NEUROSIS singer and guitarist Steve Von Till has announced his latest solo album, "Alone In A World Of Wounds", arriving May 16 via Neurot Recordings.
Ploughing a different furrow, "Alone In A World Of Wounds" is a collection of sweeping gothic-tinged Americana, tripped out drones, beautiful world weary vocal melodies and slowly unfurling cello arrangements. Initially inspired by the harmonic resonance of piano and synths and his long standing love of ambient music, "Alone In A World Of Wounds" follows 2021's "No Wilderness Deep Enough" in reflective ambience. Opening up his voice in ways he has never done before, the album's genesis came via intuitive improvisations.
"The complex overtones of upright piano and synthesisers really inspired me to sing out more, to seek out the implied harmonies, and to find unique approaches within the limitations of my voice." says Von Till.
On "Watch Them Fade", Von Till's voice complex melodies with a rich, deep timbre. The lead single is available today alongside a stunning video by Bobby Cochran.
Aside from music, Von Till is a poet (he published his first collection — "Harvestman" — in 2021) and has a deep bank of poetry and wider writing that he draws on, frequently reflecting on our place within the universe while leaning into themes of loss and longing. Likewise, it is our place in nature and — crucially — our current disconnect from it that prove key to the sonic tapestry woven on "Alone In A World Of Wounds". The album title itself was inspired by a quote from forester and environmental philosopher Aldo Leopold from his 1949 book "A Sand County Almanac", which called for a reimagining of the relationship between people and the natural world ("one of the penalties of an ecological educations is that one lives alone in a world of wounds"),while — outside of music — Von Till remains equally committed to education (he has been an elementary school teacher for 24 years and also serves on the board of directors for the Firekeeper Alliance non-profit which is committed to reducing suicides among the youth of the Blackfeet Nation in Montana).
While "Alone In A World Of Wounds" may be far removed from the caustic aggression of NEUROSIS, make no mistake — the life-giving energy of punk rock and DIY ethic continue to provide deep inspiration and grounding to him. The search for deeper connection, living with the sorrow of our separation from the natural world, and relying on gut level instinct to get closer to the primal creative state are all key to Von Till's process.
"It is the transcendent nature of music, the cathartic healing process where I can leave everything behind and become one with sound," he says. "When you allow yourself to go beyond the ordinary you might be fortunate enough to find a moment where you are creating in alignment with the flow of the river of the universe."
Recorded mostly at his barn studio at home in Idaho and mixed at Circular Ruin in Brooklyn, New York with storied producer Randall Dunn (JÓHANN JÓHANNSSON, SUNN O))), EARTH, JIM JARMUSCH),"Alone In A World Of Wounds" also boasts cover artwork from Spokane, Washington-based alternative process photographer Brian Deemy — who works with colloidal wet plate "tintype" aesthetics, which complement Von Till's uniquely ancient yet grounded aesthetic, and one that perfectly matches his desire to reimagine the connection between the human and the more than human world.
"I often wonder where the psychological break was that caused the fatal delusion that we have dominion over the natural world, how it is reduced to existing solely for our benefit," Von Till says. "Whenever that disconnect was — I believe it to be the root of most of our problems as a society, in relationships, and even within ourselves and our own minds. It always comes back to the fact that we must have a conscious shift back to understanding that we're all part of a living animate earth: and that we need to think of the rivers and the mountains and the weather as part of us and us as part of the world. We are wild things but we've forgotten. Without this shift in consciousness we're screwed. That's the overarching theme. And when I look back on my life it's becoming more explicit and more clear that this is always what I've been singing about."
Steve Von Till is set to perform at Roadburn 2025 (Tilburg) next month and at Prepare The Ground (Toronto) and Fire In The Mountains (Blackfeet Nation) festivals this summer.
"Alone In A World Of Wounds" track listing:
01. The Corpse Road
02. Watch Them Fade
03. Horizons Undone
04. Distance
05. Calling Down The Darkness
06. The Dawning Of The Day (Insomnia)
07. Old Bent Pine
08. River Of No Return
Steve Von Till live dates:
Apr 17-20 - Roadburn Festival - Tilburg, NL
May 30 - Jun 1 - Prepare The Ground Festival - Toronto, CAN
Jul 25-27 - Fire In The Mountains Festival - Blackfeet Nation, MT
Danish rock and rollers VOLBEAT — Michael Poulsen (vocals, guitar),Jon Larsen (drums) and Kaspar Boye Larsen (bass) — have announced their ninth album, "God Of Angels Trust", due on June 6 via longtime label Vertigo/Universal.
The LP will coincide with plenty of touring on the band's "Greatest Of All Tours Worldwide".
Today the band shares the first taste of new music via the video for the first single "By A Monster's Hand". The song is a mid-paced riff-fest with no concessions to standard meter, juxtaposing pummeling rhythms with point-counterpoint hooks.
The video, which splices footage of VOLBEAT in their most natural state of performing, all the while following an ominously unsettling and familiar face, can be seen below.
The video was produced by Ghost Atomic and directed by Adam Rothlein, the same team that lensed videos for prior VOLBEAT hits "Shotgun Blues", "Die To Live" and "Leviathan".
With "God Of Angels Trust", the Danish band — which has scored ten #1 songs on the Billboard Mainstream Rock airplay chart, the most ever for a band based outside North America — has thrown caution to the wind, ignored comfort zones, and paid little heed to traditional songwriting in the search for something more immediate and surprising. The end result will thrill VOLBEAT's dedicated legion of fans.
"In the past, I've taken a long time to write and obsessed over so many elements of the songs before finishing them," says Poulsen. "This time, I wanted to make a VOLBEAT record without thinking too much about it. Instead of following any kind of structure I said, 'Okay, there are no rules. I can do anything I want. I can start with a chorus or do songs that are just a bunch of verses stacked on top of each other. Anything goes.' That was freeing for me and made it exciting to write this album."
Poulsen's excitement to thwart convention is palpable throughout "God Of Angels Trust", a punchy, crunchy album that's undeniably VOLBEAT, yet marches to a fresh new metallic and melodic energy.
Poulsen started working on songs for the follow-up to 2021's "Servant Of The Mind" in the summer of 2024. VOLBEAT was taking a year-long break from touring to give Michael a chance to recover from throat surgery and to tour with his death metal band ASINHELL. Driven equally by his excitement to record a new VOLBEAT album and by his determination not to follow convention, Poulsen worked on songs for a mere three weeks with bandmates drummer Jon Larsen and bassist Kaspar Boye Larsen. Amazingly, they worked on a new song at every rehearsal. Three weeks into the process, VOLBEAT had arranged half of "God Of Angels Trust". That's when Poulsen decided that having no rules meant he could follow his muse wherever it took him, and he veered off on a different path. He and the band still wrote and rehearsed two songs a week, but they started composing more familiar rock songs that drew from traditional elements.
The band entered the studio with their longtime producer Jacob Hansen in the fall of 2024. As with the songwriting, Poulsen wanted to work quickly and rely on instinct, so they just plugged in and started to play. To keep the music sounding urgent and immediate, VOLBEAT recorded live in the studio, playing as few takes as possible before moving from one song to the next.
When it came time to add lead guitar, there was no question that VOLBEAT would tap Flemming C. Lund, who currently tours with the band and worked with Michael in ASINHELL. A mere 13 days after they started working with Hansen, VOLBEAT were finished.
As impressive as it is that VOLBEAT wrote and recorded an entire album in about five weeks, what's more incredible is that "God Of Angels Trust" sounds as fleshed out, eclectic, and fulfilling as albums that have taken 10 times longer (or more) to create. In the end, creating such a strong album so quickly was a tremendous challenge that demanded Zen-like calm, a joy for exploration, maximal creativity, and razor-sharp concentration to pull off.
"In some ways, it feels like we've come full circle," Poulsen explains. "If you start drawing a circle over an extended period of time, eventually you've going to get back where you started, and that's how I feel now. I've dealt with medical operations, lineup changes, and all these things, and now it feels like a rebirth. It doesn't feel like we're doing our ninth studio album, it feels like we're on our first album again and there's something really refreshing about that."
VOLBEAT will return to the road on the "Greatest Of All Tours Worldwide" beginning in June and running throughout 2025. The tour begins in June with a co-headline Canadian run with THREE DAYS GRACE and special guests WAGE WAR, which will be followed by headline treks in the U.S. with special guests HALESTORM and THE GHOST INSIDE, and Europe with special guests BUSH and GEL. All dates are below.
Fans who pre-order the album from volbeat.dk or select Universal Music Group webstores through 5 p.m. local time on Sunday, March 9 will receive a code to access tickets before anyone else starting Monday, March 10 at 10 a.m. local time. Regular on-sales begin Friday, March 14 at 10 a.m. local time.
"God Of Angels Trust" track listing:
01. Devils Are Awake
02. By A Monster's Hand
03. Acid Rain
04. Demonic Depression
05. In The Barn Of The Goat Giving Birth To Satan's Spawn In A Dying World Of Doom
06. Time Will Heal
07. Better Be Fueled Than Tamed
08. At The End Of The Sirens
09. Lonely Fields
10. Enlighten The Disorder (By A Monster's Hand Part 2)
"Greatest Of All Tours Worldwide" tour dates:
2025 co-headline with THREE DAYS GRACE and WAGE WAR:
June 7 - Vancouver, BC - Rogers Arena
June 9 - Calgary, AB - Scotiabank Saddledome
June 10 - Edmonton, AB - Rogers Place
June 12 - Saskatoon, SK - SaskTel Centre
June 13 - Winnipeg, MB - Canada Life Centre
June 16 - Laval, QC - Place Bell
June 17 - Quebec City, QC - Videotron Centre
June 19 - Toronto, ON - Budweiser Stage
June 21 - London, ON - Canada Life Place
June 22 - Ottawa, ON - Canadian Tire Centre
2025 U.S. headline tour with special guests HALESTORM and THE GHOST INSIDE:
July 17 - Denver, CO - Ball Arena
July 19 – Salt Lake City, UT - Utah First Credit Union Amphitheatre
July 21 - Auburn, WA - White River Amphitheatre
July 22 - Ridgefield, WA - Cascades Amphitheater
July 24 - Wheatland, CA - Toyota Amphitheatre
July 25 - Inglewood, CA - Kia Forum
July 26 - Phoenix, AZ - Talking Stick Resort Amphitheatre
July 28 - Irving, TX - The Pavilion at Toyota Music Factory
July 29 - Houston, TX - 713 Music Hall
July 31 - Rogers, AR - Walmart AMP
August 2 - Franklin, TN - FirstBank Amphitheater
August 3 - Alpharetta, GA - Ameris Bank Amphitheatre
August 4 - Tampa, FL - MIDFLORIDA Credit Union Amphitheatre
August 6 - Charlotte, NC - PNC Music Pavilion
August 7 - Bristow, VA - Jiffy Lube Live
August 9 - Camden, NJ - Freedom Mortgage Pavilion
August 10 - Holmdel, NJ - PNC Bank Arts Center
August 12 - Bangor, ME - Maine Savings Amphitheater
August 13 - Gilford, NH - BankNH Pavilion
August 14 - Mansfield, MA - Xfinity Center
August 16 - Hershey, PA - Giant Center
August 17 - Cincinnati, OH - Riverbend Music Center
August 19 - Clarkston, MI - Pine Knob Music Theatre
August 21 - Noblesville, IN - Ruoff Music Center
August 22 - Tinley Park, IL - Credit Union 1 Amphitheatre
2025 European headline tour with special guests BUSH and GEL:
September 18 - Herning, DK - Jyske Bank Boxen
September 19 - Copenhagen, DK - Royal Arena
September 23 - Amsterdam, NL - Ziggo Dome
September 24 - Antwerp, BE - Sportpaleis
September 26 - Stuttgart, DE - Hanns-Martin-Schleyer-Halle
September 27 - Cologne, DE - LANXESS Arena
September 28 - Oberhausen, DE - Rudolf Weber-ARENA
September 30 - Vienna, AT - Wiener Stadthalle
October 3 - Prague, CZ - O2 universum
October 4 - Berlin, DE - Uber Arena
October 6 - Munich, DE - Olympiahalle
October 8 - Frankfurt, DE - Festhalle
October 10 - Leipzig, DE - QUARTERBACK Immobilien Arena
October 11 - Hamburg, DE - Barclays Arena
October 13 - Warsaw, PL - COS Torwar
October 15 - Tampere, FI - Nokia Arena
October 17 - Stockholm, SE - 3Arena
October 18 - Oslo, NO - Unity Arena
October 19 - Gothenburg, SE - Scandinavium
October 21 - Hannover, DE - ZAG Arena
October 22 - Rotterdam, NL - Rotterdam Ahoy
October 23 - Esch-Sur-Alzette, LU - Rockhal
October 25 - Zurich, CH - Hallenstadion
October 28 - Bilbao, ES - CUBEC - Bilbao Exhibition Centre
October 30 - Barcelona, ES - Sant Jordi Club
October 31 - Madrid, ES - Palacio Vistalegre
November 2 - Paris, FR - Zénith Paris - La Villette
November 5 - Nottingham, UK - Motorpoint Arena
November 6 - Cardiff, UK - Utilita Arena
November 8 - Manchester, UK - AO Arena
November 10 - Glasgow, UK - OVO Hydro
November 12 - Birmingham, UK - Utilita Arena
November 13 - London, UK - OVO Arena Wembley
Progressive death metallers FALLUJAH will release their sixth album, "Xenotaph", on June 13 via Nuclear Blast Records. Picking up where they left off with 2022's critically heralded "Empyrean", the band expands the depth and breadth of their dexterous, aggressive sound while exploring extraterrestrial realms on an epic sci-fi journey through space and time.
FALLUJAH vocalist Kyle Schaefer states: "We are excited to finally reveal FALLUJAH's new album 'Xenotaph', marking the sixth chapter in our discography. This is our most ambitious record yet, and is certainly the band's most technical, dynamic and progressive material to date. The music carried out by these eight tracks is matched with an equally ambitious concept, a lyrical story that traverses unfolding layers of time and reality in an otherworldly, post-death realm of existence."
He adds: "'Xenotaph' is also our most collaborative album, with broad input from the current lineup leading us to expand the scope of our songwriting while simultaneously highlighting the true potential of everyone involved. We hope you'll join us in welcoming this bold new stage of the band's evolution."
Today, FALLUJAH reveals the album's stunning cover by Peter Mohrbacher, track listing and release date as well as the first single, "Kaleidoscopic Waves", that's accompanied by the music video below.
Speaking about the new song, Schaefer says: "We knew 'Kaleidoscopic Waves' would be the perfect track to usher in this new era of FALLUJAH. It unmistakably showcases the soaring atmospheres and remarkable technicality the band is already known for, but with a new level of melodic depth and an invigorating desire to push beyond the boundaries of our previous work. It's hard to fully encapsulate the vast scope of our new album with a single song, but 'Kaleidoscopic Waves' is a great place to start."
"Xenotaph" track listing:
01. In Stars We Drown
02. Kaleidoscopic Waves
03. Labyrinth Of Stone
04. The Crystalline Veil
05. Step Through The Portal And Breathe
06. A Parasitic Dream
07. The Obsidian Architect
08. Xenotaph
FALLUJAH's confidence in the lineup that made their previous album, "Empyrean" (2022),such a resounding success — earning high marks from Metal Injection, New Noise and Guitar World — has been reconfigured slightly, with guitarist Sam Mooradian (INHALE EXISTENCE, SAM MOORADIAN) and drummer Kevin Alexander (DISEMBODIED TYRANT, BROUGHT BY PAIN) bringing their jaw-dropping musical proficiency to the fold, as vocalist Kyle Schaefer, guitarist Scott Carstairs, and bassist Evan Brewer enter a new chapter with FALLUJAH.
"Xenotaph" was produced by FALLUJAH, engineered by Dave Otero (CATTLE DECAPITATION, ARCHSPIRE) and Mike Low (VITRIOL, ABORTED) at Flatline Audio in Denver, Colorado and Top Track Studios in Nashville, Tennessee. Otero also mixed and mastered "Xenotaph". The main goal was elevation, building upon yet soaring upward from "Empyrean", one of the group's strongest productions to date. The team focused the separation of FALLUJAH's breakneck pace, meticulous songcraft, euphonious leads, and unrivaled intensity, creating an experience pulls the listener into "Xenotaph"'s high-caliber music and concept.
FALLUJAH is:
Kyle Schaefer - Vocals, Programming
Scott Carstairs - Guitars
Sam Mooradian - Guitar
Evan Brewer - Bass
Kevin Alexander - Drums
Swedish occult rockers GHOST will release their new album, "Skeletá", on April 25 via Loma Vista Recordings. The official music video for the LP's first single, "Satanized", can be seen below.
"Satanized" is described in a press release as "an avalanche of infectious hooks and harmonies is buoyed by a hypnotic shuffle, as the narrator succumbs to dark forces within and without, helplessly acknowledging their own blasphemy and heresy as it inexorably consumes them." By the time the song's opening lines "There is something inside me and they don't know if there is a cure" have moved from the inner monologue of the possessed to the ears of the hapless listener, it will already be too late: You will have been "Satanized".
The "Satanized" music video introduces the new character who will be fronting GHOST for its 2025 touring cycle: Papa V Perpetua.
GHOST's sixth psalm, "Skeletá", is its most unflinchingly introspective work to date. Where previous GHOST albums dealt largely with chronicling and/or observing outward facing subject matter — such as "Impera"'s meditations on the rise and fall of empires and its predecessor "Prequelle"'s evocations of the ravages of era-defining plagues — "Skeletá"'s lyrics render the distinct individual emotional vistas of each of its 10 songs in one-on-one fashion, at times as if in a dialogue with oneself in a mirror. The end result is a singular collection of timeless, universal sentiments, all filtered through a prism of a uniquely personal point of view.
GHOST has also launched an interactive element dubbed The Satanizer, a first-of-its-kind music video experience for fans who wish to be "Satanized." Developed in partnership with Jason Zada (Elf Yourself),The Satanizer will morph its users into characters featured in the song's melodramatic video. With a quick upload of your photo, The Satanizer will send out a personalized music video clip featuring the participant, who can in turn share via social media that they too have been "Satanized."
"Skeletá" track listing:
01. Peacefield
02. Lachryma
03. Satanized
04. Guiding Lights
05. De Profundis Borealis
06. Cenotaph
07. Missilia Amori
08. Marks Of The Evil One
09. Umbra
10. Excelsis
Papa V Perpetua's name was initially listed as one of the performers for BLACK SABBATH's final concert, set to take place on July 5 at Villa Park in Birmingham, United Kingdom.
GHOST also confirmed the singer's participation at the Villa Park event in a social media update, writing: "We wish to inform you V is coming… To Birmingham on July 5th."
GHOST mastermind Tobias Forge performed as a "new" Papa Emeritus on each of the band's first three LPs, with each version of Papa replacing the one that came before it. Papa Emeritus III was retired in favor of Cardinal Copia before the release of 2018's "Prequelle". In March 2020, at final show of GHOST's "Prequelle" tour in Mexico City, Mexico, the band officially introduced Papa Emeritus IV, the character who fronted the act for its "Impera" (2022) album phase.
Asked in a 2019 interview with Full Metal Jackie's nationally syndicated radio show how those different identities empower him as a performer, Forge said: "Speaking just for myself, I know that coming out onstage as another character, looking different, acting different, definitely allows for you to act and behave in a way that you wouldn't normally do. This can be both traumatic and also therapeutical in away.
"Even though it's been a long time since I practiced any sort of martial arts, I almost feel similar to myself back then, like after karate class. I did all kinds of things. I did judo, jiu-jitsu, tae kwon do and karate. After you are sort of cleansed from any sort of violent urges that you had. And in a way, I feel that way. Especially now when we play on our regular nights. When we play that long, any inkling that you have of wanting to dance and rock out is sort of over when you come off stage, which is very nice.
"One of the luxuries of being able to dress up for it and become a different character is that as soon as I am not that character anymore, no one expects me to behave the way that the character does onstage," he added. "No one expects me to be that way offstage. There's been a great handful of rock artists that have had a big problem differentiating themselves from their character onstage. And that leads to a lot of potential problems."
As previously reported, GHOST will embark on a world tour in 2025. The European leg of the trek will kick off on April 15 in Manchester, United Kingdom and conclude on May 24 in Oslo, Norway. The North American leg of GHOST's 2025 tour will launch on July 9 in Baltimore, Maryland and wrap up on August 16 in Houston, Texas.
The physical home video of GHOST's worldwide Top 10 box office smash feature film debut "Rite Here Rite Now" was made available on December 6, 2024.
HERMAN RAREBELL & FRIENDS' cover version of the Pat Benatarclassic "Love Is A Battlefield" — a song originally written by Holly Knight and Mike Chapman — can be streamed below. The track is taken from the upcoming HERMAN RAREBELL & FRIENDS studio album, "What About Love?", which will be released on April 11 via Metalville Records.
On "What About Love?", HERMAN RAREBELL & FRIENDS take you back to the '80s and together we return to our very time with the greatest music of this powerful decade. Herman has chosen 12 songs to re-record with good friends and great musicians as a tribute to the greatest hits of a time that was a golden age for him personally. Former OZZY OSBOURNE bassist Bob Daisley can be heard on this album, as can Dann Huff, who was a studio musician on some of the greatest albums in pop history, as well as Howard Leese from the legendary U.S. rockers HEART and singer Michael Voss (CASANOVA, MAD MAX, MICHAEL SCHENKER).
Herman says about this time: "I think that more powerful music has never been created before or since. It was the golden age for me. I enjoyed it. We traveled the world with the SCORPIONS, we met people from all cultures. It was one big rush. Anything was possible at any time.
"With this album, I don't just want to bring back memories of the great hits of the '80s. It's not just about the melodies and rhythms that I miss today. Above all, it's about the feeling that these songs convey. The love, the courage, the optimism that is in them. I think a lot of that has been lost. The groove in 'Here I Go Again', the larger-than-life chorus of 'I Love Rock'n'Roll' and the unshakeable power of 'Rock You Like A Hurricane'. The love and longing of 'I Want To Know What Love Is'. It's no wonder that these songs have held a place in people's hearts for four decades.
"For me, the power, the special spirit of the '80s is in every chord of these songs, every hit on the bass drum. Every take we recorded for this album was pure pleasure. Friends who play great music.
"We hope you feel what we've put into these new recordings: Love, power, optimism! For me, that's the power of the '80s! Anyone who was there will remember. And anyone who missed it deserves to relive it, at least in this way.
"With this in mind: Here I am - Rock you like a Hurricane!"
The album was produced by Herman Rarebell and Michael Voss at Kidwood Studios in Münstertal, Black Forest.
The official music video for the "What About Love?" title track can be seen below.
Herman said about this song: "Here is my message to the world: We must return to love again! We have to stop the hate!!! This song should remind you all of love and peace! I am grateful to all my musician friends for helping me with this news!"
"What About Love?" track listing:
01. In The Air Tonight
02. I Want To Know What Love Is
03. Love Is A Battlefield
04. What About Love
05. Every Breath You Take
06. Sweet Child O' Mine
07. Here I Go Again
08. Addicted To Love
09. Passion Rules The Game
10. Rock You Like A Hurricane
12. These Dreams
12. I Love Rock 'N' Roll
Recording lineup:
Herman Rarebell - Drums
Herman's friends:
Michael Voss - Vocals, Guitars
Van De Forst - Vocals, Acoustic Guitars, Keyboards
Dann Huff - Lead Guitars
Howard Leese - Lead Guitars
Bob Daisley - Bass
Neil Carter - Keyboards
Jim Vallance - Keyboards
Eva Von Der Forst - Backing Vocals
Lexus De La Foret - Backing Vocals
Back in September 2021, Rarebell blasted his former SCORPIONS bandmates, calling them "rude" and accusing them of "greed" over their apparent refusal to allow him to rejoin the band. Rarebell, who was a member of the SCORPIONS from 1977 to 1995, discussed the possibility of his return to the group in an interview for Classic Rock magazine. Asked if he was disappointed not to have been invited back into the fold following the 2016 dismissal of longtime drummer James Kottak, Herman said: "I'll tell you how disappointed I am. I sent them a message offering my services, and never even got a reply. I thought that was very rude. Now I hear the SCORPIONS are claiming their new album will be a return to the glory days of the eighties. If they're serious about that, they should get [former bassist] Francis [Buchholz] and me back, and also Dieter Dierks who produced all those classic albums. You know why they won't do that? Greed. It would mean having to share everything five ways and not three."
Rarebell also criticized his former bandmates for seemingly not giving him enough credit for their commercial success in the 1980s. "The band never mention me in interviews, which I find ridiculous," he stated. "But there's a new documentary in the pipeline from ITV on the band. I am being interviewed for this, so I can finally set the record straight on my role."
In an interview with Classic Rock Revisited, Herman stated about the huge commercial success of SCORPIONS' 1982 album "Blackout": "Mercury Records was totally behind us and they believed in us. They wanted us to keep making albums. They wanted us to grow and do better each time out. 'Lovedrive' went gold. 'Animal Magnetism' went gold and then 'Blackout' was the first one to go platinum. [Rudolf] Schenker / [Klaus] Meine / Rarebell was a great songwriting team. You can see that from how many successful albums we had. After I left the band, they didn't have any more hits."
Rarebell also talked about the inspiration for the lyrics to "Rock You Like A Hurricane", which was released as the lead single from SCORPIONS' ninth studio album, 1984's "Love At First Sting". "Those lyrics were very easy to write," he said. "I woke up early in the morning after fucking and doing cocaine all night and I opened up the curtains. 'It's early morning, the sun comes out. Last night was shaking and pretty loud. My cat is purring and she scratches my skin.' She had scratched my back during our lovemaking. I just sat down and wrote it right then and there. It was five in the morning and the girl was still in bed as I was sitting there writing it. The next day, I said to Rudolf, 'I have some great lyrics for that riff you have.'"
JIZZY PEARL'S LOVE/HATE is back with a brand-new music video for the electrifying single "You're Gonna Burn", taken from the band's upcoming album, "Punk Rock Fiesta!", due on March 1 via Kenyon Records. This fast-paced, hard-hitting track now has a visually stunning companion, created by the immensely talented Ashley Miles of Hot Frog Animation, known for his work with former IRON MAIDEN vocalist Blaze Bayley and ex-MOTÖRHEAD guitarist Phil Campbell.
A feast for the senses, the "You're Gonna Burn" video weaves a powerful narrative that brings Jizzy Pearl's storytelling to life. As Pearl describes it: "'You're Gonna Burn' is a cautionary tale of the age-old battle between the conventional 9-to-5 grind and the untamed, gypsy lifestyle of a musician. But this time the musician triumphs, proving that the fire of rock and roll never fades."
Fueled by raw intensity, "You're Gonna Burn" delivers everything fans love about Pearl's signature sound — gritty, rebellious, and unapologetically bold. Featuring blistering guitar work from Darren Householder, hard-hitting drumming from Dave Moreno, and pounding bass by Christian Kimmett, the song is a masterclass in high-energy, no-frills rock and roll.
From the Sunset Strip to stages worldwide, Pearl has made his mark on rock history, selling over 600,000 albums and sharing the stage with AC/DC, OZZY OSBOURNE, SKID ROW and DIO. He currently sings for QUIET RIOT and has recorded and toured with RATT and L.A. GUNS. Now, he delivers a powerhouse collection of songs, capturing the fire and energy of no-frills rock 'n' roll — it's "Punk Rock Fiesta!"
"Punk Rock Fiesta!" is a high-octane ride that leans into the rebellious spirit of classic, streetwise rock. Featuring blistering guitar solos and Jizzy's signature vocals — equal parts grit and soul — the album is a relentless sonic assault.
"Rock and roll should be dangerous, unpredictable, and make you feel something," said Jizzy. "We wanted to bring back that energy that made music exciting in the first place. This record is screaming, loud, and full of old-school rock 'n' roll soul!"
Since 1990, with LOVE/HATE's debut "Blackout In The Red Room" — named "Best Record Of The Year" by Kerrang! and Metal Hammer — Jizzy Pearl has remained a respected force in rock. Whether commanding the stage with multi-platinum bands or pushing his own creative limits, he continues to evolve while staying true to his hard rock roots. With his seventh solo album, Jizzy Pearl is ready to shake up the rock world once again.
"Punk Rock Fiesta!" track listing:
01. You're Gonna Burn
02. Eye For An Eye
03. The Wrath Of Love
04. Over The Edge
05. Didya Think You Could Fall In Love?
06. Can't Be Wrong
07. I'll Be Your Shadow
08. Time To Take Your Pill
Recording lineup:
Jizzy Pearl: Vocals, Guitars, Bass Guitar
Darren Housholder: Guitars
Christian Kimmett: Bass Guitar
Dave Moreno: Drums
Credits:
All songs (words and music) by Jizzy Pearl
Produced by Jizzy Pearl
Executive producer: Brian Kenyon
Mixed by Andy Haller and Jizzy Pearl at Android Audio, Arizona
Mastered by Maor Appelbaum
Guitars recorded by Tim Hofstetter
Drums recorded by Dave Moreno at Doom Room Studios, California
Additional guitars: Andy Haller
Cover art: Jordan Hursch
Layout and design: Michael Wohlberg
Album photos: Christina Pearl
Photo credit: Christina Pearl (courtesy of Kenyon Records)
British heavyweights ARCHITECTS are back with a relentless new single, "Brain Dead", featuring boundary-pushing new duo HOUSE OF PROTECTION — the latest glimpse into ARCHITECTS' highly anticipated 11th studio album, "The Sky, The Earth & All Between", dropping this Friday, February 28 via Epitaph Records. Just days after surprising fans with "Everything Ends", which revealed a more vulnerable side to the band, "Brain Dead" flips the script with a volatile mix of punk attitude and crushing intensity. Produced by Jordan Fish, the track showcases Sam Carter's unmatched vocal range, seamlessly shifting from frenetic screams to guttural growls to soaring melodic cleans. ARCHITECTS are pulling no punches with this one-two combo of new music leading up to their album release.
With Aric Improta and Stephen Harrison of HOUSE OF PROTECTION adding an intriguing layer of musical complexity, "Brain Dead" surges forward with pummeling drums, razor-sharp riffs, and an unrelenting pace that doesn't let up until it crashes into a mercilessly crushing breakdown. Lyrically, the track delivers a scathing take on modern disillusionment, wrapped in a chaotic, high-energy delivery that embodies ARCHITECTS at their most explosive.
The single arrives alongside a fast-moving, visually striking music video, mirroring the song's high-adrenaline energy. Shot in true guerilla, L.A.-skate style, the video follows Carter, Improta and Harrison as they tear through the city — skating outside, roaming stadium stands, weaving through tunnels, and lounging on rooftops. Packed with collage-style overlays, glitchy effects, and rapid cuts, the video captures the raw, electrified spirit of the track while delivering a gritty, high-impact visual ride that feels like a skate edit on steroids.
"Brain Dead" pushes ARCHITECTS' next chapter into overdrive, following the high-octane run of "Blackhole", "Whiplash", "Curse" and "Seeing Red" — a streak that has racked up over 90 million streams and landed the band on Alternative Press, Kerrang!, Revolver and Idobi's "Most Anticipated Albums of 2025" lists. If the first four singles are any indication, "The Sky, The Earth & All Between" is shaping up to be their most impactful record yet.
With "The Sky, The Earth & All Between" dropping on February 28, ARCHITECTS are gearing up for a massive year on the road. The band will celebrate the album's release with a string of special U.K. shows, before heading out on a spring headline tour across Europe. They'll then link up with LINKIN PARK for select dates on their anticipated world tour and make a festival run through the U.S., hitting Rock Fest, Upheaval and Inkcarceration — with even more dates on the horizon.
"The Sky, The Earth & All Between" track listing:
01. Elegy
02. Whiplash
03. Blackhole
04. Everything Ends
05. Brain Dead (feat. House of Protection)
06. Evil Eyes
07. Landmines
08. Judgement Day (feat. Amira Elfeky)
09. Broken Mirror
10. Curse
11. Seeing Red
12. Chandelier
Former DREAM THEATER drummer Mike Mangini has formed a new band, MONOLITH, with Hernán "Motley" Rodríguez on bass and vocals, and Andy Barrow on guitar.
The official music video for the group's debut single, "Oligarchs", can be seen below.
Mangini released his debut solo album, "Invisible Signs", in November 2023. Accompanying Mangini on the LP were Tony Dickinson on bass, Ivan Keller on guitar, Gus G. (FIREWIND, OZZY OSBOURNE) on lead guitar and former EVANESCENCE guitarist Jen Majura on vocals.
Mangini joined DREAM THEATER in late 2010 through a widely publicized audition following the departure of Mike Portnoy, who co-founded DREAM THEATER 40 years ago. Mangini beat out six other of the world's top drummers — Marco Minnemann, Virgil Donati, Aquiles Priester, Thomas Lang, Peter Wildoer and Derek Roddy — for the gig, a three-day process that was filmed for a documentary-style reality show called "The Spirit Carries On".
Mangini made his name in the hard rock world in the mid-1990s when he played with EXTREME, before landing the gig with guitar legend Steve Vai in 1996. Nearly a decade later, Mangini took up a full-time teaching position at the world-renowned Berklee College Of Music.
In a recent interview with Loaded Radio, DREAM THEATER singer James LaBrie was asked how Mangini took the news in October 2023 when LaBrie and the rest of DREAM THEATER broke it to the drummer that Portnoy was coming back. James said: "Well, he was very professional about it. [It was] very admirable of him to have been… He took it in style and class. I mean, obviously, I think it would have been upsetting — it must have been upsetting — but he took it for what it's worth and even saying things like, 'It kind of makes sense, guys. I see why this should be happening and why this would maybe inevitably be happening. It just makes sense for the band and the amount of history that you all have together. It seems natural.' So, yeah, no, he was a class guy. Classy. Yeah."
In a January 2024 interview with Chris Akin Presents…, Mangini was asked if he had any "advance notice" that Portnoy would return to DREAM THEATER in the fall of 2023 or if it was "really immediate". He responded: "Immediate. But it's like… So the fish comes up out of the water, it's immediate, but the fish was swimming for a while. Where was the fish? Whatever."
He continued: "The reason it was easy for me to deal with — very easy, actually — I was, like, 'Oh, okay. Yeah. Yeah. Original guy back in band.' I got I got it. And I didn't have to go do through a drop-down menu; I didn't have to do it. It was just I looked at it and went, 'Okay.' And plus I don't know whether it was intuitive, instinctual [or] intellectual… but I have left so many things on the table for so many years — the publishing of more books, the classes that I wanna teach, the interaction that my own self-development comes largely from me having to teach and talk about it to people. At some point, I mean, I see the whole picture, the grid, and I know what I can't do, and that inspires me.
"But anyway, the answer to your question is, I got a call and understood the call, and said, 'Okay, let's do a joint statement,'" he explained. "And then the next day, I'm, like, 'Okay.' I'm having coffee and quite literally, at my think tank, looking at my list and going, 'How am I gonna complete this job now? I've gotta fix this or do that. I've got a lot to do.' My studio facility had construction, there was stuff that had to be fixed. I was, like, 'Let me just let all of this stuff happen and breathe and just finish these things.' So that's what my mindset was. I can't tell you anything different because that's what it was."
Asked how he managed to avoid being angry over the fact that he was being pushed out of DREAM THEATER when Portnoy wanted to come back, even though Mangini was the drummer that helped the band win its first Grammy Award, Mangini said: "Well, a) because I don't know that that's what is the full picture. I don't know that that is what happened indeed. And I don't let myself even think about it. People decide things and I respect that. It's just it is what it is."
In early November 2023, Mangini told SiriusXM's "Trunk Nation With Eddie Trunk" about his exit from DREAM THEATER and the return of Portnoy: "All I know is the decision was made and when I heard it, all I pictured was, 'Oh, this is an original guy going back to his band. Uh, okay. All right. Let's go to the next thing.' It was nothing more. I was told. It was just nothing more than — it seemed so simple to me. And maybe intuitively it's, like, 'Oh yeah, I get it.' And that was that. That's really it… So that's really the crux of it all is it was an easy thing for me to understand. And then once the news hit and it became real, which is when it set in, because once I knew about it, I just got busy. I was, like, 'Okay, I've got all these videos to finish.'"
The 61-year-old Mangini, who joined DREAM THEATER in 2010, continued: "I'm actually doing like a lot of stuff for my [recently released solo] album. I'll do some drum playthroughs. Not to yap and yap and yap about it, but I have a lot on my cork board and my lists and things to do and things to accomplish and things to complete. There's so much there I haven't been able to do. But once it hit and it became real, it was real quick for me. I'm, like, 'Okay, I get it.'"
When host Eddie Trunk noted that everything about his exit from DREAM THEATER, from the way it was handled to the fans' response to Mike's attitude about it, was "about as good as it could be," Mangini concurred. "It is as good as it could be," Mike said. "I think people are where they need to be. It's, like, there's stuff to do, there's places to be, there's people to see, there are things to accomplish and roles to fulfill and tasks to do. And that's what it is. That's really what it is.
"How lucky am I, how fortunate am I to be just a part of that history, to have all this amazing stuff happen?" he continued. "It's positive, positive, positive.
"I know I've accomplished some things with my career, and I've had a lot of struggles and a lot of things that didn't work or whatever, but for my parents to be in their 90s, to see this happen, and I'm not talking about career stuff; I'm talking about how I've treated people and how they treat me. I mean, I think that's what I want for my kids — I wanna feel well about how they are with people and how people treat them at the end of the day. I think that's just awesome."
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