In support of their upcoming studio album, Embers, due out this Friday via Napalm Records, progressive psych-and krautrock trio God Is An Astronaut present their brand new single, "Odyssey". The track provides an exhilarating ride blending all facets of the band's incredible songwriting skills.


God Is An Astronaut reveal: "'Odyssey' is the echo of loss, born from the raw grief of our father’s passing. A journey of sound — acoustic guitars, cello, sitars, and heavy riffs — leading through sorrow, finding light in a psychedelic crescendo. It’s not just a tribute, but a space where sorrow and joy become one."







Founded by brothers Torsten and Niels Kinsella, God Is An Astronaut has mesmerized audiences worldwide with their distinctive sonic tapestry both in dynamic live performances and through their recorded works. Amidst their perpetual whirlwind of touring, the band emerges once more with their freshly crafted studio album Embers.


The Irish trio has once again created an exceptional collection of songs, inviting listeners to explore and interpret it in their own unique ways. Embers represents God Is An Astronaut's most extensive, personal and grandiose production to date. From the very first note to the lingering resonance of its finale, Embers quietly but confidently affirms their mastery of their craft: From psych- to excellent krautrock trips, driving rhythms by drummer Lloyd Hanney and collaborations with guest musicians including Dara O'Brien, Jo Quail and Sean Coleman further enrich the album's sonic space, incorporating elements such sitar, cello, zither, shamanic drums, bowed psaltery, chimes and tanpura.


Featuring artwork by the internationally renowned Irish artist David Rooney and mastered by Europe's foremost mastering engineer Streaky, with their brand new progressive, psychedelic and instrumental post-rock opus God Is An Astronaut will achieve remarkable heights.





Embers will be available in the following formats:


- 2LP Gatefold Marbled Oxblood Black with Artprint & Slipmat  
- 2LP Gatefold Transparent Yellow (Vinyl 1) / Transilia (Vinyl 2)  
- 2LP Gatefold Glow In The Dark
- 2LP Gatefold Black
- 6 Page Digipak
- Music Cassette Black with Gold Print


Pre-order here.





Tracklisting:


"Apparition"
"Falling Leaves"
"Odyssey"
"Heart Of Roots"
"Embers"
"Realms"
"Oscillation"
"Prism"
"Hourglass"


"Embers" video:





"Falling Leaves" video:

Continuing their journey towards consolidation as new talents in Chilean death metal, Enchiridion Mortis Aeterna (EMA) returns with a new single titled “Ethereal”, which is now available on all streaming platforms and which was also released in lyric video format. The song once again testifies to the unbridled display of powerful guitar riffs and insane drums that are characteristic of the quartet from Santiago.


Active since 2022, the band delighted Latin American bangers at the beginning of this year with their EP Necher Jertet released last January. This tune joins the songs from that first release to move forward towards an album that will be called The Book Of The Dead, a conceptual work that tells the story behind the writing of that funerary text from Ancient Egypt that consisted of a series of magical spells intended to help the deceased overcome the judgment of Osiris, assist them in their journey through the underworld and travel to paradise in the afterlife.


“We are in the process of expanding our horizons and professionalizing our band to reach more people and start looking for spaces where we can present our musical proposal live,” says the band. “The lyrics allude to the divine element of ether that was lost along with our creation and condemned us to serve the creators. But that element will one day awaken and arrive along with a new era in humanity,” adds its author, singer Aldo Roblero.




EMA, in addition to Aldo, is made up of guitarist Rodrigo Cuello, who also produced, recorded, mixed and mastered this material at Murder Studios. Along with them, Pablo Cáceres plays bass and Sebastiá

In a new interview with Roppongi Rocks' Stefan Nilsson, DEEP PURPLE keyboardist Don Airey spoke about his plans to release a new solo album. He said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "Well, I've always kept the solo… I had my own band. That's how we found Simon [McBride, new DEEP PURPLE guitarist], 'cause Simon became part of my band, and a very big part of it. We started writing together, and it was a very good partnership. And I always had it in my head, 'If Steve [Morse, former DEEP PURPLE guitarist] decides to leave PURPLE, we won't have to look very far for someone.'"

He continued: "But we've got an album in the can that we did before lockdown. We did most of it before lockdown and we finished it after lockdown, put the vocals on after lockdown. And that's in the can with earMUSIC. And I think that's gonna come out at the end of March."

Asked if the upcoming album will feature Simon on guitar, Don replied: "Yeah, yeah, but it's under my name. It's like a solo album, but, really, it's just my band playing it. I think it's gonna be called 'Push To The Edge'."

It is hard to find a name amongst all those that over the last 35 years have left their mark in the history of rock that has not utilized Don's keyboard skills at some point. The list includes OZZY OSBOURNE, RAINBOW, WHITESNAKE, JUDAS PRIEST, Gary Moore, Brian May, JETHRO TULL, BLACK SABBATH and, obviously, DEEP PURPLE, the band of which Airey has been a full-time member for over 20 years.

In 2022, the now-76-year-old Airey told Rolling Stone magazine that there is no concrete plan for him and his DEEP PURPLE bandmates to stop playing live shows.

"We started the farewell tour in 2017. It was due to end in 2019," he noted. "But the thing is, when you're a musician in a band, you think you're in control of it, but you're not. The business is running you.

"Of course, there was so much demand for the band to continue from the promoters and agents that we said, 'Okay, we'll do one more year.'"

Regarding when he thinks DEEP PURPLE will finally call it quits, Don said: "The words of T.S. Eliot [the greatest English-language poet of his generation] come to mind: 'This is the way the band ends. Not with a bang, but with a whimper.' I think we won't know it's the last gig. We won't have a clue that this one is going to be the last one. That's how it's going to end. It's going to be no big scenario.

"I like what Buddy Guy said. He said, 'Musicians don't retire. They drop.' You do have thoughts about being in the garden and bouncing the grandchildren on your knee, but it's part of your blood system, playing and touring. It's an addiction. I hope I keep playing for a while yet."

DEEP PURPLE's latest album, "=1", came out on July 19 via earMUSIC.

KINGS NEVER DIE are set to release their brand new studio album “The Life & Times” on October 25th on Metalville Records.

Following the release of their debut LP ‘All The Rats’ in 2023 and their European tour together with ‘Dog Eat Dog’, ‘Kings Never Die’ began work on their follow-up album. After drummer Danny Schuler left to return to ‘Bioharzard’, Dan Nastasi asked his long-time friend John ‘Booge’ Milnes (Mucky Pup) to help with the recordings.

Nastasi says, ‘The writing and recording process has been very different for us from the first EPs to “All The Rats” to now. And this album was no different. We basically had 10-15 new songs in the works. After we got home from tour at the end of November, we decided it was best to start working on a new album right away. I basically locked myself in my home studio for 4 weeks and got into the writing process, writing new songs and working on ideas we already had. After that me, Evan and John Milnes rehearsed with the rhythm section for 4 weeks and then immediately went to Shore Fire Studios in Long Branch NJ to start recording. 3 days later we headed to PA to Rock Hard Studios and finished the rest of the guitars and vocals. We drove back to NJ and mixed the album.’

The result is „The Life & Times“. And although it is not a concept album, the album is exactly what the title suggests. Side A, the life side, with the title track ‘The Life & Times’ and other songs based on personal stories. Side B, the time side, really reflects on the times we live in and takes a good look at the youth or younger generations and the struggles they may face in the future.

Nastasi said. „One thing I’ve learnt from working with Danny Schuler is that every word you write or every lyric in a song has to have a meaning to you or something that people can relate to. I feel like it really helped me tell a story through the lyrics that I wrote on our last album, but especially on „The Life & Times.“


Arguably the most important songs on ‘Life & Times’ are without a doubt ‘Bigger They Come, Harder They Fall’, which was originally intended for the previous album. The title track and ‘Empathy’ are also anthem-like tracks with catchy vocals and bounce. ‘Underdog’ was written by Nastasi as a thank you to his late father for his life experiences and in recognition of the drive and ambition he instilled in him.

„Most people think that this album is a return to our original hardcore and punk rock style“, says the band, and it’s obvious that vocally they have returned to a two-singer style, with Gadino and Nastasi sharing vocals.

KINGS NEVER DIE is 100% authentic and it’s obvious that the music comes from the heart, both lyrically and emotionally. ‘The Life & Times’ is clearly the band’s greatest achievement to date.

TRACK LISTING
01 The Life & Times
02 Bigger They Come, Harder They Fall
03 Never Let Go
04 Empathy
05 Can I Get A Witness
06 Underdog
07 Kill The Cowards
08 War & Youth
09 The Rights
10 Slow Crawl
11 If God Is Dead

MUSICIANS
Dan Nastasi – Guitar/Vocals (original Mucky Pup/Dog Eat Dog)
Dylan Gadino – Vocals
Evan Ivkovich – Bass (Wisdom in Chains)
Larry “The Hunter” Nieroda – Guitar
Dougie Beans – Drums (originally Murphys Law)

Wormholedeath is thrilled to announce the signing of the French modern metal force, PYRAH. The band’s highly anticipated album, “Veni Vidi Delevi,” is set to obliterate the senses on September 20th, 2024.

PYRAH is a force of nature in the metal scene, blending brutal technicality with haunting melodies and soft, lingering moments that will keep listeners on their toes. With a unique sound that spans the spectrum of metal, from ferocious and aggressive to introspective and poetic, their music promises an intense auditory experience. Fans of Once Human, Jinjer, and Vexed will find much to admire in PYRAH’s intricate and powerful compositions.

The band’s path to this moment has been anything but conventional. After the success of their 2019 single “Stumble” from Part of the Ghost World, PYRAH embarked on their most ambitious project yet. Despite navigating lineup changes and a self-production journey that tested their limits, their efforts caught the discerning eye of WormholeDeath. The result? Veni Vidi Delevi—a powerful reflection of their growth, infused with a darker, more aggressive edge inspired by their Italian studio surroundings and personal introspection.


1. Death From Above
2. My Only Solace
3. These Silent Halls
4. Mind Reset
5. Obey
6. Veni Vidi Delevi
7. Dancing With Devils
8. End Of The Slope
9. Sea Of Faces
10. Cursed To Fail
11. Guidance From Within
12. Constant Chatter

Get ready to immerse yourself in a world of crushing riffs, soaring vocals, and thought-provoking lyrics. PYRAH’s music is a sonic journey that will leave you breathless.

Get a preview of their sound with the official video for “My Only Solace”:

In a new interview with Ken Vantour of Let's Rock, JUDAS PRIEST guitarist Richie Faulkner was asked if hearing the guitar solo in EXTREME's song "Rise", which has been described by Guitar World magazine as "one of the 21st century's finest", makes him try harder to up his game. He responded (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "I think there's always an element, always has been, especially since I've joined PRIEST. You go from becoming a mediocre guitar player in a cover band to a mediocre guitar player in a real band. You know what I mean? So you've gotta think, like, 'Well, I can't do that stuff anymore. What am I gonna say? What's my fingerprint gonna be — a literal fingerprint? What's my voice gonna be?' So Nuno, Glenn [Tipton], K.K. [Downing]… I remember [PRIEST's] first 'Epitaph' tour, we were out with BLACK LABEL SOCIETY and THIN LIZZY. So it was Scott Gorham, Damon Johnson, Zakk Wylde. How can you not raise your game or try to…? They raised the bar and you've gotta keep it there and keep it up there. And Nuno [Bettencourt, EXTREME guitarist] is no exception."

Faulkner continued: "We were just out with [EXTREME] — we played a couple of shows with them in Europe. And I watched from the side of the stage. And we were on right after them. So we have to go and get our [outfits] on, our leather and studs. So I couldn't watch the whole show. And I wanted to see the 'Rise' solo, but they put it at the fucking end of the show, so I couldn't see the solo. And that's what I wanted to see. But we met up with them after, and Nuno was very complimentary."

Circling back how he gets inspired by watching other guitarists play, Richie added: "I think everyone's got their own fingerprint, whether you like it or not. Even if you consider yourself a mediocre guitar player, you've got something that no one else has got, and that's my saving grace, anyway. You've got your own voice somewhere in there. But yeah, those guys always raise the bar. I was at a Joe Bonamassa gig last night, and Joe, along with Nuno, one of the best guitar players in the world, bar none. He knows his audience, he knows his band, he knows his instrument. And I've known Joe for a while now, maybe 15 years now, and he never ceases to amaze me. The mastery — you walk away from there and you wanna get back in the studio and it fires you up to raise the bar, to do better. That's what inspiration is — it's pure inspiration. That never ends, really.

"So, yeah, Nuno — without a doubt, without a doubt."

"Rise" was the first single to be shared from EXTREME's latest studio album, "Six", which arrived in June 2023 via earMUSIC.

Nuno played "Rise" live with his bandmates for the first time on May 1, 2023 during EXTREME's concert aboard the Monsters Of Rock cruise.

"Rise" has seen unprecedented success following its debut on March 1, 2023 alongside a fiery music video which has received nearly five million views to date. The critically acclaimed song has earned praise from international top tier media outlets, including Consequence, Classic Rock, Music Radar and Guitar World, in addition to accolades from such fellow musical peers as Brian May (QUEEN) and radio personality Howard Stern while peaking at No. 3 on the classic rock charts.

Fan-filmed video of PANTERA's August 30 performance at Lumen Field in Seattle, Washington as the support act for METALLICA can be seen below (courtesy of FirstRowConcert).

Prior to launching a five-date U.K./Ireland run in late February 2025, the reformed PANTERA, consisting of classic-lineup members Philip Anselmo (vocals) and Rex Brown (bass),along with Zakk Wylde (guitar) and Charlie Benante (drums),will kick off a European tour on January 21, 2025 in Helsinki, Finland and hit cities in Sweden, Norway, Denmark, Netherlands, Slovenia, Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland, Germany, Belgium, Italy, Switzerland before concluding that portion of the trek on February 15 in Paris, France.

The five-show U.K./Ireland run will launch at the OVO Hydro arena in Glasgow on February 18 before continuing the following night (February 19) at First Direct Arena in Leeds, a gig at the 3Arena in Dublin on February 21, making a stop at BP Pulse Live in Birmingham on February 23, and concluding at London's OVO Arena Wembley on February 25.

In a recent interview with Sweetwater, Brown spoke about the decision to tour with a reformed version of PANTERA. The lineup has reportedly been given a green light by the estates of PANTERA's founders, drummer Vincent "Vinnie Paul" Abbott and guitarist "Dimebag" Darrell Abbott. Rex said: "The last show, man, I had a creepy, like a cold — something came by me. It felt like there was a cold feeling. And I've gotten this a couple of times before. When we were down recording with Charlie — me and Charlie just went down [in late 2022], put up eighty to a hundred hours of tape before Zakk [started rehearsing with us]. Zakk was still on the road. So we wanted to get the bass and the drum real tight, and we had this scratch guitar player. I felt that same chill. And, to me, they're angels. And I think you know who they are. Those guys, I think they're looking down, or they're looking around us, with us, and I think they're digging what they're seeing, man. I really do. And that's the only kind of way I can look at it, and get as close as we can with Charlie and Zakk. And God, it's getting really, really good. And there's so much more potential to get even tighter."

Speaking about the opportunity to perform PANTERA's music to new generations of fans who never saw the band before, Rex said: "There's a lot of memories in this band that are hard to put down. And losing the brothers, I just never in a million years thought that something like that would happen. Here we are 22 years later, and to see these new fans' faces. You've got one kid sitting there, or man, woman or child crying, and you have this other guy just going, 'You did it right.' It's just amazing."

In April, Rex spoke to American Musical Supply about how touring with PANTERA in 2024 is different from how it was in the band's heyday. He said: "This is a completely different thing, man. We have Charlie and Zakk now, and they're just — number one, they've been great friends of ours for all these years. We get along extra super cool. Charlie and I went down, probably put about eighty, hundred hours on tape of all the songs we were gonna do for the set, and others that we would want to do. Charlie and I worked on this for six months before we ever got into a rehearsal room. That's just how good friends we are. Charlie has been one of my best friends for years. So, this is another band. It's hard to fill the shoes of the brothers. At the same time, this has become a really tight unit. And Zakk just puts the extra… Dime was a very unique guitar player, and he was my best friend, and it's good to see those boys up on the screens and with us. And that's what this is about tonight, for me."

Regarding how he and the rest of the current PANTERA lineup have balanced honoring the band's legacy with any new creative goals they might have, Rex said: "There's many ways that we wanna keep this legacy alive, 'cause the music is still played all over. We have a whole new generation of fans that, they probably wouldn't have heard this stuff if we weren't playing out here playing these shows. And so, that generation of fans — let's say the 15-to-18-year-old kids that come out — they'll shortly have children, and that keeps that new generation alive. And Phillip even says it in the set, the parents of the '90s, which I'm a parent of the '90s, it's a very important statement in the set because it's about the gratitude.

"We're not doing this for ourselves; we're doing it for the name and the brand PANTERA," he continued. "And by God, this music needs to be heard again. It does. It needed to for a long fucking time. And that's what we're here doing tonight… It's just wonderful to be able to do this and pay homage to my music, the riffs that I wrote, or the riffs that Dime wrote, or the patterns that Vinnie played, and for what Phil came up with — tremendous impact on this music."

Also in April, Rex told Rolling Stone Australia about performing with PANTERA in 2024: "Two of our beloved brothers that just aren't here anymore man, that's life, you know? They're just not with us man. That's just fate; it's the way the ball rolls, dude."

He added: "This is no tribute band — Philip and I get to play these songs of ours that we haven't played in 23 years. And to be able to do that and connect with the enormity of what's happened is just extraordinarily fucking insane, you know?"

Regarding PANTERA's latest additions, Rex said: "We knew who would fit and who wouldn't. We knew what the obstacles were in front of us, and we knew after… I'll put it this way — Charlie and I came down in September [2022] before we played that [first] show in December [2022], and we have probably one hundred hours of tape of us playing every fucking PANTERA song that I could remember. And so, you know, me and Charlie lockin' in like that… the drummer and the bass player, that's your foundation. So when Zakk came in, there were certain things we had to go over and over and over, to get tight. And today, this band is about as tight and about as badass as I fucking want. You know what I mean, and that's all I'm gonna say on that."

"But, man, this band is on fuckin' fire, and I couldn't be happier, man," he added. "I just can't explain that as much as I need to, I could not be happier."

Rex previously told AndrewHaug.com that he was "absolutely" open to writing new music with the reformed version of PANTERA. "Yeah, I could tell you more but I'm not going to," he teased.

Earlier in the chat, Brown talked about what is has been like to go out and perform as PANTERA to a whole new generation of fans.

"You can't see it on the YouTube. You can't feel that vibe until you actually come to the show," he explained. "And we haven't been doing interviews just for the fact we want people just to come to the show. It's not about anything prior past or present that I wanna talk about today — just the show tonight.

"We're pinching ourselves over these new fans that have never seen this before, and it's a whole another generation that we either didn't know a) that were out there, b) that were still listening to us, and the turnout has just been unbelievable," Rex continued. "Of course, at first you had the naysayers and all that stuff, and as we played gig by gig, it's made us tighter. And I've been trying to rehearse this band as much as I can within schedules, and we'll just go down for no fucking reason and just jam. That's what makes a band tight."

The reformed PANTERA is headlining a number of major festivals across North America, South America and Europe and staging some of its own headline concerts. They are also supporting METALLICA on a massive stadium tour in 2024.

It was first reported in July 2022 that Anselmo and Brown would unite with Wylde and Benante for a world tour under the PANTERA banner.

Asked how it feels playing those "timeless" songs again, Rex told AndrewHaug.com: "You just said it — they're timeless. So getting to play them again is a… These were a big part of Philip and I's songs too. Of course, respect to the brothers. I think that looking down on us and giving us a big — and they're with us. It's just uncanny. That's the glue. Those guys are hanging around with us.

"Look, I'm not some crazy old man, man. I know that we're here for reasons," Rex added. "And this time he gave us a heavy load, and we have come through in spades. And I'm very proud of Charlie and Zakk and Phillip for stepping up… All of us [were very close back in the day]. We were intertwined. There was a close-knit family of friends — Jerry Cantrell and all those guys, ALICE IN CHAINS. We were all brothers and we all had each other's backs — even as fucked up as we got. We're fine now, I'll put it that way. But it's just such a different time and we're older men and can appreciate this more. And I feel 25 years younger, man. It's just insane."

Addressing complaints from some fans that Brown and Anselmo are going out and touring under the PANTERA name even though Dimebag and Vinnie Paul are not involved, Rex said: "I don't call it anything. I call it PANTERA. The show itself is a celebration of the lives of all four of us. Two are sadly not with us, and we cannot bring them back. God, do I want them back. But that's just not possible. So we're doing the best thing that we can to keep our music alive. And I think they're smiling down and saying, 'You guys are doing all right, man.' And they're with us. And I'm not shittin' you."

Asked what his initial thoughts were when he was first approached about relaunching PANTERA as a touring act, Rex said: "Philip and I talked for several months before. He got on the phone and said, 'Hey, man, you wanna do it? I didn't have — maybe a six-second… not a hesitation, but just to wrap my head around the full gravity of the enormity of it. I went, 'Okay, I've got a couple of questions.' And, man, ever since that call we've worked really, really hard to get this thing going. And we've jumped over a lot of mountains."

Up until his passing in June 2018, Vinnie remained on non-speaking terms with Anselmo, whom the drummer indirectly blamed for Dimebag's death.

Vinnie Paul and Dimebag co-founded PANTERA. On December 8, 2004, while performing with DAMAGEPLAN at the Alrosa Villa in Columbus, Ohio, Dimebag was shot and killed onstage by a troubled schizophrenic who believed that the members of PANTERA were stealing his thoughts.

Vinnie, who was Dimebag's brother, and Anselmo had not spoken since PANTERA split in 2003. But the relationship got even more acrimonious when Vinnie suggested that some remarks the vocalist had made about Dimebag in print just weeks earlier might have incited Dimebag's killer.

Thrash metal mavens, Nervosa, performed at Bloodstock Open Air 2024, in Walton-on-Trent, England on August 9. Professionally-filmed video of the band's entire set can be viewed below.


Setlist:


"Seed of Death" 
"Death!"
"Kill the Silence" 
"Perpetual Chaos" 
"Venomous" 
"Masked Betrayer" 
"Jailbreak"
"Guided by Evil" 
"Endless Ambition"







After their set, Nervosa vocalist / guitarist Prika Amaral and drummer Gabriela Abud spoke wtih Bloodstock TV’s Oran O’Beirne about the band's latest lineup changes, new music, and Sepultura’s retirement. The complete interview can be seen below; an excerpt has been transcribed as follows:


Prika Amaral: "All the girls that played in Nervosa were good for a certain period, and then things changed, like everything in our lives... But this time for me particular it was completely different because I have to start to sing; something that I never did before. Everything came up last minute, so I had to learn very quick. It's a huge challenge, because also I had new members in the band. So, it's many things to manage. So, this was a really big challenge for me. That's why it was the difference. Like, wow! Now I felt the difference of the lineup change."





Nervosa is about to embark upon their first ever headline tour of the US and Canada, beginning August 29. On the road for nearly a month-and-a-half, the tour will visit major locations such as Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Vancouver, Brooklyn, Montreal and Chicago - including seven total stops in Canada - coming to an end in mid-October. The tour will feature support from Lich King and Hatriot. Get your tickets here.


Nervosa's Prika Amaral about the upcoming North American tour: "We're excited to be coming to North America with an awesome lineup of new wave thrash metal. We have waited so long to get back and will be bringing a very special show for you all! Don't wait, get your tickets & VIP now. It's our jailbreak!"





Tour dates:


August
31 - Iowa City, IA - Wildwood


September
1 - Lincoln, NE - Cosmic Eye
2 - Denver, CO - HQ
4 - Salt Lake City, UT - Aces High Saloon
5 - Boise, ID - The Shredder
6 - Vancouver, BC, Canada - The Rickshaw Theater
7 - Seattle, WA - El

A year after their break-out third album, 2023's Näe'bliss, which had its single "Fisher King" nominated by Calgary's YYC Music Awards for "Metal Recording of The Year", power prog storytellers Red Cain return in 2024 with their first taste of new music.


Entitled "Firestarter", this first single of 2024 is loosely based on the lore of the action role-playing game Elden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtree. The band spent a lot of their time this year playing this fantastic release. 


Elden Ring is not only a brilliant game and a visual masterpiece, but also a storytelling phenomenon that deliberately has lore gaps to let fans and players create their own stories and interpretations of the lore. This strongly resonates with Red Cain's approach as musicians, as they always write music for their fans to read in unique ways and weave into their mythology.




"Firestarter" is also a new statement for Red Cain, as they continue to embrace a modern sound and reinvent their songwriting. You will hear a lot more groove and synth backing on this one, along with the same anthemic hooks, technical riffs, and vocal layering they are known for.

With roaring drums, ancient melodies, and the timeless whisper of Norse gods, Season of Mist proudly announces the signing of DANHEIM, the groundbreaking Nordic folk project helmed by Danish producer and musician, Reidar Schæfer Olsen.

Danheim, a titan of the Nordic folk scene, melds Viking age inspiration with an authentic Nordic ambiance, delivering a sound experience steeped in dark mythology and evocative storytelling. Reidar shares his heartfelt excitement:

“I’m truly grateful for the opportunity to work with Season of Mist. This partnership allows me to protect my creative work while giving me the freedom to focus entirely on making music that speaks to the spirit of my Viking heritage. Soon, you’ll be able to experience my music in new ways—through CDs, Vinyl and exclusive merchandise. I’m also excited to start working on new single releases and a new album under their banner.“

Danheim already stands as a colossus in the realm of Nordic folk with a staggering one billion streams and more than 585,000 dedicated YouTube subscribers. Known for tracks that transport listeners back to the Viking era, Danheim’s music has also been featured prominently in the hit TV series Vikings. His collaboration with Season of Mist promises new horizons, with upcoming singles and a brand-new album on the horizon, while remaining tethered to the soul of ancient Scandinavian lore.

More information:

Danheim is a Nordic folk/Viking-inspired project from the Copenhagen-based Danish producer Reidar Schæfer Olsen, a man with 10 years of experience in electronic and ambient music. He focuses on Nordic Folk and Viking-age inspired music with an authenticity or mood. His music is often composed of ideas and stories based on the darker side of the Viking period, inspired or consisting of Nordic Mythology, old Danish folklore and a vivid imagination.

Danheim hit 1 billion streams across streaming platforms in 2022. He has 585,000 subscribers on YouTube and has music featured in multiple seasons of the popular TV show Vikings.

Singer-songwriter Reidar Schæfer Olsen, (born in 1985, Brøndby, Denmark), transitioned to focus on music in the early 2000s and has been composing music almost continuously ever since, alongside doing radio shows and starting the indie label Fimbul Records.

With a passion for songwriting running through his veins from an early age, Reidar Olsen’s Viking-inspired music and dark melodies have broadened the Nordic folk genre and inspired millions of listeners around the world, bringing them back in time with a blend of his imagination and creativity.

ASINHELL, the new death metal band featuring VOLBEAT's Michael Poulsen, Marc Grewe (INSIDIOUS DISEASE, ex-MORGOTH) and Morten Toft Hansen (RAUNCHY),played the final concert of its 2024 run of shows on August 31 at the Næstved Metalfest in Næstved, Denmark. Fan-filmed video of the performance can be seen below.

Grewe has since taken to his social media to write: "Our show in Næstved marked the last show of the ASINHELL'Impii Hora' touring activities…

"I would like to thank my brothers Jacob, Flemming, Morten and Michael for an incredible ride throughout the last months, as well as our incredibly professional and hard-working crew, who made these last 3 months such a smooth and memorable experience…

"Only one year ago nobody would have thought that this would actually happen, as ASINHELL wasn't initially meant to be a touring band… but YOU… the fans and OSDM supporters made it actually possible…very humbled and thankful for that…I am pretty sure we'll meet again".

ASINHELL made its live debut on May 30 at Pumphuset in Copenhagen, Denmark.

Næstved Metalfest was the final show of ASINHELL's European tour in support of the band's debut album, "Impii Hora", which arrived in September 2023 via Metal Blade. The trek included festivals as well as intimate club shows.

Joining ASINHELL on the road were legendary Danish producer Jacob Hansen (ex-INVOCATOR) on bass as well as Flemming C. Lund of THE ARCANE ORDER on lead guitar, making the band's first live incarnation the same lineup that performed on "Impii Hora".

When ASINHELL's tour was first announced, Poulsen said in a statement: "It's time to bring the ASINHELL show to live (life)! Can't wait to go out and share the metal and horns with you all. See you ghouls out there very soon."

Added Grewe: "ASINHELL was never planned as a live band, but after the overwhelming reactions to our debut album, 'Impii Hora', we all had the same impulse: 'we have to bring the songs to the stage!' So here we are, and it's going to be fantastic to be sharing the stage with my good friends Michael, Morten, Jacob and Flemming. They are incredibly talented musicians, and it will be an honor for me to unfold the power of our songs full throttle in smaller clubs as well as the biggest festival stages I never dared to dream of playing… I really hope to meet a lot of you guys out there in June and enjoy a good dose of OSDM together… see ya in the pit!"

Morten Toft Hansen said: "I am excited to get out there and play the songs live. I'm sure the shows are gonna be full of fun and energy and it's gonna be great to meet some of our new fans out there."

For more than 20 years, vocalist/guitarist Poulsen has been spearheading Danish rock and roll machine VOLBEAT, releasing eight full-lengths, selling millions of albums, and filling stadiums worldwide. Before fronting VOLBEAT, however, Poulsen formed death metal band DOMINUS, which recorded four fast, brutal albums in the mid-'90s.

When Poulsen was putting together songs for VOLBEAT's 2021 album "Servant Of The Mind", he wrote a bunch of death metal riffs and saved them on his phone. Then, when he was done with the VOLBEAT record, he reopened the rusty gates to Armageddon and started putting together songs for "Impii Hora", which is a tribute to Poulsen's favorite old-school groups. The songs are rooted in crushing riffs yet injected with strong guitar hooks and shout-along refrains.

While Poulsen sings in VOLBEAT and sang for DOMINUS, he didn't want to front ASINHELL. So, in March 2022, he called his old friend, ex-MORGOTH singer Marc Grewe (also of INSIDIOUS DISEASE) and invited him to join the party.

In a recent interview with Shawn of "The Rockstar Radio Show" on 96.3 The Blaze, Poulsen stated about how the idea for ASINHELL came about: "As you probably know, you know, I started out as a death metal musician. Back in the days, I had a band called DOMINUS and we managed to release four albums on a Danish little label back in the day. So, yeah, it goes way back to where I was tape trading in 1990s. So it's been a lot of inspiration since then. So, you know, it kind of goes like 33 years back to where I started. I was very early out playing death metal — yeah, I think I started playing death metal when I was 16, 17 or something, and I started listening to extreme metal when I was about 13. So that kind of music has been there from the very beginning as a young kid. And I knew that when I ended DOMINUS, it was because the journey I was going into was a style of a lot of different styles that I couldn't combine in the death metal music. So I formed VOLBEAT where there was not so much rules about what you could do or what you could not do. So, as you can hear in the VOLBEAT music, there's a lot of different styles, but in ASINHELL, it definitely takes you back to all the stuff that I was, and still [am] listening to, as a young boy discovering extreme metal."

He continued: "For a long time, people have been asking me when I'm gonna return to death metal, and I said, 'I have no idea,' because the time that I'm using on VOLBEAT, it's a lot of time touring. We are constantly on the road and we are writing and being in the studio. So it was very difficult for me to answer a question like that. But when the pandemic came and I wrote [the] 'Servant Of The Mind' [album] for VOLBEAT, there were other riffs that came up where I said, 'Those riffs I'll put aside and keep them for another project when there was time for doing that. And that became the ASINHELL project.

"When we did 'Servant Of The Mind', we recorded a song called 'Becoming', and that was kind of a tribute to ENTOMBED and my good friend L.G. Petrov [late ENTOMBED singer]. And we all know that story, that L.G. passed away 'cause of cancer. Some days before he passed away, he was trying to call me. And the first time he called, I couldn't pick up. I was somewhere in a supermarket at the register paying for my groceries. And then later on he called me, but that was during the night, so I never pick up my phone during the night. And next thing I hear that he passed away. And so I was really bummed about that. And we kind of just then dedicated the VOLBEAT song 'Becoming' to L.G. and we put on this amazing BOSS pedal that makes this ugly, beautiful Swedish death metal sound. And I just got really inspired by that. And I told my guitar tech if he could find that pedal and then order it on the net and then I would probably start maybe working on some riffs. And the same day we talked about that, I was about to take my morning run and my iPod, just by coincidence, starts on ENTOMBED and I'm hearing L.G. screaming [singing], 'I'm full of hell.' And for me, that was a call from L.G., and I said to myself, 'This time, you're fucking picking up, Michael.' You are starting now. This is the time. And, actually, I wanted to call the band FULL OF HELL, but I quickly find out there was another band by that name. So I said, 'Okay, well, what do I do now?' So I changed it to as ASINHELL."

As for how he recruited his ASINHELL bandmates, ex-MORGOTH singer Marc Grewe (also of INSIDIOUS DISEASE) and RAUNCHY drummer Morten Toft Hansen, Poulsen said: "I was so inspired, and I live 10 minutes away from my drummer Morten, who has a daughter that's six years old, as my daughter [is], and they are hanging out together and having a good time. And Morten, now and then, he's active in his own band called RAUNCHY. They do not play live shows that much, but he still has his drums in the garage. And I kindly asked him if he wants to put some drums on a death metal project I had in mind. And he was totally up for it when I said, 'It's gonna be in the vein of DEATH, BOLT THROWER, AUTOPSY, GRAVE, ENTOMBED.' And that was totally his alley. So, he said, 'Where are we gonna rehearse?' And I said, 'Right here where we are standing.' And he said, 'In my garage?' 'Yeah, why not? Let's imagine that we're kind of 16, 17 years old again.' We didn't have money for expensive rehearsal rooms or anything that we have now. So I said, 'Let me just bring an amp and I'll turn it all to 11. No P.A. system, nothing. Just your drums. Don't mic it up. It's just an amp, and let's just do some riffing. I've got songs at home.' And it turned out that every Friday me and Morten would be jamming for two hours, and every Friday I came with a new song, and suddenly we were just looking at each other, like, 'Okay, we actually have songs for a whole album here.' And I ended up calling my good friend up, Marc Grewe, which was the former singer of legendary German [band] MORGOTH. I always thought that Marc had the best death metal voice in the scene, together with Chuck Schuldiner from DEATH. And for many years we talked about doing something together when the time was right. And I called him up and I said, 'You know what? I actually have our whole album. Are you ready?' [And he said], 'Hell yeah, I'm ready. Let's get to it.' I did some demo vocals on some of the recordings. And I asked Marc, 'How do you want me to record?' [And he said], 'Ah, just put your phone in the garage and press 'record' and then send it to me on your phone.' I said, 'Okay, it's gonna sound like a fucking mess.' [And he said], 'Yeah. That's how it should be like.' [Laughs] He said, 'That's how we did it back in the day with MORGOTH. We just put a ghetto blaster, a tape recorder in the rehearsal room and just pushed 'record' when we did rehearsal recordings.' [And I said], 'Yeah. Okay. Then that's how we're gonna do it.' So me and Morten made a lot of noise in that garage and I was putting down some demo vocals [for] Marc to get some inspiration. So I was just screaming and yelling down in my phone. And he said, 'Yeah, it's perfect. We could even release it like that.' [And I was, like], 'Yeah. Wait a minute.'"

According to Michael, two other guest musicians appear on the "Impii Hora", both of whom will be familiar to fans of VOLBEAT.

"We ended up using Jacob Hansen, our producer, as the bass player on the record, because he was there in the studio anyway. And I said, 'I'm not gonna play the bass. Let's do it different.' And so we just asked Jacob if he was into it, and he said, 'Yeah, I would love to.' So very quickly Jacob put down the bass. And I've been knowing Jacob since the INVOCATOR days, where he was active in INVOCATOR. So suddenly, having a great lineup with Marc from MORGOTH and Jacob from INVOCATOR, Morten from RAUNCHY — it was great. And then Morten said, 'Since we have this huge inspiration from DEATH, you should hear how Flemming [C. Lund], my good friend from THE ARCANE ORDER, is playing guitar. He can do those kind of DEATH solos. I knew Flemming from back in the days when I had that DOMINUS band. So I checked Flemming out and his solos in THE ARCANE ORDER, and I was blown away. And I gave Flemming a call and I asked him kindly if he was into it. And he totally understood where we were going with this, so he was very excited about it. So, yeah, he put down those solos."

Michael was equally excited to get ASINHELL's debut LP released via Metal Blade, a label which has consistently been at the forefront of the metal scene, from releasing the earliest material from METALLICA and SLAYER on the classic "Metal Massacre" compilations through to seminal releases from CANNIBAL CORPSE, GWAR, THE BLACK DAHLIA MURDER, AMON AMARTH and many more.

"Brian Slagel from Metal Blade, he heard the songs and he was very, very, very into it, and he said, 'I would love to actually release this.' And for me, that was a dream come true," Michael said. "The legendary Brian Slagel from Metal Blade — we all know the story. So that was a dream come true. I remember being a young kid, tape trading and trying to get a record deal, but then so many years after, actually then ending up on Metal Blade with a new project called ASINHELL, that's beautiful. So I'm very excited about it and very proud of the record."

🔥Our show in Næstved marked the last show of the Asinhell „Impii Hora“ touring activities…I would like to thank my...

Posted by Marc Grewe on Tuesday, September 3, 2024

Professionally filmed video of AMON AMARTH performing the song "Twilight Of The Thunder God" on August 11 at the Bloodstock Open Air festival in Catton Park, Derbyshire, United Kingdom can be seen below.

In a recent interview with Germany's Rock Antenne, AMON AMARTH frontman Johan Hegg was asked if he and his bandmates have commenced work on the follow-up to 2022's "The Great Heathen Army" LP. He responded: "To be honest, we've been starting to talk about a new album, but we haven't started working on it yet. So we don't really know. That's the simple answer."

He added: "I've been working on some lyrical ideas. I know the [other] guys have some musical ideas, but we haven't started putting anything together yet. So it's just really in its infancy. So there's really nothing to say."

"The Great Heathen Army" was released in August 2022 via Metal Blade Records. The LP was recorded with acclaimed British producer Andy Sneap, who previously worked with the band on 2013's "Deceiver Of The Gods" and 2016's "Jomsviking" albums.

This past spring, AMON AMARTH returned to U.S. and Canadian stages on the "Metal Crushes All Tour 2024" produced by Live Nation. The 24-date journey included a raid at the historic Red Rocks Amphitheatre in Denver as well as arena stops in Portland, Vancouver, Quebec City, Asheville, Tampa, and Anaheim. Support was provided by special guests CANNIBAL CORPSE along with OBITUARY and FROZEN SOUL.

Hegg previously stated about "The Great Heathen Army": "Overall 'The Great Heathen Army' is one of the heavier albums we've made. There are some dark and heavy songs that are really powerful and in your face, but we obviously have some trademark melodic AMON AMARTH songs on there as well and a few surprises too. It's a really well-balanced album. It sounds great. Andy Sneap is awesome. It was great to be able to work with him again."

Guitarist Olavi Mikkonen added: "We've been away making new music and we're back with new darker, more death metal-sounding album. If 'Berserker' was our 'heavy metal' album, then 'The Great Heathen Army' is our 'death metal' album. But with that said, it's still very much contemporary AMON AMARTH, but perhaps style-wise we have gone back to our roots a little bit."

Formed in 1992, AMON AMARTH became modern metal greats the hard way. Ruthlessly dedicated to creating new music and taking it out on the road, the Swedes steadily built a formidable reputation as a ferocious live band and, as the years passed, were increasingly recognized for their recorded achievements too. Since the dawn of the millennium, AMON AMARTH has been unstoppable.

Breakthrough releases like 2006's "With Oden On Our Side" and its now-legendary follow-up, 2008's "Twilight Of The Thunder God" further cemented their popularity throughout the metal world, while the band's stage show evolved with each successive tour, transforming into one of modern metal's truly great spectacles. 2019's "Berserker" brought with it an epic, history-making trek across North America with fellow Swedes ARCH ENEMY, AT THE GATES and GRAND MAGUS and saw multiple sell-outs.

Ballantine’s, the world’s second most popular Scotch whisky*, has revealed new additions to its True Music Icons collection, this year paying tribute to two of the most influential musicians of all time: Elton John and John Lennon.


The iconic artists, renowned for their unparalleled contributions to global music culture, inspired the collectable design for the iconic Ballantine’s Finest bottles, which will be available across the globe from this month.


This second release in the True Music Icons series follows the success of the inaugural collection last year, which paid homage to rock and roll legends AC/DC and Queen. This second edition comes hot on the heels of Ballantine’s celebrating a decade of its True Music platform, building on its rich heritage in music culture by celebrating artists who forge their own path, stay true to who they are, and do things their own way. 




The new duo of limited-edition bottle designs has been perfectly crafted to capture the essence of the legendary musicians. Whilst one honours Elton John as one of the most iconic solo artists in history, known for his chart-topping hits, exceptional songwriting, and significant influence on popular culture, the other equally stunning bottle celebrates John Lennon, a writer and musician who changed history with his music. Both with The Beatles and as a hugely innovative solo artist, he challenged what rock music could be by constantly exploring and reinventing musical genres, while introducing the idea that music could be a vehicle for social and political change.      


The editions also celebrate the friendship between Elton John and John Lennon, which culminated in John Lennon’s single release of ‘Whatever Gets You Thru The Night’, featuring Elton John, and their legendary performance together at Madison Square Garden exactly 50 years ago, in 1974.


Each bottle showcases the unique personalities of these two music legends and is a testament to Ballantine’s ongoing commitment to championing global music culture, offering whisky lovers and music fans alike collectable products and unforgettable experiences. The True Music Icons John Lennon Edition bottle design incorporates Lennon’s official logo, famous self-portrait sketch and iconography, reflecting his multifaceted artistic legacy, whereas the Elton John Edition is inspired by his legendary live performance at Dodger Stadium in 1975, with the design featuring a holographic version of his ‘E’ star logo mirroring the artwork on his Diamonds Greatest Hits collection.


Paul-Andre Vacheron, Global Marketing Director for Ballantine’s at Chivas Brothers, commented: “Ballantine's has a rich heritage

Poland's experimental black metal five-piece, Thaw, reveals details of its new studio album and follow-up to Grain" from 2017. Titled Fading Backwards, the album is set for release on October 25 via Agonia Records and will be accompanied by a tour of Poland. The song "The Great Devourer" serves as the album's lead single, available for streaming below.


Thaw is thrilled to announce the release of their new album, marking their long-awaited return after years of hiatus. The album, featuring six tracks, is the quintessence of the band's musical identity,  showcasing their unique sound in a new light.


The musical layer on Thaw's new album truly captures the essence of the band, combining vibrant  sounds with heavy, low-tuned guitars. These powerful sounds are further enriched with noisy electronics, adding depth and character to each track.




Most of the music were recorded live, giving the tracks a rawness and authenticity, and then carefully overdubbed to achieve the optimal sound. However, it is not just the instruments that define this album. The approach to the vocal parts is completely new.


The entire album was recorded at the renowned Monochrom Studio (Behemoth, Entropia), where Thaw could fully exploit their artistic potential, creating sounds that are both powerful and full of subtle nuances.


Thaw, known for their relentless pursuit of new forms of expression, proves with this album that their musical journey is far from over. The new record is not only a return to their roots but also a step forward, showing that the band still has a lot to offer.


"We are happy and excited that the new Thaw album will finally see the light of day," comments Thaw. "We know that  the process of writing and recording this latest album took a significant amount of time. However, we are satisfied with the final result and are eager to see the world's reaction to what will soon be presented to all of you."


Fading Backwards was mixed and mastered by Haldor Grunberg and Krzysztof Kurek at Satanic Audio (Pestilence, Azarath, Behemoth). The cover artwork was designed by Artur Masternak.





Formats:


- Digipak CD
- Color in color LP
- Marble LP
- MC
- Digital


Clothing:
- T-shirt


Pre-order here.





Tracklisting:


"The Great Devourer"
"A Place Where Repetition Dwells"
"Wartenberg Wheel"
"In The Laughter and the Stride"
"Dissociate Me/Spreader Bar"
"Moral Justification Of Selfish

In a new interview with Robert Cavuoto of Myglobalmind, STRYPER frontman Michael Sweet was asked if he went to see METALLICA when the legendary metal outfit performed in his home state of Massachusetts recently. Michael responded (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "I didn't, man. And I'll be honest. I'll tell you. I've gone on record to say this. I respect METALLICA. I get why everyone else loves METALLICA. And they've obviously — they're legendary. I've never been a big METALLICA fan. I don't listen to METALLICA. It'd be hard for me to name one song. Maybe I could name one or two songs. I'm just not a big METALLICA fan. I don't get excited about that style of metal. I get excited about [JUDAS] PRIEST style of metal, [IRON] MAIDEN style of metal. Even PANTERA, which, obviously, you hear a lot of METALLICA's influence on PANTERA. But I get excited about that. We played with PANTERA in Mexico and there's an energy, man, that's just indescribable. And we played with METALLICA before, too, back in the day, when Dave [Mustaine] was still in the band. So I know about METALLICA, and it's not like I'm not educated. And I've heard them. I've seen them. Of course. But I don't know. There's just something about METALLICA that just doesn't do it for me personally. But hey, man, God bless 'em. Amazing, legendary band who has proven to be a force."

STRYPER's new album, "When We Were Kings", is due on September 13 via Frontiers Music Srl.

STRYPER's 40th-anniversary tour will begin this fall. The dates kick off September 11 in Greenville, Tennessee and conclude November 16 in North Myrtle Beach, South Carolina.

STRYPER's 40th-anniversary tour will be a celebration of both classic hits and new-era fan favorites, including outfit changes and an exciting new show production. In most cities, this will be a two-set "evening with"-style show.

Formed 41 years ago, STRYPER's name comes from Isaiah 53:5, which states: "But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed."

STRYPER's albums include "To Hell With The Devil", "Second Coming", "No More Hell To Pay", "Fallen", "God Damn Evil", "Even The Devil Believes" and "The Final Battle".

Michael is joined in STRYPER by his brother Robert Sweet (drums),Oz Fox (guitar) and Perry Richardson (bass).

STRYPER's "To Hell With The Amps: The Unplugged Tour" kicked off in late May. For the first time ever, the Christian rockers staged a full tour where they performed their hits and fan favorites acoustically.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Michael Sweet (@michaelsweetstryper)

In the shadows where the ancient and the arcane coalesce, GRAVENOIRE rises, shrouded in mist and whispers of forgotten rites.

The band is an assembly of black metal luminaries: RMS Hreidmarr (Anorexia Nervosa, Bâ’a), Maximillien Brigliadori and Emmanuel Zuccaro (Bâ’a) and Vicomte Vampyr Arkames (Ad Inferna, ex-Seth). Their debut album, Devant La Porte Des Étoiles is an unflinching homage to raw and visceral ’90s black metal.

Devant La Porte Des Étoilescomes out today, August 23, and you can listen to all six mystical songs by listening to the full album stream on Black Metal Promotions YouTube channel.


Order your journey into the shadows here: https://orcd.co/gravenoiredevantlaportedesetoiles

Formed in 2022, Gravenoire channels an uncompromising vision, meticulously crafted in the crucible of live rehearsals, devoid of digital taint. From the incantation of the instrumental Pavens to the desolate hymn Granit, every track serves as a ritualistic tome, scrawled with rebellion, mysticism, and an insatiable desire for transcendence.

Tracklist:1. Pavens (1:27)
2. France de l’Ombre (5:53) [WATCH]
3. Ordo Opera Cultura (4:03) [LISTEN]
4. Aux Chiens (4:18)
5. Granit (5:21)
6. Gravenoire (4:11)
Total runtime: 25:16


Cover Art: Aude Sine
GRAVENOIRE was formed in early 2022 by Maximilien Brigliadori (BÂ’A, Diablation, former Hyrgal), Emmanuel Zuccaro (BÂ’A, Verfallen, former Hyrgal), Vicomte Vampyr Arkames (Diablation (former Seth / Ad-Inferna) and RMS Hreidmarr (Glaciation, BÂ’A, former Anorexia Nervosa / The CNK), with the clear intention of reconnecting with their past and a somewhat uncompromising vision of 90s Black Metal.

The band’s first album, “Devant La Porte Des Étoiles“, was recorded live on rehearsal, with no tracking, no triggers, no click track, no artifice. No compromise with reality, for it is through it and by it that we foresee other dimensions.

GRAVENOIRE is not, however, merely nostalgic or backward-looking; it’s a project deeply rooted in its native lands, in their popular as well as spiritual and mystical traditions, drawing its essence from sacred places, cosmic architecture and primordial telluric forces. “The cosmos is a revolving door”.

Line-up:
Maximilien Brigliadori – Guitars, Bass Guitar
Emmanuel Zuccaro – Drums, Keys
Vicomte Vampyr Arkames – Vocals
RMS Hreidmarr – Vocals

Recording Studio:
Gravenoire Rehearsal Room, Location Unknown

Production Credits:
Produced & Engineered by Gravenoire
Mixed & Mastered by Arnaud Ménard at Sicarius Productions

Prepare for sonic warfare! Australian heavy metal juggernaut Decimator has inked a deal with Wormholedeath Records for the release of their earth-shattering album “Til The Enemies Are Gone”, dropping on October 4th, 2024.

Decimator, founded by Lance Holland-Keen and Mike Le Macchia in January 2021 out of their mutual love for thrash and old-school metal, originates from South/West Sydney, Australia. Despite navigating COVID lockdowns and lineup changes, the band played their inaugural live show in September 2022 with Lance on guitar and vocals, Mike on guitar, Bon Lowe on drums, and John Montibeler on bass.

Shortly after their debut, John faced a medical issue, leading to Kim Ross briefly filling in before Coen Winchester joined permanently, mastering the set in just one month. The lineup of Lance, Mike, Bon, and Coen went on to perform shows in October and November 2022. By December, Ethan Reeves replaced Mike on guitar.

Their album “Til the Enemies Are Gone” was recorded in a day session at Powell Lane Studios, Coogee, NSW, Australia in September 2023, yielding nine tracks. Originally intending “Warriors” as their debut single in 2022, the band opted for “Killdozer” as their 2024 release, featuring songs composed by a lineup that initially performed together only once.


Embracing a DIY ethos akin to old-school metal, Decimator’s album explores themes of human emotion, suffering, mental health, loss, historical references, and contemporary events through Lance’s lyrics.

The band returns to the studio in July for a double single, featuring an early composition and a new recording of “Warriors.” They plan to record a full album of fresh material in late 2024/early 2025 for release in early 2025, showcasing the current four-piece lineup exclusively.

Tracklisting:

Burn The Truth
The Rock
Legions
Phantoms
Blackened Skies
The Blade
Decimator
Killdozer

Austrian post-black metal act Anomalie will release their fifth full-length album Riverchild on November 1 via AOP Records. First single “Perpetual Twilight” is streaming below.


Riverchild was recorded, mixed, and mastered by Victor Santura at Woodshed Studio in Bavaria, Germany.


Born and raised along the rural shores of the Danube River, the element of water has always had a shaping impact on Marrok's perception of nature and life in general. Throughout the new Anomalie album Riverchild, he drew a musical portrait of an entity still present around this immense stream which had always nurtured and taken lives equally, a force able of spending hope and wisdom but also possesses the strength and wrath to destroy and destruct.




Comparable to the multiple faces of a colossal river like the Danube, the music on Riverchild provides a diverse range of facets taking the listener on a journey full of profound and honest emotions expressed through aggressive outbursts of pure black metal dissonance as well as fragile moments of introspective calmness. Anomalie once again asks for focus and patience, but offers a wider range of rewarding layers than ever before.


Album formats:
-Digipak
-Black double vinyl in gatefold cover
-Glacial River double vinyl in gatefold cover (limited 99)
-Digital


Preorder at the AOP Records webshop.


Cover art by Misanthropic Art:





Tracklisting:


“Mother Of Stars”
“An Unforgiving Tide”
“Perpetual Twilight”
“Heart To Beat”
“Awa

Congratulations to Accept guitarist Wolf Hoffmann, and violinist Ava-Rebekah Rahman, who recently tied the knot in a "secret" ceremony.


Accept shared the news earlier today via social media, writing: "HUGE CONGRATULATIONS to our guitar legend Wolf Hoffmann and violinist Ava Rahman on their marriage!!


"Their love story began on stage, where they fell in love on stage during the Accept Symphonic Terror tour and the 2 had a musical and personal chemistry that shook their worlds forever! Last week they tied the knot in a secret Bengali Tantric wedding ceremony.




"Join us in wishing them a lifetime of joy, prosperity, love and wild beautiful music!


"You can Follow along as Wolf and Ava share their music, journey and life as a musical couple on their newly launched SM platforms!"


Facebook: WOLF & AVA
IG: @wolfandavaproject
TikTok: @wolf&ava

KK'S PRIEST, which features former JUDAS PRIEST members K.K. Downing (guitar) and Tim "Ripper" Owens (vocals),alongside guitarist A.J. Mills (HOSTILE),bassist Tony Newton (VOODOO SIX) and drummer Sean Elg (DEATHRIDERS, CAGE),has shared the official music video for the track "The Sinner Rides Again". The song is taken from KK'S PRIEST's sophomore album, "The Sinner Rides Again", which came out in September 2023 via the Austrian label Napalm Records.

KK'S PRIEST and German/American metal legends ACCEPT kicked off their joint North American tour on August 31 in Los Angeles, California, visiting a slew of major cities in the USA and Canada — such as Toronto, Montreal, New York and Nashville — before coming to an end in San Francisco, California on October 7.

KK'S PRIEST added two PRIEST classics to its setlist on KK'S PRIEST's recent European tour: "Sinner" and PRIEST's version of the Joan Baez song "Diamonds And Rust".

KK'S PRIEST's first-ever U.S. headlining tour, which featured support from L.A. GUNS and BURNING WITCHES, launched on March 7 in Fort Lauderdale, Florida and concluded on March 24 at Keswick Theatre in Glenside, Pennsylvania.

KK'S PRIEST made its live debut on July 6, 2023 at Downing's KK's Steel Mill in Wolverhampton, United Kingdom.

K.K. formed KK'S PRIEST after JUDAS PRIEST turned down his offer to rejoin the band for their 50th-anniversary tour. It followed a couple of celebrated stage appearances, first with former MANOWAR guitarist Ross The Boss in the summer of 2019, then with a one-off lineup that included former MEGADETH bassist David Ellefson and former PRIEST drummer Les Binks later that year.

KK'S PRIEST released its debut album, "Sermons Of The Sinner", in October 2021 via Explorer1 Music Group/EX1 Records.

Downing spent four months writing and recording "Sermons Of The Sinner" and, along with new ideas, he even resurrected a few archived riffs from the 1980s.

Downing was reunited with JUDAS PRIEST for a performance at the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame induction ceremony in November 2022 at the Microsoft Theater in Los Angeles.

PRIEST received the Musical Excellence Award at the event, which honored Eminem, Dolly Parton, DURAN DURAN, Lionel Richie, Pat Benatar, EURYTHMICS and Carly Simon in the Performers category.

Downing left PRIEST in 2011 amid claims of band conflict, shoddy management and declining quality of performance. He was replaced by Richie Faulkner, nearly three decades his junior.

In 2019, Downing said that he reached out to JUDAS PRIEST about taking part in the band's 50th-anniversary tour but that their response was that they were not interested in including him in the celebrations.

In 2018, Downing revealed that he sent two resignation letters to his bandmates when he decided to quit JUDAS PRIEST. The first was described as "a graceful exit note, implying a smooth retirement from music," while the second was "angrier, laying out all of his frustrations with specific parties."

Downing later said that he believed the second letter was "a key reason" he wasn't invited to rejoin PRIEST after Glenn Tipton's decision to retire from touring.

Owens joined PRIEST in 1996 and recorded two studio albums with the band — 1997's "Jugulator" and 2001's "Demolition" — before PRIEST reunited with Rob Halford in 2003.

Photo credit: Sam Singer (courtesy of Napalm Records / Freeman Promotions)

FILTER has released the official music video for the song "Burn Out The Sun" featuring animation by Mark Lupo. Check it out below.

"Burn Out The Sun" is taken from FILTER's latest album, "The Algorithm", which came out in August 2023 via Golden Robot Records.

Prior to "The Algorithm"'s arrival, FILTER frontman Richard Patrick was asked by Meltdown of Detroit's WRIF radio station what fans will really enjoy about the record. Richard said: "I think people are gonna like the heaviness. I love music that makes me just wanna get up and run or drive a car really fast or something like that. But I think people, they're gonna feel like the way they did during 'The Amalgamut' or 'Title Of Record' or 'Short Bus'. It reminds me of the first three records that we did on Warner Brothers. And those are definitely some great years. So it kind of reminds me of that. 'Cause I took a real heavy hand in production — I really, really, really made sure that I was happy before anybody. For the past 10 years, I've really relied on producers and songwriters and stuff like that, which I love, I love working with them, but this year I bought a computer and I sat there and recorded everything on my own with the exception of two or maybe five songs where I asked for outside collaboration… I really did apply myself and I made sure that it sounded like old-school FILTER."

Asked if the throwback to old-school FILTER was intentional or if it just turned out that way, Richard said: "I think it just naturally kind of went that way. 'Cause I'm not a big planner of what I'm gonna do. I don't navigate through, like, 'Oh, it's getting too much like this' or 'It's getting too much like that. Stay on target, stay with the plan.' I try and go with the flow on the record and see what it wants to be. And then when I'm done, [I] come up with the title and the visuals and everything like that."

In June 2023, Patrick told Michael Presti of the 99WNRR radio station that "The Algorithm" reminded him of FILTER's third album, 2002's "The Amalgamut". "It's kind of a little bit of a return to 'The Amalgamut'," he said. "It's so bombastic. There's so many bangers on this record. And 'The Algorithm', it's a little bit more a part of the times."

Regarding the lyrical inspiration for "The Algorithm", which previously had the working title "They Got Us Right Where They Want Us, At Each Other's Throats", Richard said: "I'm still bitching, but I'm not as outwardly bitching; I'm not taking sides as much on this record. I'm bitching and I'm talking about liars and cheaters and thieves. It's just that I'm not literally calling everybody out, like I did on the other two songs that came out," referencing 2020's "Murica" and "Thoughts And Prayers".

Patrick explained why "Murica" and "Thoughts And Prayers" did not appear on "The Algorithm", saying: "[Those two songs were] supposed to be on a whole record called 'Murica', but I decided those two songs just kind of live on their own, and they kind of reference each other," he explained. "And then when I started working on this new collection of songs, I just figured it was a whole new record."

Circling back to the topics covered on "The Algorithm", Richard said: "I'm still complaining politically, but I'm just not so outward. There's another thing — a friend of mine is drowning from alcoholism, and I talk about him in a couple of the songs, a song called 'The Drowning'. But most of it is just me kind of reflecting on humanity and just kind of saying, 'Are you checking yourself on this? Are you watching how we're behaving?' 'Cause our government and the way we are behaving as a [whole] is just the bitchiest, juvenile shit I've ever seen. It's just ridiculous."

Originally conceived in 2018 as a collaboration between Patrick and fellow FILTER founding member Brian Liesegang, the band's new album was given a tentative title, "ReBus", as a nod to FILTER's 1995 debut, "Short Bus", before being changed to "They Got Us Right Where They Want Us, At Each Other's Throats" and later to "Murica" and then back to "They Got Us Right Where They Want Us, At Each Other's Throats". Patrick eventually settled on "The Algorithm".

FILTER is currently on the 2024 leg of the "Freaks On Parade" tour with ROB ZOMBIE, ALICE COOPER and MINISTRY.

Photo credit: Chapman Baehler

"CPU" is the latest single from Master Boot Record (MBR). The track comes by way of Hardwarez, the forthcoming third full-length from the Rome, Italy-based electronic metal project, set for release on October 11 via Metal Blade Records.


Hardwarez sees multi-instrumentalist and MBR mastermind Vittorio D'Amore (aka Victor Love) aurally exploring the duality of technology and humanity in nine intense and incandescent tracks. The LP, which follows 2022's Personal Computer and 2020's Floppy Disk Overdrive, comes from the expansive mind of Love, an Italian producer who emerged from the underground as an anonymous project in 2016 to create the soundtrack for the cyberpunk point-and-click adventure game VirtuaVerse. The project seamlessly evolved into a standalone entity, releasing over fourteen albums in just a few years.


To create Hardwarez, the technologist worked by live streaming his desktop on YouTube while composing new music. Everything is programmed via MIDI. "The very first song I wrote is actually also the first single, 'CPU,'" he says. "Even though the other songs on the album have a quite different style, the type of riffing and the different melodic section of this track worked as a base to upgrade the sound before moving forward." "CPU" is also where Love decided to test the real guitar overdubs and was inspired by the results.




"While the early compositions happened during live streams, I added rhythm guitar overdubs off the records in the final stages," Love continues. "This synergy with the synth guitars creates a massive and powerful sound in the studio, just as it does during our live performances. Shreddy also recorded the lead guitars along the chiptune leads adding a lot of attack and an unique energy to the solo sections.The overall production level is much higher than previous releases, contributing to a new, upgraded signature sound.


"With this album the 486DX-33MHz-64MB becomes sentient through human augmentation. For we may become better humans with their help, but machines still need us to shine."


Stream Master Boot Record's "CPU" below.


The album title merges the term "Hardware" with "warez," also known as The Scene, more commonly known as the scene of cracks and pirated software which has been influential to Love in terms of crack and keygen music. While Love also organically began listening to electronic music, acid techno, industrial and synth pop, he also "grew up in the '90s through all the grunge, nu-metal and industrial scene."


Old-school metal as well as '80s and '90s movies and video games - and music from these - also play a role in Love's musical DNA. His years of music and computer fanaticism is all manifested in Master Boot Record and Hardwarez. "What I'm doing with this album and to an extent with previous ones, is to mix the sounds of cracks, keygen, demoscene and video game-inspired chiptune with heavy metal and classical music using hardware and computers to produce it."





Hardwarez will see release on CD and digital formats as well as vinyl in the following color variants:


- Hard Disk (US)
- Computer Terminal Green (US)
- 180g Black (EU)
- Ride The Lightning (EU)
- Collector's Dream (EU - Ltd. 200)


Pre-order Hardwarez here.

Last month, German hard rock legends SCORPIONS were forced to cancel their previously announced tour dates in their home country due to an injury sustained by guitarist Matthias Jabs. Jabs's injury requires surgery and subsequent rehabilitation.

Earlier today (Wednesday, September 4),Matthias released the following statement about his condition: "Dear fans and friends, as you might have heard already, I had a bad accident in my rented summer house. I fell down the stairs with 16 steps and broke my left pinky twice and I also broke my left heel. I had surgeries on both, hand and foot, by the best specialists I could find in Hamburg. Now it is time to heal and start the physical rehabilitation for a speedy recovery.

"I will try everything to be able to play guitar again on stage as soon as possible.

"I am sorry to tell you, that the shows in September won't be happening, but I am very optimistic that we will see us again very soon.

"Rock n Roll forever, Yours Matthias".

The following concerts are affected:

Sep. 11 - Nuremberg, Germany @ Arena Nurnberger Versicherung
Sep. 13 - Hamburg, Germany @ Barclays Arena
Sep. 15 - Leipzig, Germany @ Quarterback Immobilien Arena
Sep. 18 - Cologne, Germany @ LANXESS Arena
Sep. 20 - Frankfurt, Germany @ Festhalle

The cancellation hits the SCORPIONS hard, as they were in the final stretch of their "Love At First Sting" world tour. They deeply regret this decision and apologize to the more than 40,000 fans who have already purchased tickets, as well as to the event organizers.

The band said in a statement: "We deeply regret, especially Matthias Jabs, that due to the accident of our friend and SCORPIONS lead guitarist, the five concerts on our German tour cannot take place in September as planned and we will work closely with the tour organizer to announce new information as soon as possible. We kindly ask for your understanding from all our fans, all the Rock Believers in Germany who were looking forward to the shows with us."

Ticket holders will receive further information directly from their point of purchase.

SCORPIONS' only continuous member has been guitarist Rudolf Schenker, although singer Klaus Meine has appeared on all of the band's studio albums, while Jabs has been a consistent member since 1978, and bassist Paweł Mąciwoda and drummer Mikkey Dee have been in the band since 2003 and 2016, respectively.

SCORPIONS' latest album, "Rock Believer", was released in February 2022. The LP was recorded primarily at Peppermint Park Studios in Hannover, Germany and was mixed at the legendary Hansa Studios in Berlin, Germany with engineer Michael Ilbert, who has earned multiple Grammy nominations for his mix work with producer Max Martin on albums by Taylor Swift and Katy Perry.

Liebe Fans und Freunde, wie ihr vielleicht schon gehört habt, bin ich in unserem gemieteten Ferienhaus auf Sylt die...

Posted by Scorpions on Wednesday, September 4, 2024

STORACE, Swiss rock legend Marc Storace's eponymous band, returns with a new single, "Rock This City". Out today via Frontiers Music Srl, the track is accompanied by a new visualizer video which is available below.

Commenting on the single, Marc had this to say: "'Rock This City' is about a relationship gone wrong saved by a young man's ability to snap out of his negative state of mind to win back the love of his life. A great song for our live shows!"

Maltese-born-Swiss musician Marc Storace started his exceptional musical career in 1970, with the Swiss cult progressive band TEA, which became a very successful band and with whom he released five LPs. Marc gained attention for his frontmanship and high-pitched raunchy vocal tone.

In 1979, Marc became the voice of KROKUS, the most successful hard rock band from Switzerland. After their first album with Marc, "Metal Rendez-Vous", KROKUS played several world tours, sold over 15 million records, and won many gold and platinum awards.

After the group disbanded, Marc formed the band BLUE, who released their self-titled album in 1991, including the widely known hit "You Can't Stop The Rainfall".

In the 1990s and 2000s, Marc acted in two feature films ("Anuk" and "Handyman") and reached gold status with various KROKUS formations and three LPs. With many guest appearances such as on "Rock Meets Classic", SWEET 50th anniversary, Ken Hensley live in Switzerland, "Schubert In Rock", and on Manfred Ehlert's albums "Amen" and the rock opera "Test", Marc remained present with his fans.

In 2008, fans were surprised by the news that the original KROKUS formation would be touring again. The success was tremendous: tours in USA, Japan, Europe and South America as well as two new studio LPs, which, in turn, earned platinum status. In December 2019, KROKUS played a farewell concert at the sold-out Hallenstadion in Zurich.

At the beginning of 2021, Marc started working on his solo career as STORACE and at the end of 2021, he released his first solo album "Live And Let Live". In the middle of the pandemic, Marc started his first tour in Switzerland accompanied by the album's studio band. Since May 2022, Marc has been performing with his new band and rocking the stage like never before.

STORACE is:

Marc Storace - Vocals
Dom Favez - Rhythm Guitar
Serge Christen - Lead Guitar
Patrick Aeby - Drums
Emi Meyer - Bass

KROKUS has been playing sporadic shows in recent years, including the Riverside Aarburg festival in August 2023.

In September 2022, KROKUS played a special concert on the steps of the St. Ursus Cathedral in Solothurn, Switzerland. In addition, Solothurn honored the band with a "Stone Of Honor" on its 2000th anniversary. KROKUS also returned to the "holy ground of rock" in Switzerland, the Hallenstadion in Zürich, on May 6, 2023.

Four years ago, KROKUS postponed what was supposed to be the band's last-ever concerts in USA and Canada due to the coronavirus pandemic that was sweeping the globe.

When KROKUS first announced its decision to embark on a farewell tour in September 2018, the band explained in a statement: "KROKUS shows have always been special and should stay that way. That's why we decided to stop when it's still really good. That's how the fans should remember us."

Formed in 1975, KROKUS has sold over 15 million records, toured the world, and received gold and platinum discs in the USA and Canada. KROKUS was also the first Swiss band to sell out Hallenstadion and has received a diamond disc for selling one million albums in Switzerland alone.

In the course of its career, KROKUS has rocked over 2,000 shows on five continents, countless cities, unique locations, crazy gigs, and loyal fans.

English rock journalist Malcolm Dome quite rightly said: "If you look at the long-term output of this band, KROKUS is clearly one of the best hard rock bands of the last 40 years."

Photo credit: Frank Kollby

Former NIGHTWISH bassist/vocalist Marko Hietala is back with a mesmerizing new single, "Frankenstein's Wife", a tragic love song that blends dark humor with haunting melodies. Released today, this rock hymn is a journey into the gothic world of a mad scientist's desperate attempt to reanimate the love of his life.

With its Tim Burton-like gothic qualities, "Frankenstein's Wife" is both eerie and enchanting. The song showcases Marko's signature storytelling, combining a great guitar riff and haunting keyboards that build into a chorus you can’t help but sing along to.

Hietala comments: "I like to write my romance mixed with insanity and splatter. What it tells about me is anyone's guess, but it sure is a classic combo for legends. Hope you like the song too!"

Producer and guitarist Tuomas Wäinölä adds: "Production-wise, 'Frank' includes some personal favorite moments catching the vibe of the great Alice Cooper albums 'Trash' and 'Hey Stoopid'. I love that theatrical arena rock sound with broad tempos, big guitar riffs and synths and some gang backing vocals."

The music video, premiering alongside the single, brings this darkly romantic tale to life in a visually stunning way, adding layers of depth to an already unforgettable song.

In September, Hietala will join ex-NIGHTWISH singer Tarja Turunen on a European tour and fans will have the chance to see those two iconic voices reunited on stage once again. Both acts will play their own sets and will also join together for some songs.

Hietala announced his departure from NIGHTWISH in January 2021, explaining in a statement that he hadn't "been able to feel validated by this life for a quite a few years now." He has since been replaced by bassist Jukka Koskinen (WINTERSUN),who made his live debut with NIGHTWISH in May 2021 at the band's two interactive experiences.

This past March, Hietala was asked by Brazil's Ibagenscast if he would consider taking part in a reunion of the band's classic lineup, either for a tour or fresh material. He responded: "Hmm, I would consider it. But I think that the organization there would have to be looked very carefully into it and some of it would have to be dismantled. Because the business side and how the people there work, they are one of the big reasons why I left."

He continued: "In all the bands that I've been [in], I found out that I'm probably the most kind of courageous person there is and therefore also I have the inner strength to be the most honest and most fair and the one who upholds the justice between the people and taking care of everyone most. And that is something that I saw, the last years, were lacking. So, these kind of things would have to be taken care of. But I mean, [NIGHTWISH] was a big part of my life and I always, always backed up the music that we did because I love to do music that is versatile and ambitious with a lot of all kinds of atmospheres of all the world, from sensitive and soft into the big and pounding metal and all that. So, musically, I have no regrets at all. I'm happy and proud to have been a part of it. But, yeah, the organizational situation and the attitudes and who talks to whom and about what, those are things that I would totally dismantle and make into a transparent situation."

In an August 2022 interview with Finland's Chaoszine, Hietala revealed that he went through a dark period in his life, which included depression, insomnia, anxiety and an eventual attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) diagnosis. Speaking about how he eventually came to the realization that exiting NIGHTWISH was the right thing to do, Marko said: "It was a long process. Of course, the COVID year that was there, where I had a lot of time for soul searching, it obviously gave me the last incentive that I need something else, that if I just continue with this I'm just gonna get sicker and sicker. But, of course, it's a process.

"I've been chronic depressive since 2010 [or] 2011, so I've been on a permanent medication ever since," he revealed. "Sometimes you get used to the meds [and] you will need more. We did raise [the dosage] during the years also, but it just didn't work. And now that I started to do… I had psychotherapy for over four years now, and then I also talked to psychiatrists and some doctors and did that also in Spain. Then my psychiatrist here in Finland said that I should do these ADHD neuropsychological tests, which I then did in Spain. And, okay, I got it."

Hietala reiterated that he "had been thinking about" leaving NIGHTWISH "for a while" before making the final decision. "Because I had a lot of weight. And I tend to… With the attention disorder, it tells me that when there are lots of trouble, then the disorder makes it into a real chaos," he explained. "There's a shitload of stuff coming and going and no peace anywhere. And for a year or two, I was already waking up every night at three o'clock to bad dreams and anxiety. So I'd say that the whole process probably started already with my former divorce [in 2016]. That was a very sad time when you think about your kids and your broken homes and all that. And then, when I started to get clear from that, then there were, well, all kinds of things. I don't really wanna go any deeper to what kind of things I'd gone through, but I'd gone through enough."

Acknowledging that making NIGHTWISH's latest studio album, 2020's "Human. :II: Nature.", was a "difficult" experience for him, Marko denied that his mental state at the time resulted in a diminished role for him on the final LP. "I think the original idea was to have that… we'll do a couple of [solo vocal appearances], or one solo for me and Troy [Donockley], and the rest Floor [Jansen], and then the harmonies; that was the idea originally for that," he said. "So I don't know if it affected. I think it was sort of as planned. But at that time I already had serious trouble with concentrating and serious trouble with a constant black cloud over my head."

In July 2022, Hietala told Finland's Iltalehti that he had not kept in touch with NIGHTWISH since his departure or followed the activities of his former band.

In May 2021, Holopainen said that Hietala's decision to leave NIGHTWISH "came as a bit of a surprise." He told Finland's Kaaos TV: "Marko informed us in December [of 2020 that he was leaving the band]. And even though he has been very open about his state and problems during the past years, it still came as a bit of a surprise for us. So it was a really tough pill to swallow. And for a few days, I was actually quite confident that there's no coming back, that this is it. I remember talking to Emppu [Vuorinen], the guitar player, and we were, like, 'You think this is it?' 'Yeah, I think this is it.' I mean, enough is enough. So much has happened in the past. Something that broke the camel's back, as they say. Then, after some time had passed — a few days — we started to think that it's been such a ride of 25 years, with so many ups also, that this is not the way to end it."

Tuomas elaborated on NIGHTWISH's reasons for carrying on, saying: "I think we still have something to give, and that's the main point. The music is still there. We felt that there's still so much music that needs to come out from this band that, 'Okay, let's give it one more shot.' And then finding the new bass player was really easy."

He added: "It's not like we do this just because we need to do it and there's nothing else to do. On a personal level, I feel that there's still so many stories and melodies that I want to share with the world with one lineup or another, so that's why you want to continue and keep on going.

"I've said this a million times, that a lineup change is the ultimate energy vampire, and that's how it really felt and still feels."

In June 2021, Jansen spoke about Hietala's exit from the band in an episode of her "Storytime" YouTube video series. She said: "That was a very sudden surprise that, of course, was not fun at all. But we understand — I understand — it was a necessary thing for him to do. And from there, we had to think of how to continue without him, and that also, in preparations towards the virtual show, that was a huge challenge."

In December 2020, Hietala was crowned the winner of the fall 2020 season of "Masked Singer Suomi" — the Finnish edition of the popular masked singing contest. He was disguised as Tohtori — the Doctor.

Photo credit: Andrea Beckers (courtesy of Nuclear Blast)