AC/DC's classic 1980 LP "Back In Black" has secured the No. 2 spot in "The 100 Best Australian Albums", a book which names the best Australian albums of the last 50 years. It places each album in order (from 1 - 100) and discuses why each album deserves its place. It tells the story behind the making of the album, where the album fits in the artist's career and the album's impact on the local and world stage etc. The entries will feature new interviews with the artists and the producers/managers involved in the recording and the release of the album.
Says co-author John O'Donnell: "It wouldn't be a good list if it didn't polarize people and we hope that this list will. We also hope that it will get people sitting around comparing their favorites and discovering or re-discovering these great albums and others. With 70 years of loving and writing about Australian music between us, we shamelessly believe we've earned the right to write this book. And we think we've got it right. Let the debate begin."
For more information on the "The 100 Best Australian Albums" book, go to this location.
On July 25, 1980, AC/DC released "Back In Black" in the U.S., followed by the album's U.K. release on July 31. It was the band's first album without lead singer Bon Scott, who had died a few months earlier after passing out and choking on his own vomit following a long night of drinking.
The group quickly decided to press on and hired Brian Johnson from the band GEORDIE to take over on vocals, and they headed to the Bahamas for about six weeks to do the album. AC/DC had made some serious headway in America before Scott's death, but no one knew how "Back In Black" would be received. The album took off, and eventually sold over 21 million copies in the U.S.
Johnson told The Pulse of Radio that he didn't have a clue how successful "Back In Black" would turn out to be. "I'd just melted me brain in there, and I didn't know if it was good or bad," he said. "That was the first time I'd been in the Bahamas, anyway, or near America, you know, and you (have to) remember, I was just fascinated by the whole culture and all, and I had no idea what the hell I was doing! And (laughs) lucky, really — I was a bit lucky, I think."
"Back In Black" included the singles "You Shook Me All Night Long", which peaked at No. 35 on the Billboard Hot 100, and "Back In Black", which peaked at No. 37.
Despite its massive success, it never got higher than No. 4 on the album charts. The band's next album, "For Those About To Rock", reached No. 1.
"Back In Black" is tied for fifth place with BILLY JOEL's "Greatest Hits Vols I & II" on the list of the biggest selling albums in the U.S.
To celebrate the album's 30th anniversary, AC/DC invites you to revisit the story of "Back In Black", complete with videos, photos, quotes from the band, a timeline and a whole lot more. Check it out at this location.
The album was produced by Robert "Mutt" Lange, who went on to produce DEF LEPPARD, FOREIGNER, THE CARS, and BRYAN ADAMS. He married SHANIA TWAIN in 1993 and has produced all her albums since then. The couple has since divorced.
DUFF MCKAGAN'S LOADED — the band led by VELVET REVOLVER/ex-GUNS N' ROSES bassist Duff McKagan — has inked a deal with Eagle Rock Entertainment for the release of its next album, which was recently recorded at a Seattle-area studio with veteran rock producer Terry Date (SOUNDGARDEN, PANTERA, DEFTONES). Tentatively due in March, the CD will include the track "We Win", which is being used by ESPN and Major League Baseball for their coverage of the American League Championship Series, National League Championship Series and World Series games.
In a recent installment of his column, which appears on Reverb at SeattleWeekly.com, McKagan wrote about working with Date, "For those of you who follow the band, you will also know that having Terry produce this new record is a departure from Martin Feveyear, the producer of the first two LOADED records. Martin is not only our producer, but one of my dearest friends, and I can probably speak for the other fellas in the band when I state that this was a very tough decision for us. Martin totally understood and told us to make a great record."
DUFF MCKAGAN'S LOADED recently parted ways with Century Media Records after releasing one EP (2008's "Wasted Heart") and one full-length album (2009's "Sick") through the label.
Drummer Isaac Carpenter (LOUDERMILK, GOSLING, OURS, THE EXIES) joined DUFF MCKAGAN'S LOADED as the replacement for Geoff Reading, who left the band last year.
"Sick" sold around 1,400 copies in the United States in its first week of release. The CD landed at position No. 43 on the Top New Artist Albums (Heatseekers) chart, which lists the best-selling albums by new and developing artists, defined as those who have never appeared in the Top 100 of The Billboard 200.
Vocalist Stephen Pearcy of California rockers RATT was interviewed earlier this week by Spike of the Philadelphia, Pennsylvania radio station 94 WYSP.
On RATT's tour in support of the "Infestation" album:
Pearcy: "We wanted to go out a little bit longer — I did — but there's some things that need to be re-evaluated and taken care of so we can, you know, take care of some business."
On whether personal differences between the bandmembers were an obstacle in getting RATT back together:
Pearcy: "Well, there's so much unfinished business. When I left the band, I left the band because things weren't in place. And RATT will never be the same because we don't have Robbin [Crosby, guitar] and we don't have Juan [Croucier, bass]. All we can do is give you the best of what we've got. I can't speak for Warren [DeMartini, guitar] or Bobby [Blotzer, drums], but when you have somebody... when you have your drummer constantly and deliberately on his own agenda and pretty much not doing things for the band... [Bobby] was out there doing this book thing [promoting his recently released book, 'Tales Of A Ratt'] and making that a priority to where he was alienating his audience. I mean, it was kind of like going against the grain. And me, I don't have any time for that."
On the band's current status and future plans:
Pearcy: "I've been there and done it. Now I'm just trying to enjoy what I do and get on with it. And if something's not right, I have the option — I always have the option — to step to the side and do what I need to do for my brand and my business and Top Fuel Records and my racing and my own solo career. And that's what I've done. We finished a great show in Japan — this huge gig [at the Loud Park festival] with HALFORD and HELLYEAH and a bunch of other bands — and that was great. So I think we're gonna be on a hiatus for awhile and everybody'll do their own thing and we'll take it from there."
On the timing of the release of Bobby Blotzer's "Tales Of A Ratt" book:
Pearcy: "Like I say, there's always commotion in this ocean — the RATT ocean, unfortunately — but you make your priority and deliberately plan it to take advantage of what we're doing as a group, it's kind of defeating the purpose. That's one thing that rubbed everybody the wrong way. And I've gotta say, it's not that I care, or I'm telling people to rush out and grab this thing (the book), but there's a lot of things that aren't really truthful in there, and I think he was — without spending more time on this whole subject — you don't rush something out there and just talk the talk without crossing the Ts and dotting the Is and making sure it's truthful. Anybody can say something not truthful and it will get interest, but is it fact? And a lot of it wasn't fact and had to do with us as bandmates and in this band RATT. If somebody wants to talk about their personal [stuff], that's their business, but leave everybody out. Because RATT — Robbin,
Warren, myself and even Juan — we never really did care to put our lives out there, we only wanted to put our music out there. If somebody went down that was, in whatever way, matter or form it went down, it was nobody's business. We just do what we do."
"I've gotta tell you, even in the heyday of RATT, I don't remember a good two or three years. I mean, I was actually — and still am — preparing a book myself, and lo and behold, my book has been titled 'Ratt Tales' for some time, so I don't think Bob's too original calling his 'Tales Of A Ratt'. But I'm in no rush to get it out there, and it's not gonna be about... It's not gonna be your standard rock book. There's more interesting and important subjects to get to besides, 'Hey, I did that and did this and did them and did that,' you know. [laughs]"
Kenneth Lee of College Gentleman recently conducted an interview with MEGADETH mainman Dave Mustaine. A couple of excerpts from the chat follow below.
College Gentleman: Why do you think it is, in 2010, music from a genre that was big in the mid-1980s is still bringing in younger and younger fans? What is it about metal and MEGADETH that continues to fire up young males everywhere?
Dave: Well, the music is… it's melodic, it's aggressive, it's fast, it's slow. Sometimes there's solos that blow you away and sometime's there's solos that make you want to jab a fork in your eye. And I think that's the beauty of music. There are fans of ours down in South America that really like the classical influences of MEGADETH, and then we can go over to Europe and there are people who appreciate the Latin and French influences of MEGADETH. You go to some of these other territories and people really love the punk influence in the music. I am a huge fan of punk rock and I used to be one when I was young and some people might still think I am to this day but I think it's kinda hard to be "punk rock" when you're driving a Mercedes Benz, ya know? [laughs]
College Gentleman: Your book "Mustaine: A Heavy Metal Memoir" is something I think a lot of kids my age could benefit from because you have been through hell and back in your career and in your personal life. What can younger people learn from this book…other than not to do speedballs?
Dave: [laughs] Well it's really about following your heart and your dreams. When I set out to do this music thing, I didn't have much to rely on except for a single mother, myself, and a dream. And the dream wasn't so much to be a guitar player to begin with, I wanted to play baseball. I loved it. I don't know how it happened exactly, but it did. And then I got into the drugs and drinking and there was no one who could scare me straight. And that's not what this is either, it's not one of those scared straight things where a guy pops his eye out and shows it to you and says, "Ahhhm, keepin' mah eye on you, boah!" It's about following your dreams.
College Gentleman: You've gotten back together with your original running partner in MEGADETH, David Ellefson, you've reunited with the other three bands who had more influence on American metal than almost any other bands, and you we're number one on the New York Times bestseller list with "Mustaine: A Heavy Metal Memoir". Simply put, what's left?
Dave: A movie… I wouldn't want it to be a documentary or anything like that, but I'd love to do a movie. It would have to be after I'm all done with MEGADETH because once you cross over into the mainstream, there is no way little old MEGADETH would be able to compete with that kind of monster. But I'd want to do it when the time was perfect. That's why we decided to do "Mustaine: A Heavy Metal Memoir" when we did. I wanted the timing to be perfect. If I had done it a few other times when I was thinking about doing it, it wouldn't have had a happy ending and I really wanted the book to have a happy ending. The cool part is if I had waited a few months later I could have ended the book on tour over in Europe and that would have been a great ending as well.
Crypt Magazine recently conducted an interview with MEGADETH drummer Shawn Drover. A couple of excerpts from the chat follow below.
Crypt Magazine: Do you have plans for the next record yet?
Drover: Yeah, we're certainly talking about it. Right now we're in tour mode, but we're starting to discuss our game plan for next year, and I envision next year we'll be recording a new record. So there's no end in sight as far as we're concerned. We're just going to keep rolling, and things are going really well for us right now, and we're just seizing every opportunity that we can.
Crypt Magazine: Right, now the "Big Four" shows you did (with METALLICA, SLAYER and ANTHRAX)… seems to me that'd be a gigantic-selling thing, so why has it just been seven shows in Europe so far?
Drover: Well, it's a good question. I mean, we can theorize about why and all that stuff… my theory is, maybe it was just to test the waters, see how everything went, see if it was going to be as successful as everyone hoped it would be. And, of course, it was. And we filmed a DVD which will be out November 2, "The Big Four" DVD. And once we did that in Europe, now everyone around the world's screaming for it. So hopefully we'll be able to do it next year, or whenever that's gonna be. But right now, we really don't know, y'know, there's talk, you hear things, people say things, but until it actually presents itself… We're all really hopeful that it will. We'll see what happens with it.
Crypt Magazine: I understand you brought out (MEGADETH mascot) Vic Rattlehead onstage for a couple shows. Is he going to be coming back more often?
Drover: We started doing that halfway through the last tour leg we did with SLAYER and TESTAMENT. We started doing it, and we've been doing it every night since. It went over so well, we incorporated it into the show. Yeah, it's a cool thing, it went over really well with the fans, so we don't see any reason not to continue it.
Crypt Magazine: Yeah, 'cause I always thought that MEGADETH should do the same thing with Vic that IRON MAIDEN does with Eddie. Now, I just discovered that you and I were born in the same year, so your influences as a drummer, would they be THIN LIZZY, BLACK SABBATH, bands like that?
Drover: Well, those two, certainly, yeah. Y'know, growing up in the '70s, I was exposed to a lot of different types of music, the rock stuff, DEEP PURPLE, RUSH, VAN HALEN, THIN LIZZY, all that stuff. But at the same time I was listening to a lot of jazz stuff. A lot of Al Dimeola, "Return To Forever", that stuff. There's so many great drummers in the jazz field. I got absorbed in all that stuff, so it was cool. And when I was growing up, it wasn't weird to listen to different types of music. Even on radio, you'd hear a DEEP PURPLE song, and then a FLEETWOOD MAC song, and no one would blink an eye. Now, I don't know if they even do that on rock radio now…but I was exposed to a lot of different styles of music. But certainly Neil (Peart) from RUSH was one of my main influences, certainly to this day.
Crypt Magazine: Is "Head Crusher" your favorite song to play? 'Cause you co-wrote that, I understand.
Drover: Yeah, I did co-write that song. Certainly, I love playing it, it's a fun song to play, but I like playing all the songs, to be honest with you. Like I said before, it's a challenging set to play, and you really gotta focus on what you're doing, but that's part of the fun, and I enjoy doing that. But yeah, "Head Crusher" is one of my favorites and I like playing it.
Artisan News Service spoke with ANTHRAX guitarist Scott Ian last Thursday (October 21) prior to the band's performance at the Gibson Amphitheater in Universal City, California as part of the Jägermeister Music Tour with SLAYER and MEGADETH. You can now watch the chat below.
When asked about how ANTHRAX's latest reunion with singer Joey Belladonna came about, Scott said, "When we first got called about [doing] the 'Big Four' [shows in Europe, featuring METALLICA, ANTHRAX, SLAYER and MEGADETH], that's what got the wheels spinning about asking Joey to come back in the band, because it just seemed like... that was the band, that was the band of the time — the Joey Belladonna ANTHRAX is the band that I think of when I think of the 'Big Four'; I think of the 'Among The Living' record, I think of '86-'87, of that time period. So it just made sense. And we met up with Joey in New York and we had — I can't even call it a meeting — we got together and we drank some coffee. 'What do you think? Do you wanna do this?' 'Yeah' And we were, like, 'Let's go!' And, like, full speed ahead. Jumped right into those 'Big Four' shows and then from that to this, and all the while, in between and during, been working on the material. And
we're at a really good place where we're almost ready to go. We've got... Eight things are recorded [from the unreleased 'Worship Music' sessions with previous singer Dan Nelson]; we've only gotta go in and re-record, like, two or three songs, and then, of course, Joey's gonna sing on everything. And we hope to have a record done by springtime and out sometime in 2011. We've been playing a new song called 'Fight 'Em 'Til You Can't' already live on this tour a bunch, and it just feels great."
Regarding Belladonna's vocal performance on the current tour, Ian said, "Joey's singing now better on this tour, I would say... He sounds like he did when he joined this band, on the 'Spreading The Disease' record; he sounds like a kid singing. I mean, there's not many dudes that could sing in the register that he's singing. At the age we are — not to give anything away here — but none of us are 21 years old anymore. And he's hitting some notes, man, that I'm, like, 'Holy cow! How does he do this?' It blows me away every night."
ANTHRAX will release the "Live At The Sonisphere" 10-inch single — a picture disc featuring the tracks "Medusa" and "Only" from the "The Big Four: Live From Sofia, Bulgaria" DVD and Blu-ray — on November 26 via Metal Club, a group of record stores throughout the U.S. and Canada that work to connect the vibrant metal community with their local record store. Fans will be able to visit their local Metal Club store for special metal promotional pieces, exciting in-store events, and a series of exclusive Metal Club releases.
Charlie Benante of ANTHRAX had the following to say about independent record stores, "Indie stores are our only hope! People should cherish these wonderful treasures. Go, get lost in an indie record store, you may discover a band or record that could blow your mind."
Visit www.mymetalclub.com for store locations, news and information on other Metal Club releases.
Legendary actor Christopher Lee, who has appeared in such cinematic milestones as "Lord Of The Rings", "Star Wars", "The Man with the Golden Gun" and "Dracula", will make a guest appearance on the re-recorded version of MANOWAR's classic 1982 debut album, "Battle Hymns", which is scheduled for a 2011 release.
Commented the band: "He has played key parts in some of the biggest, most legendary movie franchises of all times. He has played kings, wizards, evil forces and shining knights. He is worshipped by movie and theatre fans all over the world. He speaks multiple languages fluently and is an accomplished singer of opera and metal as well. He has been knighted by the Queen of England and honored with numerous awards. And now, he is joining forces with The Kings Of Metal to rewrite heavy metal history: The legendary Sir Christopher Lee will be the narrating voice on 'Dark Avenger' on 'Battle Hymns 2011'!
"Sir Christopher Lee is a brother of true metal. More details on 'Battle Hymns 2011' coming soon!"
In a recent video message MANOWAR bassist Joey DeMaio explained the band's decision to re-record "Battle Hymns":
"We've had a couple of people ask why re-record a record like 'Battle Hymns' when it's perfect... I didn't say it's perfect, but other people said it's perfect, and we thank you for that. We're not trying to make it better, because it is what it is, but there's a lot of technology now that we didn't have when we made the record and we're gonna take advantage of it to make it as loud as we possibly can. So it won't be better; it'll just be different. And the songs themselves deserve to be recorded again because they're great songs and the fans have actually requested a lot of this to happen. And also, Donnie Hamzik, our original drummer, is back in the band, and he wanted to have another go at it. We're all together and we're gonna have a fucking great time."
Video footage of DeMaio talking about the decision to re-record "Battle Hymns" and laying down bass tracks in the studio can be viewed below.
MANOWAR's new album, "Hammer Of The Gods", which is the first installment of "The Asgard Saga", the band's unique multimedia fantasy adventure with best-selling author Wolfgang Hohlbein, is due next year.
MANOWAR's latest DVD in the "Hell On Earth" series was released on November 27, 2009. "Hell On Earth V" covers MANOWAR's recent world tours, including Germany, Norway, Spain, Finland, Russia, Romania, Turkey, USA and Canada. It features live performances of old and new classics such as "Gloves Of Metal", "The Crown And The Ring", "Hand Of Doom", "Hymn Of The Immortal Warrior", "Father", "God Or Man" and many others.
The Mayor of Sofia, Yordanka Fandakova, met with MANOWAR bassist Joey DeMaio in a private session to discuss the great Bulgarian fans and their metal scene.
Joey signed the city's Book of Honor with the following text: "To the beautiful city of Sofia and to the most beautiful mayor I have ever met and in the world"
Joey, who is a great fan of Bulgaria, had been in Sofia for the last several days and wanted to get acquainted with the Mayor of the city. "I'm a real fan and this meeting with you makes me really excited," said Fandakova during her conversation with the bassist in the City Hall. She said that it was important for all cultural happenings in the capital to attract not only visitors from Bulgaria but from other countries as well. "The Bulgarian fans had to travel abroad in previous years. It will be nice if this changes," said Fandakova. The Mayor supported Joey's idea to honor young Bulgarian fan and a friend of the band, Joro Panaiotov, who recently passed away. "I like your country and the people so much, it's a rock country," said Joey. "MANOWAR have the greatest fans here," he added. "We are very excited because we can get involved in the cultural activities of Bulgaria," continued the bassist. He promised to take part in future rock festivals in
Sofia.
Fandakova gave DeMaio a plaque, a disc containing Bulgarian folk songs and an album about the old city of Sofia with pictures by Ober Bauer. While in Sofia, Joey also visited the legendary Nu Boyana film studios where the new film "Conan" was recently completed and also where "The Expendables", starring Sylvester Stallone, was filmed.
TRIUMPH is one of Canada's greatest hard rock bands. With 10 classic albums released between 1976 and 1987, they have left an indelible mark on the history of hard rock, melodic rock and are nowadays considered among the forefathers of progressive metal.
Epitomizing the essence of the power-trio sound, Rik Emmett (guitar and vocals), Mike Levine (bass and keyboards) and Gil Moore (drums and vocals) are regarded as virtuoso musicians in their own right and great entertainers thanks to the TRIUMPH concert spectacle that was second to none.
Frontiers has announced that the official reissues of TRIUMPH's 10 classic albums, in digipak version and with the original tracklistings, will be made available on December 3.
* In The Beginning (1976)
* Rock and Roll Machine (1977)
* Just a Game (1979)
* Progressions of Power (1980)
* Allied Forces (1981)
* Never Surrender (1983)
* Thunder Seven (1984)
* Stages (Live) (1985)
* The Sport of Kings (1986)
* Surveillance (1987)
All CDs have been remastered and feature an extensive booklet including lyrics. In addition, Frontiers will issue a very limited collector's edition box set entitled "Diamond Collection", which will include all the 10 albums in vinyl replica, and will feature the artwork from the original vinyl edition of the albums.
Swedish metallers ASTRAL DOORS have been confirmed for next year's edition of Headbangers Open Air festival, set to take place July 28-30, 2011 in Brande-Hörnerkirchen, Germany.
The festival billing is shaping up as follows:
ASTRAL DOORS
BËEHLER
CRYSTAL VIPER
EVIL ONE
JAGUAR
MELIAH RAGE
METAL INQUISITOR
POWERMAD
SKULL FIST
SLOUGH FEG
SPARTAN WARRIOR
STORMWARRIOR (with Kai Hansen)
STRIKER
SYRON VANES
TORCH
VULCAIN
WHITE WIZZARD
Drummer Vinny Appice (HEAVEN & HELL, BLACK SABBATH, DIO) will appear at the Scandinavian Drum Day on October 30 in in Stockholm, Sweden.
For more information, see the poster below.
Appice told "Metal Shop"'s Ralph Cartel in a brand new interview that he has launched a brand new project, tentatively dubbed KILL DEVIL HILL, which includes contributions from former PANTERA and current DOWN bassist Rex Brown.
"I've been working with a new band," Vinny said. "Right now it's called KILL DEVIL HILL. It's a cool thing. This thing just kicks ass. Unknown singer... His name is Dewey Bragg. And Mark Zavon on guitar. And Rex Brown from PANTERA has played on some of the tracks. He's involved in it, too. And it just kills. So this will be out next year. We just hooked up management."
KILL DEVIL HILL is:
* Dewey Bragg - Vocals
* Mark Zavon (RATT, W.A.S.P., 40 CYCLE HUM) - Guitar
* Rex Brown (DOWN, PANTERA) - Bass
* Vinny Appice (HEAVEN & HELL, BLACK SABBATH, DIO) - Drums
As previously reported, Appice has joined ARMS OF THE SUN — the project featuring Rex Brown on bass, Lance Harvill on vocals and guitar, and Ben Bunker (GRYN) on guitar.
ARMS OF THE SUN recently completed work on thirteen tracks that were produced and mixed by Terry Date (DEFTONES, PANTERA, SOUNDGARDEN). The material is set for release sometime next year through Extreme Music.
The surviving HEAVEN & HELL members Tony Iommi, Geezer Butler and Vinny Appice played a very special tribute to their fallen bandmate, Ronnie James Dio, on July 24 at the High Voltage festival at Victoria Park in London, England. The musicians were joined by legendary former DEEP PURPLE and BLACK SABBATH man Glenn Hughes and Norwegian vocalist Jorn Lande, who sings for power metallers MASTERPLAN and recently released his own tribute to Ronnie.
Artisan News Service spoke with SLAYER guitarist Kerry King last week about his appearance at Dimebash 2010 — in honor of the late, great "Dimebag" Darrell Abbott (PANTERA, DAMAGEPLAN) — on October 29 at the world-famous Key Club on the Sunset Strip in West Hollywood, California. Watch the chat below.
"Rita's [Haney, Dimebag's longtime girlfriend] busting my balls to do it, and I told her I would if she got me a real singer," Kerry said. "'Cause you never know who's gonna show up. So she goes, 'Phil Anselmo [PANTERA, DOWN], Chuck Billy [TESTAMENT], Robb Flynn [MACHINE HEAD]... Are those good enough?' And I'm, like, 'Fuck, I'll do it with any one of those guys.' But I'm gonna see her tonight. I haven't committed, but I guess she committed me. [Laughs] Oh, Dave's [Lombardo, SLAYER drummer] doing it, for sure. But I'm pretty sure I'll do it."
Kerry told Artisan News Service that he had a close friendship with Dimebag that stretched all the way back to before PANTERA's "Cowboys From Hell" album came out.
"I was pretty close with Dime," King said. "A lot of people say they were, but I think I was as close as anybody in the [music business] except people in his band. I've got a lot of history with PANTERA. Before 'Cowboys' came out, I went out there and played on stage in Dallas with them. We'd do PANTERA songs, SLAYER songs and PRIEST songs — all the way through to where every time they came through in the latter part of their career, if I was in town I'd go on stage and play 'Fucking Hostile' with them. And then we did the last PANTERA tour, and I'm really glad that happened. I wanted to tour with them forever; I didn't want it to be their last tour, but it worked out that way and when we were on tour on that one, every night I went out and did 'Fucking Hostile' and I did 'Goddamn Electric', 'cause I did a lead on that album."
All proceeds from Dimebash 2010 — including ticket sales, raffles, merchandise and drink specials — will benefit the Ronnie James Dio Stand Up and Shout Cancer Fund. In addition to these charitable items, a DVD of the event will be shot and recorded for near-future release with proceeds from the disc's sales also going towards the fund.
Expect to hear plenty of the all-star lineup performing songs that influenced Dime — including those from BLACK SABBATH, SLAYER and IRON MAIDEN — to classic PANTERA tracks and much more of the music that's torn your head off and made you a believer through a "vulgar display of power!"
The all-star lineup to share the stage will include hard rock and heavy metal titans: Dave Grohl of FOO FIGHTERS; Simon Wright from DIO; Brent Smith, Zach Myers and Eric Bass of SHINEDOWN; Kerry King and Dave Lombardo of SLAYER; Robb Flynn and Phil Demmel of MACHINE HEAD; Chuck Billy from TESTAMENT; Chris Howorth and Maria Brink of IN THIS MOMENT; and many more, including some surprises that will surely nail your jaw to the floor. This incredible event is being hosted by radio/television personality Jose Mangin, a veteran of several Dimebag events. In addition, attendees will be able to land some limited-edition merchandise, nab raffle tickets for chances to win some cool collectables and purchase Monster Energy cocktail drink specials, all of which partial proceeds go to benefit the cause. And if the all-star jam with legends and legends in the making isn't enough, special guest opener includes hard rock juggernauts REV THEORY. The metal brotherhood and
community comes together once again to not only help themselves heal, but to also help the world around them. Good guys sometimes do wear black!
Emcee:
* Jose Mangin (Sirius XM)
DJ
* Twiggy Ramirez (MARILYN MANSON, NINE INCH NAILS, A PERFECT CIRCLE)
Drums
* Dave Grohl (FOO FIGHTERS, NIRVANA)
* Dave Lombardo (SLAYER, PHILM)
* Simon Wright (DIO, AC/DC)
* Joey Jordison (SLIPKNOT, MURDERDOLLS, ROB ZOMBIE)
* John Boecklin (DEVILDRIVER)
Guitar
* Paul Phillips (PUDDLE OF MUDD)
* Phil Demmel (MACHINE HEAD)
* Chris Howorth (IN THIS MOMENT)
* Kerry King (SLAYER)
* Robb Flynn (MACHINE HEAD)
* Zach Myers (SHINEDOWN)
* Nick Bowcott (Marshall Amplification)
* Jeff Kendrick (DEVILDRIVER)
* Shane Gibson (KORN)
* Gerry Nestler (PHILM)
Bass
* Chris Howorth (IN THIS MOMENT)
* Eric Bass (SHINEDOWN)
* Elliott Rubinson (Dean Guitars)
* Tony Campos (STATIC-X, ASESINO, MINISTRY)
* Joey Vera (ARMORED SAINT)
* Twiggy Ramirez (MARILYN MANSON, NINE INCH NAILS, A PERFECT CIRCLE)
Vocals
* Chuck Billy (TESTAMENT)
* Maria Brink (IN THIS MOMENT)
* Wes Scantlin (PUDDLE OF MUDD)
* Robb Flynn (MACHINE HEAD)
* Jose Mangin (Sirius XM)
* Brent Smith (SHINEDOWN)
* Steve Miller (KINDA MAJOR)
* Gerry Nestler (PHILM)
New Jersey space rockers MONSTER MAGNET are celebrating their eighth studio album and Napalm Records debut by putting out the "Mastermind" special edition box set, which is limited to 1,000 copies. The package includes a special digibook CD edition of the new album "Mastermind", with TWO bonus tracks and a USB stick. The USB stick includes MONSTER MAGNET ringtones, an interview with MONSTER MAGNET's own "mastermind" Dave Wyndorf, desktop wallpapers, album MP3s and an 18-track Napalm Records sampler.
Following up the release of their latest album, "Warp Riders", the Austin, Texas- based stoner rockers THE SWORD have teamed up with Metal Club for the release of a special 12-inch hexagonal picture disc featuring the "Warp Riders" track "(The Night The Sky Cried) Tears of Fire" backed with the "Bron-Y-Aur Stomp"-esque "Farstar".
In other Metal Club news, GWAR has a special in-store signing on Halloween at The Exclusive Company's MetalHaus, located at 5026 S. 74th St., Greenfield, Wisconsin There will also be a costume contest held during this appearance, so be sure to go in costume or dressed as one of the members of GWAR for your chance to win tickets to see GWAR that night at The Rave, in addition to other prizes from GWAR and Metal Blade Records. The signing will take place from 5 p.m. to 6 p.m.
Metal Club is a group of record stores throughout the U.S. and Canada that work to connect the vibrant metal community with their local record store. Fans will be able to visit their local Metal Club store for special metal promotional pieces, exciting in-store events, and a series of exclusive Metal Club releases.
Please visit www.mymetalclub.com for store locations, news and information on other Metal Club releases.
According to The Pulse of Radio, the next FOO FIGHTERS album, due out in 2011, will feature a reunion of FOO FIGHTERS frontman and former NIRVANA drummer Dave Grohl with NIRVANA bassist Krist Novoselic. Grohl broke the news to the BBC in England, saying only that Novoselic will make a guest appearance on bass. The album is being produced by Butch Vig, who produced NIRVANA's landmark 1991 album, "Nevermind", which also marked Grohl's recording debut with the iconic alternative trio.
Grohl and Novoselic have not recorded together since NIRVANA cut its final song back in 1993, "You Know You're Right". Grohl recalled the sessions for that track. "We had some time off before a tour, and Kurt wanted to go in and demo some stuff, so I said, 'Hey, why don't we do it at this studio down the street from my house,'" he said. "And we went down there, and we had three days booked. Kurt came in the last day and we were like, 'Okay, what do you wanna do?' And Kurt said, 'Well, why don't we do that song we've been doing at soundcheck?' And so we rehearsed it, I think, once, and then recorded it. Kurt did three or four vocal takes, and that was it."
Grohl also said that the new FOO FIGHTERS record, their seventh studio effort, is the band's heaviest yet, adding, "Each song is full on, the whole record is full on. In the 14 songs, there's not one acoustic guitar, there's not even one in the house."
The band is recording the album in Grohl's garage, with Grohl calling it "totally old school" and adding, "This whole project has been really cool. I haven't made a record with Butch for 20 years."
The recording process is also being filmed for a movie that will surface next year in conjunction with the album release.
The new FOO FIGHTERS set will follow up 2007's "Echoes, Silence, Patience & Grace", which won a Grammy for album of the year. The band went on hiatus after touring behind the disc, as Grohl worked with THEM CROOKED VULTURES.
Shadows Fall are the consummate American Metal Band and we are here to further that knowledge. Retribution is a sickening piece of metal that does not let up from the moment you press play to the last ear splitting note. Brian Fair, the consummate rock vocalist and anti BP warrior, took the time to fill Metal Exiles in on Retribution and their upcoming DVD Madness In Manila.
An interview with Brian Fair of Shadows Fall by Jeffrey Easton
Metal Exiles: The new record is great but do you think Retribution tops Threads Of life?
Brian Fair: For me Retribution is more of a balanced record because it shows all of our influences from everything we listen to. From old school thrash, melodic death metal and old school hardcore. Threads was more focused on a big old school kind of rock sound. This is more balanced but there are moments of each that I appreciate but then the band is always going to appreciate their new record the most. To me it was a natural progression to get to retribution. It took ten plus years of the band to get to that point.
Metal Exiles: You have had moments of melodic metal amongst the other influences in the past so why did you want to do Retribution this way?
Brian: It was where we were at when we started writing. The first song that we wrote was Public Execution and then War. We came out of the gates with a very heavy as that was the vibe we were going for. That was where the record was heading but there are still some melodic moments with Picture Perfect and The Taste Of Fear but the tone was set by the first few songs that we wrote. Jonathan just had some angry riffs in the bag.
Metal Exiles: I like the nice melodic intro that is The Path To Imminent Ruin which of course leads into the barrage. What is your opinion on what it does for an album?
Brian: To me it is the calm before the storm and we have gone two directions in the past. We have gone for the kick to the balls right out of the gate but with other albums it has started in a melodic way with the slow buildup. There are two different vibes and approaches, it is following along with that classic Master Of Puppets model.
Metal Exiles: Lyrically this is a dark album, where do you go mentally to come up with the words for this album?
Brian: it is a little bit of light and dark where as in the past our albums have been mostly positive. This one does have a darker side to it but it is just coming to terms with things in your life. I am reaching my mid 30's and you are getting to different points in your life and reflecting on things so it for me it was a catharsis of sorts. I am dealing with things but more in a positive way but you have to write down the negativity to get to the positive aspects. Songs like "King Of Nothing" have negative imagery but it is a warning to people to not fall into traps of self destruction which is the same with "My Demise".
Metal Exiles: Now, this album is available on vinyl but it seems that everybody is into their iPod's and downloading everything. Why do you think vinyl is making a comeback?
Brian: We make every available on vinyl because Paul and I are big vinyl collectors. I think it is the collectable side of it. Today music is not as hard to find as it was in the past. If you did not have a cool friend or older brother then you just did not find about these underground bands. Now it is easier so to show your support and take it to another level of support and show that you are down you go buy the vinyl. The sound quality is so awesome on vinyl so hopefully people are caring again. Besides, you can steal the CD version from the internet but you can't download the vinyl.
Metal Exiles: Do you think there is a difference in the sound quality?
Brian: Yes I do and it's not that its better or worse, it is just a difference. When the needle drags over those grooves it is just a different tonality to it. It is a warmer sound and audio wise it is a personal preference. Soundwise with an mp3 when you dump a file from a CD to an mp3 you lose sound quality so it does not have the same life.
Metal Exiles: Back to Retribution, do you feel that with your next record you will follow a different path?
Brian: We have no idea but we have an idea that we will write a pretty heavy record because some of the preliminary ideas that we have had have been in that direction. Also Matt and Jonathan have been writing some melodic rock stuff separately to get that vibe out with a separately for a side project. I have a feeling that it will be a pretty nasty record but we always plan something then another thing completely different thing comes out.
Metal Exiles: Are there any other demons that you did not get out with this record?
Brian: There are always things that are going to come up in your life that you need to come out. It could be personal or political situations. All you need to do is pick up a newspaper or watch CNN to get enough ammunition to write a metal record. The world is crumbling around us as we speak.
Metal Exiles: What has pissed you off recently?
Brian: Personally it was the oil spill in the Gulf and the way it was handled. Not even that that happened, accidents do happen but the way the laws protected the businesses that get away with doing it and then dumping the costs on the taxpayers. Also you do not know what the long term affects will be on the environment and to think that this can happen in this day and age and people can walk away from it and still have a job.
Metal Exiles: One interesting thing about this album is that you released it on your own imprint but it debuted higher than your last album on Atlantic. How did that happen?
Brian: A little of it is funny math. The last one sold about the same but this one charted higher because nobody buys records anymore so the entire chart is lower. We enjoyed ourselves on Atlantic and learned a lot of good lessons but they did not understand was how to promote a band like us. They tried to fit us into their model of big money on videos and radio and hoping it all works out. We put our resources into peer to peer and touring. With this record we were able to focus the campaign ourselves so it was easy to get to the right people.
Metal Exiles: You have done Century, Atlantic and now your own label. Are you giving yourself a lesson in label politics?
Brian: That is the thing, we self released our first record, went to an indy, a major label and now we are doing a distribution deal where we own the record. We took the good and bad of all of those to form into our own business model. It is completely band controlled because when you sign to a label it is a loan as they own the rights the recording. You pay everything back and get a tiny percentage later on. This way we are at the top so we control everything, publishing included and do not waste money. It makes us work harder as it is going back into our pocket and it makes us work smarter because if you make a mistake it is your own fault and if you waste money it is your own money. I think it is the wave of the future because as the business adapts to new things the bands just need to be more proactive and do things themselves.
Metal Exiles: Do you think that will be the norm in the future as more labels close or downsize?
Brian: I think bands are going to find a team to promote it and build it around that and they should. It will be harder for new bands to do that as they do not have the legacy to do that but at least a band like us have been around long enough to have made the right contacts to do it. Unfortunately bands these days are signing 360 deals where they are giving away a portion of everything (meaning money from cd sales, merch and touring) including their unborn kids probably. The industry is changing drastically and it will take a real band movement to take back control and now is the opportunity.
Metal Exiles: You have a DVD coming out called Madness In Manila. Tell us about it.
Brian: It will be multiple cameras, straight to pro tools audio and of course explosions and fire. Now they did not practice any of it so we had no idea when things were going to blow up, it kept you on your toes. We are going to include some bonus stuff like the festival we did in Korea as well as a TV show we did there as well as some other random stuff.
Metal Exiles: Many bands are starting to go to different parts of the Pacific Rim. Why are bands starting to flock there where as they did not before?
Brian: This promoter is really stepping up there and making it a place that bands want to go to. We were one of the first bands to do it and we loved it so much we told everybody. He threw in all of the trimmings to make it worthwhile but we enjoyed it. The shows are amazing, the fans are incredible and it is one the places that I did not think metal would ever take me.
Metal Exiles: You guys did the amazing Rockstar Mayhem tour. Now, do you get more out of doing the festival shows like this or your own thing?
Brian: This kind of festival is a blast because with all of the bands, it is just a rolling party but with a packed club, you know everybody is there to see you. It is a completely different vibe because that is what we grew up doing but being in a show like this with all of your friends and about 10,000 plus people is amazing. With these opportunities, we try to let everybody know what you are about and try to convert them to your music. With the headliner show, you are already preaching to the converted, they are already there to see you, they will just know if you were good or bad that night.
Metal Exiles: Last words for your fans?
Brian: The DVD is coming out soon and we will be touring until the end of the year.
Shadows Fall came out of a mixed scene of bands only to rise to the top and stay there. If you have yet to be converted to their way of metal, you are truly left out.
Official Shadows Fall Site
BUY RETRIBUTION!
BUY MADNESS IN MANILA!
Massachusetts metallers SHADOWS FALL will headline WSOU's "Not So Silent Night" showcase on Sunday, December 19 at Starland Ballroom in Sayreville, New Jersey. Also scheduled to appear are A LIFE ONCE LOST and WITH DAGGERS DRAWN, among others.
Canadian thrash metal veterans RAZOR will perform at El Mocambo in Toronto, Ontario on November 12.
Formed in 1984 in Guelph, Ontario, Canada, RAZOR split up in 1992, but reformed in the late 1990s to record another album, titled "Decibels", in 1997. The band dissolved again, and reformed in 2005, and is said to be planning to record another LP.
Guitarist and primary lyricist Dave Carlo has been the only permanent member in the band's 25-year history.
Reactivated German thrashers ASSASSIN have set "Breaking The Silence" as the title of their new album, due in February 2011 via SPV/Steamhammer Records. The label will also reissue the band's classic LPs, 1987's "The Upcoming Terror" and 1988's "Interstellar Experience".
ASSASSIN reunited in 2002 and performed at the 2003 edition of the Wacken Open Air festival.
The band's third album, "The Club", was self-produced and self-released in 2005.
THE HAUNTED, CALIBAN and PRIMORDIAL are among the first confirmed bands for next year's installment of the Summer Breeze festival, set to take place August 18-20, 2011 in Dinkelsbühl, Germany.
The festival billing is shaping up as follows (in alphabetical order):
CALIBAN
PRIMORDIAL
SALTATIO MORTIS
THE HAUNTED
VOMITORY
Tickets can be purchased for 72 euros (excluding pre-sale fees, including parking/camping) at Silverdust-Shop.de. The first 10,000 tickets get a free DVD with live footage and impressions from the 2009 edition of the festival.
Heavy Artillery Records has announced the signing of San Francisco traditional hard rock and heavy metal purveyors MIDNIGHT CHASER. The band's debut album is tentatively due in February 2011.
Forged in the blast furnaces of Pittsburgh and tempered in the waters of the San Francisco Bay comes a new force in the art of badass; enter MIDNIGHT CHASER! Influenced by the gods of '70s and '80s hard rock and heavy metal, MIDNIGHT CHASER was originally conceived of by guitarist Stephen Lauck and bassist "Texas" Josh Hunt while both still living in Pittsburgh, the Rust Belt of Pennsylvania. However it wasn't until both rockers found themselves relocated to the fog-cloaked Bay Area of California that MIDNIGHT CHASER began to take shape.
First recruiting the steam hammer drumming skills of Brandon Thomas, the pair immediately knew that they had found the missing piece of their rhythm section that they had been searching for. All that was lacking now was a voice that could suitably realize their ambitions. Unsatisfied with the pool of vocal talent in their new surroundings they imported fellow Pittsburgh native Scott Atwood in order to fill the final void and complete that which is MIDNIGHT CHASER. The lineup finally completed, the band whipped themselves into a creative furor, writing and rehearsing original material while playing shows up and down the West Coast, rocking any venue that would have them from bars and theaters to strip clubs and basements.
For more information, visit www.myspace.com/midnightchasermetal.
MY RUIN — the Los Angeles-based band featuring the husband-and-wife rock duo of vocalist Tairrie B. Murphy and multi-instrumentalist Mick Murphy — will embark on a U.K. tour in March.
Commented the group: "We're sorry if we couldn't make it to your town on this first tour but we did our best to mix it up and play a couple cities and venues we haven't played before so we hope you'll do your best to join us while we're over.
"We will be announcing our support bands soon and posting links to buy tickets for all the shows once they go on sale next week. In the meantime, mark your calendars and save the dates if you plan to make it out to one or more shows for a long overdue evening of 'Ghosts And Good Stories' as we debut our album for the first time live on stage starting in March 2011."
The dates are as follows:
March 09 - Thekla - Bristol, UK
March 10 - Railway Inn - Winchester, UK
March 11 - The Underworld - London, UK
March 12 - Sub 89 - Reading, UK
March 13 - Slade Rooms - Wolverhampton, UK
March 14 - Club Revolution - Peterborough, UK
March 15 - Classic Grand - Glasgow, Scotland
March 16 - Cock Pit - Leeds, UK
March 17 - Rock City - Nottingham, UK
"Ghosts And Good Stories", the sixth album from MY RUIN, boasts 13 tracks written and played entirely by Murphy on guitar, bass and drums.
"Ghosts And Good Stories" track listing:
01. Diggin' For Ghosts
02. Long Dark Night
03. Excommunicated
04. Eyes Black
05. Money Shot
06. Abusing The Muse
07. La Cuidad
08. Suicide Tuesday
09. Saviourself
10. Malediction
11. Repose
12. Turned Out
13. Death Knell
George Lynch has inserted himself into the annals of rock history with a career spanning over 30 years. Largely recognized for his Grammy nominated work with hard rock-metal group Dokken, George has also embarked on other collaborative and solo works to broaden his range of playing and creativity including Lynch Mob and Souls of We.
George is currently out on tour with his dream band, Lynch Mob and busy building his hand-crafted line of guitars called Mr. Scary Guitars. These guitars are highly unique and customized instruments. Every element of the guitars, from the selection of wood to neck shape to pickup windings are carefully considered to the produce the best sounding and most playable instruments possible. The average build time can be anywhere from 1 to 6 months depending on Lynch's touring and recording commitments.
Robert Cavuoto had a chance to catch up with George before he embarked on a tour of Europe with Lynch Mob and talk about, well what else, guitars and playing.
George Lynch in Action
******
Rob Cavuoto: What about playing guitar turns you on?
George: Turning the endless soundtrack in my head into reality.
Rob Cavuoto: What would you have done if you never picked up the guitar?
George: I took a vocational aptitude test in school. The top two results were musician and forest ranger. I was also considering going into the seminary to become a priest. But then I discovered I liked girls.
Rob Cavuoto: When did you come to realize that your style was truly unique?
George: That was a very slow realization, probably not until mid 90's. Up till that point I was just trying to carve out a niche for myself and stay I'm the game.
Rob Cavuoto: What is the first guitar you ever owned?
George: A Tiesco del Rey. My 2nd was a St.George. My first real guitar was a 1960 Les Paul Special that I bought from a widow along with a Fender Blackface Tremolo. Both for $120. I had saved up $60 mowing lawns and my dad matched me dollar for dollar. I will always miss that guitar.
Rob Cavuoto: How many axes do you currently own?
George: Probably about 30 or 40. Way more than I could ever use or need. Kinda ridiculous actually. I've approached ESP about running a contest where needy aspiring guitarists could win my excess personal guitars.
Click to Check Out the George Lynch ESP Guitar at Musician's Friend
Rob Cavuoto: Which Mr. Scary model is your favorite?
George: The Headhunter 2 is my favorite. Everyone is unique but they're all inspiration machines.
Rob Cavuoto: What is most challenging aspect of building your line of guitars?
George: Well, it is a lot of work, and you never really know what the results will be until you're finished. But it's work I love doing so it's work in the good sense of the word. When I build, do art, or play I get so engrossed in the process that time becomes suspended. Those are my Zen moments and when I'm the happiest.
Rob Cavuoto: Will you be at NAMM promoting you new line of guitars?
George: Of course, ESP will have a couple Headhunters at the booth.
Rob Cavuoto: Have you mended fences with Don Dokken?
George: The Don-George conflict is really a fallacy and a created illusion. We're absolutely fine. We had had business disagreements for sure but, what band or business partners don't? We've been fine for years. It's all been blown way out of proportion over the years and it's an old tired story.
George Lynch Live
Rob Cavuoto: How is the Lynch Mob tour going and what does the future hold for the band?
George: The current incarnation of Lynch Mob is my dream band. I'm playing with Brian Tichy ( drums) who I've been dreaming of playing with for years. We're really good friends and just having a blast together. Were also neighbors, so were always hanging out, playing video games and jamming at the house. Playing with Brian and the guys is like being back in a band with my high school friends, only big time.
My band mates are my family. We're working on a new record with Jeff Pilson on bass. I can't tell you how much fun it is working with Jeff and Brian. They are ridiculously amazing musicians but more importantly just beautiful human beings. Funny, smart, talented and giving people, if the world was made up of more people of their caliber we'd be a lot better off.
Rob Cavuoto: What has been your worst ever gig?
George: Hmmm. Probably the time a played with my old pre- Dokken band " The Boyz" (with Mick brown on drums). Our singer came out with see through stretchy pants wearing no underwear, insisted on playing a flute solo, shot fire out the end of his flute, set off our gunpowder loaded flash pots which ignited and blew up our bass player and eventually caught our equipment on fire. That was a shitty gig!
Rob Cavuoto: What became of your infamous "Graffiti Guitar"?
George: I loaned that one to a band member which is pretty normal, they wanted to take something home to jam on for awhile. Then I just sort of forgot about it. Years later someone pointed out to me that it was for sale on ebay, he sold it for over $11,000.
Rob Cavuoto: You have your successful line of guitars, your Lynch Box amp, your pedals, pick-ups and cables, What new creation can we expect from you?
George: New Celestion speakers! They're called Lynchback Hi- powered 50's. Also, we've completely redesigned the Randall Lynch Box line of amps from top to bottom.
HELL IN THE CLUB, the new band featuring members of two of the biggest Italian metal acts, SECRET SPHERE and ELVENKING, will release its debut album, "Let The Games Begin", in December through Red Pony Records in Italy. According to the group's official bio, HELL IN THE CLUB is "a big new rock 'n' roll band that knocks down your soul and takes you right into a hellride of fun, power and emotions with a big dose of hard rock!"
HELL IN THE CLUB is:
Damnagoras (ELVENKING) - Vocals
Andrea Buratto (SECRET SPHERE) - Bass
Federico Pennazzato (SECRET SPHERE) - Drums
Andrea Piccardi - Guitar
For more information, visit www.myspace.com/hellintheclub.
EVERGREY and VANDEN PLAS will perform at the ProgPower USA XII kick-off show on Thursday, September 15, 2011 as part of the annual event's festivities. The returning fan favorites will co-headline the night and will each perform a 90-plus-minute special set. There will be no opening act. In addition, EVERGREY will play an acoustic show as part of Mid-Week Mayhem on Wednesday, September 14, with metal karaoke immediately following to round out the night. Due to the intimate nature of the setting, only 200 tickets will be made available to the public. VANDEN PLAS will also perform a semi-acoustic show on Saturday, September 17 as part of the exclusive "Gold Badge Series" of shows. Tickets for this show are not available to public, as ProgPower USA XII Gold Badge tickets are sold out.
North America's premier progressive and power metal festival returns to Center Stage in Atlanta, Georgia on September 16-17, 2011 with the following confirmed bands:
* THERION (U.S. exclusive)
* SANCTUARY
* ARCTURUS (U.S. exclusive)
* DREAM EVIL (U.S. exclusive)
* LABYRINTH (U.S. exclusive)
* MOB RULES (U.S. exclusive)
* ELDRITCH (U.S exclusive)
* WHILE HEAVEN WEPT
* RED CIRCUIT (U.S. exclusive)
* VOYAGER
* HAKEN (U.S. exclusive)
* CREATION'S END
Ticket information for all nights will be announced soon on the festival web site.
Swedish metallers EVERGREY will headline the Rockin' The Galaxy cruise, which will leave the Stockholm, Sweden port on November 25 for Åbo, Finland, and return the following day. Other acts scheduled to perform on the cruise — which will be held aboard the Tallink-Silja ship Galaxy — include BAI BANG, SYSTEMATIC SLAUGHTER and DEFUELED.
The purpose of the Rockin' The Galaxy cruise is to provide ambitious and talented rock bands an opportunity to showcase their talent to a new and wider audience, much larger than they are accustomed to. 25 different bands — both established and unknown — will perform during the 24-hour rockin' cruise from Stockholm to Åbo and back. Two stages will be rigged, a huge main stage for bands attracting larger crowds and a smaller club scene for newer talent on the rise. The music genre ranges from rock, hard rock, metal to death metal. There will be several different and exciting competitions held during the cruise with great prizes including loads of music equipment donated by Club Centurion sponsors. At the end of the cruise, the eight best guitarists will also compete in a Guitar Battle.
For more information, visit RockinTheGalaxy.se.
Heavy metal warriors BULLET, modern metal band ADEPT, industrial metal band ENGEL and Danish powerhouse rockers BLACK CITY have been confirmed for the first installment of next year's Close-Up Båten cruise, which will leave the Stockholm, Sweden port on February 10 for Åbo, Finland, and return the following day.
For ticket sales, go to this location. More information (in Swedish) is available here.
Finnish power metallers KIUAS have issued the following update:
"We have some startling news: our lead singer, Ilja Jalkanen, has decided to leave the band after some serious thinking. The reasons for this are purely musical and the chemistry within the band has always been great. In Ilja's own words, 'My heart is not in heavy metal anymore, and a great band like KIUAS deserves a singer completely dedicated to the music.'
"However, as all the fans know, although Ilja has been the voice of KIUAS for many years, his contribution to the songwriting has been very minimal and thus his departure won't affect the band's musical direction or diminish the power of the music in the future in any way. The fact is that KIUAS will be able to continue its musical journey with passion only without Ilja — this is the only way to go.
"Unfortunately, Ilja won't be able to perform the gigs we have booked for October 29-31. We were on the verge of cancelling them, but luckily we were able to get talented vocalist Asim Searah to stand in for Ilja on those gigs.
"We apologize for announcing this so late, but we had agreed with the local promoters to do the U.K. tour before we announced Ilja leaving the band.
"We also have some good news: Ilja will still perform a farewell gig with KIUAS in Helsinki in January 2011. The exact date and venue will be announced later."
"Of Lust, Love and Human Nature", the latest video from KIUAS, can be viewed below. The clip was directed by Markus Nieminen of Routafilmi. The song comes off the band's fourth album, "Lustdriven", which entered the official chart in the band's home country at position No. 8.
Released on March 31 via Spinefarm Records, "Lustdriven" was produced at Sonic Pump Studios in Helsinki by Janne Joutsenniemi, who previously worked with the band on the pre-production of their last album, "The New Dark Age". Mikko Karmila mixed the album at Finnvox studios while the mastering duties were handled by Svante Forsbäck at Chartmakers.
"The New Dark Age" entered the official chart in the band's home country back in March 2008 at position No. 10.
Finnish "battle metal" warriors TURISAS have completed work on their as-yet-untitled third album for an early 2011 release via Century Media Records. The CD was recorded between March and September 2010 at Sound Supreme studios in in Hämeenlinna, Finland, and was mixed by Jens Bogren (OPETH, PARADISE LOST) at Fascination Street studios in Örebro, Sweden. The album was produced by vocalist and main songwriter Mathias "Warlord" Nygård.
TURISAS will embark on a U.S. tour in February/March 2011 as the support act for CRADLE OF FILTH. Also scheduled to appear on the bill are NACHTMYSTIUM (USA) and DANIEL LIONEYE (Finland). Mainland Europe and U.K. shows will follow in early 2011.
Commented Nygård: "After a 16-month break from touring, focusing fully on the work on our third album, I'm happy to tell you that we're DONE! The workload has been enormous, and at times I've wished I'd known better, formed a punk rock band and kept things simple! But to achieve real progress, you really have to dig deep and see what you're made of. Take bites so big, you almost choke.
"We've stayed true to our ideology of releasing music only when we have something new to come out with, not repeating ourselves or just copying what we've done in the past to feed the market. Now that we're done with studios, we're all extremely excited to get back on the road again, and as our latest visit to North America is long overdue, coming over in January with CRADLE is something we're all very much looking forward to. We had a great time touring with them in Europe in 2009, so this should be killer! Now we only have to figure out how to play these new songs!!"
Reactivated seminal technical metal pioneers ATHEIST and Norwegian dirty punk metallers OKKULTOKRATI have been confirmed for next year's edition of the Inferno festival, set to take place April 20-23, 2011 at the Rockefeller and John Dee venues in Oslo, Norway.
The festival billing is shaping up as follows:
ALCEST
ATHEIST
AURA NOIR
IMMORTAL
MALEVOLENT CREATION
OKKULTOKRATI
PENTAGRAM
SOILENT GREEN
The Inferno metal festival has become a true black Easter tradition for metal fans, bands and music industry from all over the world, with nearly 50 concerts every year since the start back in 2001. The festival offers exclusive concerts in unique surroundings with some of the best extreme metal bands and experimental artists in the world, from the new and underground to the legendary giants. At Inferno you meet up with fellow metalheads for four days of headbanging, party, black-metal sightseeing and expos, horror films, art exhibitions and all the unholy treats your dark heart desires.
For more information, visit www.infernofestival.net.
U.K.'s Metal Hammer magazine recently conducted an interview with guitarist Paul Allender of British extreme metallers CRADLE OF FILTH. A couple of excerpts from the chat follow below.
Metal Hammer: It has been your undertaking for some time now to compose most of the music for CRADLE OF FILTH albums. Was that the case this time round?
Paul: Yes, normally I write most of the music. This time it was a team effort on the behalf of James Mcllroy [guitar], David Pybus [bass] and myself. We wanted to see what we could come up with. We are beyond pleased with the outcome.
Metal Hammer: As a metalhead, I often find asking myself if musicians ever think of how there music will be received by their fans, or is it not a part of their creative process?
Paul: It is very much a part of my process. When I write a riff that I think rocks like fuck, I always think of fans doing what they do when they really dig it. When I can envision this, I know that they [fans] will probably like it. When I was younger and I loved a piece of music, the hairs on the back of my neck would stand straight up. It used to happen all the time listening to IRON MAIDEN and JUDAS PRIEST… actually still does to this day. So when I write something and get those chills up my spine… then I know it's good. I don't mind saying that there are loads of riffs on this record that have this effect on me. When I write music, I don't do it get paid. Don't get me wrong, it is my job and I do have to pay the bills… but ultimately I write because I am truly into it.
Metal Hammer: What happened between CRADLE OF FILTH and Roadrunner Records?
Paul: Basically, we left. We held our end and did the three records agreed upon. We felt the commitment level was lacking and dropping on their part. It seems as if their sole interest lies with two bands who shall remain nameless. Bottom line is, it just didn't fucking work for us anymore.
Metal Hammer: How did you end up in bed with Peaceville Records?
Paul: They displayed some interest and approached us. When we thought about it, when with Roadrunner we were a small fish in a big pond. So we thought we'd try and reverse it and be a bigger fish in a smaller pond, and as a result we will have more material coming out worldwide than we did before.
Norwegian symphonic black metallers DIMMU BORGIR will tour Japan for the first time in 10 years in February 2011.
The dates are as follows:
Feb. 20 - Nagoya, JPN @ Club Quattro
Feb. 21 - Tokyo, JPN @ Shibuya O-East
Feb. 22 - Osaka, JPN @ Shinsaibashi Club Quattro
"Abrahadabra", the ninth album from Norwegian symphonic black metallers DIMMU BORGIR, sold 9,400 copies in the United States in its first week of release to land at position No. 42 on The Billboard 200 chart. The band's previous CD, "In Sorte Diaboli", opened with 14,000 units back in May 2007 to debut at No. 43. This was more than double the 6,400 first-week tally achieved by its predecessor, "Death Cult Armageddon", which came out in September 2003 and landed at position No. 169 on The Billboard 200 chart.
"Abrahadabra" first-week chart positions:
Norway: #2
Germany: #15
Sweden: #17
Ireland: #19
Austria: #20
Switzerland: #24
Canada: #30
USA: #42
France: #43
Finland: #48
Belgium: #52
The word "abrahadabra" (which roughly translates into "I will create as I speak") first publicly appeared in Chapter III of "Liber AL vel Legis" (commonly referred to as "The Book of the Law") written by Aleister Crowley in Cairo, Egypt in 1904.
In a recent interview with the German edition of Metal Hammer magazine, DIMMU BORGIR vocalist Shagrath (real name: Stian Tomt Thoresen) was asked why the band chose to break the tradition of using a three-word title for a DIMMU BORGIR album on its latest effort. "It was a tradition for the last records to use a three-word title, basically, for the fact that it represents much more of a unity thing than just one word," he replied. "'Abrahadabra' is more about the transfusion of new blood, I would say, in a way that we have chosen to do a lot of things differently from what we had done before. We wanted to break out of the patterns in many ways, including the people who play on the record, and also the studios we have used for the record — everything is basically different, so therefore we felt it was more right to use a one-word title instead of a [three-word one]."
U.K. extreme metallers DETRIMENTUM have finished recording their new album, tentatively titled "Inhumanity", with producer Russ Russell (NAPALM DEATH, DIMMU BORGIR, LENG TCH'E). The CD contains eight tracks of "dark, dramatic and intense death metal with sinister black metal elements, sweeping melodic passages and crushing doom," according to a press release. "The band's trademark sound has been further enhanced by a more direct and aggressive vocal approach, as well as Russ' jaw-dropping production."
A rough-mix version of the track "The Journeyman's Lament" is available for streaming using the ReverbNation TuneWidget below.
DETRIMENTUM's current recording lineup consists of:
Paul Wilkinson - Guitar/Vocals
Jon Butlin - Guitar/Bass
Steve Powell (ANAAL NATHRAKH) - Drums
Commented Butlin: "This has been a momentous occasion for DETRIMENTUM and a sign of things to come.
"We've really enjoyed working with Russ and he has helped us hone our music and our abilities. We look forward to working with him again in our future recordings."
DETRIMENTUM will return to the studio in early February to complete the "Inhumanity" mixing/mastering, and in the meantime, continues searching for label support.
For more information, please contact info@detrimentum.co.uk.
Italian gothic metallers MACBETH have spent the last few months writing and rehearsing material for their as-yet-untitled fifth album, tentatively due in early 2011.
Commented the band: "We've been hard at work writing material for the next album since last winter, but unfortunately we have been forced to take a break during this spring and summer as Max [guitar] needed to recover from a serious shoulder injury exacerbated by playing guitar. Luckily Max's shoulder is fully healed and he's working on new stuff right now.
"Currently in pre-production phase, the band is working on vocal lines and lyrics for almost 10 brand new songs. All we can say is that we feel it's some of the best stuff we have ever written."
In other news, MACBETH's female vocalist Morena and drummer Fabrizio got married on September 4 after being together almost ten years.
MACBETH's latest album, "Superangelic Hate Bringers", came out on November 16, 2007 via Dragonheart Records. The CD was recorded in two different studios, including a private studio in Reykjavik, Iceland and New Sin studios in Italy, where the band also mixed and mastered the album.
Swiss industrial black metallers SAMAEL have signed a North American deal with Season of Mist. The band's new EP, "Antigod", will be released on November 19 as a digital download exclusive.
Commented the group: "We always remember the first time.
"When we met again with Michael Berberian [Season Of Mist head honcho] a couple months ago, we realized that his first step in the music business was to organize a concert for us in his home town, years ago... We have often crossed each other's path since then and today we're happy to announce that our new album will be released in America through Season of Mist, home of MORBID ANGEL, THE DILLINGER ESCAPE PLAN, MAYHEM and now SAMAEL!"
"Antigod" track listing:
01. Antigod
02. Into The Pentagram (2010)
03. Reign Of Light (Live)
04. Slavocracy (Live)
05. Antigod (Dark Night Remix)
06. Ten Thousand Years
Check out the cover artwork below.
Three weeks after returning from Germany where the band spent time going over every new song with longtime collaborator Waldemar Sorychta (MOONSPELL, LACUNA COIL, TIAMAT, GRIP INC.), SAMAEL entered the studio on August 10 to begin recording its new album for an early 2011 release.
SAMAEL's latest CD, "Above" (2009), entered the German Media Control chart at position No. 99.
French extreme/progressive metallers GOJIRA will enter a Los Angeles, California-area studio next week with producer Logan Mader (ex-MACHINE HEAD/SOULFLY guitarist) to begin recording a new four-song EP, the proceeds from which will benefit Sea Shepherd, an anti-whaling organization. The EP will feature appearances by several "very special guests."
"We'll record and produce [four] songs that [we] will sell on our web site without going through traditional ways," guitarist/vocalist Joe Duplantier said in an April 2010 French-language video interview (see below). "The benefits of sales will be donated to Sea Shepherd. There will be guests from the international metal scene [on the record]."
GOJIRA recently supported METALLICA on a short European tour. Also on the bill was FEAR FACTORY.
"Terra Incognita", the debut album from GOJIRA, was re-released as a limited-edition digipack with three bonus tracks on August 24, 2009 in Europe (October 15, 2009 in North America).
Universal Music Publishing has released a 135-page tablature book for GOJIRA's latest album, "The Way Of All Flesh", which can be ordered from the band's webshop.
Since making its American debut alongside CHILDREN OF BODOM and AMON AMARTH in late 2006 in support of their landmark album "From Mars To Sirius", GOJIRA has become one of metal's most acclaimed and admired acts. The group has also toured with such heavyweights as LAMB OF GOD, BEHEMOTH, MACHINE HEAD, TRIVIUM and JOB FOR A COWBOY, and more recently, IN FLAMES and ALL THAT REMAINS.
Poland's metal/hardcore squadron IN TWILIGHT'S EMBRACE has signed a deal with Spook Records for the release of the band's second album, "Slaves To Martyrdom". The follow-up to "Buried In Between" was recorded during multiple sessions at several locations across Poland, mixed by Waldemar Jedruszak at The Aesthetic Studio and mastered by Wieslawski Bros. at Hertz Studio (VADER, DECAPITATED, LOST SOUL).
Commented the band: "After a couple of weeks, we're back with the news of sealing a pact with Cracovean powerhouse Spook Records for the release of our second whirlwind, 'Slaves To Martyrdom'. Under this banner, we are confident that IN TWILIGHT'S EMBRACE will be paid the proper amount of attention, as well as maintain the right to self-determination. Dawid has been working for some quality metal and hardcore bands for years now, and is enjoying their respect and good reputation. With our new abode, we're ready to put our new agenda into effect. 'Slaves To Martyrdom' will lay its poisonous kiss upon your sons and daughters in January 2011!"
IN TWILIGHT'S EMBRACE is one of Poland's longest-running metal/hardcore bands. Formed in 2002, the group has seen its music evolve from a pure hardcore punk sound to a more metal-influenced direction.
After the release of IN TWILIGHT'S EMBRACE's first CD, "Buried in Between" (2006), and the departure of its original singer, the band faced numerous difficulties finding a replacement vocalist. They eventually recruited Kamil Zielinski and released a three-track promo EP in January 2009.
IN TWILIGHT'S EMBRACE is:
Leszek Szlenk - Lead, Rhythm Guitar
Piotr Steppa - Rhythm Guitar
Damian Urbanowski - Drums
Marcin Rybicki - Bass
Cyprian Lakomy - Vocals
For more information, visit www.myspace.com/twilightkills.
Superball Music has announced the signing of DREDG to the label. The band — Gavin Hayes (vocals, guitars), Drew Roulette (bass, keyboards, samples), Mark Engles (guitars) and Dino Campanella (drums, keyboards) — just completed work on its fifth album and started a two-month tour with CIRCA SURVIVE, CODESEVEN and ANIMALS AS LEADERS in the U.S. Once those dates conclude, the band will perform a handful of headlining shows.
DREDG has been holed up in a San Francisco recording studio since mid-August, working on the as-yet-untitled album with producer Dan The Automator. The follow-up to 2009's critically acclaimed "The Pariah, The Parrot, The Delusion" will be ready for a spring 2011 release.
Hayes had this to say on the signing: "We are excited to continue our musical journey with Superball Music and release our upcoming album in territories in which we have never officially released music in before. Not only are we looking forward to working with people that are fans of DREDG, but also with individuals who are fans of interesting and diverse music as well."
Superball Music will releasing the new DREDG record worldwide (outside of Germany, Austria andSwitzerland). The label is already home to critically acclaimed bands such as ...AND YOU WILL KNOW US BY THE TRAIL OF DEAD and OCEANSIZE, and was formed in 2007 as an outlet for acts with a stylistic range that is centered on independent and alternative music, as well as acts that transcend genres and include a variety of contemporary directions. Owner Thomas Waber states, "When I set up the Superball Music label, DREDG was on my shortlist of bands that I really wanted to work with. So frankly speaking: I am very excited about this signing! Together with the new albums by OCEANSIZE and ...AND YOU WILL KNOW US BY THE TRAIL OF DEAD, this will really establish the label on a worldwide basis. There is some great music in the pipeline from Superball Music for next year and at the same time we are still looking for new talent as well!"
***UPDATE**: BLABBERMOUTH.NET has been informed by a representative of Chuck Schuldiner's estate that this is an "unauthorized" release that is being made available without the estate's knowledge or consent. ***
IMV Blueline has set a December 7 release date for the "Live In Japan" DVD from DEATH. The 1995 TV broadcast runs 77 minutes and features the following track listing:
01. Spiritual Healing
02. The Philosopher
03. Suicide Machine
04. Crystal Mountain
05. Jealousy
06. Zero Tolerance
07. Lack Of Comprehension
08. Flattening Of Emotions
09. Empty Words
10. Open Casket
11. Symbolic
12. Zombie Ritual
13. Pull The Plug
For more information, visit MVD.
The bulk of DEATH's catalog was recently made available digitally for the first time. "Scream Bloody Gore", "Leprosy", "Spiritual Healing", "Human", "Individual Thought Patterns" and "The Sound Of Perseverance" can be purchased via iTunes at this location.
Relapse has just released an expanded version of the classic debut album, "The Fragile Art Of Existence", from Schuldiner's progressive heavy metal band CONTROL DENIED. The reissue includes bonus tracks, extra band photography, expanded art and packaging and more.
A range of officially licensed DEATH, CONTROL DENIED, and MANTAS merchandise can be purchased here. Many classic album art designs will follow in the coming months, making some highly sought-after designs available officially for the first time in years.
Schuldiner passed away on December 13, 2001 at age 34 after a battle with pontine glioma, a rare type of brain tumor.
THE SOULLESS, the British melodic death metal act formerly known as IGNOMINIOUS INCARCERATION, will enter Outhouse Studios in Reading, England on December 15 with producer John Mitchell (ARCHITECTS, FUNERAL FOR A FRIEND, ENTER SHIKARI) to begin recording their new album for an April 2011 release via Earache Records.
Commented THE SOULLESS frontman Andy Wardle: "We couldn't be more excited about going into the studio. We were supposed to be going in in September, but because of the accident it had to be put back. So we've been waiting a long time to get in there! We have used our time well, however, to really tweak all the tracks and we are very happy with the result. We are also looking forward to working with the guys at Outhouse as we think they can really deliver the sound we want for this album."
Vocalist Per Boder (GOD MACABRE, MACABRE END) has joined the Swedish death metal unit MORDBRAND. An EP entitled "Crowning Of The Apocalypse" will be released as a seven-inch single in early 2011.
MORDBRAND guitarist Björn Larsson, who is also a member of THE LAW and KARENSDAG, commented: "To me, GOD MACABRE released a true classic record ('The Winterlong') in 1993 and Per has a very distinct and powerful growl.
"When I approached Per about joining our ranks, he was a bit reluctant since he hadn't sung since GOD MACABRE split up in 1993 or so. But he proved himself to be as vital as in the death metal glory days.
"The new stuff sounds exactly how we hoped it would sound. Deadly, catchy and raw!
"We are very excited about this alliance!"
"Crowning Of The Apocalypse" will consist of three new tracks, and a reworked version of "Big Trouble In Little Chinese Graveyard" (now entitled "Graveyard Re-Visited") with the new vocalist. The track will differ a lot from the old version (which can be found on the split 12inch with EVOKE, available on Me Saco Un Ojo Records).
MORDBRAND is:
Per Boder - Grunts
Björn Larsson - Strings
Johan Rudberg - Battery
For more information, visit www.myspace.com/mordbranddeath.
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