Fan-filmed video of MEGADETH's entire October 1 performance at PSD Bank Dome in Düsseldorf, Germany as the support act for DISTURBED can be seen below.

Featured songs:

00:01 Symphony Of Destruction
03:44 Mechanix
08:15 Peace Sells
12:55 We'll Be Back
17:35 Tornado Of Souls
22:51 Sweating Bullets
27:43 Wake Up Dead
31:15 In My Darkest Hour
36:51 Hangar 18
42:01 Holy Wars…The Punishment Due

As previously reported, MEGADETH will release a new single, "Tipping Point", on Friday, October 3.

On August 14, MEGADETH announced that its upcoming LP will be the band's last. The Dave Mustaine-led outfit will also embark on a farewell tour in 2026.

Mustaine and the rest of MEGADETH have yet to reveal the final album's title, release date or the band's remaining tour dates.

In a press release announcing MEGADETH's final album and farewell tour, Mustaine thanked fans for their commitment and love while celebrating the band's impact on the music world.

"There's so many musicians that have come to the end of their career, whether accidental or intentional," Mustaine said. "Most of them don't get to go out on their own terms on top, and that's where I'm at in my life right now. I have traveled the world and have made millions upon millions of fans and the hardest part of all of this is saying goodbye to them."

He continued. "We can't wait for you to hear this album and see us on tour. If there was ever a perfect time for us to put out a new album, it's now. If there was ever a perfect time to tour the world, it's now. This is also a perfect time for us to tell you that it's our last studio album. We've made a lot of friends over the years and I hope to see all of you on our global farewell tour.

"Don't be mad, don't be sad, be happy for us all, come celebrate with me these next few years. We have done something together that's truly wonderful and will probably never happen again. We started a musical style, we started a revolution, we changed the guitar world and how it's played, and we changed the world. The bands I played in have influenced the world. I love you all for it. Thank you for everything."

The follow-up to 2022's "The Sick, The Dying… And The Dead!" will be released via Mustaine's Tradecraft imprint on Frontiers Label Group's new BLKIIBLK label, and is expected next year.

Fans can register for early access to exclusive information and offers surrounding the upcoming final album on MEGADETH's web site. The initial run of farewell tour dates will also be announced later this year.

For its final album, MEGADETH is once again working with Chris Rakestraw, a producer, mixer and engineer who previously worked on MEGADETH's last two LPs, the aforementioned "The Sick, The Dying... And The Dead!" and 2016's "Dystopia".

Guitarist Teemu Mäntysaari joined MEGADETH two years ago. He stepped in as the replacement for Brazilian-born guitarist Kiko Loureiro, who announced in September 2023 that he would sit out the next leg of MEGADETH's "Crush The World" tour in order to stay home with his children back in Finland. It was later revealed that the now-38-year-old Finnish musician would continue to play guitar for MEGADETH for the foreseeable future, with Loureiro seemingly having no plans to return.

Mäntysaari was born in Tampere, Finland and began playing guitar at the age of 12. In 2004, he joined the band WINTERSUN. He has also been a member of SMACKBOUND since 2015.

Released in September 2022, MEGADETH's latest album, "The Sick, The Dying... And The Dead!", sold 48,000 equivalent album units in the U.S. in its first week of release to land at position No. 3 on the Billboard 200 chart. It marked MEGADETH's eighth top 10-charting album.

MEGADETH's previous top 10 entries on the Billboard 200 were "Countdown To Extinction" (No. 2, 1992),"Youthanasia" (No. 4, 1994),"Cryptic Writings" (No. 10, 1997),"United Abominations" (No. 8, 2007),"Endgame" (No. 9, 2009),"Super Collider" (No. 6, 2013) and "Dystopia" (No. 3, 2016).

Led by the growled vocals and razor-wire riffing of Mustaine, MEGADETH are one of the "Big Four" thrash titans. Shortly after being kicked out of METALLICA in 1983, Mustaine met bassist David Ellefson, and the pair bonded quickly, forming the core of MEGADETH. Drummer Gar Samuelson and guitarist Chris Poland later joined, and MEGADETH released their underground-hit debut "Killing Is My Business... And Business Is Good!" in 1985. Its follow-up, "Peace Sells... But Who's Buying?", solidified the band's status with sprawling yet tightly wound songs like the uneasy opener "Wake Up Dead" and the fiery title track.

"So Far, So Good... So What!", released in 1988, featured a new lineup as well as a thrashy cover of the SEX PISTOLS' "Anarchy In The U.K." and the anti-PMRC broadside "Hook In Mouth". In 1990 they released "Rust In Peace", with Nick Menza on drums and technical wizard Marty Friedman on guitar; songs such as "Holy Wars... The Punishment Due" and "Hangar 18" blended pummeling riffs and suspicion-fueled lyrics with a stadium-rock ambition that matched the era's metal-embracing tendencies.

"Countdown To Extinction", released in 1992, and "Youthanasia", released in 1994, continued the band's dominance of metal and emergence in rock's mainstream, with the latter album's "À Tout Le Monde" being a rare thrash ballad. After a brief breakup in the early 2000s, MEGADETH returned as a de facto Mustaine solo project with 2004's "The System Has Failed". Ellefson rejoined in 2010 prior to the album "Th1rt3en" and remained in the MEGADETH lineup until 2021, when he was fired.

In addition to Mustaine and Mäntysaari, MEGADETH's current lineup includes drummer Dirk Verbeuren and bassist James LoMenzo.

Megadeth

Reactivated San Francisco Bay Area thrash metal veterans FORBIDDEN have released the official Mike Sloat-directed music video for their second new song in over 15 years, "Mutually Assured Dysfunction". "Mutually Assured Dysfunction" and "Divided By Zero", which was made available in late June, mark the band's first recordings with FORBIDDEN's current lineup, consisting of founding guitarist Craig Locicero, alongside longtime bassist Matt Camacho and the group's latest additions, singer Norman Skinner and drummer Chris Kontos, plus VOIVOD guitarist Daniel "Chewy" Mongrain, who stepped in as a replacement for Steve Smyth in July 2024.

At this past summer's Motocultor Festival in France, Locicero was asked by Loud TV what it's like for him and his FORBIDDEN bandmates to play thrash metal in 2025, since the music industry has changed a lot in the past four decades. He responded: "Yeah, yeah. Well, like that's ever mattered to us. Yeah, it's never really mattered to us. There was a time in the early '90s where it killed everything. I think now thrash has a very permanent home because kids keep rediscovering it. And it goes along with my philosophy of the way I record music now, too. If you go back and you look at the history of thrash records, people wanna listen to the old stuff, and there's a reason for that, because it wasn't too perfect, it wasn't too clean, it wasn't manipulated by digital. Everything was so natural. So with the way we recorded, even though we recorded digitally, we didn't fix everything. We laid a good drum track down, we laid a quick guitar track, quick guitar track, quick bass track — bang, bang, bang, bang. And so when you do things like that, the result is people feel that there's more energy coming from that because there's — I call it hair. There's hair in it. I like hair. I like albums that sound perfect, I like really clinical metal records that are supposedly industry standard, but I don't think they last as long in the fans' hearts and minds. And that is being proven over the years, 'cause people just wanna go back and listen to old shit. You've gotta have the balls to do it, and we're doing it."

Craig continued: "Another thing we did, too, is we recorded everything in [the standard guitar tuning of] E — not the whole album, but most of it tuned up, the way we used to tune. And you'll probably find two or three bands in this whole festival that are tuned high like [that]. You can play Chuck Berry and Elvis [Presley] and FORBIDDEN — and old SLAYER. We all used to be in E. If you can't write heavy shit in E, then I don't know what to tell you."

Locicero was also asked how the ripple effects from rising production expenses and shifting consumer spending have affected promoters, venue operators, agents and touring artists like FORBIDDEN in 2025. He said: "You know what? I'm a realist… And to me, what I wanted to do is write the greatest record we could possibly write. And that's why we got Chewy in the band. That's why this lineup's so fire, with Norman and everybody. And I always say — there's an old thing from a movie, 'A Field Of Dreams': build it and they will come. So if you build something good enough, if people want it, you'll find a way to do it. If you can't afford to go everywhere and play, that's okay too. I mean, you don't have to fucking — sorry, Wichita, Kansas, but I don't have to play there if it's not gonna be worth… If it costs too much to get there and you're only paying X amount of money, we can't play there. So that's just a realistic part of the machine now, and you have to live with it and go with it. And people that really suffer under that idea get jaded and they just give up. I'm not that guy. I just adjust. I care about the music and the performances we do, and if we don't go everywhere, I'm okay with that."

When "Divided By Zero" was first released, FORBIDDEN commented in a statement: "The opening riff for 'Divided By Zero' was the first thing Craig brought to the table as a new FORBIDDEN song. The lyrics address the erosion of civility and society through divisive control of institutions, cultures, religion, and government. Without picking sides, 'Divided By Zero' points to anyone and everyone that partakes in this mass manipulation, willingly or unwittingly."

The band added: "The video for 'Divided By Zero' is the stuff of dystopian nightmares, depicting how influential words and propaganda of the few have power to sway the many. Robots and monsters — how most of us unwittingly end up being one or the other through the multiple institutions' relentless brainwashing and beating us down. All of the disturbing imagery, created by Ethan Renoe at Crumb Hill, visually captures the story perfectly, haunting, powerful, and poignant."

"Mutually Assured Dysfunction" and "Divided By Zero" represent the bridge between classic and modern FORBIDDEN. They were recorded similarly to FORBIDDEN's debut album, 1988's "Forbidden Evil", in approach: no samples, no triggers and no over-editing.

In a recent interview with The Metal Command podcast, Skinner, who has previously fronted such acts as NIVIANE and IMAGIKA, stated about how his vocal approach is different from that of former FORBIDDEN singer Russ Anderson: "I kept in mind, I'm, like, 'I've gotta throw a little bit of Russ in there on some of this. I can't just be, like, 'Okay, well, now here's a new song done completely in the style of Norm now.' So, yeah, it's a balancing act with some of these songs. It's a little different and there's a bit of a learning curve for me because I'm so used to singing a certain way and recording a certain way and everything, and now with this group of guys, it's, like, 'Well, we don't do it that way. We do it this way,'" he explained.

"I just finished a powwow with our guitar player Daniel Mongrain and found out that I sing a lot of 'happy chords', a lot of majors, he says. So we're going on ways to — I don't know — maybe make it sound a little more evil. But then when you've been singing power metal for 10 years, that tends to happen.

"But I'm definitely keeping it in the back of my mind that, as we roll out these new tunes, to make sure I still stay true to what I think the FORBIDDEN fans will like while staying true to myself at the same time," Norm added.

On the topic of the musical direction of the new FORBIDDEN music compared to that of the band's previous efforts, Norm said: "The music itself, I've heard Craig [say] that it's very a mixture of [2010's] 'Omega Wave' and [1990's] 'Twisted Into Form'. That's the cross where vocally I'm doing the more modern-sounding singing like I do — I'm throwing in my harsh screams and growls sprinkled throughout, which Russ really didn't do until 'Omega Wave'. 'Omega Wave', all of a sudden it's, like, 'Oh, wow.' I mean, [1997's] 'Green' was an angry album, and Russ was just more just like raw scream and just anger. 'Omega Wave' was a more polished, some more death vocal stuff thrown in and stuff. So I'm bringing a lot of that in these songs here and there, because that's something I like to do. But then at the same time I'm taking a lot of the kind of phrasing that Russ would do on those old thrash songs. And, of course, I'm keeping the high notes in there, here and there. Not overdoing it, just placing them where they need to be. So you get that little, 'Yeah, there it is.' We're just trying to really balance these songs as best. And, for me, those are my two favorite FORBIDDEN albums: 'Twisted Into Form' and 'Omega Wave'."

FORBIDDEN's new songs were recorded at Sharkbite Studios in Oakland, California with engineer/co-producer Zack Ohren.

FORBIDDEN summer 2025 "40 Years Of Twisted Evil" European tour celebrated the 40th anniversary of the band's formation and the 35th anniversary of the release of FORBIDDEN's second album, "Twisted Into Form", which originally came out in March 1990 via Combat Records.

In August 2024, Locicero spoke to Bloodstock TV's Oran O'Beirne about FORBIDDEN's decision to remain independent, at least for the time being. He said: "We don't have a record label. I don't want a record label yet. I have an opportunity to finally do this with no monkey. And we're a better band than we were at any point recently because of all the things that have kind of brought us together. It feels different, and that's no knock on anyone. But from the top down, with Russ going through what he went through, that's kind of the stigma that stayed on us for a while. He wasn't feeling a hundred percent. So now you have Norm who's up there, he's, like, 'Yeah.' He's not trying to be anybody, and there's just a whole positive groundswell."

Elaborating on why FORBIDDEN has no interest in aligning itself with a record label right now, Craig said: "It's important to say that we have no delusions of grandeur either. I think that we understand more than anybody how much the industry has changed.

"I don't wanna get caught in the machine, and the machine can chew you up before you get creative," he explained. "You can get stunted creatively if you agree too quickly. 'Cause we've been approached already. And I'm, like, 'Not yet.' We're not gonna go there yet.

"It's important for us to feel like we got our album done and artistically put together, lyrically," Craig added. "No one needs to fucking tell us how to do it. And I feel good about our chances of at least reigniting and kind of reforging our path again. 'Cause there's a spot for us. 'Cause we've got all our Bay Area brothers, but we're that band, we're a little more heavy metal, a little more melodic. We do things a little differently. So we have our own little spot. And I hope to have it all land where it's supposed to be."

Smyth exited FORBIDDEN in July 2024, saying in a statement that he "decided it's time to part ways with FORBIDDEN, and return to my band ONE MACHINE as priority, along with other projects on the horizon, and of course session work, and teaching music as always."

The resurrected FORBIDDEN lineup made its live debut at a "secret" show in July 2023 at Baltic Kiss in Richmond, California under the TWISTED INTO EVIL banner.

Originally founded in 1985 as FORBIDDEN EVIL by Anderson, guitarists Locicero and Robb Flynn, bassist John Tegio and drummer Jim Pittman, the quintet started playing house parties and Bay Area clubs such as the legendary Ruthie's Inn soon after. After a couple of lineup changes (Paul Bostaph on drums and Matt Camacho on bass) in '86, the band quickly rose through the ranks of Bay Area thrash to gain a massive following and worldwide notoriety. In 1986, the band added Glen Alvelais as the second guitarist. It was this lineup that cemented itself into the Bay Area scene and soon after recorded 1988 release "Forbidden Evil" for Combat Records, changing the band's name to simply FORBIDDEN. In May of '89 while on a European tour with SACRED REICH, FORBIDDEN made their first appearance at the legendary Dynamo Open Air in Eindhoven, Netherlands. It was here that FORBIDDEN made their European mark and recorded the "Raw Evil" EP. The band returned Stateside and replaced Alvelais with Tim Calvert. Calvert was a missing ingredient that brought the band closer together as a team. They continued to tour the U.S. first with EXODUS and then again with SACRED REICH with Calvert on second guitar. The band went on to release "Twisted Into Form" in 1990, "Distortion" in 1994 and "Green" in 1996. However, the band, having gone though many lineup changes, disbanded in 1997.

In 2008 Craig being inspired at a screening of the movie "Get Thrashed", called the other members of the band and suggested getting back on stage to see if they could reignite the FORBIDDEN machine. With Anderson, Locicero, Camacho back in the mix along with new additions Glen Alvelais and Gene Hoglan they played two sold-out DEATH ANGEL shows in San Francisco. Steve Smyth came into the mix in place of Alvelais and Mark Hernandez took Hoglan's place. The band then released "Omega Wave", the fifth in the catalog and went on a U.S. tour with OVERKILL. European festivals were next but afterwards Hernandez had to walk away due to personal reasons leading to a tour cancelation. Sasha Horn was the answer to fill the drummer's spot.

After playing "Bonded By Baloff" with EXODUS and one Bay Area show, FORBIDDEN embarked for Chile to play the Metal Fest in Santiago. It was on this flight back home that Russ informed the band that he couldn't tour anymore because of the physical toll it was taking on him. With that, the band dissolved once again for 11 years.

When FORBIDDEN's "rebirth" was first announced in April 2023, Locicero said in a statement: "First off, I did NOT see this coming. When FORBIDDEN quietly disbanded the second time in 2012, I figured it was over. While I always apply the 'never say never' mantra to my life, Russ made it clear that he was completely finished with touring. My wingman and main dude from the conception of FORBIDDEN EVIL, Russ was my mentor and the guy who bought me beer when I was 15! I couldn't imagine FORBIDDEN without him, so I had little hope of a future with FORBIDDEN. Today Russ is happily retired and living the sober life. I have nothing but love for that and him. Everyone needs to respect his wishes like we do.

"So then ….. fast forward 11 years after our last show, Bay Area vocal talent Norman Skinner walks in to help us rehearse and sing a few thrash classics for the BAY AREA INTERTHRASHIONAL set at Dynamo MetalFest 2022. WHAMMO! That's when it all happened by accident. Truly. Then it happens AGAIN when Norman sings 'Chalice Of Blood' onstage alongside WARBRINGER at the one Bay Area show of BAY AREA INTERTHRASHIONAL. Holy fuck!"

Forbidden

1

THE DEVIL WEARS PRADA — Mike Hranica (vocals),Jeremy DePoyster (guitar, clean vocals),Kyle Sipress (guitar),Jonathan Gering (keys, synths, programming, percussion) and Giuseppe Capolupo (drums) — will unleash its ninth album, "Flowers", on November 14 via Solid State Records. Today, they share the video for new single "Eyes". Watch it below.

The "Eyes" video finds the members of PRADA as puppets navigating a maze. Watch and find out where the puppet master pulling the strings leads them.

"'Eyes' is about coming to a point in life where you start to question the reality of what you once believed," states Gering. "It captures the feeling of wanting to break away from something that has only worked against you and the struggle to find a new way to move forward."

DePoyster weighs in, saying, "'Eyes' is a song about desperately yearning for answers, wondering why you keep ending up in the same place without a clear path forward. When you're caught in a wave of anxiety and the things you've been taught are of little help, you're desperate for clarity and hope."

He finishes, "Sonically, this song is a journey, contrasting between tight melodic verses and fuzzed out riffs. It's an anthem for when you need the validation that no one has the answers. We're all just doing our best."

"Flowers" marks the start of an incredibly epic cycle and phase for THE DEVIL WEARS PRADA. The global touring scheduling finds the band playing some of the biggest shows of its career. They just wrapped the "Summer Of Loud" tour, which packed amphitheaters through the summer. Additionally, the single "For You" is the band's first-ever track to chart on both the Mediabase and Billboard Active Rock charts.

"Flowers" track listing:

01. That Same Place
02. Where The Flowers Never Grow
03. Everybody Knows
04. So Low
05. For You
06. All Out
07. Ritual
08. When You're Gone
09. The Sky Behind The Rain
10. The Silence
11. Eyes
12. Cure Me
13. Wave
14. My Paradise

THE DEVIL WEARS PRADA has a slew of international tour dates on deck, including dates in Australia with BULLET FOR MY VALENTINE; headline shows in South Africa; and a trek across Europe with ICE NINE KILLS and CREEPER. The band will also appear at Warped Tour in Orlando on November 15-16. The band will embark on the Emo's Not Dead cruise in January as well.

THE DEVIL WEARS PRADA have always explored life's extremes in their music. They've never shied away from staring down darkness, dealing with depression, making sense of confusion, soothing anxiety, or grappling with faith, existence, and death. At the same time, they've mirrored life's ups and downs by alternating between crushing heaviness and heart-wrenching melodies. After over two decades of making music, their union as bandmates — but more importantly as friends — is stronger than ever. All of this time and experience ultimately empowered the group to make a statement on their ninth full-length offering, "Flowers" (Solid State). Matching bold themes with equally bold songs, they process grief, weather struggle, and not only heal together, but creatively blossom like never before.

THE DEVIL WEARS PRADA have always been there for audiences. Among a string of seminal releases, Revolver readers named "With Roots Above And Branches Below" (2009) one of the "Five Greatest Metalcore Albums", the "Zombie" EP (2010) and "Dead Throne" (2011) each debuted in the Top 10 of the Billboard 200, and 2021's "ZII" marked their sixth straight Top 5 entry on the Billboard Top Hard Rock Albums chart. They have also tallied nearly a half a billion streams — unprecedented for most acts this heavy. The group elevated to another stratosphere with "Color Decay" (2022),selling out their biggest shows worldwide and receiving some of the highest praise of its career.

During 2024, the musicians decamped to a VRBO in Rodgers, Arkansas for three weeks where they constructed the foundation for the LP, with Jonathan Gering (keys, synths, programming, percussion) again at the helm as producer. Following their time "in this heavenly corner of Arkansas," Jon, Jeremy and Mike Hranica (vocals) took a handful of trips to Los Angeles. Putting the finishing touches on recording, the guys collaborated with Tyler Smyth (I PREVAIL, FALLING IN REVERSE),Austin Coupe (LØ SPIRIT, MOODRING),Colin Brittain (LINKIN PARK, PAPA ROACH),FIT FOR A KING's Bobby Lynge, and Marshall Gallagher of TEENAGE WRIST. They also enlisted "Color Decay" collaborator Sam Guaiana as an engineer and tapped Zakk Cervini (BRING ME THE HORIZON, SPIRITBOX) for mixing and mastering.

Photo credit: Wyatt Clough

The Devil Wears Prada

Richmond, Virginia metallers LAMB OF GOD return with "Sepsis", a visceral, menacing new single out now via Epic. It marks the Grammy Award-nominated band's first new original music since 2022's critically acclaimed album "Omens".

Produced by longtime collaborator Josh Wilbur, the three-and-a-half minute track arrives alongside a grainy, lo-fi performance video that offers a moody, unfiltered look at Richmond's underbelly. Directed by Gianfranco Svagelj, the video captures the song's slow-burning tension.

"'Sepsis' is a celebration of the very underground local bands here in Richmond that we really admired when we were just forming [the pre-LAMB OF GOD band] BURN THE PRIEST," LAMB OF GOD guitarist Mark Morton said. "Bands like BREADWINNER, SLIANG LAOS and LADYFINGER — though they never got widespread attention outside of Richmond, those were the bands we listened to all the time. The song references that stuff in a way that's a direct line to where we were coming from when we were in the basement writing our earliest material together."

"Sepsis" arrives during a milestone year for LAMB OF GOD. In 2025, the band celebrated the 25th anniversary of its discography, performed at the historic "Back To The Beginning" concert and subsequently released their thunderous take on BLACK SABBATH's "Children Of The Grave", along with appearances at several festivals, including Inkcarceration and Louder Than Life, and a headlining show at Richmond's new 7500-seat outdoor venue Allianz Amphitheater during its opening season.

As the year closes, LAMB OF GOD has several performances ahead of them, including outings at Aftershock, AMMA Championship Fest, and the band's Headbangers Boat cruise (Oct. 31 to Nov. 4) — a four-day floating festival departing from Miami with a stop in Cozumel, Mexico.

LAMB OF GOD is Randy Blythe (vocals),John Campbell (bass),Mark Morton (guitar),Willie Adler (guitar) and Art Cruz (drums). Formed in 1994, the Richmond, Virginia-based band has released nine critically acclaimed albums, received five Grammy Award nominations, sold over three million albums, packed arenas around the world, and tallied over one billion streams and counting. Widely regarded as one of the most influential and innovative forces in modern heavy music LAMB OF GOD's most recent collection, "Omens", arrived in late 2022 , marking their sixth consecutive album to debut in the Top 15 of on the Billboard 200. Kerrang! noted that the album finds the band "as reliably heavy, violent, and pissed off as ever," and Consequence said the "album will break you down to nihilistic pieces."

Photo credit: Travis Shinn

Lamb of God