album, "Eternal Wheel Of Time And Space", under the NOORA LOUHIMO EXPERIENCE banner on March 5. The official music video for the LP's first single, the "Eternal Wheel Of Time And Space" title track, can be seen below.

"Eternal Wheel Of Time And Space" was produced by Samuli Erkkilä, who also plays guitar in NOORA LOUHIMO EXPERIENCE. Some of the songwriting sessions for the album took place at JaBa Recording Studios in Hankasalmi, Finland.

Louhimo previously described the musical direction of her solo material to Kaaos TV as "soulful blues rock with country influences." She went on to say that it's important for her to pursue a different musical direction with her solo LP compared to that of BATTLE BEAST. "I really feel like, because I have different sides as a musician, and my roots, as a musician, is in blues music and in soul music, so I really want to show that side also to the audience — that I'm not just about heavy metal, but I want to show the people where I come from," she said. "And also I really don't want to compete with my own band [laughs], because I think it's really good that people can see different sides of me as a musician and as a person. And in the album, all the lyrics will be about my personal life, so I'm gonna show people myself in a whole new level."

The "Eternal Wheel Of Time And Space" video arrives nine years after the release of Noora's first solo single, "Relax".

"That first single, it wasn't even written by me, but it was custom made for me," she told Reality Check TV in a 2019 interview. "It was a prize of this singing competition [laughs] that I was contributing."

In 2012, Louhimo joined BATTLE BEAST with no previous experience as a metal vocalist but quickly acclimated herself as the replacement for Nitte Valo.

Four years ago, Noora told CrypticRock.com about her early musical influences: "Actually, I started listening to heavy metal and rock since I was a little girl. My father used to play LED ZEPPELIN, AC/DC and all the best. When I was around 15 or 16 years old, I started listening to DIO and such. That was the first time I heard IRON MAIDEN, which is my favorite to this day. Actually, I didn't think when I was 15 or 16 that I would ever be a heavy metal singer."

She continued: "Even though I was singing back then, I already knew at four years old I wanted to be some sort of performer. When I was a teenager, I was a more pop and bluesy kind of singer. The blues and rock came in my life when I was around 19 years old. I began studying more pop jazz music and I found my first band, which was called ADMIRAL OCTOPUS. We were playing Janis Joplin, Eric Clapton, and that kind of '60s-'70s kind of hippie rock. I fell in love with blues back then and started to find my raspy sound through Janis's music.

"After that band broke up, I started pushing myself forward as a solo artist. I was chumming around in different places and, in 2012, BATTLE BEAST found me through YouTube. They found a clip of me singing Janis Joplin — surprise, surprise — and because of that clip, I am now in the band. I think Janis Joplin might be some sort of guardian angel for me."

Today finally sees the release of Korpiklaani's new album, Jylhä In celebration of the release of their 11th full-length the band have produced another video, this time for the song "Tuuleton". Check it out below.

Here's what frontman Jonne has to say about Jylhä:

"This is the most versatile Korpiklaani album we have done. We have some of our hardest, heaviest & fastest songs ever and we have the happy & melancholic ones. It is funny how you can do so many different kinds of music, but when these guys play it with these instruments it always sounds like Korpiklaani."

Korpiklaani is unique. Their blend of Finnish folk music and heavy metal is like no other. Like traditional folk music that tells tales of joy, heartbreak, and stories of old, Korpiklaani brings new life to these tales adding the high energy of rock ‘n roll and heavy metal. What you hear on the record is what you hear live; authentic, honest, and a lot of fun. Korpiklaani is a natural representation of our journey in this life, bringing music and emotions that can have you dancing all night, to quiet moments of melancholy.

Jylhä continues this journey with a collection of tales of folklore, nature, celebration, and three stories of murder, including the infamous Lake Bodom murders.

Singer Jonne states: "Jylhä is not just a battering heavy metal record, it's also our most volatile full-length album to date. For example, some of the new songs feature energetic punk rock influences and there are even some audible laid-back reggae-rhythms, like our first single, 'Leväluhta'."

The band have announced a Live Q&A chat for their fans. It will tale place today (Friday, February 5th) at 5 PM, CET / 4 PM, GMT / 11 AM, EST. Head over to www.korpiklaani.live to participate.

Frontman Jonne Järvelä is looking forward to talking to his fans: "While we are all disappointed with the delay of the vinyl, we also had to reschedule our album release show til September. However, we thought we could still do a Q&A after our rehearsal on Friday, drink a few beers and chat with you! Peace, Love, Folk & Metal."

Jylhä tracklisting:

"Verikoira"
"Niemi"
"Leväluhta"
"Mylly"
"Tuuleton"
"Sanaton Maa"
"Kiuru"
"Miero"
"Pohja"
"Huolettomat"
"Anolan Aukeat"
"Pidot"
"Juuret"

"Niemi" video:

"Mylly" video:

"Leväluhta" video:

King Crimson founder Robert Fripp and his singer wife Toyah Willcox have been entertaining music fans with a series of eccentric quarantine performances, including a bizarrely fascinating rendition of the Black Sabbath classic “Paranoid” .

One of the many people who’ve seen the “Paranoid” cover is legendary Sabbath guitarist Tony Iommi, who told Consequence Of Sound that the rock couple has “gone mad.”

Fripp and Toyah’s “Sunday Lunch” performance series has really taken off over the past month, beginning with a cover of Metallica’s “Enter Sandman” that saw Toyah riding an exercise bike while singing the iconic metal tune. That video has racked up more than 4.5 million views, thanks in no small part to Toyah’s revealing choice of attire. Equally fun renditions of Billy Idol’s “Rebel Yell”, Guns N’ Roses’ “Welcome To The Jungle”, and the Joan Jett hit “I Love Rock ‘N’ Roll” have followed, averaging roughly 1 million views each.

Prior to their current run of viral videos, Fripp and Toyah’s “Sunday Lunch” first made headlines on Halloween weekend with their wild version of “Paranoid”, which saw Fripp playing guitar while Toyah sang and danced behind bars, either in an abandoned prison cell or an old bank vault. At one point, Toyah even climbed onto the bars as she sang the second verse.

Heavy Consequence just had the pleasure of speaking with Iommi about Black Sabbath’s upcoming reissues of Heaven And Hell and Mob Rules (full interview coming soon), and we had to ask the metal master what he thought of Fripp and Toyah’s version of “Paranoid”, as well as their “Sunday Lunch” series of YouTube videos.

“I think they’ve gone mad, actually,” Iommi remarked. “I think this lockdown has drove them mental. Oh dear, yeah — somebody had told me about it; in fact, somebody sent it to me, and I had a look at it. They do a thing now regularly, those two, they do a thing online, where they’re acting up.”

Read more at Consequence Of Sound.

Toyah & Robert's Sunday Lockdown Lunch edition of Metallica's "Enter Sandman" can be seen below:

Frontiers Music Srl announces the release of the upcoming third album, and label debut, from Temple Balls, Pyromide, on April 16. The hard rockin' Finnish band is ready to take the world by storm and today, they have fired their latest salvo with the new single and video, "Thunder From The North". Watch the clip below. Pre-order/save Pyromide here.

Temple Balls are an energetic hard rock band from Finland. Pyromide, their Frontiers debut and third album overall, is a tour de force of melodic hard rock that sees the band pushing themselves onto the world stage. Produced by none other than Jona Tee (H.E.A.T.), Pyromide is a tour-de-force of hooks, powerful rhythms, and anthemic rock ‘n roll like it was meant to be played.

"Yet again, a huge amount of blood, sweat and tears were poured into the magic pot of hard rock and heavy metal. We are thrilled to release this whole package for you to listen to. They say 'third time's the charm' . We think that Pyromide verifies it brilliantly. We truly wish you enjoy it as much as we do! Cheers everyone," says the band.

Producer Jona Tee chimes in, "I have had the pleasure of working with Temple Balls on all of their albums. First one as a musician and the latest two as producer and songwriter. Let me tell you this, these dudes love their heavy metal. I get educated in the ancient ways of Finnish rock every time I cross the Baltic Sea. I’m happy to call these crazy bastards my friends and I think Pyromide is a heavy metal classic and Temple Balls strongest album to date."

Tracklisting:

"Thunder From The North"
"Long Ways, Long Lies"
"T.O.T.C."
"Fallen Youth"
"Bad Bad Bad"
"What Is Dead Never Dies"
"Unholy Night"
"Heart Of A Warrior"
"You Better Run"
"If Only I Could"
"Something To Die For"

"Thunder From The North" video:

Lineup:

Arde Teronen - Vocals
Jimi Välikangas - Bass
Jiri Paavonaho - Guitar
Niko Vuorela - Guitar
Antti Hissa - Drums

Devin Townsend is currently working on new material for upcoming albums, and for a current lack of touring possibilities and encounters with fans on the road, he decided to do a series of live albums, quarantine albums, and generally interesting projects that keep people entertained while he's busy on his next larger releases.

Devin comments: "So we bring to you the 'Devolution Series': a grouping of oddities and interesting material that I would like people to hear, but don't necessarily want to present as a ‘major release.'

"The series will include all the quarantine songs and concerts, as well as various live shows from the past few years.

"The first release is a remixed and remastered version of the 'Live In Leeds' show that was originally on the 'Empath' Ultimate Edition. It was a cool acoustic show that deserves to be heard, I think, so we can use this as an introduction to the series.

"I'm am currently deep in the writing of my new projects and am very excited to be doing so. Thanks for facilitating my ability to do that, and I hope you enjoy the 'Devolution Series'."

The "Live In Leeds" show has previously only been released in video format, and "Devolution Series #1 - Acoustically Inclined, Live in Leeds" now marks the audio release of said show. It will be made available on March 19.

As a warm-up to this release, check out the "Hyperdrive (Live In Leeds 2019)" video below.

"Devolution Series #1 - Acoustically Inclined, Live in Leeds" will be available as a limited CD digipak, 180-gram gatefold 2LP (including the album on CD) and as a digital album.

"Devolution Series #1 - Acoustically Inclined, Live In Leeds" track listing:

01. Intro (06:30)

02. Let It Roll (03:48)

03. Funeral (08:17)

04. Deadhead (07:51)

05. Ih-Ah! (04:44)

06. Love? (08:06)

07. Hyperdrive (04:27)

08. Terminal (04:58)

09. Coast (04:37)

10. Solar Winds (03:25)

11. Thing Beyond Things (04:34)

SLAYER guitarist Kerry King has paid tribute to late CHILDREN OF BODOM frontman Alexi Laiho.

Speaking to Metal Hammer magazine, King recalled inviting CHILDREN OF BODOM to support SLAYER on 2006's "Unholy Alliance" tour.

"'Are You Dead Yet?' was probably my favorite album by them," King said. "Even back then I was, like, 'This is the next dude. This is the next guitar hero.' He's one of those effortless guys that you watch and you're, like, 'Fuck! I've been working all day and I can't do that shit?'"

According to King, CHILDREN OF BODOM received a decent response from the SLAYER crowd. "I've seen people go out there and just fail miserably," he said. "Their setlist was on the heavier side, which is a smart thing to do when you're opening for us. I was up there almost every night watching them. They're fun to watch play and Alexi was a guitar god."

Alexi passed away on December 29 in his home in Helsinki, Finland. The 41-year-old had suffered from long-term health issues leading up to his death.

Jason Bonham spoke to AXS TV's "At Home And Social" about SAMMY HAGAR & THE CIRCLE's latest offering, "Lockdown 2020", a collection of covers recorded remotely during the coronavirus pandemic. On the topic of what it's like to work with Sammy Hagar, Jason said: "If somebody doesn't know Sammy Hagar, how could I explain being around him? You don't have time to be miserable. You don't have time to be sad. He is the most upbeat, positive person I've ever worked with in my entire life, and I've worked with a lot of different people. He is such a genuine [person] — what you see is what you get. There isn't an act; it's not false. He is the same way all the time. [He is] hugely generous.

"For an English person who always sees the glass half empty, Sammy always sees it half full," Jason continued. "So he's always, 'Come on!' He knows when I go silent on him, he's the one that goes, 'Come on, let's do this.' It's the same for everybody. 'Let's just do another song and let's keep being positive.'"

SAMMY HAGAR & THE CIRCLE's massively popular "Lockdown Sessions" began in March 2020, when the COVID-19 shelter-at-home order went into effect. With time on their hands and their upcoming tour in limbo, Jason challenged Hagar, Michael Anthony and Vic Johnson to record a warmup jam they'd been playing backstage before concerts for several years. Equipped with iPhones and their respective instruments, they each laid down their individual tracks from the den, music room, closet and even showers of their homes, and "Funky Feng Shui" and the band's "Lockdown Sessions" were born.

Over the next eight months, their "Lockdown Sessions" became a hit with critics and fans alike, producing 10 tracks and reaching an online audience approaching 30 million. The sessions gave the band the opportunity to throw down raw and raucous compact covers of classic hits that they'd jammed to backstage but never planned to record, including THE WHO's "Won't Get Fooled Again", Bob Marley's "Three Little Birds", AC/DC's "Whole Lotta Rosie" and more. When plans for an album came to fruition around the holidays, the band came together to record one more track, a cover of David Bowie's "Heroes" which they'd offer as an instant download or single purchase.

Last May, SAMMY HAGAR & THE CIRCLE's U.S. tour with NIGHT RANGER was officially canceled due to the coronavirus pandemic.

THE CIRCLE's first album of all-original material, "Space Between", was released in May 2019 via BMG.