Shock-rock legend Marilyn Manson performed at Hala Vodova in Brno, Czech Republic on Friday, February 14 as part of his ongoing European tour. Fan-filmed video of the concert can be seen below (courtesy of jederlacht).

Manson is touring in support of his new album, "One Assassination Under God - Chapter 1", which was made available last November via Nuclear Blast Records.

In August 2024, Manson released two new songs, "Raise The Red Flag" and "As Sick As The Secrets Within". A third track, "Sacrilegious", followed in September 2024.

Marilyn performed "As Sick As The Secrets Within" live for the first time during his headlining concert on August 3, 2024 at The Fillmore in Silver Spring, Maryland.

Manson returned to the stage August 2, 2024 for his first live performance since before the pandemic at the kick-off concert of FIVE FINGER DEATH PUNCH's summer arena tour. The show at Hershey, Pennsylvania's Hersheypark Stadium marked Manson's proper gig since the completion of his fall 2019 headlining tour.

Joining Manson on his latest tour was his new touring band, consisting of returning members Tyler Bates on guitar and Gil Sharone (ex-THE DILLINGER ESCAPE PLAN) on drums, alongside the latest additions, Reba Meyers (CODE ORANGE) on guitar and Matt Montgomery (a.k.a. Piggy D.; ex-ROB ZOMBIE) on bass.

"As Sick As The Secrets Within", which was recorded and co-produced with collaborator Tyler Bates, marked Manson's first release via his new deal with Nuclear Blast Records.

The news of a partnership with Nuclear Blast came in May 2024, just weeks after rumors suggested that Manson had already completed work on a new album.

Prior to the arrival of "As Sick As The Secrets Within", Marilyn hadn't released new music since his 2020 "We Are Chaos" LP.

Manson's 30-date arena/amphitheater tour as the support act for FIVE FINGER DEATH PUNCH wrapped up on September 19, 2024 in Houston, Texas.

Over the past four years, Manson has been embroiled in a series of court battles and has been accused by several women — most notably "Westworld" star Evan Rachel Wood — of sexual, emotional and physical abuse.

Manson, who has denied all the allegations, has countersued a number of his alleged victims and judges have dismissed several of the abuse lawsuits against him.

Before launching the tour with FIVE FINGER DEATH PUNCH in August, the 56-year-old musician, whose real name is Brian Warner, had been off the road since the final August 18, 2019 date on the "Twins of Evil: Hell Never Dies" joint tour with Rob Zombie.

In 2022, Marilyn confirmed he was dropped by his record label, Loma Vista Recordings, and talent agency CAA after he was accused of sexual assault.

Manson has consistently denied sexually assaulting or abusing anyone, claiming that his "intimate relationships have always been entirely consensual with like-minded partners".

In January 2025, Nathan J. Hochman, Los Angeles's newly elected district attorney, announced that Manson would not be facing any criminal charges over allegations of sexual assault. He explained that his office determined that the statute of limitations on domestic violences charges had expired, and that they could not prove a sexual assault charge in court.

"While we are unable to bring charges in this matter, we recognize that the strong advocacy of the women involved has helped bring greater awareness to the challenges faced by survivors of domestic abuse and sexual assault," Hochman said in a statement.

Manson's first release through Concord imprint Loma Vista was "The Pale Emperor" in 2015.

"We Are Chaos" debuted at No. 8 on the Billboard 200 and No. 1 on the Top Rock Albums chart.

In a new interview with Chris Akin Presents, guitarist Tracy "G" Grijalva, who has previously said that he left DIO in 1999 after he claimed he was "asked to play in a dual-guitar situation" in Ronnie James Dio's band, was asked why he never joined another nationally touring act after his departure from the legendary heavy metal singer's solo group. He responded (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "'Cause of me. It was my decision. 'Cause I said, 'Okay, I was in DIO. [Ronnie James Dio is a] pretty great singer. [It] doesn't get much better than that. Should I seek out something' like you just said, 'something bigger?' I had too much stuff I wanted to say myself. And I was getting turned on to these little home studios. Now I can record stuff myself. I just wanted to sit in my room and record what's in my head and not have anybody tell me anything, basically. I wanted to do what I wanted to do, and I was kind of tired of being led around type of thing, being in somebody else's band. I did that. I did it the best I could until Ronnie wanted me — they wanted me to play with another guitar player. They didn't kick me out of the band. First they said, 'Well, Tracy, the record company, they wanna add one of our old guitar players.' Craig Goldy got the gig and he was one of their old guitar players. And they got [bassist] Jimmy Bain back too, cause those guys were part of the original DIO, and they wanted to sell more tickets because life is about money. The world is about money. The business is about money. I mean, that's why we're here, right? Well, no, but that's how the world looks at it, right? Me, I'm, like, the things I wanna say. So, I had already played lead guitar and did two or three albums with Ronnie, and now they wanted me to step in the back and let somebody more known, more known in DIO, like Craig Goldy play the solos, which I'm not even a fan of his — sorry, but I'm not even a fan of his. He's probably not a fan of mine [either]. So, oh, just to be a rock star and keep getting some money, I gotta stay in DIO? No. No. No. What's important to me is saying what I wanna say on the guitar. That's what I do."

Tracy previously reflected on the way he was let go from DIO's band several years ago in an interview with The Metalcast. He said: "One of the last things [Ronnie] said to me on the phone, he goes, 'I wish you were an ass.' He goes, 'I wish you were an ass. That way this would be a lot easier to do, but I really dig you and sorry to say, it has to end now because of powers that be.' So we got along. It wasn't like a big blowout or anything, no. It was just mutual respect and he just said a lot of his fans didn't dig what I was doing and his new record company wanted him to go back to one of his first guitar players, if he could. Vivian [Campbell] and him weren't getting along, so the next choice was Craig. And so he went to Craig. The label wanted him to play with guys he used to play with. He also brought back in Jimmy Bain when I left. It's all a business thing, 'cause they wanted more of the first guys so that they'd sell more tickets — the original DIO lineup. It's all about money to the business people — money, money, money. I don't think the albums after me sold way more than 'Strange Highways'. I really don't know, but I doubt if they did. They weren't any better. They weren't as good, as far as I'm concerned, but that's just me. But he has to go where his manager points him, and it's a business, unfortunately. I wish it was just people playing music, what they wanna play. But the business gets into it, and, 'Well, if you wanna get this record deal, you've gotta get rid of that guy 'cause Tracy's going the wrong way. Tracy's bringing all this weird new shit in and people don't dig that, so get rid of that guy.' That kind of vibe. So he apologized for that. And what he first wanted me to do was stay in the band and have Craig Goldy in the band too and just have me play rhythm guitar now. And I declined. I said, 'Ah, fuck that. What do I wanna do that for? I played lead guitar for six years. Now I'm gonna play rhythm just to stay in a band. Just to stay in Dio's band and be the rhythm guitar player.' I said, 'I'm better than that, as far as I'm concerned. So, no, thanks. No, thanks.' So then he had to let me go, 'cause I didn't wanna stand in the back and just play rhythm and let the Craig Goldy thing go. I don't even dig Craig Goldy's solo playing. I'm not even a fan of his. It'd be different if he was bringing in someone that I loved. I'd be, like, well, 'Let me think about it.' But he was gonna bring in someone that was, like — I'm not even a fan of his. He's not a fan of mine, I'm sure, but who cares? Whatever. But so I stepped out. I'm the one who said, 'No, I won't do that.' And then he said, 'Okay, let's forget we had this conversation and just go on.' And I said, 'Okay.' And then a week later he called again and said he's gotta let me go. So that's how it went."

Tracy G played with DIO from 1993 to 1999 and featured on two studio albums, "Strange Highways" and "Angry Machines", and one live album, "Inferno: Last In Live", as well as a concert film, "Live In London, Hammersmith Apollo 1993".

In a new interview with The Lounge With Jake Ellenbogen, KING'S X frontman Doug "Dug" Pinnick was asked about PEARL JAM bassist Jeff Ament's declaration in the early 1990s, at the height of his own band's success, on MTV that "KING'S X invented grunge". Doug said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "It was really, really, really, really so cool for him to say that, especially when nobody else would, especially those who would agree with him, who wouldn't say nothing. And it meant a lot for him to publicly say that. 'Cause I've been told how influential KING'S X has been by almost every musician I've run into, but very few will make a big statement about it. They'll mention the classics… And for us, I think we just carried the torch of a type of music that needed to be explored.

"Drop D tuning isn't nothing new," Doug continued. "We just decided to play [THE BEATLES'] 'She's So Heavy' in Drop D tuning. That's about it. Drop D country music with BEATLES singing. Because Drop D tuning is basically bluegrass music. And Ty [Tabor, KING'S X guitarist] listened to bluegrass when he played it, when he was in grade school and stuff. His dad and his brother, and his brother played banjo and so he comes from that. And he would play these riffs with this Drop D thing, and he just took the distortion up, and there it is. And grunge happens. And it was the easy thing to do, I think. And I think that when a lot of people heard the difference in the sound of when you Drop D tune, it's just a different tone. And we weren't used to it at the time. Everybody's used to it now. It's, like, everybody's even lower. It's not even special anymore. Drop D tuning is, like, what's that? That's, like, weak. It really is. Now, regular Drop D tuning is, like, 'Huh?' Yeah, we got KORN, we got MESHUGGAH. Fuck that. But back in the day, just Drop D was, like… METALLICA was in E. And that was the heaviest shit. SLAYER, that was the heaviest shit we ever heard. Now, every now and then, Eddie Van Halen would drop his E string down to D, and Tony Iommi would tune down on some BLACK SABBATH stuff, but at the end of the day, the whole Drop D way it's played and how you phrase it and stuff is a unique way that bluegrass players play. And it's an easy, simple way.

"Someone told me one time that the easiest way to change the world with your music is make up something cool that any kid could play as soon as he picks up a guitar," Pinnick added. "So think about when grunge hit — from HELMET to you name it. FILTER. I mean, within six months there was like a whole another wave of music. And people said it was grunge because it was grungy like Neil Young."

Reflecting on how NIRVANA's "Smells Like Teen Spirit", upon its release in September 1991, wreaked confusion upon the hair metal vanguard, putting an end to an era dominated by glamorous, androgynous and sparkly rock stars who absolutely saturated the radio waves and were almost exclusively what aired on MTV, Doug said: "Well, they wiped out the germs, if you wanna look at it in a pharmaceutical way of looking at it. We were just burnt out on late '80s everything. And it was like a virus. Everything sounded the same. It was on the radio, it was on TV — everybody looked the same, the songs sounded the same. And when grunge came out, right before that, there was KING'S X, RED HOT CHILI PEPPERS, FAITH NO MORE and JANE'S ADDICTION, all within a year of each other. All of a sudden, there was this new thing that was happening. Nobody was following anybody, but we were all listening to each other. And kids wanted something new. And I think that because of those bands and KING'S X, the grunge thing, those bands kind of helped push people to look towards Seattle, which was coming out with some radical stuff that was inspired by these bands, I feel us included."

He continued: "I know that Kim [Thayil] told me, from SOUNDGARDEN, that he showed Chris Cornell Drop D tuning in '85. And Ty wrote 'In The New Age' in 1985… So both bands had never heard of each other and had started writing songs in Drop D tuning. Chris and I both — I've gotten to know him before he passed away and stuff. We talked about tunings and all that stuff. And so there was like a neck-and-neck SOUNDGARDEN-KING'S X thing happening where we were that generation that was daring to do different tunings and different timings, and we had these two different singers. And you listen to some of the SOUNDGARDEN and KING'S X stuff, and there was times where you're going, 'Which band is which?', like 'Outshined' and 'Spoonman' and 'Black Hole Sun' and stuff. And even though nobody's gonna go, 'Oh, that sounds like KING'S X,' but I know that we were all listening to each other. Well, not all. There was always like one person in all those bands that was a KING'S X fan, the rest of them couldn't care less. But that one person always would bring in that thing that pushed it towards that vibe, which was pretty cool. I mean, even PEARL JAM, they don't sound like KING'S X, but put on the first record and listen to that rhythm section… That's us, me and Jerry [Gaskill, KING'S X drummer] slamming that shit.

"I think we all started to see this new thing happening. We all started pushing each other. We all became fans of each other. Everybody was going, 'Uh oh, we found something, guys.' And most of them would give KING'S X credit, but in the soup of everything, we were all kind of pushing each other's buttons, in many ways."

Pinnick previously spoke about the influence KING'S X had on the grunge scene in the early 1990s during an August 2022 interview with Meltdown of Detroit's WRIF radio station. He said at the time: "There was thing called Drop D tuning we did in '88 when our first record came out. And almost the whole record was Drop D tuning.

"Someone told me one time, they said, 'The quickest way to get everybody to mimic you is to play something that any kid can play when they pick up a guitar immediately.' And Drop D tuning, when you pick up your guitar, you can play with one finger up and down the neck," he explained. "All of a sudden you've got HELMET and you've got — down the line, all these bands that were playing two-chord Drop D songs. And then ALICE IN CHAINS and PEARL JAM, they'll all tell you that we influenced them.

"I know Chris Cornell, and me and him were neck-and-neck sometimes writing songs. We'd talk about it. Somebody called me up one time and said, 'You heard the new SOUNDGARDEN tune?' And I go, 'Why?' And they said, 'It sounds like a KING'S X ripoff.' I go, 'What was it?' They said, ''Outshined'.' And I'm going, 'Yeah, it has that vibe.' Somebody said 'Spoonman' sounds like a song Ty wrote. And we were making those records at the same time.

"I remember talking to Chris when we were making the 'Dogman' record [and] they were making 'Superunknown', and we were laughing about how high we used to sing. And we made an agreement to sing lower on the record. And we got 'Black Hole Sun' and 'Flies And Blue Skies'. So I think that me and him, I'm sure, we influenced each other and pushed each other.

"I remember when [KING'S X's] 'Gretchen [Goes To Nebraska]' came out, we went on tour. And I remember coming home after seven months and turned on 'Headbangers Ball' and every band was drop-D-tuned and they were all new — except for BON JOVI. All the rest of them, because of this whole new thing that had happened. And I'm going, 'My goodness, they're doing kind of what we do.' And the screamers had disappeared, and those singers that sang real high to glam rock were gone. And people were grooving again and they were singing lower melodies. And that's kind of what we were doing when we first came out. So if that was an inspiration to people, yeah, I'll take that, 'cause we were just imitating people that we heard. [Laughs]"

Pinnick went on to say that he has known the ALICE IN CHAINS guys "since before they got signed." He recalled: "Layne [Staley, late ALICE IN CHAINS singer] did say to me, 'Keep putting out, writing songs so we can keep ripping you off.' He said that to Jerry, actually. But he told me that on 'Rooster', he said, 'I was just doing Doug.' And I gave him a big hug. And I love those guys. They were just young kids. I remember PEARL JAM, they didn't have a record deal. And Jeff [Ament, PEARL JAM bassist] sent me a tape with TEMPLE OF THE DOG on the other side of it. And neither band was out. Back in the day, they looked up to us and they used to say, 'We can't wait till we can open for you guys and get record deals and stuff.' And we thought that was so cute. And then they all get record deals and just blow us out of the water. They all did — every one of them. And I smile and look at them and go, 'Man, I knew you guys when you were riding around in vans playing for nobody.'

"I remember KING'S X was on the road with AC/DC, opening, and some of the guys from PEARL JAM and ALICE IN CHAINS came to the show in Tacoma, Washington," Doug added. "And they were playing a little club. And they said, 'Would you guys come to the show?' And so after we got done playing, we went over to the bar, and ALICE IN CHAINS had MOOKIE BLAYLOCK, which was PEARL JAM, opening for them. There was probably, maybe 20 people in the place. And it was awesome. I remember watching Mike McCready and going, 'This kid plays like Jimi Hendrix.' He looked like he was 15. I loved them all.

"So, yeah, we all go way back. And yeah, we've all kind of inspired each other in some ways, I think."

KING'S X's 13th studio album, "Three Sides Of One", came out in September 2022.

Swedish power metallers, HammerFall, performed at Leyendas Del Rock in Villena, Spain on August 12, 2023. Festival organizers have shared pro-shot video of the band’s entire show.

Setlist:

“Brotherhood”
“Any Means Necessary”
“The Metal Age”
“Hammer of Dawn”
“Blood Bound”
“Renegade”
“Venerate Me”
“Last Man Standing”
“Riders of the Storm”
“Let the Hammer Fall”
“Glory to the Brave”
“(We Make) Sweden Rock”
“Hammer High”
“Hector’s Hymn”
“Hearts on Fire”

In a new interview with American Musical Supply, former MEGADETH guitarist Marty Friedman spoke about the importance of younger guitar players developing their own sound and style. He said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "Well, I think hopefully what I say is an important piece of advice. I think it's important. Of course, it's great to copy your influences because you like them, so that's part of your identity. So you should pick and choose the parts of your influences that you like and learn them and discard the rest.

"I remember when I was a kid, I was a huge Uli Jon Roth fan," he continued. "But he had two sides of his playing. One was this romantic kind of classical and a lot of fancy, romantic, cascading runs and beautiful kind of difficult-sounding phrases and melodies and exotic sounds. I love that. On the other hand, he was a big [Jimi] Hendrix fan and he was doing these blatant Hendrix rip-off things, because he loves Hendrix, and that's part of him. But I saw these two different sides of his playing. And I went directly to this side. I learned all of his solos that I loved. And when he's on the whammy bar, and he's doing all of that 'Star-Spangled Banner' type of things, yeah, that's fine. That's fine. I didn't like that part."

Marty added: "So what I'm trying to say is, with my influences, I picked and [chose]. I picked the things that I think I could do something with. And that's one way to have an identity. And a more important way is every single note that you play, you have to make a decision, how are you gonna play that note? You're gonna hold it out? You're gonna shake it a little, shake it a lot? Bend to it, bend from it, slide to it, slide from it, play it long, play it short? That's just one note we're talking about all these decisions. But when you make those decisions and make them with the intention and criteria of, 'Okay, this decision is what's gonna define me. My name, John Smith, is gonna be the guy who held this note longer and stayed after the beat. Or I'm the guy who jumped in the solo two bars beforehand or came in later,' or whatever. Every single decision that you make, you are the sum total of those. First you have to consciously do it, but when you do it a lot, it becomes subconscious, unconscious. You're automatically making those decisions, and that's who you are. All the notes and everywhere in between the notes, it all means something. And sometimes a little bit sharp, a little bit flat is better than right on. Usually right on is the most delicious.

"Here's one thing that I always think no one does enough of: absolutely no vibrato at all," Marty said. "Just play the note in tune. Don't shake that, don't move, just stop. Nobody does that. Sometimes that is the trick. It sounds so much more professional sometimes. There's a reason those frets are there. Because they cut the notes off where they're supposed to be in tune. So if your guitar's in tune, sometimes you just play the note, and that's the thing to do. No vibrato at all. Don't move. Stop. Don't move. Stop."

Friedman kicked off his "Live Drama 2025" U.S. tour on January 25 at Count's Vamp'd in Las Vegas, Nevada.

Friedman's latest solo album, "Drama", came out last May via Frontiers Music Srl.

Recorded in Italy, "Drama" showcases Marty's unique touch, for the first time using both vintage and modern guitars, delivering a pure delight for lovers of music everywhere. From the captivating first single "Illumination", to the album's breathtaking "Mirage" and 10 other emotionally charged mini-symphonies, Marty paints atmospheric elements with a modern and exotic flair, promising an unforgettable musical experience.

Marty's presence in the world of music, the world of guitar and Japanese pop culture is mystifying, bizarre, and nothing short of inspiring. His first major impact in music was in the game-changing guitar duo CACOPHONY, which he founded with equally enigmatic and now-legendary guitarist Jason Becker. He then spent 10 years as lead guitarist in the genre-defining thrash metal act MEGADETH before moving to Tokyo due to his love for Japanese music, language, and culture.

Following his move, he landed a starring role for a new TV comedy "Hebimeta-san" ("Mr. Heavy Metal") and its spinoff, "Rock Fujiyama", which ran for six seasons and propelled him into the living rooms of Japan's mainstream. He has since appeared in over 800 TV shows, movies and commercials, including a two-year campaign with Coca-Cola for Fanta, authored two best-selling novels and was the first-ever foreigner to be appointed as an ambassador of Japan heritage and perform at the opening ceremony for the Tokyo Marathon.

At the same time, Marty has continued his career in music with several solo albums in addition to writing and performing with the top artists in Japanese music, racking up countless chart hits, including a No. 1 with SMAP, two No. 2 songs with MOMOIRO CLOVER, a No. 2 with SOUND HORIZON — just to name a few.

Friedman's autobiography, "Dreaming Japanese", arrived on December 3, 2024 via Permuted Press.

During a new appearance on The Tampa Morgue podcast, Jeff "Mantas" Dunn discussed his announcement that he was leaving VENOM INC. last December, approximately eight months after he suffered a second heart attack. The 63-year-old British-born guitarist, who currently resides with his wife in Portugal, previously suffered a heart attack and underwent a double bypass surgery in May 2018. Asked when he arrived at the decision to leave VENOM INC., Jeff said in part (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "Well, I can tell you now that the last fucking conversation that I had with [Tony] Dolan [VENOM INC. bassist/vocalist] was March the 26th. That was nearly a month before I had the [second] heart attack. I did not receive one single phone call after that. I got the occasional text saying, 'How are you doing?' but he never called me. And you know what it is? I was in a bad way after that heart attack, after the second one. Mentally I was worse than the first one. I didn't come into [my] studio for months. When I came in, my guitars were, there was rust all over them. I had to repair everything.

"On that March the 26th conversation, we discussed me returning [to VENOM INC.] just for the festivals," he continued. "And I said, 'Look, I can do probably do two weeks or something like that,' but even then that was getting a stretch because [my wife], she had been misdiagnosed with cancer and that went on for fucking months. That destroyed us… Nobody knows what we had went through there. And then, obviously, I had the fucking second heart attack.

"On that March 26th conversation, we discussed me returning for a show on May the 18th, I think it was, in Belgium, which was gonna be a festival," Mantas explained. "I had done my last two shows and then bowed out of the second leg of the American tour. And I just wanted to get back to [my wife] because she just had the diagnosis. And as I said, 'There's no way I'm leaving her with a diagnosis like that. I don't know what the fuck's gonna happen.' Thankfully, that diagnosis has been overturned, but she's still going through a medical investigation because there's still something wrong that they can't find. Now she's got an emergency MRI scan coming up because we've just had another hospital appointment on Thursday where the gastroenterologist has turned around and said, 'We need an MRI.' And this will tell us definitively if it is a cancerous thing. We need to know, I don't think it is personally, but we need to know. So we're still not out of the woods.

"Me having the second heart attack, it affected her as well," Jeff said. "That was April 17th [of 2024]. That needed surgical intervention. I had two stents put in. Then I've got a two-to-three-week recovery after that. I was in pain all the time, I was, like, 'Fucking hell.' And it was just, like, 'When the fuck is this gonna end?' It just came out of the blue as well. I was in the garden — bang, it just fucking happened. And the next thing I knew, there was two ambulances at the door.

"[Dolan and I] had that conversation on March the 26th, and then there was nothing after that. I didn't get a phone call. And like I say, I was in a fucking bad way. And maybe, just maybe, all I wanted to do was pour my heart out to my best friend. And I never got that fucking opportunity, as far as I'm concerned.

"All this fucking proclaiming he's my best friend, he's my brother, the door's always open [for me to come back to VENOM INC.]. And then I see a private message between him and a person that I know as well, 'Oh, Mantas's just stabbed me in the back.'

"Can you help me understand that, how I stabbed you in the back? What? By having two heart attacks and fucking the plans up for touring? I'm so fucking sorry," Jeff continued.

"This really has fucking angered me — really fucking angered me. And if anybody thinks I'm gonna sit back now at my age and just take all that and watch what's going on — no. Open your mouth once more and the fucking world's coming down on your shoulders. I've just had enough. I've had enough."

Mantas went on to say that he made the decision to announce his departure from VENOM INC. after the band was booked to perform as the headliner of the Byker Grave festival on December 7, 2024 in Newcastle, United Kingdom.

"There was this gig that they did in Newcastle, in my hometown, where I formed the band," Jeff said. "I found out about that on a poster on Facebook. I wasn't even told. I wasn't even fucking told. So I let that go. I let it go. I got the message about the American tour. I looked at the dates and thought, 'You know for a fact there's no way I can do all those fucking dates.' I sent a message back, 'Can we talk about this?' That was October the 3rd [of 2024]. Never heard a fucking thing back — not once. And I said, 'Can we talk about this? Let me know when you're free.' Because he's always at work or he's always doing something. He doesn't answer the phone. So I was, like, 'Just let me know.' I didn't say this in the message, but if he had said, 'Right, I've got Tuesday, I've got 30 minutes' — perfect. That's all I need. That's all the time I need."

Mantas explained: "My idea was gonna be, 'Okay then. I'll fly to Newcastle. I can see my daughter, I can see my grandkids, I can see a few friends. I'll play the show, and on that show, at the end of it, I'll say, 'Thank you, Newcastle. This is where it started and for me, this is where it ends. I now hand the reins over. And fucking I can't do anymore, but thank you so much for 40-odd, incredible fucking years.' Next thing I knew, they're promoting the show. All right. Okay. So, I decided, 'That's it.' I make the statement. I leave [VENOM INC. in early December]. And then a week later, well, after that, there's all these fucking interviews [with Dolan that] just go straight up, like, damage limitation — that's what I call them; [they're] not fucking interviews. And then I put [my solo song] 'Losing My Faith', the first clip of the video up, that night when that video went off, he unfriended and blocked me on fucking everything — and [my wife], and her daughter. And that is the truth. Now please help me understand why. Let me know why.

"As long as I have breath left in me on this planet, I will never speak to him again. Never. Because as much as I loved that guy, and I did, I loved that guy like a fucking brother, I really loved that guy. And then this — okay, you think you're VENOM? Go out there and fucking do it. And I said in a statement the other night, go and play at every arena that you want to, or you can go play every fucking toilet that you want to. I don't care. Leave me out of it. I'm done. I'm fucking done with it."

Last December, former NEVERMORE and ANNIHILATOR guitarist Curran Murphy confirmed that he had officially joined VENOM INC. as Mantas's replacement.

Several days after Mantas announced his exit from VENOM INC., Dolan was asked by Metal Kaoz if Dunn was officially out of the band. Tony responded: "Well, he made a statement about a year, probably a year and a half ago when his wife was sick and a statement went out in the press that I didn't know was gonna go out, but he just said that he wasn't gonna do any shows until further notice. So he felt he wanted to express that to people."

He continued: "They live in Portugal. They're quite secluded in a lot of ways, [with] not a lot of friends around them. That's how he likes it. But he felt he wanted to stay there and be there for her, which, of course, you had to. But he put this statement out saying he wouldn't do shows until further notice. So I just took that on board. I thought, 'Well, there's no pressure. I'll just keep going. I'll keep the bus driving, the engines running.' And if she's better, because that's what we were hoping for, that she would be fixed, and when it's time, then we'll just carry on. Just come back and off we go. But I was at a point where I've got an obligation to the label, to the manager, to the agents, to the bookers. That's a lot of people who then don't make any money. So I have to keep it going. And you can't take an advance from publishing companies or from record labels and then just run away with the money. That's not how it works. So I had to keep working to push sales to pay them back for what they had generously given us as an advance. So, that was gonna happen."

Dolan went on to say: "Then it got to about halfway through last year, last season, or maybe it was just before the season, she was doing better and he felt really good and he started to run through the material. We had a Belgian festival coming up. It was gonna be the first one [with him back on stage]… And he felt good. He was looking good and he sounded good and he sounded positive. Then I didn't hear from him for three days. And then when I do get in touch with him, he's in hospital and he had a second heart attack. And, of course, physically you might be okay, but mentally that's two hits. And I think he just doesn't wanna die running through an airport or walking on a stage in another country, a million miles away from home. And I can understand that. So, again, we were back to, 'Okay, well, you don't wanna tour. So I'll do the touring. And then when the festivals come up, we'll just see if you feel good about doing them.' That was the idea. But then he was out of the game. So we just continued on while he stayed home and recuperated, really. And I kept sending him messages going, 'There's no pressure. Don't worry about anything. Just get well. And then when you're ready to go, go.' And I kept making sure he was okay for money and everything like that. And then last week or something, someone sends me an image from the Internet saying, 'Oh, why is Mantas not coming back?' And I was, like, 'Pardon?' And then I get to see this Blabbermouth thing where he said he's not coming back. And it was, like, 'Okay.'

"So I don't know. I don't know," Dolan added. "As far as I'm concerned, he's my brother. I love him. I don't want nothing bad to happen. But I just need him to be happy. And if he's happy being at home and recording in his home studio, his stuff that he does there, then fantastic. I can't make him go out. I wouldn't try and make him go out on the road against his wishes. But VENOM INC. is bigger than the people involved, and it means something. And there's new fans."

Asked if there is a chance that Mantas will still be involved with VENOM INC. in the songwriting capacity in the future, Tony said: "Well, we'd already done two albums' worth when we put the last album out [2022's 'There's Only Black']. So we'd overwritten, because it was supposed to go across two albums. That was the idea. The original idea was to have it as a double album. So, the first album [that was gonna] go out — it was all about Dante's Inferno and the nine circles of hell. So it was your journey through life, from life to death. And that was the idea. But very quickly, when he had his heart attack, that changed because the meaning of him not seeing any light and seeing there's only black, I was, like, 'Wow, that's it. 'There's Only Black'.' And so we went from there. But we still have those recordings.

"He's spent the year recording some of that material that is not VENOM-esque," Tony continued. "It's kind of rock/metal, I guess, or whatever you wanna call it. It's very him. And he loves doing that and he's singing. So if he wants to do that, that's fine.

"I've been writing more stuff throughout the year, so 2025 will see two live albums go out, an EP — a new EP with this lineup — and a new album," Tony revealed. "When we get to the album at the end of the year, if he still feels that he's doing what he does and he wants to just do that, then I'll let him do that. But if he feels he wants to push something down the tube, then absolutely. Because it was us, it was us. We were like a double act on stage. We were the Laurel and Hardy or whatever it is, or the Batman and Robin of music. So, it feels weird being without him there. So, however he wants to do it, I'll be open to however he wants to do it. As long as he's alive and he's okay and he's happy, then I'm happy. That's the point of everything. There's more things to life."

Dunn formed VENOM INC. nearly a decade ago with two other former VENOM members, Dolan and drummer Antony "Abaddon" Bray.

In his announcement that he was leaving VENOM INC., Dunn said that his "health and wellbeing are of paramount importance to myself and my family," but added that "there are also more personal issues which have influenced my decision."

Mantas sat out VENOM INC.'s fall 2023 U.S. tour after revealing that his wife had been diagnosed with cancer. He was replaced on the trek by Mike Hickey, known for his work with VENOM, CARCASS, CATHEDRAL and CRONOS.

VENOM INC. is not to be confused with the Conrad "Cronos" Lant-fronted version of VENOM, which is continuing to tour and make albums under the VENOM moniker. Joining Cronos in that group are Rage (a.k.a. Stuart Dixon) on guitar and Danté (a.k.a. Danny Needham) on drums.

VENOM's classic lineup trio of Dunn, Lant and drummer Anthony "Abaddon" Bray recorded four studio LPs, "Welcome To Hell" (1981),"Black Metal" (1982),"At War With Satan" (1984) and "Possessed" (1985),and live album, "Eine Kleine Nachtmusik" (1986). Often cited by bands such as METALLICA, BEHEMOTH, CELTIC FROST and MAYHEM as major influences, they are one of the most revered bands of their generation. VENOM is still fronted by Cronos and headlines festivals all over the globe and continues to release new music while Dunn and Dolan had joined forces in the similarly named VENOM INC.

TESLA has released the official music video for the electric version of "All About Love", the title track of the band's latest six-song EP, "All About Love".

Released last November, "All About Love" includes four versions of "All About Love" (acoustic, electric, hybrid, live); a live version of "Walk Away", a concert favorite from "Reel To Real, Vol. 1"; and another new song, "From The Heart", an instrumental track by guitarist Frank Hannon.

"All About Love" EP track listing:

01. All About Love (Electric Mix)
02. From The Heart
03. All About Love (Acoustic Mix)
04. All About Love (Live)
05. Walk Away (Live)
06. All About Love (Hybrid Mix)

TESLA bassist Brian Wheat said in a statement: "We spent six months on 'All About Love', and I think we got this one right. Honestly, I'm really, really proud of it. It's what I think a TESLA fan would expect from TESLA — right down the middle. Jeff [Keith, TESLA singer] sounds great. Frank's doing classic guitar licks again."

During an October 7, 2024 appearance on SiriusXM's "Trunk Nation With Eddie Trunk", Wheat said that TESLA had been performing "All About Love" for "probably four or five months, actually, which is kind of reverse to what we used to do in the old days. In the old days, we used to record the song and then go play it live," he explained. "So we played it live and then recorded it."

Regarding the songs contained on the "All About Love" EP, Brian said: "There'll be four different versions of 'All About Love' and two new tracks. There'll be the live version, the studio version and two kind of other alternate versions… It'll be something real nice for the fans. We worked real hard on it, and I'm excited to put it out there. It'll be cool. It'll be a nice piece for the fans to buy."

Last August, Jeff spoke to Joseph Suto of Rock Show Critique about the band's plans to release new music. He said: "Now, at this point, after COVID and everything, we're just releasing singles 'cause people can download them. And from what I understand — they explained it to me, 'cause I don't go on the Internet, but they explained to me, 'Jeffrey, in today's world, you can release a single for people to download, and it's just like back in the '40s and '50s when people would put a little 45 record with a B-side.' So from what I understand, the last two songs we released was 'Cold Blue Steel' and then 'Time To Rock!'."

Wheat and Hannon previously talked about "All About Love" during an appearance on the April 12, 2024 episode of SiriusXM's "Trunk Nation With Eddie Trunk". Frank said: "It's actually the first song that J.K. [singer Jeff Keith] and myself wrote after a dry spell of writing songs during the COVID lockdown. And the first lyric of the song is, 'I wanna get back to where I started.' That was influenced by how we were feeling during COVID. So we chipped away. We made a little demo of it, and then we just kind of shelved it for a while, 'cause I always knew that I wanted the band and BDub [Brian] to produce it and make it sound rocking. And the original demo was really chill and almost sounded like AIR SUPPLY. It was mellow. And I knew, and I told Brian, I go, 'I love this song, but it needs to be rocked out TESLA style.' So that's what we did. And we worked on it over the past six months at soundchecks during the gigs, practicing it and really developing it and turning it into a rock song."

Asked if the plan is for TESLA to release a full-length album after issuing "All About Love" as well as the two previously released singles "Cold Blue Steel" and "Time To Rock!", Brian said: "No, not particularly. Because it takes too much time. Here's the thing. It's no secret, we're getting older. Jeff is 65, 66 years old… In order to do an album, it takes so much out of the band — time and energy. And right now, I think we're all on the same page that we'd rather take that time and energy and go around and play while we're still able to play at the level we play at, because we still play very well. Jeff Keith still sings very, very well. And we can address making an album where you can be in a studio and you can do things 26 times and all that thing, if you have to, later. But to sit there and make an album right now… Frank told you, we've been working on this song ['All About Love'] for six months."

Frank added: "It's different now. See, what people don't realize, for a band to make an album that's really great, you have to get locked in a room for about a year and really hash it out and argue and make demos. And then what you're doing is you're fabricating 10 songs, and you'll usually have two great ones and then the other ones are kind of half-assed written unless you spend that time doing it. And that's what we did on the first four albums, or all of our albums that we did up to this point. Now what we're doing is creating singles and touring and playing live and getting them out while they're fresh."

Continued Brian: "Plus there's the whole economic thing about it. We're not a independently multimillionaire wealthy guys. It's a matter of we have to take the time off. We are a working band. Trust me, if we were millionaires, multi-millionaires, and we could afford to take two years off, we maybe would, but we can't. We have to work. We're a working band."

Wheat added: "Look, I would love to go make a record, but like Frank says, I think the songs get compromised because you don't… We spent six months on 'It's All About Love', and I think we got this one right. Honestly, I'm really, really proud of it. It's what I think a TESLA fan would expect from TESLA — right down the middle. Jeff sounds great. Frank's doing classic guitar licks again. But it took six months. We just didn't pull it out of our ass. We worked on it. And to do a 10-song album, even if it's two months a song, that's a year… And quite honestly, you've gotta look at things for supply and demand. Like, how many people want a new TESLA record, a whole new album?

"I'm a statistics guy," Brian said. "And if you wanna get into this, I can go people buying records versus buying tickets. And there are way more people that are buying tickets than are buying records. And they wanna hear all them hits. And then there's the hardcores, which is a much smaller percentage, and you have to go, you have to look at it realistically and go, 'How much gas is left in that tank?'"

Some fans criticized TESLA for adopting a 1980s-style polished production for its latest album, 2019's "Shock". The follow-up to June 2014's "Simplicity" was helmed by DEF LEPPARD guitarist Phil Collen, whose own group is no stranger to slicked-up, glossy-sounding recordings.

In September 2023, TESLA released the official music video for its cover of AEROSMITH's "S.O.S. (Too Bad)". The song is a bonus track on TESLA's live album, "Full Throttle Live!", which arrived in May 2023. The LP includes the band's "Time To Rock!" single, plus other songs, all recorded in August 2022 at Full Throttle Saloon in Sturgis, South Dakota.

In September 2021, original TESLA drummer Troy Luccketta announced that he would "take a little time from the road" to spend with family and friends. He has since been replaced at TESLA's gigs and in the recording studio by Steve Brown, the younger brother of former DOKKEN drummer Mick Brown.

TESLA's debut album, 1986's "Mechanical Resonance", went platinum on the strength of the hits "Modern Day Cowboy" and "Little Suzi". The 1989 follow-up album, "The Great Radio Controversy", produced five hits, including "Heaven's Trail (No Way Out)" and "Love Song", which hit the pop Top Ten.

Eclectic hard rock band THE LUCID, which features former MEGADETH bassist David Ellefson, vocalist Vinnie Dombroski (SPONGE),actor/guitarist Drew Fortier and drummer/producer Mike Heller, has just released the official video for its track "Risk Machine" from THE LUCID 2023 "Saddle Up And Ride" EP. The clip, directed by multimedia artist Alexis Karl, and shot in New York City can be viewed below.

But that's not all — after years of anticipation, THE LUCID is hitting the stage for its live debut at the 10th annual Guitars Under The Stars music festival, set to take place July 31-August 2, 2025 in Eugene, Oregon.

Ellefson shared: "We've had so many requests for live shows, and as much as we wanted to, the timing never aligned. We're thrilled to finally make it happen at such an iconic event."

Two years ago, THE LUCID once again joined forces with legendary underground rap icon Violent J (INSANE CLOWN POSSE) for a re-imagining of FAITH NO MORE's "Epic", titled "Sweet Toof".

"Sweet Toof" was the fourth single from "Saddle Up And Ride", which was released digitally in January 2023 via SpoilerHead Records.

From the ferocious vitriolic sonic assault of the title track, "Saddle Up And Ride", to the epic off-the-wall and out-of-left-field "Sweet Toof", "Saddle Up And Ride" showcased THE LUCID feeding into their eccentric tastes spanning across thrash, country, rap, radio rock, metal, and funk.

Ellefson confirmed in 2022 that THE LUCID was working on new material as a follow-up to THE LUCID's self-titled debut album, which was released in October 2021 via SpoilerHead Records.

"The Lucid" was also produced by Heller and mixed/mastered by Lasse Lammert.

During a November 2020 appearance on "The Chuck Schute Podcast", Ellefson stated about how he got involved with THE LUCID: "Drew sent me a track and said, 'Hey, can you throw a bass on here?' And I was writing a new ELLEFSON solo record at the time, so my studio ears were on. I was plugged in and ready to go. He sent it over and I was, like, 'Yeah, this is freaking cool, man.' I'd seen Drew play, I know his BANG TANGO history and the other stuff he's done. But this was really cool stuff that spoke to me. And then he called me up and he said, 'Hey, Vinnie is gonna come in and write some vocals and lyrics and lay down some tracks.' And it turned into a thing."

"I love [Vinnie]. I love SPONGE," David continued. "He's such a rock star. He's just a cool guy. And he writes such great lyrics — very trippy lyrics. He's the type of lyricist I'd never worked with before, so it's fun with that. And Drew is a great guitar player. Mike Heller — he's good friends with [MEGADETH drummer] Dirk Verbeuren. And Dirk's, like, 'Mike's awesome.' They're good friends. We all met in L.A. We got the songs together and we all met in L.A. in mid-July [2020]. I plugged in and banged out 10 songs in two days. And it was fun. Mike was very good in the studio; he really knows his way around."

As for THE LUCID's musical direction, Ellefson told VWMusic: "It's definitely a rock album. It may trend slightly into metal with songs like 'Damned' and 'Deaths Of Despair'. It's not a thrash metal record. It's not a doom or a power metal record or any of that kind of stuff. I just think it's just a straight-up hard rock record."

Fortier was diagnosed with testicular cancer in May 2022 and subsequently underwent surgery.

Ellefson was fired from MEGADETH in May 2021 after sexually tinged messages and explicit video footage involving the bassist were posted on Twitter.

David was in MEGADETH from the band's inception in 1983 to 2002, and again from 2010 until his latest exit.

Photo credit: Kevin Williams

Vocalist Lou Koller of New York hardcore legends SICK OF IT ALL, who has been undergoing chemotherapy after recently being diagnosed with an esophageal tumor, has shared a new video message in which he said: "Last day of chemo. This is it. Thanks for all your support. I'm doing pretty good. Gonna deal with this stuff, be sick for about a week and a half, and then start the healing. Gotta get my voice and body back in shape. Thanks, everybody. See ya."

In a message accompanying the video, Lou wrote: "Last day of chemo!!! After today I'll have to deal with being ill for about a week and a half. Don't know when the numbness in my fingers and feet will go away. It's different for everyone. Same for my tastebuds. Don't know when I'll be able to taste food normally again. Right now I kind of taste what I'm eating but it's over powered by a chemical/metallic taste. But it will all be just a memory soon. Thanks again for your support!"

A benefit concert supporting Koller's ongoing battle with esophageal cancer was held on November 23, 2024 at Irving Plaza in New York City. The "I'm In The Fight With Lou" event featured performances by VISION OF DISORDER, LIFE OF AGONY and MUNICIPAL WASTE, as well as veteran New York hardcore acts KILLING TIME and CROWN OF THORNZ. Notably, it marked VISION OF DISORDER's first live appearance since 2018. It was also LIFE OF AGONY's first show since the band's transgender singer Mina Caputo — once known as Keith Caputo — announced that she had "cured" her gender dysphoria and was planning to "physically completely detransition" in 2025 before changing her name back to Keith Caputo.

After Lou went public in late June 2024 with the news that doctors discovered a cancerous tumor in his esophagus, his brother Pete, SICK OF IT ALL guitarist, set up a GoFundMe campaign to help cover some of the costs of his cancer treatment and assist with living expenses while the group is off the road and unable to tour. That campaign has since raised more than $300,000, with fellow artists AFI, RANCID and DROPKICK MURPHYS contributing $5,000 apiece, and bands such as SNAPCASE and HOT WATER MUSIC also making generous donations.

The long-running New York Hardcore band subsequently canceled its previously announced European tour dates.

When Lou first posted about the diagnosis on social media, he said: "[Doctors] found a tumor in my esophagus that goes into my stomach, and I'll have to be getting treatment all summer — and of course, with full support of the band. As soon as they heard it, they were, like, 'Forget the tour. Just get healthy.' … They're all behind me staying home and us staying home."

Koller ended the message by saying: "I'll hopefully beat this thing and see you at the end of the summer … or maybe the winter."

SICK OF IT ALL's European tour was supposed to kick off in the Czech Republic on July 4, 2024.

SICK OF IT ALL's latest album, "Wake The Sleeping Dragon!", was released in November 2018 via Century Media.

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In a new interview with Australia's Jaimunji, KILLSWITCH ENGAGE bassist Mike D'Antonio, who is also responsible for the band's artwork, dismissed online accusations that the cover art for KILLSWITCH's upcoming album, "This Consequence", was created using the help of artificial intelligence. He said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "The cover art was not done by A.I., no matter what people are saying on the Internet. I killed myself making that fricking cover art, so don't tell me I just typed some words into a computer and it popped out, 'cause that's — eight months later, that's not what happened. It took ten thousand photos and a lot of time. So, I just wanted to put that out there.

"I guess I should be flattered that people think it's so good [that it could have been generated using A.I.]," Mike continued. "But I'm not. I hate it. I don't wanna be associated with A.I. Other people can do that. I'm fine with it. A.I. is just a whole new form of artwork. People can't afford it or can't be creative, they should definitely go gravitate towards that stuff. It's not for me. I'm an artist. I should be able to do my own shit. And that's what I do."

"This Consequence" is due on February 21, 2025 via Metal Blade. The LP is KILLSWITCH ENGAGE's ninth album overall, and sixth with singer Jesse Leach, who rejoined the band in 2012.

"This Consequence" is the follow-up to "Atonement", which was released in August 2019 via Metal Blade Records in the U.S. and Sony Music Entertainment in the rest of the world. The disc featured guest appearances by former KILLSWITCH ENGAGE singer Howard Jones and TESTAMENT frontman Chuck Billy. It marked the band's third full-length release since the return of Leach.

KILLSWITCH ENGAGE will embark on a headline tour in March 2025. It's their first tour of North America since late 2022. The trek will feature support from KUBLAI KHAN TX, FIT FOR A KING and FROZEN SOUL, and will kick off on March 5 in Nashville and runs through April 12 in Portland, Maine.

All of KILLSWITCH ENGAGE's album artwork and tour merchandise is designed by D'Antonio, who is a graphic artist. D'Antonio's company, DarkicoN Design, produces artwork for bands such as SHADOWS FALL, UNEARTH, ALL THAT REMAINS and CROWBAR.

"I really model my stuff after David Carson," D'Antonio told Minot Daily News in a 2016 interview of the graphic designer known for his experimental typography. "He was the first one to do the disgusting sort of graphic. He would take pictures of walls eaten away by the sun and use them in his design. I like the realism factor he brought to it. He's super ahead of his time."

In a new interview with Andrew McKaysmith of the Scars And Guitars podcast, former JUDAS PRIEST and current KK'S PRIEST singer Tim "Ripper" Owens was asked if he has ever thought about writing an autobiography. Tim responded (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET):  "Yeah, I'd like to do one. I just don't know if I can talk about everything in my career. I don't know if it's right. There's bands that can do that because they were known as being — they'd come up in the '70s and '80s, so there's there's things they'd done and in their career and they like to talk about it because they were into that. But I don't know. I don't necessarily wanna throw people under the bus.

"I think it might be a little bit boring 'cause I'm not gonna talk about everything. On the other hand, I guess I do have a lot to talk about, and maybe talking about everything would be a pretty good idea. It could make me look a little more adventurous, too. I can make things up.

"I've said this: I will write a book, but I'm not writing a book that's not paying me. 'Cause I see so many musicians and so many people write books, and I know they haven't made much money from it. I'm not saying I'm gonna be super rich, but I've always said if I'm writing a book, it's paying me — it's paying me to write the book. I'm not just putting it out there to put it out there. I've gotta retire at some point.

"But, yeah, I've had one hell of a career. Just a kid from Akron, Ohio that's done and played with the musicians that I have, and all because of JUDAS PRIEST giving me a break and a chance to sing for 'em. And, yeah, just a book on who I've played with and when I've jammed with them, whether it was Ace Frehley [KISS] or Scott Ian [ANTHRAX] or whoever it's been, it's pretty crazy 'cause, again, I'm still just a fan and a kid from Akron, Ohio that gets to do what I do."

Owens previously discussed the possibility of writing a book last month in an interview with Australia's "Everblack" podcast. He said at the time: "I've never been offered [a book deal]. I'm not writing a book unless I get paid money, 'cause they loosely made a movie about me; I didn't get paid nothing for that. So, they would have to pay me some money. But I don't know how to do it 'cause I don't wanna… I'll probably hurt some feelings doing that book. But I won't spill all the beans. I might be in trouble if I spill all the beans."

He continued: "I would be nice about it. But it is a great story, isn't it? I mean, it's an amazing story. And it's continued to be. I love when people go, 'What have you done since JUDAS PRIEST?' More? I don't know. I've toured the world more. I've played in front of the same amount of crowds, sold more records. This is all after JUDAS PRIEST. So I think it's pretty crazy when someone says, 'What have you done?' Or they diss me by saying, 'Oh, the guy that used to be somebody.' I'm, like, 'What do you mean used…?' I'm doing more now than I ever did in my life. So it's kind of, like, 'I don't know what you're talking about.'

"I've done a lot," Owens added. "I said I've been fired from more bands than people have been in, so it's kind of funny. But, yeah, I've met so many great people. And I always say JUDAS PRIEST was my college, and they opened up the door for me to make a living out of it. And I've worked hard at trying to make sure I'm in top form and ready to go."

The 2001 Warner Bros. movie "Rock Star", starring Mark Wahlberg as a salesman-turned-rock star, was loosely based on Owens, who fronted a JUDAS PRIEST cover band before being tapped to become the new lead singer of the actual group.

Asked in a 2014 interview with Russia's Classic Rock magazine how much of "Rock Star" was styled after him, Tim said: "When they first [got the idea to do] the 'Rock Star' movie [under its original name 'Metal God'], it was really gonna be about me. And then JUDAS PRIEST pulled away from it, because they didn't like some things. So [the producers] really made their own movie, I think. The similarities were that I auditioned for JUDAS PRIEST and I sang one line of a song and hit a note and made the band. But then a lot of the things, they kind of went out… I mean, I wasn't that kind of fan when I made the band, because I was that kind of crazy kid in high school in the '80s. But this was 1996, so I wasn't living at my parents' with posters on the walls. I mean, it was still pretty cool. I mean, to have a movie loosely based on you is pretty cool."

Regarding whether it was ironic that the "Rock Star" movie became almost prophetic in the sense that Mark Wahlberg's character in the film ends up playing small clubs with his own material after the band's original lead singer rejoins the group, Owens said: "For me, the movie was almost [like real life]. Rob [Halford] came back [to JUDAS PRIEST], which was good for me, to be honest. My career, I went on to do a lot of stuff. It was better for the band, it was better for Rob. So it was kind of funny. I think I became a little bit bigger than the coffee shop singer that Mark Wahlberg was in the movie in the end, just playing there. I still get to play in front of thousands of people in Russia. But it is similar how he went on to do his own thing."

Owens joined PRIEST in 1996 after being discovered when PRIEST drummer Scott Travis was given a videotape of Tim performing with the PRIEST cover band BRITISH STEEL. JUDAS PRIEST at the time was seeking a replacement for Halford, who has since rejoined the band. Asked in an interview with The Vinyl Guide podcast what kind of advice or preparation he had for stepping into those shoes, Owens said: "Well, listen, I was confident. They were confident with my voice. I knew some fans wouldn't like me, but I also knew that I could sing really good, and I could sing really good live. One advantage I felt I had as a singer was I could sing what I recorded in the studio; whatever I recorded, I'm gonna be able to sing that live. And I felt when fans came to the show, they would be happy that they have someone who's coming in the JUDAS PRIEST that could still keep the voice going. So if someone didn't like me, there's nothing I could do. K.K. [Downing, then-PRIEST guitarist] used to always say, ''The proof is in the pudding. Come to the show and see.' And I think a lot of people used to come to the shows and they just couldn't wait to hate me. They hated me showing up and wanted me to fail. And so many of 'em, I'd win 'em over when I started singing, because they could tell that I loved it; I loved what I was singing, and I wanted to do the songs justice. So I always felt confident."

Addressing the fact that the two albums PRIEST recorded with Owens — 1997's "Jugulator" and 2001's "Demolition" — sold poorly, and he was ultimately pushed out to clear the way for the return of Halford, Tim said: "It was a really bad time of heavy metal. So it wasn't like I joined them in the heyday. I mean, when Rob left JUDAS PRIEST, they were playing in front of a couple thousand people on the 'Painkiller' tour, a lot of shows So, it really wasn't a great time of heavy metal. So I understood that, and I understood people would want Rob back. But all I cared about was getting on stage and sound[ing good]. I just wanted the band to be happy and me to be happy with me doing it. That's all I worried about."

He added: "I know a lot of the the musicians at the time, especially the hair metal bands, because hair metal was gone at that time, they hated me in L.A., 'cause they were, like, 'Who's this guy? He comes from Akron, Ohio. What's he done? How's he here?' And I still am the same Ohio guy, [with the] same friends. I have the same attitude. And all of us are the same. I tell musicians this all the time: we're all the same. I mean, nothing different."

Asked if he had any sort of communication or relation with Halford at that time, Owens said: "No, just in the press. They always tried to get us to say mean things and bad things. And every now and then, one of us would say something. Now, this was pre-Internet. So, I couldn't imagine doing that nowadays, how screwed up it would be. But, no, because there was a respect. I don't think Rob liked me much, probably at the time, because someone's going to his band, his songs and singing this, but we always had this respect. And when we met each other, we always had great talks. And I think it made a lot of people mad that we liked each other. I think it made a lot of people mad, and I think it still does. But whenever I've seen him, I love talking to him, and he knows what's going on with me, and he's, like, 'Oh, I see that you're playing in Russia,' whatever."

Tim continued: "Back in those days, [journalists] would have the old tape recorder hidden. Now they could just turn their phone on, and no one would know it. But you would do an interview, and then they go, 'All right, the interview's over.' And then they'd turn the tape recorder off, but they'd have another one going in their pocket trying to get you to say stuff. And you know this, doing interviews, you get people to feel comfortable so you talk like you're friends. And then you just start saying stuff. And I put my foot in my mouth a few times. Oh, now I do all the time, because now — I always do."

In 2019, Owens told Ultimate Guitar that he believes his era of JUDAS PRIEST is largely overlooked. "Yeah, I think it definitely deserves more [attention]," he said. "I mean, they don't do anything. [Laughs] It's kind of amazing that they just totally erased it that they won't play... I mean, 'Burn In Hell' [off 'Jugulator'], the crowd would like to hear 'Burn In Hell'.

"They don't have to give me a tribute or anything, but it would be nice to play a song from... You know, that was a pretty big thing, I did two studio records, two live records, and a DVD, starting from '96 to 2004. So it's kind of crazy that it's just been erased and they won't even play a song from it live, because it is JUDAS PRIEST."

"Demolition" and "Jugulator" are included on "50 Heavy Metal Years Of Music", JUDAS PRIEST's limited-edition box set which contains every official live and studio album to date plus 13 unreleased discs. Released in October 2021, it is the most extensive release of previously unreleased music the band has made from its vast archives.

In a new interview with FaceCulture, SAXON frontman Biff Byford was asked about a possible follow-up to the band's 24th studio album, "Hell, Fire And Damnation", which came out in January 2024 via Silver Lining Music. He said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "We're writing. I've started writing the new album, writing lyrics and titles. The boys have sent me loads of ideas already. So I'm just making a short list of what music we should use, what style we should play in, what songs are slow, fast, medium, good guitar riffs. So, yeah, we're pretty far on. We'll probably start rehearsing the new album maybe June, maybe recording in January, February. So we'll probably have a new album out in late 2026."

Reflecting on "Hell, Fire And Damnation", which marked SAXON's first release with new guitarist Brian Tatler (DIAMOND HEAD),Biff said: "I think it's been a natural progression with our following and the fans with our music. Brian coming into the band added a little bit of a different dynamic to the music writing. So I think that was for a good thing. I think the new album, 'Hellfire', has been voted 'Album Of The Year' on quite a lot of sites and things, so obviously we struck a little bit of good scene with the album, a good flow. So hopefully the next one will be just as good, if not better… Well, it can't always be better, but let's hope. I mean, 'Hellfire' is gonna be hard to beat. That's a pretty perfect album, I think."

"Hell, Fire And Damnation" was produced by Andy Sneap (JUDAS PRIEST, EXODUS, ACCEPT) and Byford, with Sneap mixing and mastering.

"I think this album's one of the best he's done sound-wise, and he's done a lot of albums," Biff previously declared. "It has a really raw, vibrant sound... if you compress the total time making this album, it was four weeks tops… you can hear everything brilliantly, nothing's overcomplicated, nothing's over compressed. The guitar sounds are fucking immense, they're just great, raw guitar sounds. And we haven't done a lot of overdubbing on there; it's just playing. I really, really like it."

In early 2023, SAXON guitarist Paul Quinn announced that he was stepping back from touring with the band. As a result of his decision, SAXON canceled its April 2023 South American tour as well as the appearance at the Monsters Of Rock cruise. Quinn has since been replaced on the road by Tatler.

Brian has been touring with fellow guitarist Doug Scarratt, drummer Nigel Glockler, bassist Tim "Nibbs" Carter and Byford since mid-2023, but continues to be a member of DIAMOND HEAD.

Byford and Quinn are the sole remaining original members in SAXON's current lineup.

Originally from South Yorkshire, England, SAXON has gone on to sell about 23 million albums and has produced such classic songs as "Denim And Leather", "Princess Of The Night", "Wheels Of Steel" and "Power And Glory".

Beginning February 13, 2025, just in time for the return of the METALLICA's "M72" North American tour, Nixon is proud to announce a second collaboration collection with Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame inductees METALLICA. This encore collection, which includes four watches, was born of long-shared mutual respect for upstarts who buck the system and wind up changing it for good.

Nixon x Metallica will be available as of February 13, both in stores and online at Metallica.com, Metallica.ProbityMerch.com (UK),and Nixon.com. The collection includes four hard-rocking models:

* Sentry Stainless Steel "Kill 'Em All" $300

The METALLICA collection continues with the band's debut album cover gracing the dial of the Sentry, including a custom Metallica Barb seconds hand and "Kill 'Em All" hammerhead hour hand.

Sentry Stainless Steel "72 Seasons" $300

The second version of the Sentry in this collection features METALLICA's most recent album cover, "72 Seasons", and its unmistakable yellow. It also features the Metallica Barb seconds hand and leather-textured dial.

Time Teller "Ride The Lightning" $150

The METALLICA collection adds another shocking hit with the "Ride The Lightning" cover on the dial of this Time Teller. The case and band are coated with a special brushed Super Black finish while the hands and wordmarks are hit with a clean black polish.

51-30 "Master Of Puppets" $550 USD

This watch cranks up the volume with the iconic "Master Of Puppets" crosses spanning the expansive sunray dial of the 51-30. To take it a step further, a bushed Super Black finish surrounds the band, case, and bezel.

The 3-link stainless steel easy-to-read 51 mm design that launched the oversized trend, with:

- Unique multilayer "Cross" dial
- Metallica Barb seconds hand
- Textured center links
- Helmet cross embossed crown
- Updated second pressing colorway

Founded in 1998 in Encinitas, California, Nixon is the premium watch and accessories brand for the youth lifestyle market. Focused on making the little stuff better, Nixon began with a small line of team-designed, custom-built watches sold exclusively in specialty boardsport and fashion retailers.

Formed in 1981 by vocalist/guitarist James Hetfield and drummer Lars Ulrich and including guitarist Kirk Hammett and bassist Robert Trujillo, METALLICA has become one of the most influential and successful rock bands in history, selling nearly 125 million albums worldwide and generating more than 17 billion streams while playing to millions of fans on all seven continents — more than 1.3 million of whom belong to the band's fiercely loyal and consistently growing Fifth Member fan club. METALLICA's catalog of multi-platinum studio albums includes "Kill 'Em All", "Ride The Lightning", "Master Of Puppets", "…And Justice For All", "Metallica" (commonly referred to as The Black Album),"Load", "Reload", "St. Anger", "Death Magnetic", "Hardwired…To Self-Destruct" and most recently the Grammy-winning "72 Seasons", released April 14, 2023, on the band's own Blackened Recordings label. METALLICA's awards and accolades include nine Grammy Awards, two American Music Awards, multiple MTV Video Music Awards, a 2009 induction into the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame, and Sweden's Polar Music Prize. In 2017, METALLICA established its own charitable foundation, All Within My Hands, to give back to communities that have supported the band. METALLICA and All Within My Hands have raised over $20 million since inception, including $11.4 million in grants to workforce education, $7.4 million to fight hunger globally, and $5.2 million donated to critical local services around the world.

The Limited Edition Metallica Collection is now available!

Head on over to Nixon.com to shop the full collection.

Posted by Nixon on Thursday, February 13, 2025

Mikael Jan Svanberg, better known as Lord Ahriman, the Swedish musician and composer best known as the primary guitarist, songwriter and sole founding member of black metal band DARK FUNERAL, will undergo his third hernia surgery in March.

On Monday (February 10),Lord Ahriman took to his social media to write: "They say the third time's the charm — but not always, unfortunately. Since my last hernia surgery in February 2023, I've had a nagging feeling something wasn't right, and I was correct. I've developed a new hernia, my third, and I'm ready to address it immediately."

Despite recurring setbacks, Lord Ahriman remains determined to maintain momentum and deliver powerful performances.

"I'm beyond tired of being stuck in this cycle without a chance to fully recover and regain my form," he says. "Balancing touring with ongoing injuries and surgeries has been stressful and exhausting. But I'm optimistic this will be the final setback."

With surgery scheduled immediately after the upcoming South American tour, Lord Ahriman assures fans that no scheduled shows will be affected.

"I recently spoke with the surgery department and secured a date right after our South America tour in March," he says. "This timing gives me ample time to recover before the summer festivals. No shows will be impacted, and I'll perform all planned gigs both before and after the surgery."

As a testament to his resilience, Lord Ahriman shares an exciting glimpse into the future.

"Once I'm through this, and our intense touring schedule winds down, my full focus will be to resume writing music for a new album," he says. "But first, after nearly four months of nonstop touring, it's time for a much-needed vacation."

DARK FUNERAL's latest album, "We Are The Apocalypse", was released in March 2022.

1993 was the year it all began, Lord Ahriman and Blackmoon (1993-1996) founded the infernal war machine we now know as DARK FUNERAL, one of the most intense and prominent black metal acts ever. In January 1994, the legendary self-titled and independently financed debut mini album were recorded at Dan Swanö's Unisound Studio. It was released upon the unexpecting masses on May 4 the same year. The band quickly established themselves as a band to watch. Since then, a lot of things have happened. The band has released seven albums, the lineup has changed, and DARK FUNERAL has toured no less than 45 different countries with acts as DIMMU BORGIR, CANNIBAL CORPSE, DEICIDE, GOATWHORE, ENSLAVED and many more. The band's album "Diabolis Interim" was also nominated as best metal album at P3 Guld awards and "Where Shadows Forever Reign" was awarded twice, by Swedish P3 Guld and Germany's Metal Hammer Award.

A reworked version of DARK FUNERAL's debut album was made available last August via Century Media. "Dark Funeral (30th Anniversary Edition)" was remixed by David Castillo and remastered once again by Thomas "Plec" Johansson.

After a couple of intense years of touring and overcoming challenges, Lord Ahriman shares a personal health update:...

Posted by Lord Ahriman [Dark Funeral] on Monday, February 10, 2025

THE KOVENANT returned to the live stage on December 14, 2024 at the Eindhoven Metal Meeting festival in Eindhoven, the Netherlands. The band, which won a Norwegian Grammy equivalent, called Spellemannsprisen, in 1999 in the category of "Best Hard Rock Album" for the "Nexus Polaris" LP, performed that effort in its entirety at Eindhoven Metal Meeting with a lineup that featured all the original members back in action, including vocalist and bass guitarist Nagash, drummer Hellhammer, keyboardist Sverd, guitarist Astennu and female vocalist Sarah Jezebel Deva.

Professionally filmed video of the "Chariots Of Thunder" performance from the Eindhoven Metal Meeting concert can be seen below.

THE KOVENANT also performed on the 70000 Tons Of Metal cruise in late January and early February, and will appear at the Karmøygeddon Metal Festival in Kopervik, Norway in early May. The band's set included tracks from "Nexus Polaris" and "Animatronic", along with classics from THE KOVENANT's debut album, "In Times Before The Light".

While the band faces challenges with the absence of founding member Psy Coma due to health issues, Knut Magne Valle from the legendary band ARCTURUS has stepped in to ensure that the magic continues to flow seamlessly.

THE KOVENANT was formed in 1993 under the name COVENANT by two black metal artists known as Nagash (Stian Arnesen) and Blackheart (Amund Svensson),who released the debut album, "In Times Before The Light" (1997). The band signed with the German record company Nuclear Blast in 1998 and recruited four other members to form an actual band: Astennu (of DIMMU BORGIR, CARPE TENEBRUM),Sverd (of ARCTURUS),Sarah Jezebel Deva (of CRADLE OF FILTH and others) and Hellhammer (of MAYHEM and others). With these new recruits, they released their second album, "Nexus Polaris", which was hugely successful and is largely considered their best album to date by fans.

Following a dispute with a Swedish electronic band of the same name, in 1999 COVENANT changed its name to THE KOVENANT. The name change also signaled a musical shift into an industrial metal-influenced sound.

In the beginning THE KOVENANT had a sound much similar to DIMMU BORGIR. Indeed, Nagash has played in the band and is a longtime friend to the lead vocalist Shagrath. On the "Nexus Polaris" album, the band developed a more industrial sound but still with a strong symphonic black metal influence. A re-release of "Nexus Polaris" was made in 2002. The original tracks were left untouched but two versions of "New World Order", a song from their 1999 album "Animatronic", were included as a bonus.

On the heels of the tremendous success of "The Morrison Project" and No. 1 song "Crack Cocaine", rock guitarist Billy Morrison and Ozzy Osbourne release an epic new single "Gods Of Rock N Roll" today, Valentine's Day, through TLG|ZOID, distributed by Virgin Music Group. Fans got their first listen when Ozzy's Boneyard on SiriusXM premiered the song on January 17, and now the song is already a Top 20 Billboard Mainstream Rock hit coming in at No. 18 this week.

Morrison says: "Ozzy and I have breathed new life into what we always felt was a huge song. 'Gods Of Rock N Roll' was written ten years ago in a South American hotel room, but with this re-recording we both feel we have finally made the song what it was always meant to be — a huge emotive ballad."

He adds: "A huge portion of the song was completely re-recorded, the 61-piece Budapest Scoring Orchestra recorded the orchestral score composed by Fred Coury, and then the John Burroughs High School choir were added. Barry Pointer had the unenviable task of mixing 132 tracks and he did an incredible job. The end result is what happens when Ozzy Osbourne makes some suggestions, and Billy Morrison listens!"

The orchestral score was composed and arranged by Fred Coury, and the song was mixed by Barry Pointer and mastered by David Donnelly. The recording features the renowned Budapest Scoring Orchestra. "Gods Of Rock N Roll" showcases the talents of Billy Morrison on guitar, Ozzy Osbourne on vocals, and Steve Stevens on lead guitar.

The video can be seen below.

Morrison states: "Having the opportunity to include everyone that was involved in the making of 'Gods Of Rock N Roll' and shoot it all for the video at NRG Studios was a dream come true for me. It was an amazing vibe. Ivo, the director, captured the intimacy, and the fun that we had, and I believe the video truly represents the spirit of the song that Ozzy and I wrote. It's wide reaching, cinematic and shows just how amazing Ozzy is to work with. I'm honored to be putting this out into the world."

Ozzy told Kerrang!: "Billy and I wrote 'Gods Of Rock N Roll' together in a hotel room while I was touring in South America about 10 years ago. This re-recorded version of the song finally has all the bells and whistles. I told Billy then that it needed an orchestra and a choir, but it took 10 FUCKING YEARS for him to listen to me."

To add to the excitement, Morrison is set to release a deluxe digital edition of "The Morrison Project" album on February 21. This special edition will be released through TLG|ZOID, distributed by Virgin Music Group. The deluxe edition features six previously unreleased bonus tracks, including "Gods Of Rock N Roll". There is also a "stripped down" mix of just the orchestra and Ozzy that will be available soon.

Morrison explains: "I have always wanted the opportunity to do an expanded, 'deluxe' version of a record. It's basically where you get to have some fun, remix some things, and include songs that mean something personal. Thanks to the guys at TLG|ZOID, I have been given that opportunity! So to have Youth from KILLING JOKE actually mix an amazing dub version of 'We Are The Dead', to have Jeff Lane throw down an incredibly different remix of 'Crack Cocaine', and to have my track with CYPRESS HILL all on the extra disc is just a fantastic feeling! Plus I got the opportunity to remix 'Dystopia' myself and did the whole half-time vibe that I was originally playing with, back when I wrote it."

The original version of "Gods Of Rock N Roll" was the closing track on Morrison's sophomore album, 2015's "God Shaped Hole". Billy released his first solo album, "Stimulator", in 2008.

Ozzy previously made an appearance on Morrison's third solo album and first since 2015, "The Morrison Project", which came out in April 2024 via TLG|ZOID.

The British guitarist, singer, and songwriter — primarily known as Billy Idol's rhythm guitar player for the past 15 years alongside Stevens, and for his previous role as bassist in THE CULT — assembled 12 songs including additional guest performances by Idol, DMC, Al Jourgensen, Steve Vai, Steve Stevens, Linda Perry, Tommy Clufetos andJohn 5.

The LP's second single, "Crack Cocaine", featured Osbourne and Stevens, with Clufetos on drums.

"Crack Cocaine" marked the first new song with Ozzy on vocals since the 2022 release of his worldwide smash album "Patient Number 9" which earned him two Grammy Awards ("Best Rock Album", "Best Metal Performance").

"The Morrison Project" was produced by Billy Morrison, mixed by Barry Pointer and mastered by Dave Donnelly. All the songs on the album — recorded in Los Angeles at various studios — were written by Billy Morrison in collaboration with his guests.

Ozzy and Billy are longtime friends who co-host the "Ozzy Speaks" show on SiriusXM.

In an interview with Rolling Stone, Osbourne stated about Morrison: "Billy Morrison has been a good, good friend for such a long, long time. He's helped me out a lot of times over the years."

Asked what he and Morrison have in common on a musical level, Osbourne laughed and said: "Well, we're both fucking crazy."

Photo credit: Jane Stuart @JaneStuartPhotos