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30 июн 2025
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30 июн 2025
OPETH's MIKAEL ÅKERFELDT On Possibility Of Second STORM CORROSION Album: 'I Think It's Probably Gonna Happen'
 In a new interview with India's Sinusoidal Music, OPETH mastermind Mikael Åkerfeldt spoke about the possibility of a second album from STORM CORROSION, his collaboration with PORCUPINE TREE's Steven Wilson. Asked if STORM CORROSION is "going anywhere" 13 years after the release of the project's self-titled debut, Mikael said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "No, it's not really going anywhere. I mean, other than when we talk — or text rather. Usually when we're texting, [Steven] usually sends me funny clips or something. So we're not necessarily talking about any collaborations or music or anything like that in terms of us doing something. But we have talked a lot over the years about doing another STORM CORROSION, especially, because we're both very happy with that record. But none of us, we don't really know what to do, because we are not the type of people who would want to repeat ourselves. Even if I think that album is great, and there's more to do with that sound, I think we wanna probably do something different. And I'm thinking maybe something that's even more hard, more special, eclectic. I think it's probably gonna happen at some point."
The debut album from STORM CORROSION was reissued last September via Kscope on colored vinyl LP in a gatefold sleeve, CD and Blu-ray which features a new Dolby Atmos mix of the original album's six tracks by Wilson, plus high-resolution stereo and 5.1 DTS-HD Surround Sound mixes and instrumental mixes of each track, a mini-documentary plus more. This 2024 edition of "Storm Corrosion" featured a bonus track, a live version of "Drag Ropes", recorded when Mikael guested with Steven and his band at London's Royal Albert Hall in September 2015, the only song they have performed live to date.
Issued in 2012, "Storm Corrosion" sold 9,400 copies in the United States in its first week of release to debut at position No. 47 on The Billboard 200 chart. The CD also landed at No. 45 on the official U.K. chart.
In a 2019 question-and-answer session posted on the YouTube channel of Nuclear Blast Records, Åkerfeldt was asked about the possibility of a second album from STORM CORROSION. He said at the time: "I had dinner with Steve yesterday, and we talked a little bit about it. We always talk a little bit about it, if we're gonna do another one. But yeah, I think we'll try; at some point, we'll try. I can almost say a hundred percent that we will try, without really knowing — but just judging from how we talk about this project. That was a fun thing for both of us and a new thing for both of us. But the problem, when you have one record, is that there's a reference point. So it's likely that if we do another record, maybe there'll be another name for that project. And it's likely it will sound completely different.
"We wanna make another record, [and] if we do that, it has to be on the same premise as how we did the first one," he continued. "Nobody knows. There's no record label that knows. We don't even know if it's gonna work out and we don't know what we're doing, basically. I mean, that was almost written in real time and recorded in real time. We just had a riff. 'Okay, let's record that riff, that part, and then piece it together.' And then, in the end, it was, like, 'My God, this is strange. But we love it. What is it?'
"We had some common inspirations and common artists and bands that we said, 'Maybe around there, that's where we meet up and do something,'" Mikael added. "And it ended up sounding like nothing I can compare it to, to be honest. For good and worse, for fans. It's a weird record. And it sold a lot in the first couple of weeks, because Roadrunner picked that up. And I assume it sold a lot to fans of PORCUPINE TREE and Steven Wilson fans, who must have gone, 'What the hell is this?'
"I love that album — love it. But, yeah, we're gonna do something, I'm sure. But it's probably gonna be different."
Åkerfeldt and Wilson have been friends since the late '90s, when Wilson co-produced OPETH's revered "Blackwater Park" album. Over the years, they'd often spoken of working on a project together, but it wasn't until about a decade ago that they managed to make something happen, when Mikael flew over to visit Steven in the U.K. and they ended up in Wilson's home studio throwing ideas around. That visit was the nascence of a whole self-titled album, written and produced by the pair, and mixed by Wilson. | +2 | |
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30 июн 2025
Will Second CONTROL DENIED Album Ever See Light Of Day? 'We Haven't Stopped Thinking About It', Says STEVE DIGIORGIO
 In a new interview with Andrew McKaysmith of the Scars And Guitars podcast, veteran metal bassist Steve DiGiorgio spoke about the status of the long-awaited second CONTROL DENIED album. The effort is the final material recorded by the band before CONTROL DENIED mainman — and DEATH mastermind — Chuck Schuldiner's untimely passing.
Chuck — who died in December 2001 after a battle with pontine glioma, a rare type of brain tumor — began work on the CD, tentatively titled "When Machine And Man Collide", but never managed to finish the effort before his health quickly deteriorated in the months leading up to his tragic death. The remaining members of the group — DiGiorgio, vocalist Tim Aymar, guitarist Shannon Hamm and drummer Richard Christy — subsequently announced their desire to complete the album and release it in Chuck's memory, but legal hassles between Schuldiner's family and Hammerheart Records (to whom Chuck was signed at the time of his death) put the entire project on hold. (Karmageddon Media — which was the name Hammerheart Records operated under between 2004 and 2010 — later issued various incomplete demo recordings as two separate low-quality albums, "Zero Tolerance" and "Zero Tolerance II".)
DiGiorgio told Scars And Guitars about plans to release the second CONTROL DENIED album (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "We've had the sketches of the songs since [Chuck] was alive. He sent us the rough demos, and you could hear him singing the guidelines on it for Tim to learn how it goes. They're not worthy of releasing, and we wouldn't do that to Chuck, but we have all the blueprints ready when we do it final. It's just — fucking Tim died [in February 2023], and that really stalled it out, after all the other stalling out that's been going on. And then some of the [singer] choices that were explored [by Chuck] before we found Tim, we were going back and saying, like, 'Well, at least Chuck asked so-and-so to sing on it before [Tim came into the picture], so let's go back [and see if they can lay down their vocals it].' And some of these guys are just older, [and] they don't think they have the [vocal] range [to pull it off]. It's been tough. So I really don't know. It's been one of the hardest things to complete. But it seems like over the past [24] years, we haven't stopped trying or at least thinking about it. We haven't stopped at all."
After McKaysmith suggested that there are "plenty of young up-and-coming vocalists" who might be able to do the material justice, Steve concurred. "Yeah. I was talking to someone who's not fully one of us in the inner circle that would make the choice," he said. "It was somebody that's kind of on the peripheral, and just ran the idea by 'em about, 'Hey, what about so-and-so?' And they go, 'Oh, it would be perfect.' So that kind of motivates me to bring it to the inner circle. I'm definitely not gonna say who it is — you know that — but the idea of just saying, like, 'Hey, let's just make it a good album,' because we're so far away now from what Chuck was leaving behind, because his parts are gone, the singer's gone. The original stuff is getting down to minority stuff. So we were, like, 'Look, either we're not gonna do it or we've gotta do something alternative just to get it done.' So, yeah, we might look into someone that wasn't considered when Chuck was alive. But I don't know."
Steve added: "I've been answering this question [about a second CONTROL DENIED album] for, like I said, 24 years. But, yeah, I've been answering questions about this album — and especially when Eric Greif [former manager of DEATH and president of Perseverance Holdings Ltd., which managed Schuldiner's legacy until Greif's death in 2021], was meddling and butting in everything, and he was making official statements that I don't know where he got his information from. But it was on, it was off, it's on, it's officially over, this guy's in, he's out. So anytime we talk about finishing this album, the answer's gonna be different. [Laughs]"
Chuck's mother, Jane Schuldiner, previously stated about the unfinished CONTROL DENIED recordings: "[Chuck's] last masterpiece deserves more than to be released as unfinished bits of rehearsal room recordings on CD, or to be grabbed for free on the Internet. It deserves to be finished by the rest of the band and to be released on a full-length album, titled: 'When Machine And Man Collide'."
CONTROL DENIED's first album, "The Fragile Art Of Existence", got the deluxe reissue treatment in October 2010 through Relapse Records.
"The Fragile Art Of Existence", originally released in 1999 to critical acclaim, was remastered, repackaged and features liner notes from Christy, never-before-seen photographs, as well as over an hour of previously unreleased demo and rehearsal tracks.
Two versions of the "The Fragile Art Of Existence" reissue were made available. The worldwide version was a two-CD set including the original album plus a bonus CD of early demo material. The second version was limited to 1,000 copies and was a three-disc set including an extra bonus disc of demo tracks, many of which have Schuldiner on vocals. The three-disc set was made available at Relapse.com exclusively.
In a 2021 interview with TrueMetal, Tim stated about how he landed the CONTROL DENIED gig: "It was actually Jim Dofka who hooked me and Chuck up. Chuck asked to 'borrow' me for CONTROL DENIED and Jim knew it would boost my career, so he was all for it. Chuck called me, and we hit it off. He invited me to his place in Florida to record three songs as an audition. Obviously, it went well."
Regarding his memories of the making of "The Fragile Art Of Existence", Tim said: "We all had a great time working with [producer] Jim Morris and each other. Then Chuck told me he was having severe headaches and couldn't sleep because of it. He was also experiencing partial paralysis in his left hand which scared the dickens out of him. I recommended a chiropractor since I have neck and back injuries that were being treated by one. As it turned out, well, we know the end of that story."
Photo credit: Alex Solca (courtesy of Adrenaline PR)
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30 июн 2025
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30 июн 2025
KREATOR Is Putting Finishing Touches On 16th Studio Album: 'It's Gonna Be Great', Says FRÉDÉRIC LECLERCQ
 German/Finnish/French thrash metal veterans KREATOR recently entered Fascination Street Studios in Örebro, Sweden with producer Jens Bogren to begin recording their sixteenth studio album, tentatively due in early 2026. Bogren previously helmed KREATOR's "Phantom Antichrist" (2012) and "Gods Of Violence" (2017) LPs.
KREATOR's upcoming effort will be the follow-up to 2022's "Hate Über Alles", which was recorded at Hansa Tonstudio in Berlin, Germany. Helming the sessions for that LP was Arthur Rizk, who has previously worked with CAVALERA CONSPIRACY, CODE ORANGE, POWER TRIP and SOULFLY, among others.
"Hate Über Alles" marked KREATOR's first album with bassist Frédéric Leclercq, who joined the group in 2019.
In a new interview with Loaded Radio, Leclercq stated about KREATOR's upcoming music (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "We are putting the final touches to a new album that will be released sometime next year, I guess. I spent two months away — I was in Germany [working with the band on the songs] and then in Sweden."
Asked what the new KREATOR material is like, Leclercq said: "It's great. [Laughs] I think everybody agrees to say it's better than 'Hate Über Alles', which was already cool. And that was my first [album] with the band. But I think this one has better songs. I mean, that's how we feel. I'm just saying it's gonna be great."
Regarding what it's like working with KREATOR founder and leader Mille Petrozza, Leclercq said: "It's cool. They're all easy to work with. And Mille comes with the majority of the riffs and the vocals. He works differently than me in a sense that for him the lyrics, that's what's important. And from the lyrics will come the riffs and whatnot, and obviously he needs to be able to play the riff while singing. So it's a different way of building songs. So my job there is just to check guitar, melodies and solo parts and whatnot. That's what I do. And it's great, because that was already the case on the first album I did with them, is that I told them, I said… I'm very passionate when it comes to music, and I have a tendency to go, like when I hear something, I'm gonna be, like, 'Yeah, we should try this,' and very — not a dictator in that sense, but very [forcefully] giving orders. And they were, like, 'Oh, no, that's cool.' So they actually really trust me on this. So I pick things that they not always notice, and they give me that sort of freedom to arrange a bit, and that's great."
He continued: "I love the KREATOR guys. The minute I joined them, it felt like I was part of the family forever. That's how we feel. And I'm not [just] saying [that], because it sounds like very cliché, but it's really the truth. I've known Mille for a long time, before I joined DRAGONFORCE, actually. I met him in Germany in 2003, I think. So we've always been bumping into each other since then, at festivals and whatnot. And when I joined the band, there was no audition. There was me and no one else. I'm the first one they asked, and I said yes. And I learned the songs and I went in the rehearsal room and I was a little shy for a few bars. And then I was, like, 'That's cool.' And I saw everybody smiling and I was just, like, 'Yeah, that's it.' And yeah, yeah, it really felt like I was part of the family forever."
Frédéric also talked about the upcoming official KREATOR documentary, "Kreator - Hate & Hope". The 110-minute film, which was directed by Cordula Kablitz-Post, will premiere on July 2 at the 42nd Munich International Film Festival and will receive a theatrical premiere on September 4.
"We have a movie coming out in September because we had a filming team following us the last two years," Leclercq said. "It started in Wacken [Open Air festival in Wacken, Germany], and then they came with us in the U.S., to Japan, India and whatnot, filming us. And it's in the cinema in Germany for a start. And we're trying to see if it happens — I would like that to happen in [my home country of] France as well. So there's that. So, it's been busy."
KREATOR played its first show with Leclercq in October 2019 in Santiago, Chile.
Before joining KREATOR, Leclercq rose to fame with U.K.-based extreme power metallers DRAGONFORCE for whom he handled bass duties from 2005 until August 2019.
As previously reported, Mille's official German-language autobiography, which he wrote with journalist, author and presenter Torsten Groß, "Your Heaven, My Hell - Mein Leben, Heavy Metal Und Wie Das Alles Passieren Konnte", will be published on August 28 via Ullstein Verlag. The book is available for pre-order now.
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30 июн 2025
Watch: LIMP BIZKIT's WES BORLAND Dresses Up As Skull-Faced Version Of 1980s JAMES HETFIELD While Opening For METALLICA
 LIMP BIZKIT guitarist Wes Borland played the band's entire 10-song set as the support act for METALLICA on Friday (June 27) at Empower Field at Mile High in Denver, Colorado dressed up as a skull-faced version of 1980s METALLICA frontman James Hetfield, complete with a "Metal Up Your Ass" t-shirt and white high-tops. Check out fan-filmed video of LIMP BIZKIT's performance below.
The Denver concert marked LIMP BIZKIT's final appearance with METALLICA as part of the latter band's ongoing "M72" world tour, which launched in April 2023 in Amsterdam, the Netherlands.
LIMP BIZKIT supported METALLICA on "M72" dates in Toronto, Nashville, Philadelphia, Tampa, Santa Clara and Denver from April to this past Friday, sharing the support slot with ICE NINE KILLS.
This past April, Borland unveiled a reimagined version of METALLICA's classic "Master Of Puppets" instrumental "Orion" on Instagram, writing in a caption that he was "[h]orsing around and loopidy loopin" at home that afternoon.
Back in 2003, LIMP BIZKIT performed a cover of another "Master Of Puppets" classic, "Welcome Home (Sanitarium)", during a "mtvICON: Metallica" special.
In a 2003 interview with Metal Edge magazine, METALLICA drummer Lars Ulrich was full of praise for LIMP BIZKIT while discussing how the lineup for that year's "Summer Sanitarium" tour came together. He said at the time: "Whether you like him or you hate him, [LIMP BIZKIT frontman] Fred Durst is an innovator. Fred Durst is a fuckin' pioneer, and I will yell that from every rooftop… It's really interesting that post-'Icon' [MTV's performance tribute to METALLICA at which LIMP BIZKIT and KORN performed], there's a lot of love for Durst now. On all the METALLICA threads on our web site, it's all respect to Fred Durst."
Hetfield was apparently not as much of a fan of LIMP BIZKIT's music back in the day, telling Playboy in a 2001 interview: "LIMP BIZKIT seems a little cartoony to me. I don't like some guy just yelling. Like RAGE AGAINST THE MACHINE — it wasn't singing, it was just some guy kind of pissed off, telling you his opinion."
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30 июн 2025
BRUCE KULICK Says There Is A 'Mutual Respect' Between Him And KISS Leaders PAUL STANLEY And GENE SIMMONS
 In a new interview with Get On The Bus, Bruce Kulick, who joined KISS in 1984 and remained the band's lead guitarist for 12 years, spoke about his current relationship with KISS leaders Paul Stanley and Gene Simmons. He said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "It's very much to my benefit, and probably theirs, to have this mutual respect moving forward. I never forget and take the eye off of the fact that that opportunity has been just something that has consist consistently paid off for me, both career-wise and financially.
"I don't need to be the guy who has to get publicity from having rows with them and fighting with them, or complaining about them," Bruce continued. "And I do understand many artists; they get into like huge blowouts when something's happened. And I just celebrate KISS. I respect what they've done. I do understand them maybe better than the average bear. Maybe that helps me just look the other way when I think, like, 'Why do I need to burst a bubble about it?'"
Referencing his previous revelation that he wasn't asked to perform at KISS's final show and wasn't invited to attend the event, which was held in December 2023 at New York City's Madison Square Garden, Bruce said: "I will admit I was very verbal about the final show that I didn't feel they handled that right, which was very out of character for me. But I knew that that was the sentiment of the fans, where they [felt that Paul and Gene] didn't celebrate Kisstory on the final show, and that opportunity was there for them. But I wasn't in the works with them to understand what was their desires and motives on getting through to that final big show at the Garden."
Kulick also touched upon the fact that early last year KISS sold its entire music catalog, likeness and brand name to Swedish company Pophouse Entertainment, which is behind "ABBA Voyage". A biopic, an avatar show, and a KISS-themed experience are already in the works, with Simmons and Stanley playing key roles in the development of all these projects, working closely with Pophouse.
"It's a new era now for KISS in the sense that it was bought by a very big company that wants to keep KISS alive forever," Bruce said. "And that would be with avatars and possibly a lot of other things. Whatever their vision is, they now own KISS. And that's why I'll always wave the flag of all 50 years. And the good news with the future of KISS is that the company Pophouse that bought it, they own the brand and they get it, that they want to share and celebrate it with everyone."
Last year, Kulick told Finland's Chaoszine that Stanley and Simmons "missed a really huge opportunity" when they failed to acknowledge any of KISS's former members during the final concert. "It's not just about me," Bruce clarified. "[They also didn't mention late KISS drummer] Eric Carr, [original KISS guitarist] Ace [Frehley] and [original KISS drummer] Peter [Criss], and [late KISS manager] Bill Aucoin. Come on. Terrible. They really missed making a better feel-good evening for everyone when it was much closer to every night before. And those who say, 'Well, I saw you up on the screen.' They'd been doing that for years where they'd have little things. So they didn't feel it was important. I feel they missed an opportunity."
This past February, Stanley was asked during an interview with the "Talk Is Jericho" podcast why there weren't any guest appearances by former KISS members at the band's final shows. Paul responded: "To be somewhat diplomatic, there were people who made unrealistic demands of what they required. And it's not about that. It wasn't, for example, a celebration of the beginning of the band; it was a celebration of 50 years of a band, as opposed to a tribute to the start. So, as far as Ace and Peter, they weren't there for many reasons. And I've said it a hundred times and I'll say it another hundred times. We couldn't be here today without what those guys did, and we couldn't be here today with them."
Asked by podcast host Chris Jericho about the lack of any mention of other former KISS members, such as Eric Carr, Bruce Kulick and Mark St. John, Stanley said: "What are you gonna do? I think the best way to honor everyone is to be the best we can be. What are we gonna have — videos up on the screen or draped photos? The fact that we were there, we were there because of everybody who participated, some more than others, but the tribute to everyone is us existing."
Bruce accompanied KISS on the "Animalize" tour and continued with the band until the 1996 reunion tour. Bruce is heavily featured on "Kissology - Vol. 2" and "Vol. 3", the band's DVDs spanning KISS's historic career.
Kulick — who last year launched his own brand to offer period-correct guitars inspired by his KISS era — played on six KISS studio albums and two live records.
Bruce will perform at the upcoming 50th anniversary of the KISS Army fan club. The show will take place at a weekend-long event at Virgin Hotels in Las Vegas on November 14-16.
Kulick did not take part in either of KISS's farewell tours, in 2000-2001, and 2019-2023. Tommy Thayer has been KISS's guitarist since 2002. | +1 | |
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30 июн 2025
Watch: GENE SIMMONS BAND Performs At Opening Of 'Rock & Brews Restaurant And Concert Bar' In Oklahoma
 Indigo Sky Casino & Resort in Wyandotte, Oklahoma turned it up to 11 with the grand opening of Rock & Brews Restaurant And Concert Bar, which featured a ribbon-cutting ceremony and a free live performance by KISS Rock And Roll Hall Of Famer and Rock & Brews co-founder Gene Simmons and his GENE SIMMOMS BAND, on Thursday, June 26. This exciting addition underscored Indigo Sky's commitment to providing guests with memorable experiences, delicious food, and top-notch amenities across the Four-State area.
The celebration kicked off at 1:00 p.m. with a ribbon-cutting ceremony and remarks from Simmons, Indigo Sky's general manager Melanie Heskett, and Eastern Shawnee Tribe of Oklahoma's chief Glenna Wallace. The party continued into the evening with a free live show by the GENE SIMMONS BAND — consisting of Gene on bass and vocals, Jason Walker on guitar and vocals, Brian Tichy on drums and vocals and Brent Woods on guitar — at 8:00 p.m. on the Rock & Brews stage.
Heskett said: "The opening of Rock & Brews marked an exciting new chapter for Indigo Sky Casino & Resort. From bold flavors to the iconic rock décor, this high-energy venue is all about great food and a great time. We were thrilled for our guests to experience it, and we're proud that Indigo Sky continues to deliver unforgettable moments."
Simmons and fellow Rock & Brews co-founder, KISS guitarist/vocalist Paul Stanley said in a joint statement: "We're excited about what came from our partnership with the Indigo Sky team to bring a Rock & Brews Restaurant to their casino and resort. We all worked hard together to create a Rock & Brews destination we're proud to share with the community, and that's exactly what we did."
The new Rock & Brews Restaurant And Concert Bar features a 7,500-square-foot space designed for music lovers and foodies alike, with 15 state-of-the-art LED screens for sports and entertainment viewing. Guests enjoy a full-service concert bar, countertop gaming, and plenty of space for dancing, along with private dining and meeting room options. A live performance stage showcases both local talent and national acts, while the menu features craveable American classics, signature "rocktails," and 18 local and craft beers on tap, along with a weekend buffet-style brunch.
Indigo Sky Casino & Resort, located in Northeast Oklahoma, is one of the region's premier gaming and entertainment destinations. The property features over 1,400 of today's hottest slots, 14 table games, 10 poker tables, and a 400-seat bingo hall. Guests can relax in the 245-room hotel with a resort-style pool or enjoy the onsite RV park. Indigo Sky is known for its thrilling promotions, exciting giveaways, and rewarding player programs offered year-round, giving guests more ways to win every time they visit.
In addition to Stanley and Simmons, the Rock & Brews team includes CEO Adam Goldberg, entrepreneur, restaurateur, and hotelier Michael Zislis, who is behind some of Southern California's most well-known establishments, such as The Strand House and Shade Hotels; as well as concert industry veterans Dave and Dell Furano. The team opened the first Rock & Brews near LAX Airport in Southern California in 2010. Since then, they have rapidly expanded to include over 24 locations in California, Florida, Kansas, Missouri, Oklahoma, Texas, Washington, and Wisconsin, with more locations coming soon.
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2 DAYS TO GO! 🎉 🎉 🎉 Get ready to turn it up to 11!
Be sure to join us for our Grand Opening Ribbon Cutting Ceremony...
Posted by Rock & Brews at Indigo Sky Casino on Tuesday, June 24, 2025 | 0 | |
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30 июн 2025
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30 июн 2025
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30 июн 2025
JAKE E. LEE Says The Two Men Who Allegedly Shot Him Have Been Arrested And Are Awaiting Sentencing
 Former OZZY OSBOURNE guitarist Jake E. Lee says that the two individuals who allegedly shot him last fall near his home in Las Vegas have been arrested and are due to be sentenced in July.
Lee was in his driveway in the morning of October 15, 2024 about to walk his dog at about 2:40 a.m. when he was shot in the forearm; in the back, with the bullet breaking a rib; and in the foot. None of the shots hit a vital organ. A neighbor heard the shots, hid his kids, grabbed a gun and called 911. Lee's dog was unharmed. Police reportedly found 15 shell casings at the scene.
The 68-year-old guitarist offered an update on the incident while confirming his participation in next weekend's all-star "Back To The Beginning" event in Birmingham, United Kingdom, which will mark BLACK SABBATH and Ozzy's final performance.
"Just confirming I'm playing in Birmingham on the 5th of July," Lee wrote Friday night (June 27). "In fact I believe I'll be first at bat, which means [my dog] Coco has to be up at 7:00am [in Las Vegas] to watch Pops [as part of the pay-per-view livestream]!
"I'm thrilled to be sharing the stage with top tier musicians," Jake continued. "I won't name cause you never know until the curtain rises, but will confirm once we have our rehearsal next week.
"Oh, btw, the two that shot me have been caught and face sentencing next month," Lee added. "The gun was tied to two previous murders so my case is almost an afterthought. They're going bye bye for a long time. On that happy thought, see ya on TV!"
Last November, Jake wrote on Facebook that the shooting occurred after he noticed two men "dressed in black, hoodies pulled down low" checking out a motorcycle in a driveway. "They saw us coming up on them and exited the driveway and quickly walked down the street, the same direction we were headed." The men "kept checking over their shoulders at us" as Coco "pulled hard on the leash." Lee added that the men then warned him: “You need to quit following us, turn around and fuck off."
Lee refused to back down, believing the men were "obviously more intimidated by an 80-pound pitbull than an old guy in a bright Hawaiian shirt. He explained that "after some macho back and forth," he and his dog continued to walk home, leaving the men behind. It was then he was shot.
"We were about 50 feet apart when I heard the shots," Lee said. "I quickly realized he wasn't aiming at me. He was aiming at my dog. I threw my end of the leash at Coco and yelled to go home. He did. He's a good boy.
"One bullet went through my forearm, one through my foot, and one in the back, which broke a rib and damaged a lung. All the fingers still move."
Earlier this month, Lee told Guitar World magazine that he agreed to take part in "Back To The Beginning" after he was approached by RAGE AGAINST THE MACHINE's Tom Morello, who is serving as musical director for the event.
"Tom Morello called me," Lee confirmed. "He said, 'There's going to be a thing, an original SABBATH performance and Ozzy Osbourne's final performance. I can't see this going on without Jake E. Lee in there somewhere.'"
Lee added that he was excited about the upcoming show both as a participant and as an audience member, even through he hadn't been in touch with Ozzy for years.
"It's a thrill to be a part of it," he said. "And even more so for me to watch it. I hope Ozzy can get through it. I haven't spoken with him or seen him in decades. I really don't know what condition he's in, but he deserves a final farewell performance. No matter how he is, or how well his singing is, he deserves to have that final farewell. I'm happy to be a part of it."
Lee, who was tapped by Ozzy Osbourne to replace the late Randy Rhoads in the singer's solo band, played on two Ozzy records: 1983's "Bark At The Moon" and 1986's "The Ultimate Sin".
In a statement to TMZ shortly after the shooting, Ozzy said: "It's been 37 years since I've seen Jake E. Lee, but that still doesn't take away from the shock of hearing what happened to him today. It's just another senseless act of gun violence. I send my thoughts to him and his beautiful daughter, Jade. I just hope he'll be OK."
After performing with Ozzy, Lee formed the hard rock band BADLANDS. He released the solo albums "Retraced" and "Guitar Warrior" in 2005 and 2007, respectively. After a self-imposed exile from the music industry and the public eye, Lee returned with a new band called RED DRAGON CARTEL, releasing a self-titled album in 2013 followed by "Patina" in 2018.
Just confirming I’m playing in Birmingham on the 5th of July. In fact I believe I’ll be first at bat, which means Coco...
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29 июн 2025
Ex-ICED EARTH Singer MATT BARLOW: 'I Can't Wait For JON SCHAFFER To Do Something Else Musically'
 In a new interview with Spain's Stairway To Rock, former ICED EARTH singer Matt Barlow was asked about the possibility of working again with ICED EARTH founder Jon Schaffer after previously serving two stints with the band, from 1993 to 2003 and from 2007 to 2011. Matt said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "Jon and I haven't talked about that at all, man. Obviously, I can't wait for Jon to do something else musically. I don't know if it's gonna be ICED EARTH or something else. But I look forward to him coming back and getting back into things. I really hope that he does. But right now, that's all on hold for him, I believe. It's been a little bit since I've spoken with him. He and my wife speak quite often, as that's my wife's brother. But as far as, whenever he does something, I'm gonna be fully supporting him coming back into music. So hopefully that will happen."
Referencing the fact that Jon was sentenced last October to three years of probation and 120 hours of community service in connection with his involvement in the riot at the U.S. Capitol. (Schaffer later became one of about 1,500 people accused of crimes related to the riot who were pardoned by President Donald Trump),Matt said: "I've said this before in other interviews, I understand people's disappointment in how things went down with Jon, and I think Jon is disappointed as well and has apologized. Hopefully there is a redemption story in here and hopefully people can understand and understand that we all have our differences in our, whether you wanna call them flaws or just differences in opinion or what have you, or differences in things that they've done or anything. But, at the end of the day, I think the outcome, if Jon is able to come back into the musical realm, I think the outcome ultimately will be something — a very, very, very positive thing."
Asked if he is able to convince Jon to bring ICED EARTH back, possibly with Matt once again on vocals, Barlow said: "No. 'Cause I really don't wanna push Jon into something. At the end of the day, ICED EARTH is Jon's, and any project that Jon does is gonna be up to him. He's a fantastic musician and writer, and I think that any project that he does is going to be a good thing."
This past April, it was announced that ASHES OF ARES, the band featuring Barlow and fellow ex-IXED EARTH member Freddie Vidales, will celebrate the upcoming 30th anniversary of ICED EARTH's third album, 1996's "The Dark Saga", on a European tour in September/October 2025. Vidales played with ICED EARTH from 2008 to 2012 and is featured on the band's 2011 album "Dystopia". from 1993 to 2003 and from 2007 to 2011.
"We have been given Jon's blessing to do 'The Dark Saga' in its entirety," Matt told Stairway To Rock. "I mean, we didn't necessarily have to ask his blessing, but we did. Freddie contacted him, and he said, 'Absolutely,' obviously with these limitations. No [ICED EARTH] logo or anything that ICED EARTH has that's copywritten [sic] or anything like that. But as far as performing the music, he gave us permission to do so and gave his blessing on that."
Barlow also talked about his career as a police lieutenant in Georgetown, Delaware, saying: "It's great. I've actually been a police officer since 2003. So, I've been doing it for 22 years now. It was a huge life decision. Obviously, it really changed my life, but it did allow me a couple of things — it allowed me to start a family and have a family, and to see my sons grow instead of being out on the road and all that. It was necessary — it was a hundred percent necessary — because I think my life is fulfilled. And I'm still able to perform music and write and record and all that. So, for me, I've been able to have my cake and eat it too, so to speak, as a term used sometimes. I've had a very successful life here at home and with my career in law enforcement as well as a very fulfilling life with music. I don't have any preconceived notions. I did go back to ICED EARTH for a time, in 2008, but that had to end after a couple of years because the band needed to be able to make money and touring is the way that bands make money now. There's no other way, really, for bands to do it, because you can't make money recording anymore unless you're a platinum star or something like that. But it doesn't happen too often in metal. But as it is, I've been able to have a really excellent career, and I'm very grateful for that. And I am very grateful to not only the people that I work with during my day job, because they're very supportive of what I do, but also I'm very grateful to fans that understand the restraints of my career in law enforcement and still support me musically, even though I can't get out there and tour and see everybody all the time. But hopefully we'll be able to do it a little bit more as years go on. And as my law enforcement career dwindles down, maybe I can have some more time to go out there and tour, and that would be fantastic."
Recorded in early 1996, "The Dark Saga" was a concept album based on the Todd McFarlane comic book character Spawn (who also appears on the album's cover). Upon its arrival, the LP was praised for Barlow's vocals, as well as Schaffer and Randall Shawver's guitar playing. Eduardo Rivadavia called Barlow's vocal performance "impressive throughout", while Mike Stagno felt that "Barlow's deeper vocal style also helps the songs sound much more emotional". Rivadavia also named Schaffer and Shawver's interplay the highlight of "The Dark Saga".
Regarding why "The Dark Saga" was an important enough album for him that he wanted to celebrate it three decades after the LP's original release, Barlow told Canada's The Metal Voice: "I can't talk about ICED EARTH without talking about, for me, entering the band with [1995's] 'Burnt Offerings'. That was huge for me. That was my first foray into actually being in a professional band. But along with that kind of came a dark side of it because it was a really tough time for the band as well, which kind of translated into the music. As everybody, I think, understands with Jon, when he writes, his heart goes out into the music. Whatever he's focused on is that. Just like for that record, he read 'Dante's Inferno', and then you get this giant humongous trilogy from that, because he puts everything he has into it. So, obviously, that's the crown jewel of that record — but, along with other things, that's definitely the crown jewel. But it was just a dark time for the band in general, even though I think I was the shining star at that point. But [it was] a tough time.
"So 'The Dark Saga', for me, and I think for Jon as well, was a renewal, a reinvigoration for the band," Matt explained. "The reason that even Jon got turned on to 'Spawn' was that we were celebrating Christmas. I like collecting action figures and stuff, and I had got all these like Batman and stuff, and Jon was a huge Batman fan, so I think I got Jon a Batman figure, and the other guys liked Spawn figures. And he was, like, 'What the hell's this?' And then he started getting into it, started reading the comics, and the rest is kind of history. And he was totally involved in the entire lore of it and just thought it was just the coolest thing ever. And that's what happened with 'The Dark Saga'.
"For me, it was really cool," Barlow added. "For some members of the band, obviously, members changed and things like that at that point too. It wasn't like a shock, with ICED EARTH, the membership changes from time to time. But for me, it was really a really good time. It was really a positive time for the band. And we did some amazing shit, man. We were able to do a lot more touring on that. We got a lot more recognition. A lot of the songs obviously sounded a little more mainstream, I guess you'd say. The European fans just ate it up. It had all the great aspects, the sing-along stuff, all the really sweet, hooky stuff. The choruses were just really super smooth and just well written. And, of course, you've got Jon just chunking along. So it's got all the cool shit that you would relate to ICED EARTH. And I think that you listen to it and you go, 'Yep, that's ICED EARTH.' And for me, also I was able to get kind of recognized who I am. At the time, in between 'Burnt Offerings' and 'The Dark Saga', I was starting to work with a vocal coach. I had had a little bit of coaching before. My sister-in-law, she was a voice instructor and things like that. But this guy kind of got me and sort of understood and said, and he told me that the coolest thing, and I tell this to every other vocalist that asks me about how I developed my voice or whatever. I just say, 'Do the best you can with what you've got. Figure out what your sweet spots are and focus on those.' And you can broaden your voice, obviously — you can broaden your range and all that — but really focus on those sweet spots in your voice and accentuate that and make that the star of what you're doing. So I really took that to heart. I really started accentuating, obviously, the cool low parts. And then, of course, working with [producer] Jim Morris was just huge as well to really help me bring that kind of stuff out in the studio. And then developing that and bringing that into a live show and everything else. So it was just a really cool growing experience as well with that record. So, yeah, I've got just tons of fond memories of things that that represents for me."
Asked if he and Freddie were concerned at all about going out and celebrating "The Dark Saga" after Schaffer's recent legal troubles, Matt responded: "We don't live in a tube of silence here. We get stuff. But I think for me, and I think for people that are fans of the music, they don't care about that. I think at the end of the day, it's the music. And I hope that everybody's respectful because I'm gonna celebrate Jon and what he's done. He's written some fucking amazing music, and I've been fortunate to be a part of that. So, outside of that, I'm not gonna get political with anything. We're not talking politics. We're just talking strictly music, and it's for the love of music. And I hope that everybody understands that. That's what the point is. Hopefully we're bringing something cool and special. And I certainly look forward, if Jon wants to tour again and play this music again, I wholeheartedly look forward to that, if that's a possibility. But we're just gonna go out there and just celebrate this music that is very special, I think, for a lot of people. We've been given blessing to do so by Jon, so that's super important to us as well."
ASHES OF ARES will release its fourth studio album, titled "New Messiahs", in Europe on July 18 and in North America on August 8 via ROAR!
ICED EARTH played its final show with Barlow at the 2011 edition of the Wacken Open Air festival in Wacken, Germany.
Barlow, who is married to Schaffer's sister, announced his departure from ICED EARTH in March 2011. In a heartfelt statement, he cited his commitment to his family and the need for ICED EARTH to tour more as the reasons for his retirement; however, he committed to performing with ICED EARTH on all 2011 European festival dates, including Wacken Open Air.
Back in late 2020, Barlow reunited with Schaffer to celebrate the holiday season with an EP called "Winter Nights". Released under the SCHAFFER/BARLOW PROJECT banner, the effort contained the duo's unique spin on five Christmas classics and two ICED EARTH songs.
This past April, Schaffer said in an interview that the legal issues and professional setback he faced as a result of his involvement in the Capitol riot have been "the biggest gift" of his life, in part because "it is what led" him "to [Jesus] Christ."
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29 июн 2025
Watch IRON MAIDEN Play Its Biggest U.K. Non-Festival Headlining Concert Ever At London Stadium
 On Saturday, June 28, British heavy metal legends IRON MAIDEN performed at the London Stadium, home of West Ham Football Club — the team that MAIDEN founder and bassist Steve Harris has supported throughout his life, and with whom IRON MAIDEN has a long and storied history.
This concert in front of an estimated 70,000-75,000 fans was the first time that IRON MAIDEN had performed on the club's hallowed turf. A true homecoming show — with Harris, MAIDEN guitarists Dave Murray and Adrian Smith and retired MAIDEN drummer Nicko McBrain all born in the surrounding area — it was also the biggest U.K. venue the band had ever headlined outside of its festival appearances.
The London show, which was part of the "Run For Your Lives" tour celebrating 50 years since MAIDEN's formation, marked the band's 15th live appearance with new drummer Simon Dawson, who replaced McBrain last December.
When the London Stadium concert was first announced last September, Harris said in a statement: "My love of football and my support of West Ham is no secret, and I know many of our fans around the world have shared that with me too. So we're all very excited to be playing at the London Stadium as part of the 'Run For Your Lives' tour. We can't wait to see you all there!"
MAIDEN's setlist for the London show was as follows:
01. Murders In The Rue Morgue
02. Wrathchild
03. Killers
04. Phantom Of The Opera
05. The Number Of The Beast
06. The Clairvoyant
07. Powerslave
08. 2 Minutes To Midnight
09. Rime Of The Ancient Mariner
10. Run To The Hills
11. Seventh Son Of A Seventh Son
12. The Trooper
13. Hallowed Be Thy Name
14. Iron Maiden
Encore:
15. Aces High
16. Fear Of The Dark
17. Wasted Years
The London concert will be followed by 17 further stadium, festival and arena shows around Europe. With over a million tickets already sold, and most shows sold out, fans are advised that additional tickets will be made available closer to the show — and on the day — with the release of venue and production holds.
Last month, MAIDEN manager Rod Smallwood took to the band's web site to share a post titled "Put away your phones and get ready to Run For Your Lives!" in which he urged fans to experience the shows "in the moment" rather than on smaller screens at a later date.
"We really want fans to enjoy the shows first hand, rather than on their small screens," Smallwood wrote. "The amount of phone use nowadays diminishes enjoyment, particularly for the band who are on stage looking out at rows of phones, but also for other concertgoers.
"We feel that the passion and involvement of our fans at shows really makes them special, but the phone obsession has now got so out of hand that it has become unnecessarily distracting especially to the band. I hope fans understand this and will be sensible in severely limiting the use of their phone cameras out of respect for the band and their fellow fans."
"Run For Your Lives" world tour is one part of IRON MAIDEN's 50th-anniversary celebrations and will feature many fan "meet-up" events in the cities the band is playing. As was debuted successfully in Australia on the last tour, these will include Eddie's official pop-up dive bar which will be open for pre-show and post-show gatherings in 20 cities on the tour. They will be serving Trooper beer and Darkest Red wine, with food, exclusive merch and further entertainment. Details are available on ironmaiden.com. But please note the band will not be at these events. Additionally, there is both a feature-length documentary film coming to cinemas worldwide later this year, via Universal Pictures Content Group, and an official hardback book providing a magnificent visual celebration of 50 years of IRON MAIDEN, being published by Thames & Hudson.
Dawson previously played with MAIDEN bassist Steve Harris as a member of his BRITISH LION project.
McBrain played his last-ever gig with MAIDEN six months ago in São Paulo, Brazil.
The 73-year-old British musician, whose real name is Michael Henry McBrain, announced his retirement on December 7, 2024 in a statement on MAIDEN's web site and social media. He also said that night's concert at Allianz Parque in São Paulo, Brazil would mark his final show with the iconic heavy metal act.
Despite the fact that he was stepping away from touring, McBrain said that he would remain closely connected to IRON MAIDEN and continue to be involved in "a variety of projects" with the band, while also focusing on personal ventures and his existing businesses.
On December 8, 2024, IRON MAIDEN announced Dawson as its new touring drummer.
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29 июн 2025
See First Photos Of Entire Reunited Original BLACK SABBATH Lineup
 The original lineup of BLACK SABBATH — singer Ozzy Osbourne, bassist Geezer Butler, guitarist Tony Iommi and drummer Bill Ward — recently commenced rehearsing for its final performance, "Back To The Beginning: Ozzy's Final Bow", set to take place on July 5 at Birmingham, United Kingdom's Villa Park.
Earlier today (Saturday, June 28),the official BLACK SABBATH and Iommi social media shared several new photos (see below) of Osbourne, Iommi, Ward and Butler at the mural — created by local artist Daniel Russell-Ahern, better known as Mr Murals — depicting all four original SABBATH members on Navigation Street near Grand Central Station in Birmingham, along with the following message: "We made the trip to the mural. Only 1 week until Back To The Beginning: Ozzy's Final Bow". Iommi added: "Hasn't Mr Murals been busy! Very flattered to be honoured in such a creative way, thank you Birmingham!"
The sold-out "Back To The Beginning: Ozzy's Final Bow" event will be available as a global livestream at www.backtothebeginning.com.
Those who missed out on being there can still experience this unforgettable moment, with access to the raw livestream from 3:00 p.m. on July 5, and the chance to rewatch the concert in its entirety for another 48 hours.
"Back To The Beginning: Ozzy's Final Bow" will be captured, produced and distributed by Mercury Studios ("One To One: John & Yoko", "American Symphony", "Metallica Saved My Life"),who are pioneering the way for premium, music-driven storytelling across film, television, podcasts and immersive formats. Mercury has partnered with Kiswe — the global D2C streaming partner behind the record-breaking BTS concert livestream — to deliver this unforgettable moment of music history to fans across the globe.
Ozzy's wife and manager Sharon Osbourne said: "We had such an overwhelming demand from fans from around the globe, who couldn't get tickets to the show, and they took to social media, pleading with us to broadcast a livestream of the show. Being this is such a historic event, we just couldn't let them down."
Kelly Sweeney, managing director of Mercury Studios, said: "Mercury Studios are incredibly proud to be involved in capturing this monumental milestone at Villa Park. 'Back To The Beginning' will be an unforgettable experience, and our aim is to deliver this moment to fans worldwide, wherever they are, so they don't miss out on seeing music history being made."
The all-day event at Villa Park, produced by Live Nation, will be hosted and compered by American actor Jason Momoa, and feature a supergroup of musicians.
This past February, Sharon told The Sun that her husband is struggling to walk amid his battle with Parkinsons disease, but that his singing voice is "as good as ever". She said: "[Ozzy's] very happy to be coming back and very emotional about this.
"Parkinson's is a progressive disease. It's not something you can stabilize. It affects different parts of the body and it's affected his legs. But his voice is as good as it's ever been."
Proceeds from the "Back To The Beginning" show will support Cure Parkinson's, the Birmingham Children's Hospital and Acorn Children's Hospice, a Children's Hospice supported by Aston Villa.
According to Sharon, Ozzy, who paused touring "for now" in 2023 after extensive spinal surgery and rescheduled his "No More Tours 2" shows from going ahead several times because of illness, the pandemic and logistical issues, will not play any more shows after the Villa Park event.
"Ozzy didn't have a chance to say goodbye to his friends, to his fans, and he feels there's no been no full stop," she explained. "This is his full stop."
In addition, there will be a performance by a "supergroup of musicians" including Duff McKagan and Slash (GUNS 'N' ROSES),Billy Corgan (THE SMASHING PUMPKINS),Fred Durst (LIMP BIZKIT),K.K. Downing (JUDAS PRIEST),Jake E. Lee (OZZY OSBOURNE) and Tom Morello (RAGE AGAINST THE MACHINE).
"It's an endless amount of people," said Sharon. "They're going to be doing some SABBATH songs, some Ozzy songs, and they'll all mix together. Different little groups will be coming on, but they're all icons."
The original lineup of BLACK SABBATH last performed in 2005. Since then, SABBATH has played in partial reunions but never in its original lineup.
"For Ozzy right now, it's definitely: 'I love you and good night'," Sharon told Reuters.
She added that Ozzy was doing well and excited about the gig. "It's stimulated him," she said. "He's very, very excited and very thankful that he can do it."
The legendary BLACK SABBATH frontman was diagnosed in 2003 with Parkin 2 — a very rare genetic form of Parkinson's. During a TV appearance in January 2020, the singer disclosed that he was 'stricken" with the disease which occurs when the nerve cells of the body degenerate and levels of dopamine are reduced. Dopamine is an essential chemical that is produced by these nerve cells which send signals to different parts of the brain to control movements of the body.
Ozzy's health issues, including suffering a nasty fall and dislodging metal rods placed in his spine following a quad-bike accident in 2003, as well as catching COVID-19 three years ago, forced him to cancel some of his previously announced tours.
While Osbourne's health issues forced him to scrap most of his live appearances, the musician said he would return if his condition improved.
Osbourne's previously announced European tour with guests JUDAS PRIEST, originally set for 2019 and then rescheduled three times, was officially canceled in early February 2023.
Despite his health problems, Osbourne has performed a couple of times in the last three years, including at the Commonwealth Games in Birmingham in August 2022 and at the NFL halftime show at the season opener Los Angeles Rams and Buffalo Bills game in September 2022.
We made the trip to the mural. Only 1 week until Back To The Beginning: Ozzy’s Final Bow
📸: Darren Quinton/Touchstone Visuals
Posted by Black Sabbath on Saturday, June 28, 2025
Hasn’t Mr Murals been busy! Very flattered to be honoured in such a creative way, thank you Birmingham! - Tony ✟
Find the new Black Sabbath mural on Navigation Street near Birmingham New Street train station.
Posted by Tony Iommi on Saturday, June 28, 2025
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29 июн 2025
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29 июн 2025
LARS ULRICH On 'METALLICA Saved My Life' Film: 'It's Great For Us To Turn The Spotlight Away From Us And On To The Fans'
 Heavy Consequence caught up with METALLICA drummer Lars Ulrich and bassist Robert Trujillo on the red carpet of the premiere of the new documentary, "Metallica Saved My Life", on June 11 at New York City's Tribeca Festival at the BMCC Tribeca Performing Arts Center. During the chat, which can be seen below, the two talked about the why it was important to put the spotlight on their fans in film, which was directed by acclaimed filmmaker Jonas Åkerlund.
Asked why it was important to put the spotlight on the METALLICA fans in the documentary, Lars said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): " Well, I think that there's so many great stories to be told. There's so much diversity. And I think probably the greatest thing about our fans and all the people that are turned on and inspired and caught up in our music is how different they are. And so if we were standing here, say 40 years ago, it would be much easier to define who they are. But today, 44 years later, it's almost impossible to define. So I always say, if you've got 10 people, you get 10 different stories. You get a hundred people, you get a hundred different stories. And just trying to share some of those stories and get a little bit of a peek into the lives and their points of view, their diversity, what they go through to be part of all of this. And it's just great for us to kind of turn the spotlight away from us and on to the fans and get a chance to hear their stories. And that's been the best part of the last three years on this project."
Robert chimed in: "The fans are as important as the music. They're as important as we are. They're attached to everything that we do, and they're the reason we're here now. They're the reason we're on tour. They mean so much to us and vice versa. So it's amazing to see their stories and hear what they have to tell. And it's very international, and it goes deep."
Asked if there were any fan stories that particularly resonated with them, Lars said: "Well, as an only child, the reason I wanted to be in a band was to belong to something bigger than myself, to belong to a collective, to a group, to a gang, however you wanna phrase it, and every one of the fans who have their version of that are the ones that I just really relate to. There's a girl, a Chilean girl, in the movie, called Camilla, whose story I relate to. There's the Norwegian Vikings, me as a Scandinavian, who I relate to. There's lots of them. I find a connection to pretty much all of 'em. And I think ultimately what we try to do in METALLICA is break down that barricade that separates the band from the fans and try to make it all-inclusive and put us all on an equal pedestal. And everybody's that's got that same objective in mind, I feel a kinship with."
Added Robert: "Absolutely. Same here. Every night on stage, you look in their eyes and you see that sort of happiness that exudes through the music and through what we do. And there's just mutual respect and love. And it's a very powerful thing. I kind of feel it more than ever nowadays, especially on that stage [during the 'M72' tour], 'cause they're right there. And even though it's larger venues, there's a connection that we're feeling, 'cause we get to sort of make the rounds and find the sweet spots with 'em. So it's really fun and exciting."
"Metallica Saved My Life" documents the incredible stories of family, identity, redemption, loss, and salvation that make METALLICA's fans perhaps the most recognized example of why music matters to the world, and of why METALLICA is the kind of band that can literally save lives, including their own.
Åkerlund, who previously directed METALLICA's music videos for 1998's "Turn The Page", 1999's "Whiskey In The Jar" and 2016's "ManUNkind", interviewed fans from 23 different countries for the documentary, which is slated for release later this year.
Also speaking on the red carpet of the "Metallica Saved My Life" premiere, METALLICA guitarist/vocalist James Hetfield stated about how the idea for the film came together: "It all started with a friend of ours, Jim Breuer, who is a comedian that was opening up for us in the arena tour, and he was traveling around with a lot of these fans and just kind of got to know them staying in the Airbnbs with them. And he says, 'James, you have got to hear these fricking stories. They're unbelievable — where these people came from, how they got into music and why.' … Such deep emotional human stories. So he's the one that inspired this in a way. We didn't know what to do with it at first. What? Do you just do a podcast or blah, blah, blah? It's, like, no. Let's get together. And everyone knows our bio; we wanna get the fans' bios out there."
Regarding why Jonas was the right person to helm "Metallica Saved My Life", Hetfield said: "He's our kind of favorite go-to guy, and he gets us. He's done a couple of our just song videos and whatnot, and he totally gets us. He gets that world. He grew up in a metal band himself from Sweden. He's a big fan of metal, so we knew he was the guy."
James went on to talk about how the METALLICA members' personal stories are intertwined with those of the band's fans. He said: "It's not like we clock in at eight and clock out at five. Our job, it kind of… It's, like, we're leaving home for a month and a half. There's an anxiety, there's a weirdness, there's a ritualistic psycho-ness in our heads that happens. And the winddown after that too. How do you get back into regular life? And, hey, I'm not objectified by my neighbors now. I'm just a dude, which is great. I'm taking the garbage out in my underwear, being a regular guy. And that's what we are at the end of the day. And this is all just wonderful dust. It's not real out here, essentially. So we try to stay as grounded as possible, and I think this movie really shows how we are the same as our fans, and we've got, and they've got, a great story to tell."
Ulrich was equally excited about sharing the fans' stories, saying: "This is a celebration of the diversity of our fans. I've said for years, for decades, if you line up 10 METALLICA fans, you get 10 different stories. If you line up a hundred METALLICA fans, you get a hundred different stories. This is 10 to 15 of those stories. We're turning the spotlight away from us and on to the fans and celebrating how unique our fanbase is and all those great human beings. And this is really ultimately about trying to break down that barricade that separates a band from its audience and trying to celebrate the oneness of all of it and how we're all in it together and how we all are METALLICA together."
In a statement announcing "Metallica Saved My Life" in April, the band said: "As a few of you may know, we've been working behind the scenes the last couple of years on a new film that will be released later this year starring you guys! 'Metallica Saved My Life' explores our world through the lives of fans who have supported each other through highs, lows, trials and triumphs for over four decades. And yeah, we're in it a little bit too."
Back in July 2023, METALLICA put out a casting call for "superfans" of the band to possibly appear in an upcoming documentary. The filmmakers were looking for "big personalities, unique characters and unexpected stories from METALLICA fans who consider METALLICA to be their favorite band, real 'Fifth Member' types. All stories and walks of life" were "welcome and encouraged to reach out."
The documentary was produced by METALLICA and Mercury Studios, powered by Universal Music Group.
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29 июн 2025
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29 июн 2025
JANNE WIRMAN: Upcoming CHILDREN OF BODOM Book 'Tells The Whole Brutally Honest Story Of The Band'
 In a new interview with Ed Hackimer of This Day In Metal, CHILDREN OF BODOM keyboardist Janne Wirman spoke about the band's upcoming official book, which will be published in August via the London, U.K.-based publisher Rocket 88.
The book tells the story of the Finnish melodic death metal pioneers as an oral history in which Wirman, bassist Henkka Seppälä, drummer Jaska Raatikainen and early guitarist Alexander Kuoppala plus other former members, their friends and colleagues recall the 30-plus-year history of their career.
For the first time, members of the band tell the story of CHILDREN OF BODOM in their own words. Henkka, Janne and Jaska recall the founding of the band with their lost brother, guitarist/vocalist and main songwriter Alexi Laiho and the struggles, adventures and triumphs they experienced in the more than 30 years that followed. Drawing on personal memories and new interviews with the band conducted by Finnish best-selling author and longtime friend of the band Timo Isoaho, the official CHILDREN OF BODOM book tells the whole story, warts and all, of the groundbreaking melodic death metal band.
Janne told This Day In Metal about the CHILDREN OF BODOM book (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "We spent, I don't know how many times — like 10, 15 times we got together and we had drinks and we told these stories to [Timo's] recorder. And there was laughter, there was tears, there was everything. 'Cause it tells the whole fucking brutal honest story of the band and how much fun was it when it started and how shit was it when it went to shit."
The book is available in two deluxe editions; the Signature is signed by Henkka, Janne, Jaska and Alexander, and preordering gives you the chance to have a name printed in the book — only at childrenofbodombook.com.
When the book was first announced, Henkka, Janne, Jaska and Alexander said in a statement: "Since we stopped making music and suffered the tragic loss of our brother Alexi, we've been remembering so many great times that we had together, and you can now read about those times in this book. It tells the full history of CHILDREN OF BODOM in our own words."
In December 2023, Seppälä and Wirman hosted a listening party for CHILDREN OF BODOM's latest live album, "A Chapter Called... Children Of Bodom (Final Show In Helsinki Ice Hall 2019)", at the Bodom Bar & Sauna in Espoo, Finland. The LP, which was recorded at CHILDREN OF BODOM's final concert on December 15, 2019 at the Black Box in Helsinki Ice Hall in Helsinki, Finland, was made available via Spinefarm. During the question-and-answer portion of the event, Wirman and Seppälä discussed their mindset going into CHILDREN OF BODOM's final concert, which took place a year before Laiho passed away due to alcohol-induced degeneration of the liver and pancreas connective tissue. Furthermore, Laiho had a cocktail of painkillers, opioids and insomnia medication in his system. He had suffered from long-term health issues leading up to his death.
Janne said: "I felt a sense of relief onstage [at the final concert] 'cause I was very tired of Alexi's problems and constant problems with one guy. And then this guy who was our best friend and who wrote all the music, all of a sudden from 2016 on, just became someone I didn't recognize anymore. He was a different person, and he was so overcome with his disease and problems and it got to the point in 2019 we decided that this can't go on anymore. And then this was the last show. It was short notice, and we [originally] had so much better plans for how to say goodbye to all the international fans, how to do a proper farewell around-the-world tour [during 2020-2022] and whatever. But now, something we did not know, was [that] the pandemic [would happen], obviously, and that would have canceled all of those plans anyway."
Added Henkka: "So it was kind of, like, in a way we are lucky that we had this confrontation within the band that made us decide to drop [the group] earlier than we were supposed to and have this final show that was recorded. Because if you would have kept on the original plan with Alexi that let's do a farewell tour until 2022, I think it was, so then the pandemic would have ruined everything. And we probably would have never had this kind of last proper souvenir."
Asked if it ever entered their minds that they could take a long break away from each other and then maybe regroup at a later date, Henkka quipped: "That would have been like a mature way of dealing with it." Janne said: "Our manager at the time, Steve, did ask me that, at the eve of the last show, Steve asked me that, 'Are you ever gonna play with Alexi again?' And I said, 'I would only [play with him] if he would seek help and become fully sober.' And I knew that wasn't an option, that he had decided at that point, unfortunately, that he's just gonna die by his addictions, which is horrible. And it's very sad, but I knew him well enough that there was no way that he's gonna get better. And then that's why somehow it was also a relief for me at the last show. I realized that I need to let go."
Added Henkka: "The problems were pretty bad — I mean, within the band, all the relations. And I don't think anybody could see a future anymore. So [putting the band to rest] was the only option at the time. I'm sure that Steve, our manager, had some hopes of a reunion show within some years, of course, because he's a businessman [laughs], but it didn't even cross my mind at that time."
Continued Janne: "That's why I said that at the time I said that I will never play again with Alexi, 'cause I knew that he will not get sober, he will not get help for his problems. And then it would've been a totally different opinion. If somehow any of us would've felt that, 'Okay, Alexi is gonna get help. He's gonna get better,' all of us would've been, like, 'Okay, fine. Let's give him a couple of years and then let's get back together.' But that was not foreseeable at the time."
Added Henkka: "At the time it was, it was an impossible point."
Released with the blessing of Laiho's estate, the concert album completes the legendary band's career which began in Espoo, Finland in 1993 as INEARTHED. Over their career, CHILDREN OF BODOM released ten studio albums, two live albums, two EPs, two compilation albums and one DVD. The final lineup of the group upon their split in 2019 consisted of Laiho (lead guitar, lead vocals),Raatikainen (drums),Seppälä (bass),Wirman (keyboards) and Daniel Freyberg (rhythm guitar).
In a July 2023 interview with BLABBERMOUTH.NET, Wirman opened up about the string of events that led to the band's 2019 demise and the deterioration of Laiho's health.
"Alexi's downfall started in 2016," Janne said. "I don't know what caused him to do that. He told me but didn't tell anyone else in the band — he made sure no one else was in the room — and told me, 'Dude, from now on, I'm going to drink until I die.' I said, 'Fuck, man. You can't say that to me.' He said it another time in 2018. I knew that was what he was doing — he said he wouldn't take any help for his medical issues. He was going to keep drinking. That's what he did, which is fucking crazy."
Janne continued: "A lot of people who haven't had a family friend or work buddy or someone who is sick with alcoholism, a lot of people don't understand you cannot help the person who doesn't want help. He had decided he didn't want help and would keep drinking until he died. That's what he did."
Wirmen then detailed BODOM's final years, beset by infighting largely stemming from Laiho's substance abuse issues. "The last years were pretty bad," he said. "There was a lot of bullshit. It's so crazy because he was in such a good place a couple of years before. He was happy about being sober and on tour, and the shows were good. I don't know what happened to him. Something pushed him over the edge where he decided, 'Fuck it. I'm going to keep drinking.'"
Alexi's ashes were buried in December 2021 — nearly a year after his tragic passing. He was laid to rest at the Malmi Cemetery, a large cemetery located in the Malmi district in Helsinki, Finland.
Alexi and Jaska founded CHILDREN OF BODOM in 1993, and the band was one of the most internationally acclaimed metal acts in Finland up until their very last farewell concert. In 2020, Alexi put together BODOM AFTER MIDNIGHT, which recorded three songs and shot one music video, all of which were released posthumously.
Besides CHILDREN OF BODOM, Laiho had played in such acts as WARMEN, SINERGY, KYLÄHULLUT and THE LOCAL BAND. Awarded with a Metal Hammer Golden God and several other international prizes, the guitarist was also the main star, leading a group of one hundred guitar players at the Helsinki Festival in 2015 in "100 Guitars From Hel" — a massive concert piece he composed.
In 2022, Wirman, Raatikainen and Seppälä discussed publicly for the first time the circumstances that led to the band's split and ultimately Laiho's death. In an interview with Finland's Helsingin Sanomat, the three surviving members of CHILDREN OF BODOM said the real reason for the band's breakup was not that they wanted to stop touring in order to spend more time with their families, which is how Laiho explained it to Helsingin Sanomat in November 2019. Instead, what caused the group to split was Laiho's substance abuse, and that is also what eventually killed him a year after they went their separate ways.
Laiho's addiction began to take a serious toll on CHILDREN OF BODOM in 2008, when the band was the support act on a SLIPKNOT tour. In the ensuing years, Laiho promised his bandmates that he would not drink on the road anymore. Although he kept his word for a few years, Alexi "went into a tailspin again in 2016," according to Wirman. Laiho, who had a substantial income as COB's main songwriter (all other income, from gigs to merchandise, was split equally),repeatedly complained that his income was declining and threatened to pull himself out of the limited liability company, AA & Sewira Consulting Oy, he and the other members formed in 2003.
After CHILDREN OF BODOM's manager brought up Laiho's substance abuse at a business meeting in New York in early 2019, Alexi refused to go into rehabilitation but did agree to see a doctor. He was diagnosed with diabetes, and he began taking medication to treat the condition.
In the summer of 2019, Laiho filed an application with the Finnish Patent And Registration Office to register the CHILDREN OF BODOM name to Laiho. This infuriated his bandmates who saw this as an attempt to hijack the name and brand that was controlled by the group's LLC.
During CHILDREN OF BODOM's tour of Russia in October 2019, Laiho "was hitting the bottle like back in 2008," his bandmates told Helsingin Sanomat.
"I told Alexi that you don't usually drink starting at breakfast before a gig, and now you don't even warm up with the guitar before going on stage like you always do," Raatikainen recalled.
Laiho later apologized and stopped drinking for the last concerts of the tour.
"His hands were shaking for two days, but the gigs in Moscow and St Petersburg went pretty well," Raatikainen said.
Raatikainen, Seppälä and Wirman decided to go with Alexi's wish from a few years back and buy him out of the LLC. Laiho retained the rights to his music and was paid royalties on performances and record sales as before, but sold his part of the LLC that owns the name of the band and the merchandising rights.
According to the trio, Alexi was sober for CHILDREN OF BODOM's entire final tour of Finland in December 2019 and he "exchanged cordial messages" with them even after the start of the pandemic.
Alexi's sister Anna Laiho told Helsingin Sanomat that the three surviving members of CHILDREN OF BODOM "have the full support of our family."
Anna, Alexi's Australian wife Kelli Wright-Laiho and a few close friends attempted to get him professional help in the fall of 2020, but he refused.
"At heart, he was a warm and caring person, always ready to help others. But he had his demons, and he wanted to fight those alone", Alexi's sister said. "He wanted to make his own choices. For better or worse."
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29 июн 2025
Watch: LOU GRAMM Performs FOREIGNER Classics In St. Petersburg, Florida
 The Djbobstar channel on YouTube has uploaded video of original FOREIGNER vocalist Lou Gramm's entire June 18 performance at Palladium at St. Petersburg College in St. Petersburg, Florida. Check it out below.
Featured songs:
00:00 Opening - The Foreigner Story
03:31 Feels Like The First Time
08:28 Double Vision
15:24 Long Way
20:29 Waiting For A Girl Like You
26:15 Blue Morning, Blue Day
30:48 Cold As Ice
35:24 Drum Solo (Lou's Brother Ben)
43:00 Midnight Blue
48:48 That Was Yesterday
53:40 Head Games
58:24 Urgent
01:07:34 I Want To Know What Love Is
01:13:30 Juke Box Hero (Encore)
01:19:10 Hot Blooded (Encore)
When FOREIGNER kicked off its spring 2025 Latin American tour on April 28 at Arena Ciudad de México in Mexico City, Mexico, FOREIGNER guitarist Luis Maldonado handled lead vocals for most of the set, while Gramm joined in for the last four songs. Asked in a recent interview with Brazil's 92.5 Kiss FM radio station if he will keep performing with FOREIGNER beyond the Latin American tour, Gramm said: "I think we're gonna continue doing this type of thing for another year or so… [After the Latin American tour] I'm doing Southeast Asia, I'm doing Europe and next year I'm doing the whole of the U.S."
Gramm also spoke about the fact that Maldonado is singing some of the FOREIGNER classics in Spanish during the Latin American tour. "We just talked about it within the last two weeks," Lou said. "And we decided that when we play areas of the world where Spanish is the dominant language, Luis, who has a wonderful voice, will sing some of the big hits in Spanish. I think that's fabulous… He's worked on [translating all the lyrics into Spanish] and he's made it work. He's very excited about doing it."
Elsewhere during the chat, Gramm commented on FOREIGNER's long-overdue 2024 induction into the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame. Eligible since 2002, FOREIGNER has had a huge number of rock hits, including "Cold As Ice", "Double Vision", "Hot Blooded", "I Want To Know What Love Is", "Juke Box Hero" and "Urgent", and has been nominated for three Grammy Awards, with no wins.
"Well, [the Rock Hall induction] means a great deal because I know we were eligible 20 years ago, and we just didn't get nominated," Gramm said. "And we would put our heads together — the band with our management — and wonder what we need to do to be a part of this. And it just took a longer time than we thought, but it sure is sweet to be in there now. I only wish that Mick [Jones, FOREIGNER's founding guitarist] was in better health, that he could have been there to play with us that night and enjoy the induction too. That's the tragedy of it, because we should have been in 20 years ago, in which case Mick would've been extremely healthy and we would be able to enjoy that honor as a band."
FOREIGNER lead singer Kelly Hansen announced during the band's performance on the May 20 season finale of NBC singing competition "The Voice" that he will be leaving the group at the end of the legendary rockers' summer 2025 tour. In a moving segment that aired nationally, Hansen introduced Maldonado as his official successor — a moment that symbolized both an end and a bold new beginning for the powerhouse group.
Prior to the Mexico City concert, Gramm most recently joined FOREIGNER's current lineup on stage at the end of the band's March 15 concert at the BayCare Sound in Clearwater, Florida to perform two of the legendary rock group's classic songs, "I Want To Know What Love Is" and "Hot Blooded".
Gramm previously said he planned to retire at the end of 2024, but later revealed that he was in talks to make appearances at "select" tour dates with FOREIGNER's current lineup in 2025. Bassist Rick Wills and drummer Dennis Elliott are also expected to appear at some shows, including FOREIGNER's upcoming Las Vegas residency.
Gramm was the voice on FOREIGNER's biggest hits, including "Feels Like The First Time" and "Cold As Ice" from the band's eponymous debut in 1977, and later songs like "Hot Blooded" and "I Want to Know What Love Is".
The 75-year-old Gramm left FOREIGNER for good in 2002 and has battled health issues in recent years, including the removal of a non-cancerous tumor. He told the Democrat & Chronicle in 2018 that he was planning to retire, but still reunited with FOREIGNER for several shows that year.
FOREIGNER replaced Gramm with Hansen in 2005. Jones, the only remaining original member of FOREIGNER, suffered from some health issues beginning in 2011, eventually resulting in heart surgery in 2012. In February 2024, Jones revealed on social media that he was battling Parkinson's disease, which explained his absence from FOREIGNER's live shows since 2022. | 0 | |
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29 июн 2025
MEGADETH's DIRK VERBEUREN Shares 'Holy Wars' Drum-Cam Video From Noblesville Concert
 MEGADETH drummer Dirk Verbeuren has shared a video of him performing the group's classic song "Holy Wars... The Punishment Due" with his bandmates on September 20, 2024 at the Ruoff Music Center in Noblesville, Indiana. Check it out below.
In an August 2024 interview with Paltrocast With Darren Paltrowitz, Verbeuren was asked if he has any "routines and stretches and wellness things" that he has to do to prepare for a tour. He responded: "These days, yes, I do. I do a lot of stretching and yoga, and not every day, but almost every day I do some fitness, some workouts. It's mostly just so that I'm gonna be in shape for the show and that I can give it my all without hurting myself or without getting too exhausted. That being said, the beginning of a tour is always gonna be a little bit brutal because you always need that first week to kind of acclimatize and get used to playing the whole show again, get used to playing 90 minutes of pretty much uninterrupted metal at a hundred percent. So it's always a little bit of adapting, but once you're kind of in the water, it starts getting easier over time. Like now, we're three weeks in, my body's used to it now, so now it's just about keeping it up. But, of course, when I was younger, I was, like everybody on tour, partying, drinking. Nowadays I haven't been drinking for almost 20 years now. I live pretty clean, just because I feel better that way — my body feels better, my mind feels better. I can be present every day and just give every show the best I can."
When host Darren Paltrowitz noted that "the happiest clean-living people play the angriest music", Dirk said: "I think the thing with metal music, the anger or the aggressiveness of it, it resonated with me as a teenager, because we all go through that kind of angsty phase, figuring out the world. So it really resonated with me. And not only metal, also rap and hip-hop and electronic music. There's all kinds of different things I listened to that kind of got me through that phase of kind of figuring things out. But I think that ultimately it sticks with you for the love of the music because of the musicianship and just the sheer power and energy of it. So I don't see it so much as necessarily aggression in the sense of it's aggressive towards anyone. It's more like we're expressing this energy that's in all of us because in the end, we're all the same."
MEGADETH's latest album, "The Sick, The Dying... And The Dead!", sold 48,000 equivalent album units in the U.S. in its first week of release to land at position No. 3 on the Billboard 200 chart. It marked MEGADETH's eighth top 10-charting album. Of "The Sick, The Dying... And The Dead!"'s 48,000 units earned for the week, album sales comprised 45,000, SEA units comprised 3,000 and TEA units comprised a negligible sum.
MEGADETH's previous top 10 entries on the Billboard 200 were "Countdown to Extinction" (No. 2, 1992),"Youthanasia" (No. 4, 1994),"Cryptic Writings" (No. 10, 1997),"United Abominations" (No. 8, 2007),"Endgame" (No. 9, 2009),"Super Collider" (No. 6, 2013) and "Dystopia" (No. 3, 2016).
Last summer, MEGADETH completed the North American "Destroy All Enemies" tour, produced by Live Nation. Support on the 33-city trek, which included stops in Los Angeles, Las Vegas, Boston and St. Louis, came from MUDVAYNE and ALL THAT REMAINS. | +1 | |
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29 июн 2025
DIMMU BORGIR Announces New Guitarist
 Norwegian symphonic black metallers DIMMU BORGIR have recruited Kjell Åge "Damage" Karlsen as their new guitarist. Karlsen, who previously played with DIMMU BORGIR frontman Shagrath (real name Stian Tomt Thoresen) in the long-running Norwegian rock band CHROME DIVISION, made his live debut with DIMMU BORGIR Friday night (June 27) at the Tons Of Rock festival in Oslo, Norway. Fan-filmed video of the show can be seen below.
Earlier today, DIMMU BORGIR shared a photo of Karlsen on social media and included the following message: "We're excited to proudly welcome Damage to the team, and we're all looking forward to sharing the stage with him this summer and onwards. It's already been a pleasure working and rehearsing with Damage over the last couple of months and we hope that you, the fans, will join us in welcoming him to the line up!"
Longtime DIMMU BORGIR guitarist Galder (real name Thomas Rune Andersen) announced his departure from the band last summer, explaining that he wanted to reactivate his OLD MAN'S CHILD project.
The now-48-year-old Galder played his final concert with DIMMU BORGIR on August 17, 2024 as the headliner of the main stage at Dynamo Metal Fest in Eindhoven, The Netherlands.
Galder is a founding member of the melodic black metal band OLD MAN'S CHILD, with whom he released one EP and seven studio albums between 1994 and 2009.
DIMMU BORGIR's current lineup is officially a duo comprising Shagrath on lead vocals and Silenoz (Sven Atle Kopperud) on rhythm guitar. They are joined by session musicians Karlsen on guitar, Dariusz "Daray" Brzozowski on drums (since 2008),Geir "Gerlioz" Bratland on keyboards (since 2010) and Victor Brandt on bass (since 2018).
DIMMU BORGIR's latest album, "Eonian", came out in 2018. The LP was released right in time for the band's 25th anniversary in 2018, about eight years after its predecessor, "Abrahadabra". Since then, DIMMU BORGIR has played various tours all around the world, including shows at leading metal festivals such as Wacken Open Air and Hellfest.
DIMMU BORGIR released a collection of its cover songs, "Inspiratio Profanus", in December 2023 via Nuclear Blast Records. "Inspiratio Profanus" featured the first single "Black Metal" by VENOM, "Perfect Strangers" (DEEP PURPLE),"Burn In Hell" (TWISTED SISTER) and renditions from CELTIC FROST, as well as other influential artists.
We’re excited to proudly welcome Damage to the team, and we’re all looking forward to sharing the stage with him this...
Posted by Dimmu Borgir on Friday, June 27, 2025
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29 июн 2025
ROYALE LYNN Shares 'WTCH' Music Video, Releases 'Black Magic' Debut Album
 Nashville rocker Royale Lynn has released her new album, "Black Magic", via Epitaph Records. A record that defies easy categorization, on her full-length debut the self-professed "metalhead from a small town" proves her prowess for bridging the gap between two seemingly different worlds.
For "Black Magic", Lynn provides a raw exploration of her personal struggles with mental health, woven through a narrative inspired by her fascinations with horror, mythology and fantasy. Drawing from the legend of Pandora's Box, each song on the record represents an "evil" that escaped Pandora's box into humanity. Royale kicked things off with the heavy riffs of "Greed" before delving into "E.V.I.L.", taking listeners on a very intense, personal and intentional journey both lyrically and musically.
Today she shares the rebellious focus track "WTCH", where her angelic tone cuts through a soundscape of heavy instrumentation and industrial production. Boldly taunting her enemies through a defiantly catchy hook, the song ends with a breakdown that features her first ever recorded screams. Royale brings the heat on the vampy accompanying visual, performing as a witchy video vixen leading a hoard of lost souls at an industrial rave. Watch the video below.
"I love the lore of magic and things that we can't see with our own eyes, so I thought 'WTCH' fit perfectly into the album concept," she explains. "There are people out there who think I sold my soul, and with this song I'm telling them, "Maybe you just don't understand the art and that's okay." It's okay to be different."
From small-town girl to now a part of the Epitaph Records family, Royale Lynn has been experimenting with a nostalgic alt-metal and hard-rock influenced sound that has resonated with over one million followers across socials and over 76 million global streams. Over the past year, Lynn has previewed the record with hard-hitting singles like "Death Wish" featuring Danny Worsnop (ASKING ALEXANDRIA),a song dedicated to first responders which landed at No. 27 on the rock radio charts. Unafraid to tackle serious topics within her music, "Battleground" chronicles the tumultuous experience of escaping a toxic relationship and emerging stronger and more resilient, while the powerful music video for "Sacrifice" paints a visual picture of the darkness that can accompany mental illness.
"Every song on 'Black Magic' is about mental health; I want to tell my stories in hopes that it might help others," Royale explains. "I think that music saves lives. Growing up, I struggled with managing my mental health, and I know some of my best friends struggled, too. I think this music gives us a safe space where we can be honest with ourselves. I wanted to show the community that they aren't alone."
After signing to Epitaph, Royale took 2024 by storm. Earning the distinction of being named a Loudwire "Artist To Watch", she was also heralded by Billboard as "a ferocious newcomer with ceiling-scraping vocals." Spending much of the year on the road, Royale played festivals like Louder Than Life, Welcome To Rockville and Aftershock, where she then received the once-in-a-lifetime chance to perform onstage with metal legends DISTURBED. She toured North America alongside SKILLET and SEETHER, recently wrapped up a U.S. run with ASKING ALEXANDRIA and will be playing a string of U.S. headlining shows in July. With her crossover sound resonating with the next generation of music fans, Royale Lynn is poised to claim her throne as active rock's new queen.
"Black Magic" track listing:
01. Greed
02. E.V.I.L.
03. Black Magic
04. Sacrifice
05. Pandora's Box
06. Dragon
07. When We Die
08. WTCH
09. Dark Mode
10. Inside Out
11. Death Wish (feat. Danny Worsnop)
12. BattlegrounD
Photo credit: Lindsey Ruth
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29 июн 2025
Cast For SCORPIONS Biopic 'Wind Of Change' Announced
 Dominic West ("The Crown"),Alexander Dreymon ("The Last Kingdom"),Ludwig Trepte ("Generation War"),Ed Speleers ("You"),David Kross ("The Reader") and Luke Brandon Field ("Interview With The Vampire", "Jojo Rabbit") have been cast in lead roles in the highly anticipated feature film "Wind Of Change", which recently started production at Warner Bros. Studios Leavesden in London.
Directed by Alex Ranarivelo and produced by ESX Entertainment for FOX Entertainment Studios in association with Warner Bros. Home Entertainment, "Wind Of Change" is a music biopic chronicling the incredible journey of the legendary rock group the SCORPIONS, with the longest-running and most successful line-up of the band including guitarist Rudolf Schenker (Dreymon),Klaus Meine (Trepte),Matthias Jabs (Speleers) and drummer Herman Rarebell (Field). It tells the story of a band united by their passion for music, who sought to inspire change in the world through their powerful sound and meaningful lyrics. At the heart of the film is their iconic anthem "Wind Of Change", which became the soundtrack to the end of the Cold War, symbolizing hope, peace and unity. Through their music, with hits ranging from "Rock You Like A Hurricane" to "Still Loving You", the SCORPIONS helped bridge the divide between East and West, leaving an indelible mark on history and proving the transformative power of art. West is set to play Doc McGhee, the SCORPIONS famous music manager and Kross will star as Andrej, the band's imprisoned friend on the other side of the Berlin wall.
"It's been an unbelievable journey developing this film and bringing it to life feels surreal" says Ali Afshar, founder and president of ESX Entertainment. "Not only did the SCORPIONS' music help me get through tremendous difficulties as an Iranian immigrant in America in the early '80s, but their message of love, peace and rock 'n' roll seems more relevant today than ever. This cast is an amazing ensemble of truly great talent. I can't thank FOX Entertainment and Warner Bros. Home Entertainment enough for their support and especially the band — Rudolf, Klaus and Matthias — for believing in us and trusting us to tell their life story."
The SCORPIONS have built a remarkable legacy as one of the most enduring rock bands of the past fifty years. With 110 million albums sold worldwide, they remain one of Germany's most successful musical exports. Their breakout hits like "Rock You Like A Hurricane" and "Wind of Change" continue to resonate, the latter surpassing one billion streams across platforms and remaining a cultural touchstone. Even today, their music regularly appears on rock radio and streaming playlists, and they continue to tour globally. Their staying power has earned them a lasting place in rock history.
"Wind Of Change" is produced by ESX Entertainment's Ali Afshar, Christina Moore and Daniel Aspromonte for FOX Entertainment Studios in association with Warner Bros. Home Entertainment. The film is written by Mark Andrews and directed by Alex Ranarivelo. FOX Entertainment Global retains worldwide distribution rights excluding U.S. and global transactional rights, which Warner Bros. Discovery Global Content Sales will manage.
ESX Entertainment is a prolific production company housed on the Warner Bros. lot that has released over two dozen films since 2017. Their gems have been released in theaters, HBO MAX, Netflix and Amazon, with numerous titles becoming number one hits on these platforms.
This past April, Meine spoke to Igor Miranda of Brazil's Rolling Stone about the band's biopic. Klaus said: "There's a guy, a producer in Los Angeles, who's working on this project for quite a while. It's very close to his heart. So he is in this with all his heart and passion for rock music and for his love for the SCORPIONS and for our music and for our work of life. And so he wants to make, not a documentary, he wants to make a biopic about the band and tell the story of the band. And hopefully they get it done throughout the next couple months so it will work out with the 60th anniversary of the band. It will be wonderful."
Klaus added: "They will tell the story of the SCORPIONS from a different point of view. He's a Persian producer, lives in Los Angeles, works very close with Warner Brothers for many, many years. Very experienced kind of producer, and he has a great team and they're all in this with their heart and souls, and wanna make a great movie about the band for the fans around the world to share it with us."
In February, Meine told Scorpions Brazil, about the status of "Wind Of Change": "Well, movies [are] also something that takes some time until things get rolling. And right now we hope later this year the biopic will be out all over the world. Right now [they are] working on the script and working on the actors, to find the right characters who play the band. It's not so easy to find five Brad Pitts."
Asked if he and the rest of SCORPIONS are involved in the casting and the screenplay, Klaus said: "Yeah, we participate in the script and when they go for the first checking out who can play Rudolf, Matthias and myself. So we stay in close touch with our friend Ali Afshar, who is the producer of this movie. And he has a great team, and he has a big heart, and he loves the band and he will make a very special biopic, because he's in it, together with this team, really with heart and soul. You can tell."
Meine went on to say that he doesn't know exactly when "Wind Of Change" will be released. "Unfortunately, it's too early," he explained. "They start shooting around May, and then I have no idea. Hopefully in the fall. It would be great. But with these filmmaking issues, you really never know. There are a million things that can go great or can go wrong. So what do we know? We're part of it and we support the team. But they have a clear concept about the movie and the script is pretty cool as well. But if there are things to change along the way… We're part of it, but we stand watching with a lot of excitement. And hopefully it will be as great as the filmmakers think it will be."
When "Wind Of Change" was first announced in June 2024, Afshar said: "The SCORPIONS' music has penetrated our culture in a big way. There is an evocative quality to their sound that is unmatched in the genre, which is one of the reasons hits like 'Rock You Like A Hurricane' and 'Still Loving You' continue to get so much airplay and fill movie soundtracks, and their music continues to connect with a new generation of fans across the globe.
"When my family fled Iran and came to the United States, the SCORPIONS' music changed my life — if not saved it," he continued. "I'm hoping that by telling the SCORPIONS' story, we can bring some of that same inspiration to the world."
SCORPIONS wrote their classic ballad "Wind Of Change" after performing at 1989's Moscow Music Peace Festival in Moscow, where they shared the stage with other hard rock acts like BON JOVI and MÖTLEY CRÜE. The song was inspired by the sight of thousands of Russians cheering them on in 1988 — when they became the first hard rock band to play in Russia — and in 1989, at the aforementioned festival, even though they were a German band.
When the Berlin Wall fell in November 1989, "Wind Of Change" accompanied the moving scenes of East Germans passing through the Brandenburg Gate and entering the West for the first time.
In May 2020, a theory that "Wind Of Change" was actually penned by the CIA as a piece of late Cold War propaganda was raised in an eight-part podcast series, also called "Wind Of Change", which premiered on Spotify. The podcast was hosted by New Yorker journalist Patrick Radden Keefe, who said he launched the investigation after hearing a second-hand story from a friend who used to work for the CIA — that "Wind Of Change" was actually written by the CIA to encourage change throughout the Soviet Union.
SCORPIONS' only continuous member has been Schenker, although 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 album 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.
Photo credit: Marc Theis (courtesy of Wilful Publicity) | +2 | |
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Love Is Noise
