"Good To See You Again" byAlice Cooper is one of the greatest rock movies of all time. The concert film, which features the original band lineup in the middle of the legendary 1973 "Billion Dollar Babies Tour" is now making its Blu-ray debut: newly restored, and featuring 5.1 DTS Master audio, 1080p picture, plus a multitude of extras, including movie-length commentary by Alice himself. The film that out-grosses them all as it was originally billed is back, looking and sounding better than ever.
"Good To See You Again" features 13 Alice Cooper classics recorded live in concert:
01. Hello, Hooray
02. Billion Dollar Babies
03. Elected
04. I'm Eighteen
05. Raped And Freezin'
06. No More Mr. Nice Guy
07. My Stars
08. Unfinished Sweet
09. Sick Things
10. Dead Babies
11. I Love The Dead
12. School's Out
13. Under My Wheels
14. The Lady Is A Tramp (studio performance)
Special Features:
01. Audio Commentary by Alice Cooper
02. Play-Concert-Only Option
03. Deleted Scene and Outtakes
04. Original Theatrical Trailer and Radio Spots
05. Poster Gallery With Original Promotional Material
05. Band Biographies
06. DVD Easter Eggs
For more information, visit Amazon.com.
According to The Boston Globe, the fact that AEROSMITH and THE J. GEILS BAND didn't perform a song together at yesterday's (Saturday, August 14) concert in Boston's famed Fenway Park might have to do with a last-minute feud between the bands' frontmen Steven Tyler and Peter Wolf. An unspecified "source" tells the web site that "Tyler didn't want Wolf to use the ramp that extended into the audience and told him so the night before the show. . . The singers had a 'heated argument' in the outfield as a few dozen workers put the finishing touches on the stage Friday . . . In the end, Tyler relented, but he told Wolf to also get the OK from Joe Perry, which Wolf did." The Boston Globe adds that AEROSMITH has prohibited other acts, including Sammy Hagar, from using the ramp during opening sets.
IMV Blueline has set an October 19 release date for the "Attack In Switzerland: Live In 2002" DVD from MOTÖRHEAD.
Recorded for Swiss TV at the Open Air Gampel Festival in Wallis, Switzerland on August 16, 2002, the DVD features the following track listing:
* No Class
* Bomber
* Civil War
* Damage Case
* Love For Sale
* God Save The Queen
* Brave New World
* Metropolis
* Nothing Up Sleeve
* Dr Rock
* Ramones
* Shoot You In The Back
* Sacrifice
For more information, click here.
MusicRadar.com recently conducted an interview with IRON MAIDEN drummer Nicko McBrain. A couple of excerpts from the chat follow below.
MusicRadar.com: You've had No. 1 albums in the past in the U.K. and other countries, but it looks as though "The Final Frontier" could debut at the top spot in the U.S. What would that mean for the band?
McBrain: "It would mean that our American fans listened! [laughs] You know, [singer] Bruce [Dickinson] made it quite clear to all of our fans in America and Canada when we were on tour there during the summer that it would be great to go to No. 1, so hopefully everybody paid attention.
"Going No. 1 would be amazing, a great accolade, of course. Would it mean the same now as it might have 15 or 20 years ago? I can't say. But at the end of the day, I know we have a great album. I think it's a work of art. If it's not the No. 1 album the first week, then hopefully it will be the second or third week — once people give it a listen, you know? Obviously, it would be nice now that I'm…well, I'm not really a citizen. What am I, a 'legal alien' or something?" [laughs]
MusicRadar.com: Sounds about right.
McBrain: "People have called me that before I moved to America, so I'm used to it. Don't get me wrong — it would be great to go No. 1 in the U.S., and I hope it happens. Really, that would be amazing. If it doesn't, though, hey, it's not the end of the world."
MusicRadar.com: Musically, what were your goals on this record? There's so many unexpected moments, and many of them are prog rock in nature.
McBrain: "I would say my first and foremost goal was to finish the record without keeling over dead! [laughs] In all seriousness, though, we rehearsed seven tracks in Paris before we went to record them. Three of the other ones we had the sketches for, but we had to work them up once we got in the studio. For me, the big expectation was working on the three songs that we didn't rehearse; I wanted to get their vibe as quickly as I could and really nail them without taking a whole lot of time.
"In terms of figuring out the progressions on the album, it was very much like it was in the old days. It was us together in one room going, 'Okay, how are we going to get from this bit to that bit?' You know what I mean? It was natural, a band working as one. We were all looking at one another and communicating and feeling at home, if you like."
MusicRadar.com: What did you think when you got some of the demos, particularly the one for the song "When The Wild Wind Blows"? That song is quite an epic.
McBrain: "It sure is. That was one of the songs we did in the studio. When Steve [Harris] brought the song in, he showed it to us, gave the guitarists the chord progressions and everything. I could tell right off it was something special. Because of the kind of song it is, though, I looked at Harry [editor's note: the nickname for Steve Harris] and said, 'What do you want from the drums, busy or straight?' And he said, 'Let's have it straight. We need some real groove on this track.'
"That's all he needed to say. I told him, 'Let me have what you're playing on the bass,' and we worked that part out. Then we went for the second part, then we had the segue breakdown and it went from there. When we finished recording the song, I turned to Steven and said, 'Next to 'Hallowed Be Thy Name', I think this is the best song you've ever written.' And he went, 'Nahhh!' And I said, 'To me it is.' That's how I feel — I think it's just immense.
"The funny thing is, there wasn't a lot of preparation for that song or any of the other ones, really. It was just learn it, feel it and play it. That's what we did on this record. It was true to its form, without a lot of contrived pieces. And there's even a couple of mistakes on it, to boot, which I think is great."
Axl Rose was not to blame for Guns N' Roses late start at the Rock 'N Rev festival Friday night, according to Dan Catullo, a festival founder.
It was a technical glitch that took longer than expected to fix, he said Sunday.
The Rock 'N Rev's 30-camera video crew was busy working on its equipment after Alice In Chains left the stage, Catullo said.
As a result, Guns N' Roses did not start until about 12:50 a.m. Saturday, even though they were scheduled to play around 11:30 p.m.
The late start upset some of those at the concert who threw beer bottles and cans at the stage while waiting. By the time the band took the stage, some members of the crowd had left the Rock 'N Rev amphitheater at Monkey Rock USA near Sturgis.
Many assumed it was the fault of Axl Rose, who is known for showing up late or not at all. Catullo said that was an erroneous assumption in this case.
"I just don't like people becoming a fall guy or getting blamed for things when it's not their fault," he said. "I thought I needed to clear the air."
Catullo said Rose was ready to take the stage by 11:30 p.m.
"I feel bad. He was the most insanely professional gentleman that I ever met," said Catullo, who spent about 30 minutes with Rose after the performance. "He came and did his job exactly as contracted."
The technical breakdown came when Guns 'N Roses opted to use its own sound equipment instead of the consoles provided by the festival, which the video crew was using for communications and to direct a video for a DVD of the festival, Catullo said.
On Friday afternoon, the crew realized this would be a problem, but they couldn't correct it without affecting other bands, so they waited until after 11 p.m., when Alice In Chains left the stage, Catullo said.
No announcement, however, was ever made to the crowd explaining the delay.
Festival spokesman Randy Alexander apologized Sunday for not informing the crowd about the technical problems.
"It took longer than expected," he said.
Catullo said they believed the problem would be resolved at any moment, and as a result, it never occurred to them to inform the crowd, especially since no specific time was set for Guns 'N Roses to take the stage.
"It's not like the place had a curfew that it closed at a certain time," Catullo said
According to NME.com, GUNS N' ROSES have not cancelled any of their previously announced dates despite a Twitter message from frontman Axl Rose which suggested otherwise.
A spokesperson for the Reading and Leeds festivals has told NME.com that it had received confirmation from the band that Rose's account had been hacked and that next week's slots at the Reading and Leeds festivals are set to go ahead as planned.
GUNS N' ROSES made its first U.S. concert appearance in four years Friday night (August 13) when it headlined the fifth and final night of the Rock 'N Rev Festival at the 70th annual Sturgis Bike Rally in Sturgis, South Dakota. GUNS N' ROSES was joined on the bill that evening by original headliner ALICE IN CHAINS, REV THEORY and CHARM CITY DEVILS.
GUNS N' ROSES last toured the U.S. in 2006, and had not played any American shows since the November 2008 release of its "Chinese Democracy" album.
In a brand new interview with Greg Kot of the Chicago Tribune, MEGADETH mainman Dave Mustaine reveals that the "biggest misunderstanding" he wanted to clear up in his recently published autobiography, "Mustaine: A Heavy Metal Memoir", is all of the "disagreements with other bands," which he claims is "so old." He adds, "None of us care about it anymore. You can see what happened with the 'Big Four' reunion (the MEGADETH stadium shows in Europe this summer with the other three of the so-called 'Big Four' of 1980s thrash metal — METALLICA, SLAYER and ANTHRAX) and all of us playing together. It was like there was some kind of enjoyment having disagreements, this feud among all of us. A lot of people have disagreements. But there we were on stage playing together and hugging at the end. How can this be a feud when you have proof right there on film? It will be released on DVD — the shot heard round the world. It shows you this whole terrible thing has
been perpetuated by the press."
When pressed to admit that his relationship with those other bands has had its share of tension and competitiveness over the years, Mustaine replies, "Like Lars (Ulrich of METALLICA) says, there is the relationship we have and the relationship the press thinks we all have. And the proof is when we were all doing the jam on (DIAMOND HEAD's) 'Am I Evil?', I was listening to how loud the crowd was, and it was as loud when we hugged each other as when we played the song. It gave me chills. James (Hetfield of METALLICA) and I being able to embrace on that world platform shows people that metal is a close-knit community. We don't leave our wounded behind. Kerry (King of SLAYER) says to me, 'I don't even know what I was mad about anymore.' What's important is that the four pillars of the metal community are all in a great relationship right now. It's a shame our politicians can't get along as well. In America there is always that good-luck story and everyone
wants to see the person win in the end. I've had a little redemption watching this whole thing come around full circle."
After Kot points out there is a scene in the METALLICA documentary "Some Kind Of Monster" where Mustaine and Lars talk and Dave comes across like a guy who has never quite completely gotten over being fired from METALLICA in 1983, Mustaine says, "I think that's pretty accurate. I care about those things. I still do. I was drinking and drugging, but I never got any warning from Lars and James when they fired me. They just put me on a bus and sent me home. The movie was something they were doing, and I didn't know what it was about. I'd been through enough therapy myself, so I didn't mind being put in that situation. All I wanted was some closure and to have a new relationship with those guys. We did so much damage to the relationship through drugs and alcohol. I still wanted to be friends with him. I knew sitting down and talking with that guy was going to address part of it. I just wanted closure with these guys so we could put the past behind us. We
were kids when it all went down. But James wasn't there when Lars and I had our talk (in the movie). James said to me at the 'Big Four' concert that he wished he had been there, and I was moved by that. I thought he was a gentleman, I was very proud of him. This is all so fantastic now. I am so excited about this new relationship I have with these guys."
John Benson of Vindy.com recently conducted an interview with MEGADETH bassist David Ellefson. A couple of excerpts from the chat follow below.
On celebrating the 20th anniversary of the "Rust In Peace" album by touring and playing it in its entirety:
"We're doing this for the fans. This is their album, is what they requested, so this is their tour. As far as memories go, it's funny that that became such a fan-favorite record because it was not the most mainstream of our records, and yet it has become this thrash-metal cult classic. It doesn't surprise me because I get it. Musically, it's a ferocious album. And our fans who love the intricacy of MEGADETH and love the musical scope of what we do, I guess 'Rust in Peace' really encapsulates that, and it set forth really the best years of our career that followed."
"The song I was really looking forward to playing was 'Five Magics'. It's a really intricate track. Just as a composition, I think Beethoven would be proud of MEGADETH. In our five- and six-minute tunes, we basically have opuses. And that's what 'Rust in Peace' is full of, especially 'Five Magics'. So is the song 'Rust in Peace ... Polaris'."
On the band's camaraderie:
"Things are feeling really good. We've been at our leisure writing material and creating some things, and there's really a cool dynamic happening where lots of times it's just the four of us backstage before a show, and we're throwing some ideas at each other. There's a real camaraderie that's happening. What's interesting about that is it's exactly the way it was when we concluded the 'Rust In Peace' tour 19 years ago and then rolled into what became our biggest record, which was 'Countdown To Extinction'. This is going to be a great year for us to just really make things right, go out and lock arms, plant our flag again and stake our claim."
Long-running British metal legends RAVEN are celebrating their 35th Anniversary with a string of North American live dates this fall.
Raven have a history like few other bands, having been a minor player in a couple of metal's major turning points. Formed in 1974, the group was part of the New Wave Of British Heavy Metal. And in 1983, they toured the United States with an unknown band opening for them called METALLICA , on their first-ever tour. They've always stayed true to their thrashy, self-proclaimed "athletic rock" sound and are supporting their new album, Walk Through Fire.
Raven 35th Anniversary tour dates:
September
10 - Sonar - Baltimore, MD
11 - Gill's - Virginia Beach, VA
12 - Jaxx - Springfield, VA
16 - Wreck Room - Toronto, ON
17 - Peabodys - Cleveland, OH
18 - The Abbey Pub - Chicago, IL
19 - Blondies - Detroit, MI
October
1 - El Corazon - Seattle, WA
2 - Red Room - Vancouver, BC
3 - Peters Room - Portland, OR
22 - Trees - Dallas, TX
23 - Scout Bar - Houston, TX
24 - Scout Bar - San Antonio, TX
According to the Hürriyet Daily News, legendary hard rock singer Joe Lynn Turner (DEEP PURPLE, RAINBOW, YNGWIE MALMSTEEN) visited Mayor Mustafa Akaydin of Antalya, a city on the Mediterranean coast of southwestern Turkey, to ask for support for an international music festival he plans to organize in the city.
Akaydin agreed that the municipality should support the organization of such a festival, saying, "Famous artists coming to the city will favorably promote both Turkey and the city. We already stage events to boost the city's cultural and artistic reputation. It will make us very happy to do this."
JASON BONHAM'S LED ZEPPELIN EXPERIENCE will celebrate the life and music of his father — the legendary LED ZEPPELIN drummer John Bonham. The limited engagement of concert dates — timed to take place just after the 30th anniversary of John's passing on September 25, 1980 — will launch in North America October 8 in British Columbia. JASON BONHAM'S LED ZEPPELIN EXPERIENCE will kick off in the U.S. October 19 in Minneapolis and continue through late November, reaching major North American cities such as New York, Los Angeles, Boston, Philadelphia, Toronto, Montreal, Houston, Seattle, Vancouver and many others (see the initial dates listed below with more to be announced).
Jason Bonham — who has teamed with Annerin Productions, the heralded company behind "The Pink Floyd Experience" and "Rain, A Tribute to the Beatles" — is anxiously anticipating the show's opening night. "I can't wait," Jason enthuses. "I'm sure it will be an emotional night, especially the first time we do it in front of an audience, but it's a commemoration of Dad's life and my life with the music and the company of LED ZEPPELIN. And I'm really looking forward to doing it."
As Bonham and his band rock through LED ZEPPELIN's hallowed catalog, a state-of-the-art sound system and light show will enhance their live performance onstage. Behind them, giant screens will display futuristic art and mood-setting historical video footage and photos. The stunning atmosphere and powerful live performance will take concert-goers through a personal journey into Jason's past and put them front and center at this stunning multimedia concert experience.
On sale beginning Friday, August 20, JASON BONHAM'S LED ZEPPELIN EXPERIENCE will take place in grand theatres offering excellent sightlines, promising an epic, intimate and unforgettable night of rock n' roll.
Tickets are available online at Ticketmaster.com and all Ticketmaster outlets.
JASON BONHAM'S LED ZEPPELIN EXPERIENCE tour dates:
Oct. 08 - Dawson Creek, BC - Encana Events Center
Oct. 09 - Prince George, BC - CN Centre
Oct. 12 - Edmonton, AB - Northern Alberta Jubilee
Oct. 13 - Red Deer, AB - Emmax Centre
Oct. 14 - Calgary, AB - Southern Alberta Jubilee
Oct. 16 - Regina, SK - Brandt Centre
Oct. 17 - Winnipeg, MB - MTS Centre
Oct. 19 - Minneapolis, MN - State Theatre
Oct. 20 - Milwaukee, WI - Riverside Theatre
Oct. 21 - Merrilville, IN - Star Plaza
Oct. 23 - Montreal, QUE - Metropolis
Oct. 25 - Quebec City, QUE - Grand Theatre
Oct. 27 - Hamilton, ON - Hamilton Place-Great Hall
Oct. 28 - Kitchener, ON - Centre in the Square
Oct. 29 - Toronto, ON - Sony Centre
Oct. 30 - Rochester, NY - Auditorium Theater
Nov. 02 - Boston, MA - The Orpheum
Nov. 03 - Red Bank, NJ - Count Basie Theater
Nov. 04 - Englewood, NJ - Bergen PAC
Nov. 06 - Philadelphia, PA - Merriam Theater
Nov. 08 - New York, NY - Nokia Theatre
Nov. 13 - Jacksonville, FL - Florida Theater
Nov. 14 - Melbourne, FL - King Center
Nov. 16 - Houston, TX - Verizon Theatre
Nov. 21 - Riverside, CA - Fox PAC
Nov. 23 - Los Angeles, CA - Pantages Theater
Nov. 26 - Portland, OR - Schnitzer Concert Hall
Nov. 27 - Seattle, WA - WaMu Theater
Nov. 29 - Vancouver, BC - The Center PAC
Visit www.JBLZE.com for more details.
For the first time in its near-30-year history, SLAYER, the single most distinctive and radical thrash metal band ever, will see its ten American Recordings albums released as a limited-edition, high-end box set — "The Vinyl Conflict" (American Recordings/Sony Legacy). Ten albums on 11 discs, "The Vinyl Conflict" will feature the band's entire Def/American Recordings catalogue:
* Reign in Blood (1986)
* South of Heaven (1988)
* Seasons In The Abyss (1990)
* Live Decade of Aggression (1991)
* Divine Intervention (1994)
* Undisputed Attitude (1998)
* God Hates Us All (2001)
* Christ Illusion (2006)
* World Painted Blood (2009)
"The Vinyl Conflict" will be released on October 12, 2010.
"Most longtime SLAYER fans may not have these records at this point," said American Recordings' Dino Paredes, "or their copies are completely beat-up, so to have the complete catalogue in this first-class presentation is terrific. For the newer fans, this is their opportunity to really get into this band the way that they could have if they were born 20 years earlier."
American/Sony Legacy invested a great amount of care into making "The Vinyl Conflict", treating the albums the way they would treat a great jazz, classical, Bob Dylan or Miles Davis record, something that isn't normally done for metal records. All ten albums have been re-mastered from the original analog flat master tapes and were pressed on the highest quality, 180-gram audiophile vinyl at RTI, the most respected pressing plant in the U.S. and among the best in the world. Lacquers were cut and re-cut several times to ensure the highest sound quality. The individual vinyl discs will come in a standard, clear inner sleeve to preserve the vinyl, are then housed in high-quality litho-wrapped jackets, and then boxed in a hardcover slipcase. Additionally, reproductions of the original LP inner sleeve artwork were converted to 12X12 inserts.
"The vinyl box is a real treat for fans, especially with today's renewed and increased interest in vinyl," added Sony Legacy's Adam Farber. "It's been years and years since the SLAYER vinyl has been in print — only the two most recent albums are currently available on vinyl, the rest have been out of print for years and very hard to find. These albums sound spectacular — they sound like you've never heard them before."
"Everything about 'The Vinyl Conflict' — the look of it, the feel of it — it's very strong, very powerful, very SLAYER," added Paredes, "from the music to the dripping, bloody pentagram on the front of the box. It's perfect."
SLAYER is currently co-headlining the first leg of the "American Carnage" tour with MEGADETH that kicked off August 11 and goes through September 4. In addition, the band's three classic in-concert DVDs — "Live Intrusion", "War At The Warfield", and "Still Reigning" — will be released August 17, separately and as a limited-edition, 3-pak box set.
The Windsor Star recently conducted an interview with SLAYER drummer Dave Lombardo. A couple of excerpts from the chat follow below.
On SLAYER being as influential as ever nearly 30 years after its formation:
"It feels great to know what I'm doing out here matters and you know it is not just brushed under the carpet.
"I think a lot of our new fans went through all the bands they needed to go through to realize that these bands that are playing are real, they're not a studio production and they can perform onstage.
"I mean, you can feel the energy onstage so I think that's what makes this genre so timeless."
On how he keeps himself from growing stagnant:
"I have to keep doing something that is challenging or that makes me think. If not, I just go into cruise control and my mind starts wandering.
"Because of all the influences I have, I'm able to entertain myself and play these little different drum rolls inspired by different music for songs of ours that already exist.
"Probably 90 per cent of what I listen to is music other than metal, but I love performing it and I find that this other music influences me and helps me create a little easier; it's like fertilizer.
"After I went to Istanbul, Turkey, and hung out in the streets and shops, I went music hunting and found myself a few CDs that have great drum patterns so I've been listening to a lot of that lately."
On his plan to continue playiing aggressive music for many years to come:
"There's this band TARAF DE HAIDOUKS who play extremely fast and these guys are like 70 years old, so when they play live it's very inspiring and it makes me feel like I have another 30 years ahead of me.
"I want to continue playing, performing live, however it may be, whether it's with SLAYER or any other band I become a part of.
"I've realized within probably the last year, more so than ever, that this is where I belong, on the stage."
AVANTASIA, the project led by EDGUY frontman Tobias Sammet, will embark on a four-week tour in December 2010.
The first confirmed dates are as follows:
Nov. 30 - Switzerland - Pratteln, Z7
Dec. 01 - Switzerland - Pratteln, Z7
Dec. 03 - Germany - Lichtenfels, Stadthalle
Dec. 04 - Germany - Kaufbeuren, All Karthalle
Dec. 18 - Germany - Fulda, Esperantohalle
Dec. 19 - Germany - Essen, Grugahalle
"It's gonna be a once-in-a-lifetime affair!" said Sammet when the all-star project first set off on a world tour a few years ago. And although it seemed impossible to bring the project onto the stage after an extensive preparatory time, AVANTASIA headlined some of the biggest summer festivals in 2008. To this day, many fans recall the AVANTASIA live shows as magical, once-in-a-lifetime concert experiences.
Commented Sammet: "There has always been the desire to do it again, but, of course, there is always a risk. It requires a huge amount of time and energy; there are no figures based on experience, because I don't know anybody who has taken an all-star metal opera on the road to play indoor venues. The stage production is abnormally expensive and you must not forget the many people who are involved and who come from different parts of the world. It requires a good timing.
"At some point we sat together and checked if and how we could possibly do it once again and we soon found out that December 2010 would be the right period to do a real tour.
"I admit that four weeks [is] not really a long time frame, but it's better to do a short tour than no tour at all. And if we hadn't taken that chance, it would have never happened because we will come with a lot of musicians and vocalists and it's a nightmare to mind all our individual schedules with our main bands."
Unlike AVANTASIA's festival tour of 2008, the band's upcoming dates will be full-fledged headlining performances, with the group performing longer sets than has been the case in the past.
"It was great to play Wacken and Sweden Rock Festival, but playing a festival you only have so much time," explained Sammet. "You play ten songs and people have a party and everybody's got fun. But doing our own tour, we can really create an atmosphere, we can play a lot longer and take people on a journey through the history of AVANTASIA. We can actually take people to the world of AVANTASIA itself.
"Fans can expect a bombastic concert experience.
"Many so-called 'metal operas' have been released on albums recently, but AVANTASIA will bring it on stage and take fans around the globe with them.
"You can't compare a normal band to what we are going to do. If all your favourite singers appear on one stage at the same night to take you on a musical journey, then this isn't just great, it's über-great!"
AVANTASIA released its new epic masterpiece on April 3 as regular CDs ("The Wicked Symphony" and "Angel Of Babylon"), two separate double picture vinyls, and as a beautiful collector's edition with an AVANTASIA picture book. The deluxe box set features two CDs in two digibooks with impressive booklets, codes for online content (like bonus tracks, etc.) and the AVANTASIA book "The Wicked Trilogy", including many never-before-seen photos from the tour and from photo sessions, etc. An exclusive interview, liner notes, and a biography is also included. All the album versions were released simultaneously on April 3, so no one ise forced to buy everything piece by piece; instead everyone is able to choose a version of his/her choice right from the release date.
"The Wicked Symphony" / "Angel Of Babylon" first-week chart positions:
Switzerland: #1
Germany: #2
Czech Republic: #6
Europe: #7
Switzerland: #7
Slovenia: #7
Austria: #9
Finland: #18
Norway: #22
UK: #26
Netherlands: #27
Spain: #32
France: #74
"Dying For An Angel", the new video from AVANTASIA, can be viewed below. The clip was shot in late January at the ancient town hall in Hannover, Germany and features a special guest appearance by SCORPIONS singer Klaus Meine.
"The Wicked Symphony" and "Angel Of Babylon" are the continuation of the trilogy that began with the 2008 album "The Scarecrow".
The cover artwork for the two CDs (see below) was created by Thomas Ewerhard, who also worked on EDGUY's "Hellfire Club" and AVANTASIA's "The Scarecrow" albums.
The following guest musicians appear on the new AVANTASIA opus:
* Klaus Meine (SCORPIONS)
* Tim "Ripper" Owens (JUDAS PRIEST, YNGWIE MALMSTEEN, ICED EARTH)
* Eric Singer (KISS, ALICE COOPER)
* Michael Kiske (HELLOWEEN)
* Jorn Lande (MASTERPLAN, ARK, MILLENIUM)
* Bob Catley (MAGNUM)
* Sascha Paeth
* Felix Bohnke (EDGUY)
* Alex Holzwarth (RHAPSODY, SIEGES EVEN)
* Russell Allen (SYMPHONY X)
* Jens Johansson (STRATOVARIUS, DIO, YNGWIE MALMSTEEN)
* André Matos (ANGRA, SHAAMAN, VIPER)
* Bruce Kulick (KISS, GRAND FUNK RAILROAD)
* Cloudy Yang
* Oliver Hartmann (AT VANCE, HARTMANN)
* Jon Oliva (JON OLIVA'S PAIN, TRANS-SIBERIAN ORCHESTRA, SAVATAGE)
Regarding his decision to release the new AVANTASIA chapter in two separate CDs, Tobias said, "I have always given my very best, but this new chapter in AVANTASIA's history is too much and too ambitious to be just a regular album. I have worked on it for years now, and it has become even more than two albums!
"I knew that story would be spread out over two albums back then when we started working on it in 2006, 'cause we had written a real rock opera of over 20 songs even back then. But since then, we kept composing, and out came even bigger and better material.
"Looking at the music industry today with all the CD burning and downloading, I guess in the near future many of us traditional rock and metal bands won't be able to spend such a production budget. I am afraid I won't be able to afford so many guests and such a big production with orchestration and a choir and all that. That's why this production takes so much time; it may be the last big epic I will be able to afford, and I want it to be the biggest piece I have worked on so far."
Kiske has appeared on every AVANTASIA album so far, including the first two full-length releases, "The Metal Opera" (2001) and "The Metal Opera Pt. II" (2002).
On the topic of the new AVANTASIA album's musical direction, Sammet stated, "We've got quite many songs, and it ranges from epic ballads to metal opera. From pop to hard rock to folk to speed metal. My best friend, who co-wrote the story of 'The Metal Opera' back then, just listened to some of the tracks and he said that it will blow people away and enchant AVANTASIA fans and it will surely piss people off . . . It's just enchanting music. And these days honest and good music is kind of offending to some, that's pretty sick, isn't it? But as long as I get goose bumps hearing majestic music, I do not really care if I am fashionable or not."
For decades research has shown that listening to music alleviates anxiety and depression, enhances mood, and can increase cognitive functioning, such as spatial awareness. However, until now, research has not addressed how we listen to music. For instance, is the cognitive benefit still the same if we listen to music while performing a task, rather than before it? Further, how does our preference for a particular type of music affect performance? A new study from Applied Cognitive Psychology shows that listening to music that one likes whilst performing a serial recall task does not help performance any more than listening to music one does not enjoy.
The researchers explored the "irrelevant sound effect" by requiring participants to perform serial recall (recall a list of eight consonants in presentation order) in the presence of five sound environments: quiet, liked music (e.g., RIHANNA, LADY GAGA, STRANGLERS and ARCADE FIRE), disliked music (the track "Thrashers" by DEATH ANGEL), changing-state (a sequence of random digits such as "4, 7, 1, 6") and steady-state ("3, 3, 3"). Recall ability was approximately the same, and poorest, for the music and changing-state conditions. The most accurate recall occurred when participants performed the task in the quieter, steady-state environments. Thus listening to music, regardless of whether people liked or disliked it, impaired their concurrent performance.
Lead researcher Nick Perham explains: "The poorer performance of the music and changing-state sounds are due to the acoustical variation within those environments. This impairs the ability to recall the order of items, via rehearsal, within the presented list. Mental arithmetic also requires the ability to retain order information in the short-term via rehearsal, and may be similarly affected by their performance in the presence of changing-state, background environments."
Although music can have a very positive effect on our general mental health, music can, in the circumstances described, also have negative effects on cognitive performance. Perham remarks, "Most people listen to music at the same time as, rather than prior to performing a task. To reduce the negative effects of background music when recalling information in order one should either perform the task in quiet or only listen to music prior to performing the task."
Perham explained his reasoning for using DEATH ANGEL's song "Thrashers" as the "disliked" music in the study: "We needed a track that most participants would say they did not like. Having been a fan of metal music since my teens, I was pretty confident that a thrash metal song would do the trick as most people never seemed to like the music I liked. In choosing a thrash metal song, I needed a song that was heavy but also allowed the listener to hear many of the different components of the song — the acoustical variation between the successive sound items. We chose 'Thrashers'. Participants were only allowed to participate in the study if they disliked thrash metal as a musical genre.
"Personally, I have been a fan of DEATH ANGEL since 'The Ultra-Violence' and saw them at the Bristol Bierkeller around 1990 supporting the 'Act III' album."
This study is published in the September 2010 issue of Applied Cognitive Psychology.
Nick Perham is a lecturer in the School of Psychology at the University of Wales Institute, Cardiff. He has published and presented widely on the effects of auditory distraction on short-term memory and general task performance.
Florida metallers TRIVIUM will enter Audiohammer Studios in Sanford, Florida the third week of October with the production/mixing team of Colin Richardson (MACHINE HEAD, BULLET FOR MY VALENTINE, SLIPKNOT, FEAR FACTORY) and Martin "Ginge" Ford to begin recording their new album for an early 2011 release via Roadrunner Records.
In a July 18, 2010 interview with the WMHB 89.7 FM metal radio show "Metal Mutilation", TRIVIUM guitarist Corey Beaulieu stated about the songwriting process for the follow-up to 2008's "Shogun", "We got done [touring in support of 'Shogun'] at the end of March [2010], and we weren't planning on the [new] record coming out until February or March of next year, so we had the rest of the year to just work on it. And it's worked out really good for us —we didn't feel rushed and we were able to take the time to make sure everything is right." He added, "We did more work on this record than we've done on any other record. The stuff is sounding really awesome and we're having a lot of fun doing this."
Regarding how the addition of drummer Nick Augusto has changed TRIVIUM's sound, Beaulieu said, "I think he fits more of our writing style, 'cause we play a lot of fast, heavier stuff and his drumming is kind of really on the heavier, aggressive side, so, really, just writing the TRIVIUM songs we [normally] do it, his drumming style adds a lot of energy and intensity to the music — he adds a lot of really cool, creative stuff that makes it really interesting and brings the music to the next level. And just working with him, everything is moving pretty fast. He's like a sponge, like the rest of us — he can grasp new songs really fast. If we have a new song, we can start jamming it really quick and kind of move forward and get to the point where we can just focus on the details of the song instead of just trying to get the song down in the first place. It's really helping propel the songwriting to another level where we can move along quicker and get a
lot more work done in a shorter amount of time.
"When people actually get a chance to hear the record, I think they'll be pretty impressed with what's going on, 'cause he's doing some really cool stuff and adding a new flavor to what we do and giving it a new twist. Compared to the last couple of records, the intensity and the energy has really gone up a lot."
When asked if the new tracks are as "shred-happy" as some of TRIVIUM's recent material, Corey replied, "We've been concentrating more on [making] more to-the-point, catchier songs without going off too much — there's no seven- or eight-minute songs on this one. There's a lot of really cool riffs and a lot of really cool parts, and, obviously, there's guitar solos all over the place. It doesn't sound like 'Shogun', but it sounds like TRIVIUM. It's a got a different feel than 'Shogun' — it's a lot more in your face and heavier and faster. It kind of balances out everything — we've got four or five songs that are all screaming, we've got a couple of songs that are all singing, and huge songs that are kind of a mix — kind of 'Acendancy' [2005] kind of vocal style, [with both] screaming and singing, so there's a good variety, which makes it really interesting to listen to, because each song has its own thing going on, so they all stand out really well
and fit together, too. It's got a good balance of everything, but the energy and the intensity is just a lot more up there. I guess if you compare it to anything as far as being aggressive, it's probably more towards 'Ascendancy' than anything else."
With regards to the direction of the new TRIVIUM lyrics, Corey said, "Everything is not finished, but [guitarist/vocalist Matt Heafy is] further along in the lyrics than he has been on the last few records. I think there are six or seven songs where the lyrics are pretty much there and then there's some of the newer songs that we've put together that he's still piecing together and figuring out what the songs are. All the lyrics are really cohesive and really kind of all fit together, have the same kind of vibe. It makes the whole record one cohesive piece instead of each song being just randomly about something else."
A new TRIVIUM song, "Shattering The Skies Above", appeared on the extended play (EP) soundtrack for the highly anticipated PlayStation3 (PS3) exclusive videogame "God of War III". The EP, titled "God of War: Blood & Metal", was made available on March 2 via Roadrunner as part of the "God of War III Ultimate Edition", and featured five exclusive unreleased songs from Roadrunner artists, including KILLSWITCH ENGAGE, DREAM THEATER, OPETH and TAKING DAWN.
In a recent interview with Exclaim!, vocalist Maurizio Iacono of Canadian extreme metallers KATAKLYSM spoke up about an incident that he claims took place late last month at the two-day Heavy MTL festival in Montreal, Quebec, Canada where his band was allegedly "disrespected" by MEGADETH.
"We always looked up to MEGADETH, to us they're a cult band and legendary musicians and we've always been huge fans," Iacono said. "But there is a certain limit to where you can be a rock star. Sometimes you can overstep your boundaries and to us, it was a disrespectful thing."
He continued, "What happened is, we were backstage and a person from our camp — I don't want to start mentioning names — but somebody from our band was waiting to go backstage where the area for musicians is. The cart was passing through and the driver stopped and said, 'Do you want to hop on?' and he said, 'Yeah' and hopped on. They drove ten meters and they just stopped and all the MEGADETH people, including Dave Mustaine, just jumped off the cart and said, 'We're not going to share with everyone else.' So my guy got off and said, 'You guys can keep it, I'll walk.'"
When asked whether MEGADETH knew who KATAKLYSM was, Iacono told Exclaim! it shouldn't have mattered. "To me, even if we're KATAKLYSM and you're a fan or a person that belongs to the entourage of the backstage area and you're jumping on to get a ride to somewhere, I would never stop the guy and say, 'I'm not being on the same cart,' or 'I'm not stopping for anybody,'" he said. "That's not us, but maybe we're just different."
AMARANTHE (formerly AVALANCHE) — the new project featuring Olof Mörck (NIGHTRAGE, DRAGONLAND), Jake E (ex-DREAM EVIL, DREAMLAND), Andy Solveström (WITHIN Y, EVILDOER, CIPHER SYSTEM), Morten Lowe Sorensen (THE ARCANE ORDER, SUBMISSION) and Johan Andreassen (ex-ENGEL) — will enter Hansen Studio in Ribe, Denmark in October with producer Jacob Hansen (VOLBEAT, MERCENARY, NIGHTRAGE) to begin recording its debut album for a spring 2011 release via Spinefarm Records.
Commented guitarist Olof Mörck: "Needless to say, we are very much looking forward to getting all the tracks on tape!
"There has been quite a stir and hype around AMARANTHE lately, and it is funny to think that everything that people have heard so far are demos recorded in bedroom. It is going to be fantastic to able to show people the true potential of our music, with a killer sound!
"This whole production is going to be HUGE and spending two months with Jacob Hansen recording the album will ensure that we will have a production second to none!
"Jacob Hansen is definitely one of the top names in today's metal recording scene, and when we found out that he was available on quite short notice, we where very enthused!"
AMARANTHE vocalist Elize Ryd was selected to fill the female singer spot on KAMELOT's last European tour.
Mörck previously stated about the band: "AMARANTHE has for long been an idea between me and Jake E to break out of the mold of our past projects and create something new and fresh entirely and to give room for ideas not appropriate for the other acts and projects we are part of. The result is an onslaught of soaring melodies, heavy riffing and guttural screams from the netherworld, a result of having three singers in the band; Jake E on clean vocals, cabaret virtuoso Elize on female vocals and Andy on screams. The result is a quite distinct sound, especially combined with the music itself that draws upon influences from a varied spectrum of genres, all to create a thrilling experience for the listener. Another defining feature of AMARANTHE is the idea of a collective — everyone from superstars of the industry to just generally talented people will lend their unique skills to AMARANTHE on the coming album. This, however, won't stop AMARANTHE from being
a tour de force in live shows and tours, since the core of this metal machinery is based primarily on the regular members."
For more information, visit www.myspace.com/amaranthemetal.
KRUX — the Swedish band featuring CANDLEMASS bassist Leif Edling, ex-YNGWIE MALMSTEEN singer Mats Levén, ex-ENTOMBED drummer Peter Stjärnvind, guitarist Jörgen Sandstrom (also in THE PROJECT HATE, ex-ENTOMBED/GRAVE), OPETH/ex-ARCH ENEMY guitarist Fredrik Åkesson and OPETH keyboardist Pär Wiberg — will enter the studio this fall to record its third album for an early 2011 release.
KRUX's sophomore album, entitled "II", was released in October 2006 via GMR Music. The follow-up to the band's self-titled debut, "II" was recorded at Studioland studio in Upplands Väsby, Sweden.
"Krux" was released in 2002 via Holland's Mascot Records. A live DVD containing the band's entire performance from May 18, 2003 at Kägelbanan in Stockholm, Sweden, plus a promo video for the track "Black Room" and an interview, followed in 2003.
Dark Essence Records has set an October 4 European release date (September 13 in Norway) for "The Malefactor's Bloody Register", the sophomore album from Norwegian progressive extreme metallers VULTURE INDUSTRIES. The follow-up to 2007's "The Dystopia Journals" was recorded at Conclave & Earshot Studios by Bjørnar Nilsen, who is also the band's frontman and was mastered by Brian Gardner (ISIS, NINE INCH NAILS, DAVID BOWIE). It features a guest appearance by ENSLAVED's Herbrand Larsen on Hammond organ, as well as special guests on cello, viola and saxophone.
"The Malefactor's Bloody Register" track listing:
01. Crooks & Sinners
02. Race For The Gallows
03. The Hangman's Hatch
04. The Bolted Door
05. This Cursed Flesh
06. I Hung My Heart On Harrow Square
07. Crowning The Cycle
08. Of Branded Blood
"The Bolted Door" is available for streaming on the band's MySpace page.
"The Malefactor's Bloody Register" explores the theme of crime and punishment from the perspective of both the criminal and the hangman, and once again VULTURE INDUSTRIES has been able to persuade Helge Jordal, one of Norway's most renowned character actors, to appear on the cover of the album. Jordal had agreed to be featured in the artwork for "The Dystopia Journals" after listening to the album, and his collaboration with the band continues with "The Malefactor's Bloody Register", for which he takes on the role of the Hangman, and is photographed in brandishing a law-book and clutching a noose.
The lineup of Bergen-based VULTURE INDUSTRIES is a veritable "who's who" of black and extreme metal musicians. Aside from Nilsen himself on vocals, synths and programming, bandmembers include guitarists Øyvind Madsen (SULPHUR, ex-ENSLAVED, session guitars for DEATHCON) and Eivind Huse (SULPHUR, ex-SYRACH), Kyrre Teigen on bass and Tor Helge Gjengedal (ex-MALICE IN WONDERLAND, ex-SULPHUR, ex-TAAKE) on drums. The band is due to support TRISTANIA in Norway in late September and early October, and will hit the road to promote the album with labelmates TAAKE, HELHEIM and SULPHUR during October and November, as well as appearing at the Labyrinthic Metal Evening in Bucharest on October 16 along with Sweden's SHINING.
Reactivated late '80s/early '90s technical-thrash metallers BELIEVER have entered the studio to begin recording their new album for a tentative early 2011 release. Guitarist/vocalist Kurt Bachman writes in an online posting, "The drums are just about finished and I have many tunes in the bag for the initial rhythm guitars.
"Once again, the tunes are quite different and when I listen to them it kind of sounds like someone else wrote them which creeped me out at first.
"I really like the tunes and you will be able to tell that we stepped outside our comfort zones. Always fun to do that!
"We hope to finish this up in the next couple months and I will keep you posted on possible release dates once we discuss with Metal Blade."
BELIEVER performed live for the first time in 16 years on September 25, 2009 at Sterling Hotel in Allentown, Pennsylvania.
The band's fourth album, "Gabriel", was released in March 2009 through KILLSWITCH ENGAGE frontman Howard Jones's new imprint label Cesspool Records via Metal Blade. The CD featured guest appearances by Jones, Joe Rico (SACRIFICE), CKY/WORLD UNDER BLOOD guitarist/vocalist Deron Miller and Rocky Gray (EVANESCENCE, SOUL EMBRACED, LIVING SACRIFICE).
They've sold 30 million records and DVDs, filled the 55,000-seast Tokyo Dome a record-breaking 18 times, they pioneered "Visual-Kei," the Japanese music movement that helped spark the current world-wide Anime craze, and their leader has been referred to as "the Bono of Japan." But the one thing this GUNS-N'-ROSES-meets-QUEEN-meets-"The-Matrix" rock group has wanted to do for years but has never done, is tour America. That's about to change, as on September 25, X JAPAN will kick off a seven-city North American trek at the Wiltern Theatre in Los Angeles, with subsequent stops in Oakland, Seattle, Vancouver, Chicago, Toronto, and New York. Tickets go on sale today (August 16) and most can be purchased through Ticketmaster.com (go to Etix.com for the Chicago date) or at the venues' box office.
"We feel like a new band now, like we are going back to the beginning," said X JAPAN's leader/drummer/pianist/composer Yoshiki about the upcoming U.S. concerts, "and it's very, very exciting. We are looking forward to playing smaller venues here in the U.S., something we haven't been able to do in Japan since the very early days."
In Asia, X JAPAN plays arenas and stadiums, bringing in elaborate production including lasers, catwalks, and holograms. Comparably, the North American dates will be "back to basics," with pyrotechnics and some production, but with the band focusing primarily on the music. As Yoshiki told one reporter, "You don't see good rock shows anymore. Rock doesn't have enough drama now, rap, R&B, and dance music have taken care of that. We want to be part of bringing the drama back to rock."
While this will be X JAPAN's first U.S. tour, the band made its American concert debut on August 8, 2010 playing the main stage at Lollapalooza in Chicago in front of some 10,000 people. The Chicago Sun-Times called the band's set "a spectacular, almost operatic performance of big ballads and speed metal..." with new song "Jade" "...a rumbling guitar attack that would make METALLICA take notice." Time Out Chicago's review thanked Lollapalooza co-founder Perry Farrell for booking "the coup of the festival," and pointed out Toshi's "Steve-Perry-eat-your-heart-out-vocals," while USA Today wrote, "The metal-pop-punk was fast and furious," and described Yoshiki's drumming as "Keith-Moon-on-Red-Bull."
Clustered down front-and-center were some 1,000 staunch X JAPAN fans who had flown in from all over the world to witness this historic first. While these fans were decked out in full X JAPAN glam-Anime regalia, most in the audience were unfamiliar with the band when they first took the stage. But by the end of the 50-minute set, X JAPAN had converted them. As the Chicago Sun-Times reviewer noted, "Even the mildly curious were won over by the infectious rock drama. Fists were pumping, guys were playing air guitar, people were making the X JAPAN sign by crossing forearms in the air."
The members of X JAPAN have been writing and recording what will be their first album to be released in North America and to contain English lyrics. According to Yoshiki, about half of the album will feature some of the band's most popular songs from throughout their career, with all lyrics re-recorded in English, and the other half all brand-new songs. The album's first single will be "Jade", which was performed at Lollapalooza and will be on the North American dates' set list.
X JAPAN — Yoshiki (drums, piano), Toshi (vocals), Pata and Sugizo (guitars) and Heath (bass) — has its roots in the life-long friendship of Yoshiki and Toshi who met when they were four years old. While still in high school, they formed the band, known at the time simply as "X," and over the next 13 years, X JAPAN released five studio albums as well as six live albums, 10 compilation albums and 15 video albums, and attained iconic status in Japan. With the late-90s breakdown of Yoshiki and Toshi's friendship, combined by the sudden death of then-guitarist Hide, the band called it quits. It wasn't until 2007 that Toshi and Yoshiki reunited, that X JAPAN was reformed, and that the band put America back in its sights.
"While we are confident about coming to America," Yoshiki added, "I don't know if we are going to end up being successful or not. But what I do know is that music breaks down barriers, and it doesn't matter what country the music comes from. Good music is universal."
Dates for X JAPAN's North American concert tour debut are:
Sep. 25 - Wiltern Theatre, Los Angeles, CA
Sep. 28 - Fox Theatre, Oakland, CA
Oct. 01 - Paramount Theatre, Seattle, WA
Oct. 03 - Queen Elizabeth Theatre, Vancouver, BC Canada
Oct. 06 - Riviera, Chicago, IL
Oct. 07 - Massey Hall, Toronto, ON, Canada
Oct. 10 - Roseland Ballroom, New York, NY
Drummer Steve Flynn of reactivated seminal technical metal pioneers ATHEIST, who received criticism from some of the band's fans for how they announced the departure of bassist Tony Choy, has released the following statement to BLABBERMOUTH.NET:
"Wow, seriously folks... I'm not sure how this was taken so far out of context.
"Actually, I am. I know exactly how this got taken so far. It's PR 101. The statement needed to be more simple, devoid of emotion, and to the point. It was a poor attempt and it was too long. However, there is a LOT of truth in that original press statement and there is a WHOLE LOT that people took the wrong way. Period. It's really quite simple.
"The whole point of the statement was that ATHEIST became what ATHEIST eventually became a very, very long time before Tony Choy played in the band... It's fact, it is most certainly not opinion...It's VERY very simple. Tony knows this and will agree without hesitation.
"Tony called me and said that he didn't want to continue doing this sort of music. In fact, he said it on multiple occasions previously. Simple. The problem was when he said it the last time and decided to pull the plug it was four weeks before we went to studio. THAT CLEARLY SUCKED!! We were pissed . . . We then tried to explain that his absence has, in no way, any significant impact on the sound, writing, musicianship, that made ATHEIST whatever it is to this day and/or the new record — 'Jupiter'.
"The truth is (and nobody will or can argue the simple point) from day 1 it was Kelly [Shaefer, vocals] and me who were primarily responsible for writing, arranging, and so forth... just as it is today — with [guitarists Chris] Baker and J.T. [Jonathan Thompson] in 2010 contributing significantly.
"The 'Unquestionable Presence' [1991] lineup (the guys that wrote the music) did not include Tony. It's simple. Tony stepped in and played on the album. He played what was already written. TONY HIMSELF would NOT disagree with that.
"We will release a joint letter soon so everybody gets it.
"That's it! That's all we tried to say.... QUITE poorly obviously!!!
"Again, our apologies.
"The 'legend' of ATHEIST and who was part of the original lineup has become quite distorted over the past 20 years. Again, read the first press release.
"While we're friends, we love Tony, we may still tour together (if Tony wants to still do this sort of music) and on and on... he was not part of what made the sound that is to this day recognized as ATHEIST. Tony (not a judgment in any way) simply played what was already written on 'Unquestionable Presence'. Now, he was a contributor on 'Elements' [1993], to be sure. Kelly will tell you he was a significant contributor. But, scattered individual opinions aside, that album is NOT considered by most people as a quintessential 'ATHEIST' record....where 'Piece Of Time', 'Unquestionable Presence' are....
"Does that make sense to everybody?
"I wasn't part of 'Elements'. Tony was. Tony wasn't a part of 'Unquestionable Presence' or 'Piece Of Time'. I was.
"Does that make sense?
"The foundational lineup did not include Tony, and it was that foundational lineup that is responsible for whatever you think of ATHEIST in 2010.
"Tony and I talked about this subject last week at length. No harm...no foul....It's simple.
"The press release was poorly done. Again, while it communicated much truth, it was written with and taken with the wrong tone, and that we did NOT intend. We simply wanted the truth to be out there. Though I will say that in many folks' defense, I can see how it was interpreted as it was.
"We're not professional PR folks. We're just trying to exist, work, and play cause we love the music!
"All's well. Tony's well, we're well. I'm sure Tony's new endeavors will be great... we'll probably be touring together (did everybody miss that on the last release?), we're still friends. I'm going to Miami to visit in a couple weeks to hang out with him.
"So, again, apologies for the drama. But, please, everybody... chill.
"If anybody would like to discuss, we'll be glad to have a conference call, video interview, whatever.
"Again, it's just music. There's been a LOT of heated debate here. It's all good."
Cleveland, Ohio metallers CHIMAIRA have released the following statement:
"Due to an acute illness, we must cancel our upcoming U.K. tour. The band was really looking forward to the shows especially coming off a successful run in the U.S. as part of the Rockstar Energy Mayhem Festival. Alas, health comes first, as it should for us all. Sorry to those who planned on attending, but as the Governor of California once said, 'We'll be back.' or something like that."
Affected dates:
Sep. 30 - Bristol, UK - Academy 2
Oct. 02 - Belfast, Ireland - Stiff Kitten
Oct. 03 - Dublin, Ireland - Academy 2
Oct. 05 - Colchester, UK - Arts Centre
Oct. 06 - Norwich, UK - Waterfront
Oct. 07 - Portsmouth, UK - Wedgewood Rooms
Oct. 08 - Stoke, UK - Sugar Mill
Oct. 09 - Leeds, UK - Cockpit
Oct. 10 - Manchester, UK - Academy 3
Oct. 12 - Aberdeen, UK - Warehouse
Oct. 13 - Glasgow, UK - King Tuts
Oct. 14 - Liverpool, UK - Academy 2
Oct. 15 - London, UK - Borderline
Oct. 16 - London, UK - Borderline
Oct. 17 - Oxford, UK - Academy 2
"Coming Alive", the new CD/DVD box set from CHIMAIRA, was released on July 20 via Ferret Music. The set includes a four-part documentary filmed over the course of a year and a half while the entire package includes over seven hours of exclusive content. The DVD, filmed entirely in HD, showcases CHIMAIRA in the studio while recording the "The Infection" album, and chronicles the band's recent, worldwide touring season.
Not only does the DVD set include this amazing documentary piece, another section, "Chimaira Xmas: Live Concert Film", celebrates the 10th annual CHIMAIRA Christmas show in Cleveland, which took place on December 30, 2009. 13 HD cameras capture CHIMAIRA releasing their fury for their hometown crowd on a dark and snowy night in December. Bonus features on the DVD include a 45-minute "Resurrection: Making Of" documentary, a 40-minute home-video footage documentary of never-before-seen moments, and a live CD featuring 17 tracks recorded at CHIMAIRA's December 30 Christmas show.
CHIMAIRA's latest album, "The Infection", sold 15,000 copies in the United States in its first week of release to debut at position No. 30 on The Billboard 200 chart.
Norwegian black metallers IMMORTAL will headline the 2011 edition of the Bloodstock Open Air festival which is expected to take place next August at Catton Hall in Derbyshire, United Kingdom. More information will be made available soon.
The Bloodstock Open Air heavy metal festival was established in 2005 to bring a wider choice of heavy metal bands to the U.K. and provide a venue for the best established and unsigned metal bands to perform in front of a large an enthusiastic audience of true metalheads.
Bloodstock Open Air features three days of diverse international heavy metal bands across three stages, a large selection of merchandise stalls, metal karaoke, campsite and a wide selection of food, bars and other refreshments.
Polish metallers COMA will release their new album, "Excess", on October 11 via Mystic Production.
According to a press release, "Excess" was recorded in the spring of 2010 and will feature the following 12 songs:
01. Excess
02. Transfusion
03. Poisonous Plants
04. Confusion
05. T.B.T.R.
06. Struggle
07. Afternoons In The Colour Of Lemon
08. Witnesses Of The Decline Of The Eternal Boys Land
09. Silence And Fire
10. Eckhart
Bonus tracks:
11. F.T.P.
12. F.T.M.O.
A video for the song "F.T.M.O." is currently in the works.
COMA is described in a press release as "the most popular and most impressive Polish metal band of XXI century after dominating the official charts in their home country (album 'Live' released as double CD, double DVD and Blu-ray had debuted this spring at position No. 3, leaving behind new releases of SCORPIONS, MADONNA and GOLDFRAPP, and went platinum just three days after release date)."
COMA's last album was released in 2008 and was certified double platinum in Poland for sales in excess of 50,000 copies.
Finnish melodic death metallers INSOMNIUM have inked a worldwide deal with Century Media Records. The band will enter the studio before the end of the year to begin recording its new album for a 2011 release.
Commented the group in a statement: "Throughout the spring and summer we negotiated with several attractive labels, but in the end it was clear that Century Media would be our home for the years to come. Their enthusiasm, professionalism and genuine love for music made an instant impact on us. We are convinced that this alliance will lead to even greater achievements in the future and also avails us to tour outside Europe more often. And, naturally, it is a great honor for us to stand in the same team with the likes of DARK TRANQUILLITY, ARCH ENEMY, PARADISE LOST, THE HAUNTED, FINNTROLL and TURISAS. A new exciting chapter in the story of INSOMNIUM has begun!"
Added Jens Prueter, Head Of A&R at Century Media Records in Europe: "It's great to welcome a band that has developed over the past year to one of the most exciting bands in the metal scene. I always liked their unique mix of Finnish melancholy with melodic death metal and even more so they always blew my mind seeing them live. You can feel that this is a band of brothers who haven't changed their lineup since their debut album in 2002. In case of doubt, go and see them on their tour with DARK TRANQUILLITY this fall — you won't be disappointed!"
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