French progressive metallers GOJIRA have dropped the official music video for "The Chant", the latest single from the band's new album, "Fortitude", which is being released today (Friday, April 30) via Roadrunner Records.
The centerpiece of an album-long call to action, "The Chant" is a slow-burning track featuring some of GOJIRA's most melodic material to date. Where past anthems were driven by nuanced dynamics and technical guitar arrangements, "The Chant" is what the GOJIRA members describe as a "healing ritual" emanating primordial warmth, culminating in a harmony-stacked chorus that bridges the gap between ancient hymnals and contemporary rock.
Vocalist / guitarist Joseph Duplantier elaborated on "The Chant" stating: "Let this chant ring in your bones and lift you up."
"The Chant" follows early album singles "Another World", "Born For One Thing", "Into The Storm" and "Amazonia", the latter of which was launched alongside a fundraising initiative to benefit the indigenous owned NGO The Articulation of Indigenous Peoples of Brazil (APIB) who advocate for environmental and cultural rights of indigenous tribes in the Amazon.
Working with the social good-focused digital platform Propeller, GOJIRA is curating a charitable campaign featuring an auction of one-of-a-kind items from the band and their friends, as well as a raffle were fans can donate to be entered for a chance to win a hand customized signature Joseph Duplantier guitar and a hand painted drum head by GOJIRA's Mario Duplantier. Having already raised over $250,000 to date for APIB, new auction listings include a Slash autographed top hat and "Appetite" signature Les Paul guitar, a signed Fender Precision bass from GOJIRA's Jean-Michel Labadie used to record the band's seminal album "From Mars To Sirius", and more, with bidding on the final round of auction items ending April 29 at 3 p.m. PST (11 p.m. GMT). To see the current auction listings, visit propeller.la/gojira. Furthermore, GOJIRA have also launched a limited-edition art print to benefit the APIB, which is available at gojira.lnk.to/poster.
Recorded and produced by Joseph Duplantier at Silver Cord Studio — GOJIRA's Ridgewood, Queens, headquarters — and mixed by Andy Wallace (NIRVANA, RAGE AGAINST THE MACHINE), "Fortitude" is a collection of songs urging humanity to imagine a new world — and then make it happen. The band initially laid the foundation for "Fortitude" last year with the surprise release of the 2020 single "Another World". NPR hailed the track as "an apocalyptic banger," and Stereogum declared, "GOJIRA are one of this century's most important underground metal institutions," while "Fortitude" was voted by fans as the #1 release on Revolver's "Most Anticipated Albums of 2021."
GOJIRA's widely anticipated tour dates supporting DEFTONES have been rescheduled for 2021.
Canadian metal outfit SPIRITBOX has released a brand new song, "Circle With Me", via Rise Records. The track features the glorious combination of ethereal vocals, bombastic riffs and savage screams that make up the utterly unique SPIRITBOX calling card. It is accompanied by a gorgeous music video directed by Orie McGinness that perfectly complements the lyrical theme of the song with a constantly revolving shot around the band as they perform.
Speaking about the new track, singer Courtney LaPlante shares: "This song was written in the studio as a last-minute addition, one of the many reasons we are so grateful to no longer be exclusively working remotely. It captures the spectrum of emotions I've been feeling lately about my music. From the anxiety I feel about messing up to a confidence meant to protect me from self-doubt. Visually, we wanted to present the viewer with the image of us that we miss the most: us performing on stage, with nothing to hide behind: instruments, some lights, and beautiful camera movement."
"Circle With Me" follows the band's two breakout hit singles released last year — the heartbreaking and otherworldly "Constance" and the unrelentingly brutal "Holy Roller". Between them, they have clocked up a staggering 18 million streams to date, with "Holy Roller" debuting at No. 25 on Billboard's Hot Hard Rock Songs and spending seven weeks at No. 1 on SiriusXM Liquid Metal's "Devil's Dozen", with the remix version of the song featuring Ryo Kinoshita of CRYSTAL LAKE spending five weeks at No. 2.
SPIRITBOX recently finished work on its debut album which is slated for release later this year.
The husband-and-wife duo consisting of Courtney LaPlante and Michael Stringer made its debut with an independently released EP in October 2017, quickly building a cult following. In 2018, they found their musical counterpart in bass player Bill Crook and partnered with Pale Chord Music to continue to create and release music in single and EP formats, and in fall of 2020, signed with globally renowned label Rise Records.
Drawing its name from a device that some believe is capable of communing with the dead, SPIRITBOX has a paranormal undertone that runs through everything they do, using EVP (electronic voice phenomena) recordings both at its live shows and within its tracks.
Having toured the world many times over with their previous bands — metal outfit IWRESTLEDABEARONCE (Courtney and Mike) and pop punk band LIVING WITH LIONS (Bill) — SPIRITBOX absorbed the highs and lows of living as working musicians and decided to try a different and more sustainable approach when it came to releasing their music. They took the concept of supply and demand and applied it to their release model, focusing on making fans across the globe by using the social media tools available to them, releasing shorter bodies of music and removing touring from the plan until a demand was built. In doing so they quickly garnered a cult-like online following which has lead to over 66.6 million streams across all platforms and sell outs on every physical release and most merch items they've released to date.
In Febuary 2020, SPIRITBOX jumped on a plane and finally went on tour in support of AFTER THE BURIAL across Europe, which was unfortunately cut short due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Despite having to return to Canada early, SPIRITBOX has remained busy, recording the two new music, shooting the accompanying videos, launching their Patreon and working on their debut LP.
Swedish melodic death metal pioneers AT THE GATES have released the official music video for "Spectre Of Extinction", the first single from their upcoming studio album, "The Nightmare Of Being". The disc will arrive on July 2 via Century Media Records. The track features a guest lead-guitar appearance by KING DIAMOND guitarist Andy La Rocque.
AT THE GATES frontman Tomas Lindberg states: "It is always very hard to choose which song to release to the public first, especially with this album having so many layers and textures. We did feel, however, that this, the opening track of the record, represented the overall feel of the album. It has the musical depths that you would expect from an AT THE GATES track, and still carries that intensity and urgency that we have always tried to get across with our music.
"For the video, it was wonderful to be able to continue the work with the mighty Patric Ullaeus, as he understands our vision with the music and is willing to go all the way to portray the song's inner dimensions. I think he did that excellently with this one and I'm very proud of the result. The lyrics deal with humanity's will and how that clashes with our consciousness, and our knowledge of our mortality. Enjoy!"
While main parts for "The Nightmare Of Being" were recorded in several different Swedish studios — drums at Studio Gröndal with Jens Bogren, guitars and bass with Andy La Rocque at Sonic Train Studio and vocals at Welfare Sounds with Per Stålberg — the LP was mixed and mastered at Fascination Street Studios (AMON AMARTH, OPETH, KREATOR) by Jens Bogren, who has previously worked with AT THE GATES on the "At War With Reality" comeback album in 2014. The album's visual concept was developed by artist Eva Nahon.
Lindberg previously stated about the album's concept: "The overall theme deals with the topic of pessimism, and I have been diving deep down in pessimistic philosophers. Trying to understand this way of looking at the world. It is not a negative album, more a gateway into new ideas for me personally, trying out different perspectives. You could call the album an introduction to pessimism as a concept, I guess. It is a very dark album, but not negative…"
And musically, while "The Nightmare Of Being" unveils a newly liberated and adventurous AT THE GATES via some of the bravest and most mesmerizing material they have ever written, Lindberg added: "It still sounds like AT THE GATES, 100 percent. It is just more of everything…"
"The Nightmare Of Being" track listing:
01. Spectre Of Extinction
02. The Paradox
03. The Nightmare Of Being
04. Garden Of Cyrus
05. Touched By The White Hands Of Death
06. The Fall Into Time
07. Cult of Salvation
08. The Abstract Enthroned
09. Cosmic Pessimism
10. Eternal Winter Of Reason
Speaking to MessedUp Magazine, Lindberg stated about the upcoming effort: "We were very excited about [2014's] 'At War With Reality' already before it was released, because it represented our comeback. No one was as excited about it as us, but some time later, I thought it was too slick, too well-produced. 'To Drink From the Night Itself' was a response to that and we wanted it to be dirty and gritty and have loads of classic death metal sounds on it, like a lot of reverb on the vocals and that stuff. It was a record for old-school fans. The upcoming album is somewhere in between, something that continues on the concept we started on the two previous albums where we incorporated much more of our proggy, krauty and avant-gardist influences. Just to give you the picture of how it sounds; one song goes by the nickname 'the Goblin song,' another we call 'the Neu song.' But I promise you we don't take it too far — people wouldn't listen to it if we did. [Laughs] When we were in the studio, we told Jens Bogren [producer] to keep the gritty sound and the attack from the last record and put the overall sound in between the comeback records. And it sounds awesome.
"When we did the Roadburn festival two years ago we did a special set with guest vocalists and string instruments and that stuff on stage and played songs we never played live before. All that was very inspiring because we realized we can do it today, the things we thought we could do as teenagers when we wanted to be the KING CRIMSON of death metal [laughs], but we weren't good enough. After the Roadburn gig, we talked about incorporating more of those elements on record.
"Let's say we're super excited about how people will receive the record because there's stuff on the album never heard on an AT THE GATES record before — a lot of weird things. [Laughs] For old fans, there's at least five or six classic AT THE GATES songs on it, but it's a quite diverse album.
"AT THE GATES have been around for such a long time by now that we don't need to release records to please someone else — we want to do things we like ourselves. It's still death metal, but it has evolved. We just want it to sell enough to get money to record the next album. [Laughs] "
AT THE GATES guitarist Jonas Stålhammar recently told Italy's Poisoned Rock about the music he and his bandmates have written for the upcoming effort: "It's kind of progressing even more from the last album. It's gonna be different than that one too, but still you know it's AT THE GATES. It's evolving even more. All of us are kind of on the same page with why should we do the same record over and over again."
"To Drink From The Night Itself" was produced with Russ Russell (NAPALM DEATH, THE HAUNTED, DIMMU BORGIR) at Parlour Studios in the U.K. The follow-up 2014's "At War With Reality" featured conceptual artwork created by Costin Chioreanu of Twilight13Media, who also worked with AT THE GATES on the band's previous disc.
"To Drink From The Night Itself" was the first AT THE GATES album written and recorded without lead guitarist/primary songwriter Anders Björler, who departed in 2017. He has since been replaced by Stålhammar.
Further details about "The Nightmare Of Being" and its various formats will be revealed on April 30, with the start of the album’s pre-order campaign.
Century Media presents a new glimpse into the dark yet uniquely blissful universe of Swedish metal group Vildhjarta, this time with a mesmerizing videographic work of art.
As of midnight you will find the song on all digital platforms and come midnight (CET) click below for the unique video that was produced by Vildhjarta, Riivata Visuals and Solver Productions.
The song delivers another taste of the band's upcoming new material. And there's a lot of it. The band simply comments: “när de du älskar kommer tillbaka från de döda - måsstaden under vatten 2021 (When the ones you love return from the dead - måsstaden under vatten 2021).”
Frontiers Music Srl will release the label debut from Italy's False Memories, entitled The Last Night Of Fall, on May 7. The band traffics in a gothic, doom metal style with elements of prog and joins the label's expanding, diverse roster of metal bands. Pe-order/save The Last Night Of Fall here, and watch a one take vocal performance of the song "Voices", below:
False Memories signed to Frontiers via the label's new A&R initiative, Frontiers & Beyond. The band is one of four bands, out of countless submissions, that were signed via the F&B portal.
"We like to insert prog elements into a "dark/goth" context, while keeping the songwriting in the surroundings of more traditional structures. The album we have always wanted to make is here thanks to a line-up that has achieved a great balance. We have always been inspired by science and psychology. This time, we wrote The Last Night Of Fall thinking of translating the human soul into music in all its emotions, disturbances, and sensations. The listener can take an intense journey towards their own conscience, a journey full of strong and sometimes conflicting emotions, but which together coexist in the 11 tracks," says frontwoman Rossella Moscatello.
Shortly after being signed, Rossella said about the album, "We worked hard on the production of this record and it has been very exciting to get positive feedback from people who have heard it. Fate has decided that we had to work with an Italian record company, Frontiers! It is an immense honor for us to join the roster of a label of this prestige and it is a source of great pride to have been chosen. 11 tracks of intense gothic/doom metal! Get ready and see you on the road, hopefully soon!”
False Memories was originally formed in 2015 by guitarist Francesco Savino and soon started working on original material. In 2016, the band released a self-titled EP which included four original tracks and one cover. As time progressed, the band’s soundscapes got more mature and headed towards a more goth rock/metal sound. Invigorated by their new sound, the band started to work on its first full-length release, Chimerical. Originally released independently in January 2018, the album featured eight previously unreleased tracks and three of the original songs from the debut EP, for a total of 11 original songs.
In October 2018, singer Rossella Moscatello joined the band and the band eventually released a new edition of the Chimerical album, including three bonus tracks sung by Rossella.
For this new album, The Last Night Of Fall, the composers are both Francesco Savino and Rossella Moscatello, with a lineup featuring new drummer Emanuele Cossu, second guitarist Moreno Palmisano, and bassist Gianluca Zaffino.
Tracklisting:
"Black Shades"
"Rain Of Souls"
"Voices"
"Hysteria"
"The Illusionist"
"Erased"
"White Crows"
"Unfaithful Dream"
"Sea Of Nothingness"
"Deep Breath"
"Don't Forget"
Sognametal veterans, Vreid, have premiered their new film, Wild North West. You can watch the complete movie for free below. If fans are feeling genrous, donations to the band are welcome via PayPal.
The band recently announced that they have been inducted into Norway's National Museum Of Popular Music Rockheim. The band is featured as a part of Rockheim's Millennium exhibition and are also included in Norwegian music history.
Vreid recently announced their exciting and unique partnership with the Sogndal Football Club. The club has for many years been known for developing and cultivating extraordinary talent, as the men's team currently plays in first division, the second tier of the Norwegian football league system.
Now, Sogndal Football Club is paying tribute to the band that has brought Sognametal to the whole world, by putting the logo of metal veterans and forefathers Vreid on the chest of player’s uniforms for this upcoming season.
The concept of a football club choosing to use the space to pay tribute to local heroes is very unusual, breaking typical partnership traditions, but Sogndal is no ordinary club. The collaboration oozes local patriotism as it champions two of the region’s prime exports – football and metal. In addition, head coach and former professional player Eirik Bakke (Leeds United) has himself played football with members of Vreid, bringing this collaboration full circle.
“Having our logo on the chest on Sogndal football's kit is an honor that is very rare,” Vreid bassist Jarle 'Hvall' Kvåle pridefully exclaims. “This football club has been hammered into our hearts since growing up. This is the club that was our whole childhood and youth, and it is with favorite teams as with favorite bands, it is love for life.”
“That Sogndal Football incorporates Vreid in its value in such a way shows the will, madness, fearlessness and pride that has built this club. Since the 1970s, these pioneers with enormous courage have built a national top club in this beautiful mountain village, and it is wonderful to see that the club is characterized by tenants, staff, players, partners and the public with a passion for the team and their hometown. The eternal underdog who constantly does the unnatural. We are extremely proud to be part of the journey of our childhood friend and Sogndal's legend Eirik. Stao no pao!”
Proud head coach and former Leeds United player Eirik Bakke adds: "Incredible fun that my childhood friends Jarle, Einar and Jørn together with the rest of the gang in Vreid will be presented on our uniform. What they have achieved with their band is just absolutely fantastic. I myself have been out in the big world and played football in front of tens of thousands of supporters, and that they now do the same with their music makes us Sogndøler proud. This year we will go all the way with Vreid on the team. Stao no Pao.”
Wild North West is a concept album that developed alongside an entire movie. Inspired by both true events and pure imagination, the listener is taken on a whirlwind of a journey, diving deep into themes of war, fear, betrayal, loss, anxiety, and madness with thought-provoking lyrics that embody human nature. It captures the Nordic heart at the core of their sound, taking cues from Norway’s rugged landscape as it ricochets between eternal darkness and the solace of bracing light.
The cover for Wild North West was created by Remi Juliebø (Deformat Design).
Tracklisting:
"Wild North West"
"Wolves At Sea"
"The Morning Red"
"Shadows Of Aurora"
"Spikes Of God"
"Dazed And Reduced"
"Into The Mountains"
"Shadowland"
Dutch death metal legends, Pestilence, have released a drum playthrough video for their recently released single, "Morbvs Propagationem". It's the first song taken off the band's new album, Exitivm, which is set to be released on June 25 via Agonia Records. Watch below:
A new album, on a new label armed with a whole new lineup and a new dynamic: no matter what, Pestilence - or more specifically their maestro Patrizio Mameli - is like the phoenix, rising from the ashes, over and over again. An official website has been launched for Exitivm, providing access to all relevant information surrounding the new album, here.
Back in 1986, in the small town of Enschede in the Netherlands, nearby the German border, a true metal phenomenon was born. More than three decades later, not only is Pestilence alive and well, but about to once again reaffirm their place in the extreme metal pantheon, with their ninth studio album entitled Exitivm, which is Latin for "total destruction".
As controversial as he can be to some, nobody will ever deny the band’s undisputable driving force, Patrizio Mameli, and his constant ability to reinvent himself. Unlike most of the bands in the scene, Pestilence just keeps evolving. From the raging thrash leanings of their cult 1988 debut Malleus Maleficarum to the jazz-infused versatility of 1993’s Spheres or 2009’s Resurrection Macabre frontal assault, not to mention the fans’ favorite and Scott Burns-produced Testimony Of The Ancients from 1991, he never did the same record twice. No matter who playes with him on any Pestilence album, Mameli always gets the best out of the musicians he is working with. But first and foremost, the man has a one-of-a-kind vision, instantly recognizable style and yet always stretching musical boundaries. And it’s never more true than on Exitivm.
After a vast reissue campaign in between 2015 and 2018 and an acclaimed new album Hadeon, the band got seemingly stopped in their mission to conquer the death metal scene in early 2020, like everybody else, by the global pandemic, going as far as forcing some of the band’s Hadeon line-up members to drop the towel. But what doesn’t kill you only makes you stronger and instead of letting that whole situation drag him down, Mameli chose to do the exact opposite and write the best and darkest album possible to date. And he just did that. With its ambitious lyrical concept about "global domination", "induced mental illness", "inner and outer demons" and malicious external entities, Exitivm is propelling the band one again to the forefront of the death metal movement with yet another original and brilliant artistic overhaul.
Mind you, as soon as you’re past the very cinematic introduction "In Omnibvs", you’re instantly caught up by "Morbvs Propagationem" whose intense riffing will take back to the Testimony days. Except that their core sound has been revived, with now extra layers of ominous soundscapes ingeniously suggesting an atmosphere of suspence and horror, boosted by Mameli’s jazz-fusion impressive solo works and a renewed sense of urgency. This rejuvenation, with emphasis on "new musical landscapes but also sick and twisted riffs" as stated by Mameli himself, is no accident though. Not only has Mameli been extremely inspired by the turmoil humanity had to face since March 2020 but with a line-up once again, entirely based in the Netherlands and made up of only super-seasoned players – besides former Dew Scented and Creepmime Joost van der Graaf on bass and Bleeding Gods’ Rutger van Noordenburg on lead guitar, former God Dethroned Michiel van der Plicht joined on drums last year – Pestilence is more than ever a BAND where everybody feeds off of each other's musical talent. And it definitely shows.
With the exception of the drums - tracked down by van der Plicht himself at his home studio - the album was recorded over a period of two months in between June and August 2020 at Pitchnote Productions. The album has been produced, like all Pestilence albums, by Mameli and is co produced, recorded, mixed and mastered by Jory Hogeveen (Shinigami and Ancient Rites). Last March, the band filmed their second ever official video – three decades after Land Of Tears – for the song "Morbvs Propagationem". Exitivm will be available in various formats, including supra-limited picture, pin-wheel, "firebreath" and clear vinyl versions. The cover artwork once again brought the band’s iconic sphere and was done by Michal "Xaay" Loranc, known for his various cover for Nile, God Detheroned or Evocation and who had already worked on "Hadeon".
Both a reinvention and a confirmation of everything the band has been standing for since 1986, thirty-five years later Pestilence are more than ever breaking new grounds and exploring the further outposts of the extreme metal sound on Exitivm.
Formats:
- Jewelcase CD
- Digi CD
- Box CD
- Black LP
- Ultra Clear LP
- Blood Vanilla LP*
- Picture LP**
- Pinwheel LP***
- Firebreath LP***
- Digital
* Bandcamp exclusive
** With antistatic all-print slipmat only at Agonia Webshop
*** Agonia Webshop exclusive
Back in March 2019, Jason Newsted - who played bass for Metallica from 1986 to 2001 - and The Chophouse Band played a benefit show at the Lighthouse ArtCenter in Tequesta, FL. Newsted has uploaded video of their performance of the Johnny Cash classic, "This Train Is Bound For Glory". Watch below:
Previously released footage from the benefit can be seen below:
On May 21, Vulture will release their new album, Dealin' Death, via Metal Blade Records. For a preview of the record, a video for the new single, "Star-Crossed City" (filmed by Vulture in April 2020, edited by Adrian Guzce), can be viewed below:
When it comes to contemporary thrash, there are few bands that can stand toe-to-toe with Germany's Vulture. Establishing their status with 2016's Victim To The Blade EP and 2017's The Guillotine, then cementing their reputation with 2019's Ghastly Waves And Battered Graves, they now return with the mighty Dealin' Death, one of the most ruthless records the genre has seen.
"Take all our key elements - fierce riffing, halftone-shifts, aggressive vocals, huge toms, changing dynamics, horror-synths and classical twin guitar harmonies and cast it in a mould, then you have 'Dealin' Death'," says guitarist Stefan Castevet. "The result sounds a little 'back to the EP-ish' to my ears, yet it contains new approaches that we've never included in our sound so far, like choirs with harmonies."
When it was time for the band to head into the studio, the recording process was handled by two separate collaborators: the album recorded at Monkey Moon Studios in Dortmund by Alexander Stöcker, the guitarist of Stallion, while the production was once more handled by Marco Brinkmann at Hellforge Studio.
"This cooperation turned out great!" enthuses vocalist Leo Steeler. "Alex's way of recording and the whole studio atmosphere was pretty motivating and inspiring for all of us. Marco, on the other hand, knows exactly how we should sound and already became literally the sixth member of the band."
Working twelve-hour days for ten days straight was pretty grueling, their daily schedule "get up, track, sleep", but the effort paid off. "I think 'Dealin' Death' is the best we've ever sounded. The mix itself is absolutely flawless to my ears," says Castevet. "It's way more direct and less reverb-soaked than its predecessor. It was very important for us this time, to take advice from Marco and make all key elements audible for the listener. The vocals sound piercing, the bass is present, delivering warmth throughout the whole mix, and the guitars have the best sound we've ever had, and the same goes for drums. It's very natural and dynamic, but straight to the point."
And now with everything done, the band are eager to get it out there. "We can't wait to get feedback for it, hopefully people will admire it as much as we do! Once the pandemic is over, we also can't wait to play shows and even tour again."
Dealin' Death can be pre-ordered here in the following formats:
- jewelcase-CD
- ltd. digipak-CD (incl. sticker)
- 180g black vinyl (EU exclusive)
- slate grey marbled vinyl (EU exclusive - limited to 500 copies)
- blood red / black marbled deluxe edition vinyl w/ flag, tape, and sticker (EU exclusive - limited to 300 copies)
- leaf green marbled vinyl (EU exclusive - limited to 200 copies)
- black w/ red splash vinyl (EU exclusive - limited to 200 copies)
- dark teal marbled vinyl (US exclusive)
Dealin' Death tracklisting:
"Danger Is Imminent"
"Malicious Souls"
"Count Your Blessings"
"Gorgon"
"Star-Crossed City"
"Flee The Phantom"
"Below The Mausoleum"
"Dealin' Death"
"Multitudes Of Terror"
"The Court Of Caligula"
"Malicious Souls" video:
Vulture lineup:
L. Steeler - Vocals
S. Castevet - Guitars
M. Outlaw - Guitars
A. Axetinctör - Bass
G. Deceiver - Drums
Gottweist will release their new EP, entitled Prophecy, on May 7th via Collective Wave Records. Hailing from Valleyfield, Quebec, the four-piece heavy metal band just released their new single, "Road To Neverland", following the success of their last release, "Weight Of The World".
"Road To Neverland" is available now on all platforms. Driven by guitar-heavy soundscapes, "Road To Neverland" embodies a fiery performance, melodic riffs and growling vocals.
2021 is the year of return for Gottweist, who released their debut album Future Is In Our Hands back in 2015. Their dynamic new music is the result of a few years of hunkering down and writing new material, taking inspiration from metalcore bands such as Bullet For My Valentine and Killswitch Engage, to rock bands like Alice In Chains. When it comes to influences though, Gottweist have no limit. Refusing to be constrained to one genre, they find inspiration in multiple and diverse styles, and in doing so make their sound distinctive and memorable, something that promotes only their versatility and open-mindedness.
Accompanying the track is the lively official video, a visual representation of their sound. All four members feature in the video, a powerful performance that really showcases their stage presence. Lavigne captures the essence of the track through sombre lyrics and gritty vocals, aligning the animated drum fills of Kevin Lacoste and a high-intensity guitar solo that cascades over dark rhythm guitars. The backing vocals of guitarist Alex Soucy and bassist Alexandre Myre only add to the melodic hooks, setting the mood under atmospheric flashing lights. This is a taster of their real life stage presence, a craft they have perfected through their live gig experience over the years.
An important part of the metal scene, Gottweist can be found playing festival stages throughout Quebec, building their dedicated fanbase. With their 2015 debut album Future Is In Our Hands already under their belts, there is much anticipation for the release of their upcoming EP Prophecy, available May 7 via Collective Wave Records.
Classical guitar virtuoso, Thomas Zwijsen, has released the new video below, performing an acoustic fingerstyle ukulele cover of Helloween's "Future World":
Watch Zwijsen cover the Helloween songs "If I Could Fly", "Eagle Fly Free", and "Power", below:
Hardline have announced the release of their new studio album, Heart, Mind And Soul, on July 9 via Frontiers Music Srl. Today, the band release the first single and video from the album, "Fuel To The Fire". Watch the clip below, and pre-order/save CD/Color LP/Digital here.
"This album is a true reflection of who we are and what we care about. I’m always amazed, despite what some critics may say, that we have the strength and power to push through the way we believe and want to. That will never change with this band. It’s a very, very special band chemistry we have here," says vocalist Johnny Gioeli.
Of the first single from the album, Gioeli says, "'Fuel To The Fire' was inspired by that one person who just knows how to push your buttons. You know who you are....the last word...always right. We have all had that person in our life at some point. This song takes a lyric twist as I add MY fuel to the fire. Enjoy....and use it as therapy the next time someone gets under your skin who doesn't deserve to be there."
Ever since the release of their widely heralded album Danger Zone in 2012, Hardline have been offering a straight-ahead, gritty, riff-based melodic hard rock sound which is a continuing evolution from what was on offer in the band's early days. What you get here on their new studio album is a group of musicians who are perfectly gelled as a unit and determined to display a sound that is immediate and powerful. Adding their own personality and imprint to the music, the band has created a perfect balance between these anthemic, hard rocking songs. You can expect hook after hook and riff after riff as you take a ride with Hardline via Heart, Mind And Soul.
Singer Johnny Gioeli, as usual, is in supreme form, providing a soaring vocal performance to stir up the listener. Complementing that, Mario Percudani’s guitar is on fire and the super tight rhythm section of Anna Portalupi and Marco Di Salvia is locked in. Alessandro Del Vecchio's immeasurable contribution on keyboards, background vocals, and production serve to tie the whole package together. He is, rightfully and deservedly, one of the “go to” guys in the melodic hard rock scene and this record shows, once again, why.
"Heart, Mind And Soul is an album you can’t turn off, in my biased opinion. After writing it, recording it, mixing, mastering, planning, deciding....on and on, you would think we’d get sick of it. Not even close. One of my most favorite Hardline albums to date without question," says Gioeli.
Hardline evolved from being an up-and-coming Sunset Strip sensation featuring brothers Johnny (vocals) and Joey (guitar) Gioeli to a supergroup of sorts, featuring former Bad English members Neal Schon and Deen Castronovo, before finally settling in and becoming a band showcasing the incredible talents of the fabulous singer Johnny Gioeli with the production and songwriting skills of Alessandro Del Vecchio (Revolution Saints, Jorn, etc.), the shredding talents of guitarist Mario Percudani, and the powerful rhythm section made up of bassist Anna Portalupi and drummer Marco Di Salvia. What truly makes Hardline special is how well their unique and different talents blend together to form a spectacular whole.
Heart, Mind And Soul is simply an album you can’t miss if you love melodic hard rock, but what else would you expect from a new Hardline album? They are, after all, masters of the genre.
The band plans to hit the road once touring resumes post-pandemic, so take the time to learn all of these future classics to sing along with Johnny soon enough!
"After we can finally say FU to Covid-19, Hardline is on the road with this album and we'll be in your face. You better pack a diaper, it could get messy when you hear this live," concludes Gioeli. Your copy should address 3 key questions: Who am I writing for? (Audience) Why should they care? (Benefit) What do I want them to do here? (Call-to-Action) Create a great offer by adding words like "free" "personalized" "complimentary" or "customized." A sense of urgency often helps readers take an action, so think about inserting phrases like "for a limited time only" or "only 7 remaining!"
Tracklisting:
"Fuel To The Fire"
"Surrender"
"If I Could I Would"
"Like That"
"Heavenly"
"Waiting For Your Fall"
"The Curse"
"Heartless"
"Searching For Grace"
"‘80s Moment"
"We Belong"
"Fuel To The Fire" video:
Lineup:
Johnny Gioeli – Lead Vocals
Alessandro Del Vecchio - Keyboards, Backing Vocals
Mario Percudani - Guitars
Anna Portalupi - Bass
Marco Di Salvia – Drums
German genrefluid visionaries, Lord Of The Lost, prove that they have matured both musically and lyrically, and return with their seventh studio album, Judas, out July 2 via Napalm Records.
With this remarkable offering, the five-piece cement their position as exceptional artists that can’t be pigeonholed once more, which their brand new harbinger and single “Priest”, out today, is already proof of. The very first song immediately unveils a leitmotif that runs through the whole record and serves as a uniting symbiosis for the double album, divided in two conceptual parts, Damnation and Salvation, with 24 songs in total.
Along with a highly sophisticated official video, the song draws the listener into a conflict that has lasted for thousands of centuries and is as old as mankind itself: The conflict between good and evil. On Judas, Lord Of The Lost tell of this conflict from the perception of the character of Judas Iscariot, known as highly diverse, and the so-called Gospel of Judas, a paper that's said to consist of conversations between Jesus Christ and Judas Iscariot and casts a different light on religious history as it's told in the Bible's New Testament.
Lord Of The Lost on the new single and video: “With ‘Priest’, we dive deep into a visual world that is meant to convey the very core emotion of the upcoming album, Judas, to the viewer. This comes along with a story that leaves room for many means of interpretation while keeping the purpose of the album concept. The artist XELANAH shines as the protagonist here, symbolically representing the emotional tension of the figure of Judas Iscariot. That role will also appear and continue in further videos, just like you know it from, for example, AEROSMITH. The song itself manages to unite all the emotion and soundscape that makes up the album - a cinematic trailer for the ears. And even a deliberately placed GENESIS quote from the mouth of Judas himself is suddenly seen in a completely new light.”
Watch the official video for “Priest” , directed & edited by Matteo Vdiva Fabbiani & Chiara Cerami for VDPictures, below.
Part of the video for “Priest” was shot in the so-called Einhornhöhle (engl. unicorn cave) in Germany back in August 2020. Lord Of The Lost continue introducing their female protagonist and artwork model, a process that was already set free with the teaser video for “The Death Of All Colours”, and weaves the common thread of Judas visually as well. She represents the inner conflict of good and evil that can be interpreted in several ways.
Lord Of The Lost on Judas: “Don’t judge a book by its cover. This sentence could hardly apply any better to someone in theological history than to the figure of Judas Iscariot, who represents only one thing at first glance: Betrayal. If you take a closer look, almost endless possibilities of interpretation open up here: from "Judas the murderer" to "Judas the redeemer" and "Judas the actual martyr", who, if you believe in it, could only find room in hell for his salvific betrayal after dying for what he did, in complete contrast to Jesus Christ. This field of tension and the apocryphal writings of the "Gospel of Judas" are the basis for a double album that not only illuminates the dark and light side of history, but above all the grey areas in between, in which we move emotionally and ideologically throughout our lives and try to find our place.”
Lord Of The Lost blur the lines between good and evil with their magnum opus Judas
Judas sets off with atmospheric “Priest”, followed by “For They Know Not What They Do”, making clear right from the beginning that all the songs can be experienced the most organic and vivid way: A genuine, unique choir accompanies singer Chris Harms, whose multi-dimensional voice delivers the haunting lyrics straight into the listener’s mind more strongly than ever. Songs like “Your Star Has Led You Astray” or “Born With a Broken Heart” easily manage to keep the balance between harsh vocals, the distorted sound of fuzz guitars and an overall dark atmosphere that Lord Of The Lost is known for, whilst “Death Is Just a Kiss Away”, “My Constellation” and closing “Work of Salvation”, for example, put grand piano tunes, authentic strings and the sound of a massive organ recorded in a church in the most suitable focus.
Judas marks the successor of chart-breaking Thornstar (2018, #6 GER), and again breathes the innovative spirit of five musicians who are far away from setting boundaries into their very own unique art. Lord Of The Lost has never been that type of creative force that’s pinned to any specific genre and has succeeded in surprising fans and critics with their nonconformism repeatedly over the years. With their new album Judas, Lord Of The Lost manage to thematically blur the lines between good and evil and put the so called “salvific treason” into a harmonious soundscape unlike ever heard before - truly an magnum opus!
Judas will be available in the following formats:
- Deluxe Box (incl. 2-CD Mediabook, 1 CD The Sorrows Of The Young, 2 CD LOTL+, DVD Becoming Judas, Cover Alu Print) - strictly limited to 1500 copies worldwide
- 4 CD Earbook - strictly limited to 500 copies worldwide
- Double Music Cassette - strictly limited to 100 copies worldwide
- 2-CD Mediabook
- 2-CD Sleevepack
- Vinyl Box incl. 2x 2LP Recycled Black Vinyl Gatefold
- Digital Album
CD1: Damnation
"Priest"
"For They Know Not What They Do"
"Your Star Has Led You Astray"
"Born with a Broken Heart"
"The 13th"
"In the Field of Blood"
"2000 Years a Pyre"
"Death Is Just a Kiss Away"
"The Heart Is a Traitor"
"Euphoria"
"Be Still and Know"
"The Death of All Colours"
CD2: Salvation
"The Gospel of Judas"
"Viva Vendetta"
"Argent"
"The Heartbeat of the Devil"
"And it Was Night"
"My Constellation"
"The Ashes of Flowers"
"Iskarioth"
"A War Within"
"A World where We Belong"
"Apokatastasis"
"Work of Salvation"
"Priest" video:
Next to the 2-CD Judas Mediabook and a cover alu print, the strictly limited deluxe box includes the special CD, The Sorrows Of The Young, double extra CD LOTL+, as well as the six part behind the scenes documentary bonus DVD, Becoming Judas. The Sorrows Of The Young features ten unreleased songs, written by Chris Harms at the age of 18, that have now been re-recorded, whereas LOTL+ showcases 32 completely different interpretations in terms of vocals and lyrics on the original song “Viva Vendetta”, written and performed by artists like Megaherz, Equilibrium, Lacrimosa, Subway To Sally, Nachtblut, Unzucht and many more.
The Sorrows Of The Young tracklisting:
"Catharsis"
"Syringes in the Sand"
"Deus Absconditus"
"Die Without Your Love"
"This Piece of Art"
"The Last Saviour"
"All I Am Is The Void"
"Obscularum Infame"
"Infinity"
"Supernova"
LOTL+ tracklisting:
CD1:
"Living a Lie" feat. A Life Divided
"Consume Hate" feat. Aesthetic Perfection
"Vergissmeinnicht" feat. AnnA Lux
"Still Life to Die For" feat. Ben Christo (The Sisters Of Mercy / Diamond Black)
"The Darkest Hour" feat. Chemical Sweet Kid
"Into the Dawn" feat. Simon Moskon (Cryptex)
"The Warrior" feat. Daria Trusova
"Old-School Pagan Spirit" feat. Robse (Equilibrium)
"Entität" feat. Erdling
"Doomed Love" feat. Erk Aicrag (Hocico / Rabia Sorda)
"Crimson Masque" feat. Face Time Police
"Your Skeleton Grin" feat. Faderhead
"A Pain That I Know" feat. Florian Grey
"Ohne Zweifel" feat. Heldmaschine
"Sadly Ever After" feat. Hell Boulevard
"Stolen" feat. Jaani Peuhu (Mercury Circly, Swallow The Sun, Iconcrash)
CD2:
"Alles wird gut, aber…" feat. Lacrimosa
"Dein Blick" feat. Letzte Instanz
"Pale Rider" feat. Lolita KompleX
"Revenge" feat. MajorVoice
"Aus und Vorbei" feat. Megaherz
"Bloody Flower" feat. Nachtblut
"Abandon Ship" feat. Night Laser
"The Shadow and the Sun" feat. OH FYO!
"Digging Deeper" feat. Scarlet Dorn
"It Starts with a Crack" feat. Solar Fake
"Fake Gods" feat. Soulbound
"Träume zu Tränen" feat. Subway To Sally
"Die Flamme" feat. Sündenrausch
"Feuerrot" feat. Tanzwut
"Während die Welt in Flammen Steht" feat. Unzucht
"Today" feat. Saku Solin (Turmion Kätilöt / Fear Of Domination)
Lord Of The Lost are:
Chris Harms - vocals, guitar, cello
Pi Stoffers - guitar
Class Grenayde - bass
Gared Dirge - piano, synthesizer, percussion, guitar
Niklas Kahl - drums
The At The Movies project - launched by Pretty Maids guitarist Chris Laney due to the COVID-19 pandemic - caught fire over the course of 2020, and project has now moved on to movie soundtrack covers from the '90s. Check out their take on the Londonbeat hit from 1990, "I've Been Thinking About You", which comes with a message from the At The Movies crew:
"We messed up!! or...Chris did! He thought he had it all down, but now he can't find what movie the song was in. It's a killer track, so we decided to release it anyway and ask for some help. If you find a '90s movie this track is in you will win a CD and get your name on the forthcoming album! If not, you can just enjoy this track as a bonus mistake."
"I´ve Been Thinking About You" was written by Jimmy Chambers, George Chandler, Jimmy Helms, and William Henshall. It was talen from the Londonbeat album In The Bood, released in 1990.
The core At The Movies players are:
Björn "Speed" Strid (Soilwork) - lead / backing vocals
Linnéa Vikström Egg (Therion) - lead / backing vocals
Chris Laney (Pretty Maids) - guitars
Allan Sørensen (Royal Hunt, Pretty Maids) - drums
Morten Sandager (Pretty Maids) - keyboards
Pontus Norgren (HammerFall) - guitars
Pontus Egberg (King Diamond) - bass
DIRKSCHNEIDER & THE OLD GANG, the project featuring former ACCEPT members Udo Dirkschneider (vocals), Peter Baltes (bass) and Stefan Kaufmann (guitar), has released a new single and video, "Face Of A Stranger". Check it out below.
DIRKSCHNEIDER & THE OLD GANG, which is rounded out by Udo's son Sven Dirkschneider (drums), Manuela Bibert (vocals) and Mathias Dieth (guitar), issued its debut single, "Where The Angels Fly", last September. A third single, "Every Heart Is Burning", will arrive on May 28, to be followed by the August 27 release of all three songs as the "Arising" CD, a 12-inch vinyl and a download.
DIRKSCHNEIDER & THE OLD GANG is:
Udo Dirkschneider - Lead Vocals, Backing Vocals
Peter Baltes - Bass, Lead Vocals, Backing Vocals
Manuela Bibert - Lead Vocals, Backing Vocals
Stefan Kaufmann - Rhythm Guitar, Backing Vocals
Mathias Dieth - Lead Guitar, Backing Vocals
Sven Dirkschneider - Drums, Backing Vocals
Last July, Udo ruled out the possibility of a reunion with ACCEPT. The singer, who last reconnected with ACCEPT in 2005 for a number of exclusive shows, discussed the prospect of a renewed working relationship with his bandmates during an interview with "The Rock N Ragni Show". Speaking about the fact that Baltes and Kaufmann both appear on the latest album from his U.D.O. project, "We Are One", Dirkschneider said: "It's, in a way, a reunion if we were working together songwriting-wise. That was interesting. But a lot of people came up already [saying this opens the door to an ACCEPT] reunion. And I said, 'What kind of reunion?' It's not possible to do a reunion with ACCEPT. There is only one guy left," referring to guitarist Wolf Hoffmann. "Sorry, but there is no reunion with ACCEPT. Of course, some people are thinking, 'Now he's working already with Peter and Stefan.' But no. Forget this. [Laughs] Definitely not."
In November 2019, Hoffmann told Powermetal.cl that he no longer kept in touch with Baltes after the bassist exited ACCEPT a year earlier. "Unfortunately, when somebody leaves the band, they're always kind of out of sight, out of mind," Wolf explained. "It's very sad. I wish it wasn't that way, because we've been friends for so long. But the reality is I haven't really heard from him — even though I reached out a couple of times. He's almost like he wants to disappear or he wants to leave the music business altogether. It's sad and I still don't quite understand what really happened. But it is what it is, and we move on."
Kaufmann was the drummer for ACCEPT on nine albums but was forced to give up drumming towards the end of the band's initial run after sustaining a serious injury to his back.
Stefan joined U.D.O. as a guitar player in 1996, following ACCEPT's second breakup, and recorded nine albums with them, including his most recent release with the group, 2011's "Rev-Raptor".
Back in 2015, Hoffmann dismissed Dirkschneider's comment that the band's then-lineup — which included Baltes and ACCEPT's singer of more than a decade, Mark Tornillo — performed live "without any emotion." "It's just hilarious at this point," Wolf said. "It's just a big joke in our lives. And we just go on about our lives, and we do our thing, and we just… We let these things go by and laugh about it. He's actually sort of our press agent, in a way. He keeps us [in the news]."
Parody metal aficionados, Nanowar Of Steel, previously made waves by retiring from metal and transforming into a pop boy band. Now, they are ready to officially announce their comeback of their beloved comedy infused parody metal, releasing their new single and video for "Der Fluch des Kapt’n Iglo" (engl. "The Curse Of Captain Birdeye") today.
With several millions of cross-platform streams and views racking up from all over the world, Nanowar Of Steel have proven themselves to be the torchbearers of modern parody metal! "Der Fluch des Käptn Iglo" is an homage to the all beloved fried dish fishsticks by Captain Findus, accompanied by speedy accordions and pirate-y vocals, and performed entirely in German by bassist Gatto Panceri 666.
Nanowar Of Steel bassist/singer Gatto Panceri 666 about "Der Fluch des Käptn Iglo": "We sailed long and hard throughout the seven seas to tell you the story of the most merciless, the most terrific, the most crispy and crunchy pirate that ever lived: Capitan Findus/Kaptn Iglo! Are you ready to fry a school of cod, grill some shrimps and roast a salmon with us on our quest for a treasure wrapped in golden breadcrumbs?"
Watch the music video for "Der Fluch des Käptn Iglo" below.
Nanowar Of Steel turns to the musical roots of their homeland, bringing heavy new life to traditional Italian music on their new album, Italian Folk Metal, out July 2 on Napalm Records. Filled with references to Italian folklore, Nanowar Of Steel puts its own comedic metal twist on the various traditional sounds of their beautiful country.
Each song on Italian Folk Metal is performed in a distinct style of Italian folk music: Napoli-based sounds of musica neomelodica clash with melodic guitar sweeps on “Scugnizzi of the Land of Fires" and speedy accordions (prominently known from northern Italy‘s mazurka) are layered with dizzying guitar solos on “La Mazurka del Vecchio che Guarda i Cantieri".
Mixed with the band‘s eclectic, comprehensive brand of catchy, comedy-infused metal, Italian Folk Metal is a truly multi-faceted listening experience and a deep dive into the roots of Italy’s folklore! In the process of recording the new album in Rome and Milan during the summer of 2020, Nanowar Of Steel took the Italian-focused theme as an opportunity to gather Italy’s crème de la creme of musicianship: the album features Francesco Paoli from Fleshgod Apocalypse on “L’assedio di Porto Cervo”, Alessandro Conti of Luca Turilli's Rhapsody and Trick Or Treat fame on “La Mazurka del Vecchio che Guarda i Cantieri” and Frozen Crown’s Jade on “Rosario", among others. Italian Folk Metal showcases Nanowar Of Steel’s musical versatility at its best!
"Requiem per Gigi Sabani in Re minore"
"L'Assedio di Porto Cervo"
"La Maledizione di Capitan Findus"
"La Marcia su Piazza Grande"
"La Mazurka del Vecchio che Guarda i Cantieri"
"La Polenta Taragnarock"
"Scugnizzi of the Land of Fires"
"Rosario"
"Il Signore degli Anelli dello Stadio"
"Gabonzo Robot"
"Sulle Aliquote Della Libertà"
"Der Fluch des Kapt’n Iglo"
"El Baile del Viejo que Mira las obras"
"Der Fluch des Käptn Iglo" video:
Nanowar Of Steel are:
Gatto Panceri 666 - Bass
Potowotominimak - Vocals
Mr. Baffo - Vocals
Abdul - Guitar
Uinona Raider - Drums
"Here's my drum playthrough of the title track from our EP called Paint The Sky With Blood, that was released on the 23rd of April 2021 via Napalm Records," says Bodom After Midnight drummer Waltteri Väyrynen.
"Get your copy here. Huge thanks to my buddy Kris McCormick for mixing the drum track and editing the video. I proudly use and endorse Pearl drums, Sabian cymbals, Wincent drumsticks, Evans drumheads, Lime Ears and Sennheiser microphones."
Bodom After Midnight have released their highly-anticipated three-track EP, Paint The Sky With Blood, via Napalm Records. What was meant to celebrate the manifestation of a brand new metal era for Bodom After Midnight, now pays tribute to their incomparable frontman, guitarist and creative visionary; Alexi Laiho.
The EP, recorded in the band's native Finland, was intended to be followed by a full-length album later in the year, but now embodies a whole new meaning and remains the only work by Bodom After Midnight. Paint The Sky With Blood is undeniable evidence of the late Alexi Laiho's artistic spirit and his extraordinary musical skills, together with his talented bandmates Daniel Freyberg, Waltteri Väyrynen, Mitja Toivonen and live keyboardist Vili Itäpelto.
"Like ourselves, Alexi was beyond stoked about these songs and anxious to get these out, so we are happy that we can fulfill his wish. Needless to say, we are honored and proud to be a part of his very last creative work and to unleash it the way he wanted it. It’s time to let the beast out of the cage one more time as a celebration of Alexi’s music, legacy and the man himself." - Bodom After Midnight
The heavy title track “Paint The Sky With Blood” sets the stage for the 14-minute EP of the same name, and is strikingly reminiscent of early-Children Of Bodom elements while also adding exciting modern influences into the fold. Second stunner "Payback’s A Bitch" and its massive riffing are on a quest for retribution, delivering a hard-hitting, second to none offense. The interplay of Alexi Laiho, guitarist Daniel Freyberg, drummer Waltteri Väyrynen (Paradise Lost), bassist Mitja Toivonen (ex-Santa Cruz) and live keyboardist Vili Itäpelto is not only a testament to the band's extraordinary musical ability, but also showcases their skill in deftly incorporating a variety of genre influences.
Closing cover track, "Where Dead Angels Lie" is an absolute triumph – originally performed by Swedish extreme metal outfit, Dissection, the track shines as a timeless classic with a new edge. Eerie riffs and vocals alternating between menacing murmurs and characteristic guttural, distorted vocals stay faithful to the original while branding this version with an undeniable Bodom After Midnight punch.
Paint The Sky With Blood is available in the following formats:
- 10" Spined Sleeve Oxblood
- 10" Spined Sleeve Inkspot Ox/Black
- 10" Spined Sleeve Black
- Deluxe Box
- 1 Digipak Mini CD
- Digital Album
Paint The Sky With Blood tracklisting:
"Paint The Sky With Blood"
"Payback’s A Bitch"
"Where Dead Angels Lie" (Dissection Cover)
STONE SOUR guitarist Josh Rand has joined forces with PARALANDRA singer Casandra Carson to form a new band called THE L.I.F.E. PROJECT. The new group's debut single, "The Nothingness", has just been released on all streaming services, to be followed by THE L.I.F.E. PROJECT's first EP, due this summer.
The official music video for "The Nothingness" can be seen below.
Last May, Rand told the "Behind The Vinyl" podcast that he was working on a new project. "As of right now, I have 12 songs musically done," he said at the time. "Right now I'm looking at vocalists — different vocalists."
Regarding the musical direction of his new material, Josh said: "It definitely is different than what I think most people would expect. I decided if I was gonna do anything that I wanted it not to sound like STONE SOUR 'cause it's going to, to some degree. So, a lot of it, half of these songs… I started playing — I shouldn't say I started playing piano. I know how to edit a mini-piano, so I'm a great piano player now… But a lot of 'em are piano-based, and I'm running with it like that. And I've also started incorporating all these different instruments — all kinds of crazy percussion and stuff. 'Cause I just wanted to have fun and be creative and not try to write the next '30/30-150' or have that pressure of trying to do that. So I'm just kind of running with it, and that's where I'm at."
STONE SOUR has been off the road and out of sight since completing the touring cycle for its 2017 LP "Hydrograd". Singer Corey Taylor has been working with SLIPKNOT since then, recording and touring behind that group's sixth effort, "We Are Not Your Kind". He also released his debut solo album, CMFT", last October. Rand has been promoting STONE SOUR's new live album, "Hello, You Bastards: Live In Reno", which came out in December 2019.
Last August, Corey said that he was open to doing more recording and touring with STONE SOUR at some point down the line. Asked if there is "a future" for STONE SOUR or if it's "kind of up in the air," Corey told SiriusXM's "Trunk Nation Virtual Invasion": "It's kind of up in the air. I'm certainly not mad at STONE SOUR. [My solo album] is just something that has my attention; this is what I wanna do for a while.
"There's been some contention here and there, in the past — nothing that I'm gonna get into too much detail about — but it was just time for me to step away and do [the solo thing] for a while," he continued. "It was time for me to kind of do something different, and do it in a way that doesn't have the connotations of either band, to be honest.
"I'm still friends with everybody in STONE SOUR. Everybody in STONE SOUR is doing their own thing, and if the opportunity arose, I would absolutely do something with STONE SOUR. But for right now, this is really where my energy's at; this is where my focus is.
"I'll never say never, because, obviously, the best way to make God laugh is to announce your plans out loud," he added. "But this is what my focus is right now."
Corey's latest comments echo those he made in June, when he told SiriusXM's "Trunk Nation With Eddie Trunk": "Yeah, [STONE SOUR is] kind of [on] the backburner right now. We all kind of felt that we did exactly what we wanted to do on 'Hydrograd' [album] and we're just giving it a minute. I talked to the guys in the band about the solo thing and what I wanted to do, and they were all totally onboard with it. Everybody else has kind of got things going on, so they're all cool. Josh is actually working on a solo thing of his own, which is great. So, yeah, I think STONE SOUR is kind of on hiatus right now, which is fine. If someday we wanna get back together and do some stuff, it'll be bigger than it was. But for right now, we're all kind of focused on kind of doing our own thing. But you never say never in this business."
BLACK LABEL SOCIETY has shared the music video for the rip-roaring single "Heart Of Darkness" in continued celebration of its "None More Black" box set, available now via Entertainment One (eOne). The track originally appeared on BLACK LABEL SOCIETY's ninth studio album, 2014's "Catacombs Of The Black Vatican", now remastered and reissued as a double LP in the career-spanning "None More Black" box set that includes BLACK LABEL SOCIETY's deep catalog on 20 newly pressed and repackaged pieces of vinyl. The "Heart Of Darkness" official music video features Zakk Wylde and co. performing the fan favorite with psychedelic flair.
The "None More Black" box set features BLACK LABEL SOCIETY's 12 full-length studio albums in remastered and refurbished physical form for the first time alongside a 32-page hardcover photo book, "None More Black" bottle opener and the "Odin's Demolition Squad" back patch. It also includes a compilation of bonus tracks and reworked originals now on vinyl titled "Song Remains Not The Same Vol. 2", which features the track "Blind Man" that was shared as an official music video last week. In true Wylde fashion, the frontman also created an accompanying infomercial for the box set.
All original studio albums:
* "Sonic Brew"" - black/white marble x2 LP
* "Stronger Than Death" - black/apple marble x2 LP
* "1919 Eternal" - black/brown marble x2 LP
* "The Blessed Hellride" - black/silver marble LP
* "Hangover Music Vol. VI" - black/canary marble x2LP
* "Mafia" - black/neon coral marble x2LP
* "Shot To Hell" - black/tangerine marble LP
* "Order Of The Black" - black/grey marble LP
* "Catacombs Of The Black Vatican" - black/tan marble LP
* "Grimmest Hits" - black/olive marble LP
Two bonus albums
* "The Song Remains Not The Same II" - grey LP
* "Nuns and Roaches: Tasty Little Bastards" - black/magenta LP
In March 2020, Zakk Wylde told Billboard that he would spend April of last year composing the songs for BLACK LABEL SOCIETY's next disc and that he would record the LP in May and June of 2020.
He explained: "I don't demo or stockpile shit. Never have. I'm not like Prince, where he's recording stuff all the time. I just like to come up with a riff or an idea and be like, 'Why don't we track that one today?' It's like the beginning of a new season. It's always fun."
Prior to the coronavirus pandemic, BLACK LABEL SOCIETY spent a couple of years touring in support of "Grimmest Hits", which was released in January 2018 via Entertainment One (eOne).
The band celebrated the 20th anniversary of its first album, "Sonic Brew", in 2019.
Zakk has been the on-again-off-again guitarist for Ozzy Osbourne since 1987, although he does not appear on the legendary heavy metal singer's latest LP, "Ordinary Man".
RATT singer Stephen Pearcy has dropped the official music video for a previously unreleased solo song called "Don't Wanna Talk About It". The track was written "circa 2000s" entirely by Pearcy and features Stephen on vocals and guitar, Erik Ferentinos on lead guitar, Mike Duda on bass and Greg D'Angelo on drums.
"Don't Wanna Talk About It" arrives two months after the release of Pearcy's cover version of DURAN DURAN's 1981 hit "Girls On Film". Prior to that, Pearcy issued another new solo single, "Night Flight", a collaboration between Pearcy and Ferentinos, which is expected to appear on Stephen's upcoming sixth solo album, tentatively due later this year. The follow-up to 2018's "View To A Thrill" will reportedly feature 13 tracks.
Last July, Ferentinos, who has played with Pearcy for nearly two decades, told All Music/All Bands about the musical direction of Stephen's next album: "The new record will have the '80s rock sound that fans have come to expect from us with a few surprises thrown in for good measure. There are some heavy bangers on there that the RATT fans will love. I try to keep it edgy, but I want us to have a hit. I'm always trying to top what we've done so far, with catchier riffs and melodies to get more fans interested in our music."
Pearcy's fifth solo LP, "View To A Thrill", came out in November 2018 via Frontiers Music Srl. The follow-up to 2017's "Smash" was produced by Matt Thorne and Pearcy and was mixed and mastered by Thorne and Ferentinos.
Pearcy and bassist Juan Croucier are the sole remaining original members in RATT's current lineup, which made its live debut in July 2018 in Mulvane, Kansas. Joining them in the band are drummer Pete Holmes (BLACK 'N BLUE, RATT'S JUAN CROUCIER) and guitarist Jordan Ziff (RAZER).
In January, Pearcy told SiriusXM's "Trunk Nation With Eddie Trunk" that he was open to the idea of making a new RATT album with all the surviving members of the band's classic lineup.
RATT hasn't released any new music since 2010's "Infestation" LP.
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