"Writing a record takes a lot of time," Dave said. "And when you finish a record, there's kind of like a period after an animal gives birth to another living creature — it has to heal and it has to get its strength back then, within a short period of time, it's ready to rock again.

"I think right now, with going out and doing Gigantour after we finished 'Super Collider' and being with a new record label and having David Ellefson [bass] playing with us again, and the IRON MAIDEN tour and the [BLACK] SABBATH tour and everything, all these things that are going in the right direction for us, it's just exciting and it makes us wanna play.

"Shawn [Drover, drums] and David and I have all talked. Chris [Broderick, guitar] talked a little bit about it, too — about us starting to write music for the new record. And I think that when you have a band like MEGADETH, you've gotta spend time writing the songs. There's so many different talented writers there, if you don't listen to everybody's ideas, it would be kind of stupid."

Mustaine also spoke about his daughter, Electra, performing a cover version of the MEGADETH song "A Tout Le Monde" on a Seattle-area TV show.

"Yeah, that surprised me," he said. "I didn't know she was doing that. I know she sings, but I didn't know she was gonna sing 'A Tout Le Monde'."

"We're really looking forward to our collaboration with Steamhammer/SPV, a globally renowned label and expert partner in what we're planning for the future," says CREMATORY drummer Markus Jüllich.

"Our fans can look forward to 'Antiserum', on which we have gone one step further than we did on our comeback album, 'Revolution', in terms of our electronic influences. In collaboration with Elmar Schmidt of Hamburg EBM act CENTHRON, we have come up with a haunting mix of metal riffs and EBM keyboards. That's why I'd refer to 'Antiserum''s musical direction as 'EBM metal.'"

The first single from "Antiserum", a song called "Shadowmaker", will be released on November 22. Jüllich says: "Even before the whole record was finalized, we knew that 'Shadowmaker' had absolute hit potential. You'd be hard put to announce our new album better than with this song."

On the day of the single launch, a special box set featuring CREMATORY's first ten studio albums in a cardboard sleeve will be made available. It is described in a press release as "an absolute must-have for all fans and collectors."

In other news, Doty has etended an invitation to the man who replaced him in DARK ANGEL, Ron Rinehart, to share the vocal duties with him at the upcoming reunion shows. Doty says: "To my brother in arms, Ron Rinehart, you know that you are always welcome to come up and sing a couple of songs. You have DARK ANGEL blood in your veins just like the rest of us."

Doty and DARK ANGEL guitarist Eric Meyer (guitar) will guest on "The Metal Magdalene With Jet" on Metal Messiah Radio tonight (Tuesday, September 3) at 9:00 p.m. EST. They will tell the audience about what's going on with the band now and maybe laying some of the rumors to rest. They will also talk about the early days of DARK ANGEL, share some fan stories, and discuss the positive reaction to the news of the band's return.

DARK ANGEL is expected to reunite for a number of shows next year, including an appearance at the Keep It True XVII festival, set to take place April 25-26, 2014 at Tauberfrankenhalle in Lauda-Königshofen, Germany.

DARK ANGEL guitarist Jim Durkin said in a statement last month that any talk of the band's reunion was "premature," and added that "when I was last in the band, Ron Rinehart was my singer. And IF the band were to come back and continue. he would STILL be my singer. He was our rock when we needed him and there is NO WAY I would do this without him. He and I talk daily and are as close now as ever. If anything, all this talk has brought us all back into more frequent contact! Which is a wonderful thing."

DARK ANGEL released two albums with Don Doty on vocals — 1984's "We Have Arrived" and 1986's "Darkness Descends" — before he exited the group and was replaced by Ron Rinehart (after a brief stint with Jim Drabos in 1987). The band issued two more studio LPs — 1989's "Leave Scars" and 1991's "Time Does Not Heal" — before calling it quits in 1992. Rinehart, Hoglan and Meyer reassembled DARK ANGEL more than a decade ago but were forced to abandon their reunion plans after health issues reportedly put an end to Rinehart's singing career.

Asked what he has been doing since leaving DARK ANGEL in 1987, Doty told Germany's Radio Gehacktes last month: "It's a long story, and at the same time, it's a short one. I basically started a family and showed up to my last show [with DARK ANGEL] and told the guys, 'Hey, look, [I have a] baby [on the way] and I can't be on the road and do the family thing; it was just too hard for me. There were too many beautiful women in the world and there were too many other opportunities to go off the deep end, and I just could not do that. So with that being said, I took a step back and I told the guys, 'There will be a day and I will come back and we will finish what we started."

Says ICED EARTH guitarist/mainman Jon Schaffer: "It's been a long summer, but a very productive one.

"I am very proud of my bandmates! Everyone kicked ass, and we made a really special record.

"Now it's time try to rest for a few 'minutes' before the next chapter of world touring begins.

"Best to you all! We will see our European friends on the road with our brothers in VOLBEAT, then the rest of you on the worldwide Plagues tour 2014!"

Speaking to Metal4 magazine at the Rockharz open-air festival in Germany in July, Schaffer said about the upcoming CD: "It's a bit of a different thing for us, because it's half of a concept and the other half is [standalone] tracks. Musically, I think it's just another step in the right direction. It's really heavy, it's very melodic. It has a really epic feeling. Even though there isn't, like, a monster, long epic track, the overall feel of the songs is very epic. I mean, there's no 'Dante's Inferno' or 'Gettysburg' or the 'Something Wicked' trilogy or something like that on here, but I'm really happy with it."

Songtitles set to appear on "Plagues Of Babylon" (among others):

* Plagues of Babylon* Democide* Among The Living Dead* The Resistance* If I Could See You* Peacemaker* Cthulhu* Parasite

ICED EARTH recently parted ways with drummer Brent Smedley for "personal family reasons." He has since been replaced by Raphael Saini (CHAOSWAVE).

ICED EARTH has been hitting it relentlessly, with the recent studio album, "Dystopia", being the most toured album in the band's illustrious history.

One of the many highlights of the "World Dystopia Tour", a headline show at the historic Kourion Amphitheatre in Cyprus, was recently released on Blu-ray, DVD and in many other formats under the title "Live In Ancient Kourion".

A clip of the "Pour Some Sugar On Me" performance from "Viva! Hysteria" can be seen below.

Frontman Joe Elliott shed some light DEF LEPPARD's recent Vegas residency at the 4,000-capacity Joint at the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino, explaining, "We've been asked for many years if we'd ever play an album in its entirety, and the answer was always no because we'd be out promoting a new album. Then in March and April 2013 when we had no new music to promote, we had a chance to revisit arguably our most important album. It was an easy decision to make."

He went on to say that the stigma involved in rock musicians playing "Sin City" has long passed: "As for Vegas, it's no longer perceived as the place crooners go to die! Artists like MÖTLEY CRÜE, ELTON JOHN, GUNS N' ROSES and CHEAP TRICK have recently done residencies and rock n' roll has definitely moved in! So, there was no better place for us to take the show. It was a fantastic experience for us and for our fans."

Joe Elliott told The Pulse Of Radio that the band's humble beginnings back in England never even hinted at where they'd be today. "35 years after starting out in a little school in Sheffield, and then the next thing we're doing a residency in Vegas," he said. "It was never on the agenda back then, y'know? But being in a band more than seven or eight years wasn't either. So, at this moment in time you're just kinda making things up as you go along, because, things just keep appearing for us. Like; 'Hey — you guys fancy doing this?' 'Well, that's something we've never done.' And as soon as we can say that out loud, it's appealing for us to do it, ''cause it gets you off the treadmill."

The theatrical showings will be followed by a companion DVD, Blu-ray and live album that Elliott tells Billboard.com will chronicle "the whole shebang" — not only the "Hysteria" set but all of the other songs DEF LEPPARD played over the two nights the show was filmed.

"VIVA! Hysteria - Live at the Joint, Las Vegas" will be made available on CD, Blu-ray disc, DVD Video, and digital download in October at your favorite music retailer.

* North America: October 22* Germany, Austria, Switzerland: October 18* Rest Of Europe & Oceania: October 21* Japan: October 9

"This other version of the new art made by Eliran Kantor represents a more iconic and epic approach,” commented Iacono. "A man representing all of humanity, shaking the foundation of existence and ultimately beginning the process of destruction. The main foundation is depicted here as the famous KATAKLYSM 'tribal sun' logo. It does not represent the end of KATAKLYSM by any means; more the beginning of a new era after the end of a certain existence."

The follow-up to 2010's "Heaven's Venom", "Waiting For The End To Come" was recorded by KATAKLYSM guitarist Jean-François Dagenais, who has previously worked with MALEVOLENT CREATION, MISERY INDEX and DESPISED ICON, among others, and mixed by Chris "Zeuss" Harris (SUFFOCATION, HATEBREED, ARSIS).

As previously reported, KATAKLYSM has recruited ex-NEURAXIS drummer Oli Beaudoin to sit behind the kit during the recording sessions for "Waiting For The End To Come". Beaudoin is also playing all of KATAKLYSM's currenty announced shows. Drummer Max Duhamel announced on April 8 that he was taking a break from KATAKLYSM to deal with issues related to alcohol abuse.

KATAKLYSM will embark on a European headlining tour in January 2014. Support on the trek will come from KRISIUN and FLESHGOD APOCALYPSE.

Pre-order your copy now at this location (official on-sale date is October 21).

Inside is everything you need to know about "Aftershock" and the world of MOTÖRHEAD in 2013: inside the making of album, new features covering all eras of the band's career from 1975 to 2013, and tons of previously unseen pictures.

Fanpack edition includes:

* New album "Aftershock"* 132-page magazine* Giant double-sided poster* Exclusive MOTÖRHEAD car sticker

Plus, if your order is placed before 12:00 (GMT) on Monday, September 23, your 100% official collector's fanpack will come with an exclusive personalized poster featuring your name.

"Aftershock" track listing:

01. Heartbreaker02. Coup De Grace03. Lost Woman Blues04. End Of Time05. Do You Believe06. Death Machine07. Dust And Glass08. Going To Mexico09. Silence When You Speak To Me10. Crying Shame11. Queen Of The Damned12. Knife13. Keep Your Powder Dry14. Paralyzed

Check out the cover artwork below.

If you want to pre-order the fanpack but do not want your name to be included on the poster, you must email [email protected]
/* */
before 12 p.m. on September 20 to tell them that you do not want your name to be included in the Classic Rock Presents Motörhead: Aftershock fanpack poster.

The follow-up to 2010's "The Wörld Is Yours", "Aftershock" was recorded at Maple Sound Studios in Santa Ana, California with longtime producer Cameron Webb.

MOTÖRHEAD canceled a handful of shows on its European festival tour last month after the band's frontman, Lemmy Kilmister, suffered a haematoma (where blood collects outside of a blood vessel). The news of Lemmy's latest medical issue followed reports that he was also recently fitted with a defibrillator because of heart problems.

"Into The Night" comes off HIM's latest album, "Tears On Tape", which sold 20,000 copies in the United States in its first week of release to debut at position No. 15 on The Billboard 200 chart.

HIM's previous CD, 2010's "Screamworks: Love In Theory And Practice", opened with 26,000 units to land at No. 25.

The band's 2007 effort, "Venus Doom", registered a first-week tally of 38,000 to enter the chart at No. 12.

"Tears On Tape" was released on April 30 via Razor & Tie in North America and on April 29 through DoubleCross (Cooking Vinyl's specialist rock imprint) in the U.K. and Ireland. The "love metal" act's eighth official album was recorded at Helsinki's Finnvox Studios with longtime producer Hiili Hiilesmaa (APOCALYPTICA, AMORPHIS, MOONSPELL) and was mixed in London, England by Tim Palmer, who previously helmed 2005's "Dark Light" and 2007's "Venus Doom".

HIM's current lineup is Ville Valo (vocals), Mikko "Linde" Lindström (guitar), Mikko "Migé" Paananen (bass), Janne "Burton" Puurtinen (keyboards), and Mika "Gas" Karppinen (drums). The band is managed by Seppo Vesterinen at Hinterland, Inc. and represented for U.S. touring by Justin Hirschman/AGI.

To promote the upcoming trek, HIGH ON FIRE will release a new single, "Slave The Hive", on October 16, marking the first new music from the California metal champions since the spring 2012 release of "De Vermis Mysteriis". A limited-edition seven-inch single will be available at all tour dates with a video for the song to be released simultaneously.

VENOM is currently in the studio putting the finishing touches on its new album for an early 2014 release via Spinefarm Records.

Commented VENOM drummer Danny "Danté" Needham: "The new songs are sounding amazing; the whole album has a great feel.

"I'd say the strength of this band comes from our determination to create great music, and that comes from forward thinking, new ideas and fresh challenges."

Added VENOM bassist/vocalist Conrad "Cronos" Lant: "I believe this is VENOM at its best. The songwriting keeps getting better, and the live shows are tighter and heavier than ever.

"It's clear to me now that all of the lineup changes this band has been through over the years has been an inspiring journey to find the right band of warriors.

"VENOM continue to keep growing stronger and unstoppable".

VENOM's latest studio album, "Fallen Angels", was released in November 2011 via Spinefarm Records. Featuring 13 recordings produced by Cronos, the follow-up to 2008's "Hell" release saw the trio (completed by guitarist Stuart "Rage" Dixon) adopting a style highly redolent of classic early VENOM with modern studio technology employed only to increase the general level of nastiness.

"The [new AMORAL] album is ready! Recorded, mixed, mixed some more, mastered, tweaked, mastered some more, done!

"We've had the album in our hands for a couple of weeks now, and let me just say it sounds GOOD. Been playing it through everything from studio monitors to ipod headphones, car stereos to huge club PA systems, and I could not be happier with the end result. This thing sounds huge! Janne Saksa and Svante Forsbäck have once again done a stellar job with the mixing and mastering. Can't wait to get it out for all of you to have a listen and let us know what you think of it.

"Right now we're working on... well, pretty much all the things that need to be worked on after the music is in the can. The album artwork is almost done, and from what I've seen, it's going to be beautiful! Our longtime friend Aki Siltala is hard at work getting it perfect as we speak. Aki is the man responsible for the 'Decrowning' and 'Reptile Ride' artwork, as well as the legendary (!?)AMORAL skull logo, so it's good to have him involved yet again.

"Other stuff to keep us busy while waiting for all the business hassle and record label stuff to be worked out for the release: location scouting and brainstorming with Valtteri 'Wally Balls' Hirvonen for the next photo shoot, arguing about which songs to include in future setlists (we now have six albums to choose songs from, making it harder and harder) and then actually practicing them (both the new songs — which are a bitch to play by the way — and the old songs we haven't touched in years).

"No release date has yet been set, but we're aiming for an end-of-the-year release.

"The promised first taste of new music is coming soon, so hang on tight and watch this space!"

AMORAL's fifth album, "Beneath", entered the official chart in Finland at position No. 30. Released on October 26, 2011, the CD came equipped with a stunning 18-page poster booklet (made by Spanish artist Marta Nael), expanding the cover artwork into all its glory.

AMORAL is:

Ari Koivunen (RASKASTA JOULUA) - VocalsBen Varon (GREASE HELMET) - GuitarMasi Hukari - GuitarPekka Johansson - BassJuhana Karlsson (SHEAR) - Drums

Lita last year revealed that "Close My Eyes Forever" came about by accident during a night of drinking and getting stoned when she was being managed by Ozzy Osbourne's wife, Sharon. She recalled to Metal Underground: "'Close My Eyes Forever' was a mistake. It was just me and Ozzy and Sharon hanging about in the recording studio. They showed up one day and had a housewarming present for me: a life-size duplicate of Koko, the gorilla from the San Diego Zoo. It was freaking huge — I had to strap it in the front seat of my jeep to get it home. Ozzy stayed, Sharon got bored and left, and me and Ozzy had a couple of drinks and we were jamming. We started singing, messing about and we wrote 'Close My Eyes Forever'. Next thing I knew the sun was coming up. I looked at him and went, 'Uh-oh, we're in trouble.' Sharon had been waiting all night. We were a long way from where Ozzy had to go. He said, 'Can you drive me home?' I said, 'No, I can't.' We were stoned out of our minds. He got into a cab and I strapped Koko into my jeep and drove home — just barely made it. And then we had this hit song."

Lita Ford has set "The Bitch Is Back... Live" as the title of her new live album, due on October 28 via SPV/Steamhammer.

Lita's latest solo album, "Living Like A Runaway", was released on June 19, 2012 in North America via SPV/Steamhammer. The effort was made available in four configurations: a double LP, limited-edition CD, standard CD and digital download. The artwork for the album was created by famed rock photographer Mark Weiss.

"Rob Zombie is obviously my priority, and everything I do is just when he's doing a movie or something like that," he said. "And you know, I never play live with anyone else, I never tour, 'cause I never wanna confuse anyone. I'm just a writer. So as soon as they see a credit — 'Oh, John 5 wrote on this Ricky Martin song,' or whatever like that — then that will… So it doesn't really get in the way. But I love doing my instrumental records and people really enjoy 'em, so I'm always working on those. I'm working on one right now. I've got Elton John's bass player doing stuff. I mean, I have a bunch of guest stars on this one, so it's gonna be really good."

Regarding how his upcoming album will be different from his last effort, 2012's "God Told Me To", John 5 said: "The last one was half acoustic, half electric and I always like to change it up, so this one, I'm just gonna have a bunch of guest stars. So I'm gonna start asking my friends for favors and all this stuff. 'Hey, come on in. I watched your house and I let your dog out that one time, so come play on my record.' So I'm gonna start my long list of people to come and play. I think it's fun."

He continued: "These albums are a lot of fun. I just do 'em for the love of guitar and to inspire a couple of people on the way… I just really enjoy doing that. It's great. It was one of the smartest things I've ever done. Right when I left MANSON, I was, like, 'OK, so I guess I'll finally make my instrumental record.' And it did really well, and I'm on my sixth one. And I don't do them for money or anything — I just do them for the love of the guitar — and I think the audience really can see that. I'll do something like a Chet Atkins song and then some crazy death metal-type song. So it's a very wide range of music; there's no format and there's no rules."