The Music Network reports that legendary hard rockers AC/DC earned AUD 131.4 million (approximately USD $127 million) in 2009-10 (up from AUD $105 million [approximately USD $102 million] last year) to land at the second place on a list of Australia's richest entertainers, according to Business Review Weekly magazine. AC/DC couldn't hold on to last year's top spot, knocked off by Global Creatures. The animatronic special-effects company earned AUD $140 million (approximately USD $135 million) due to the rampaging success of "Walking With The Dinosaurs Arena Spectacular".
AC/DC was honored in the "Top Boxscore" category at the Billboard Touring Awards, which were handed out at a special reception in New York on November 4. The awards are primarily based on global box office numbers reported to Billboard Boxscore from October 1, 2009, through September 30, 2010.
The "Top Boxscore" award recognizes the highest-grossing single engagement for the time period. Two of the Boxscore finalists were from AC/DC: a three-night, sold-out stand at ANZ Stadium in Sydney and three more sellouts at Etihad Stadium in Melbourne; both were in February. The third finalist for Top Boxscore was the Download festival in the U.K.
Pollstar magazine, which tracks the concert business, recently revealed that AC/DC's "Black Ice" trek was the No. 1 tour for the first nine months of 2010, with ticket sales of 1,820,962.
AC/DC drummer Phil Rudd was convicted of cannabis possession in a Tauranga court this morning.
It is the first time Rudd has been convicted of a drug offence, SunLive website reported.
Police discovered the drugs when they executed a search warrant on Rudd's launch at the Tauranga Bridge Marina on October 7.
Inside they found 25 grams of cannabis and a further two grams of cannabis at another location on the boat.
Rudd's lawyer, Craig Tuck, asked community magistrate Robyn Paterson to discharge him without conviction because the "low level" offence could hinder his chances of travelling internationally.
Tuck told Tauranga District Court that Rudd spent nine months travelling the globe with AC/DC in 2009, earning $400 million from concerts.
"Over the last nine months, at least 20 countries have been entered," Tuck said.
"He travels extensively around the globe, across the planet, and on the basis of such criminality, which is low level offending, he is being targeted."
Tuck told the magistrate that Rudd was remorseful and has taken full responsibility for his actions.
He says Rudd has contributed millions of dollars to the local community since moving to Tauranga.
As Rudd left the court he told SunLive, "I'm not a bad person".
Police opposed Tuck's request to have his client discharged without conviction.
They say that if Rudd wanted to enter a country like the United States, he would still have to declare that he has been arrested on drugs charges and appeared in court.
Community magistrate Robyn Paterson refused the request for him to be discharged without conviction saying Rudd was playing "Russian roulette" by being in possession of cannabis.
She says given his age, responsibilities and the fact that he earns multi-millions travelling the world, he should have known how serious a drug conviction could be.
"It was not just an accident. You were blindly ignoring the law. You have been playing Russian roulette."
Rudd was convicted and given a fine of $250 and ordered to pay court fees.
Rudd was a member of AC/DC from 1975 until 1983, and again from 1994 to present.
After the 1977 departure of bass guitarist Mark Evans, he became the only Australian-born member of the band.
During his hiatus from the band, Rudd lived in Tauranga, where he bought a helicopter company.
AC/DC drummer Phil Rudd believes he is being treated unfairly by authorities who convicted him for possessing 27 grams of cannabis.
"Give me a fair go," he told SunLive during an interview at his home today.
Rudd was convicted in the Tauranga District Court yesterday for possession of cannabis found on his launch, Barchetta, on October 7.
"They (police) have been trying to catch me on the road for a while too," he said.
News of the conviction has drawn many comments from the public and Phil says many people have sent him messages of support.
Community magistrate Robyn Paterson convicted him and during proceedings
commented that he was "playing Russian roulette" by being in possession of cannabis.
"My only Russian roulette is surviving life on the road," says Phil.
He still enjoys living in Tauranga and says the conviction has not changed his view about the city.
"I've been here for 30 years. This is my home. My kids are all here. I'm not going anywhere."
Phil has not spoken to the other AC/DC band members about his conviction and is unsure if they will carry out another tour.
"I haven't heard anything. It's hard to say if we will do. When I first joined the band in 1974, we did 174 concerts in 11 months.
"The shows we do these days are not just set up in a day."
Rudd's lawyer, Craig Tuck, asked for his client to be discharged without conviction because it could hinder his chances of travelling internationally.
J.D. Fortune, the Canadian singer who is back fronting the Australian rock band INXS on the road, told the QMI Agency in a recent interview that he has been writing tunes with IRON MAIDEN guitarist Adrian Smith, and that one of his songs has been picked up by producer Jerry Bruckheimer for a movie. No further details are currently available.
As previously reported, Smith has joined forces with three members of SIKTH — including dreadlocked frontman Mikee W. Goodman — along with members of MURDER ONE and VACANT STARE to form a new "metal supergroup" dubbed THE PRIMAL ROCK REBELLION. The band was originally supposed to make its live debut on Saturday, January 15 in High Wycombe at Bucks Student Union, but that show has since been canceled.
THE PRIMAL ROCK REBELLION is:
* Mikee W. Goodman (SIKTH) - Vocals
* Adrian Smith (IRON MAIDEN) - Guitar
* Dan Marshall (MURDER ONE) - Guitar
* James Leach (SIKTH) - Bass
* Dan Foord (SIKTH) - Drums
* James Manning (VACANT STARE) - Keyboards, Backing Vocals
In a statement posted on IRON MAIDEN's official web site, Adrian made it clear that he has no touring plans at the moment other than those with IRON MAIDEN, which will embark on an extensive world tour in early 2011.
The initial dates for UFO's 2011 North American tour have just been revealed. The band will be touring in support of its upcoming studio album, which is slated to be released in June 2011 via SPV/Steamhammer. The East Coast leg of the tour will kick off May 11, 2011 at Bourbon Street in Baltimore, Maryland.
Confirmed dates so far:
May 11 - Baltimore, MD @ Bourbon Street
May 13 - New York, NY @ BB Kings
May 14 - Foxboro, MA (Boston) @ The Showcase Live
May 20 - Chicago, IL @ The Arcada Theater
May 21 - Chicago, IL @ The Aracada Theater
Expect more dates for the East Coast leg of the tour to be announced in the coming days and an announcement will be coming soon about the West Coast leg of the tour, slated to kick off in September.
Quality fan-filmed video footage of UFO's November 1, 2010 concert at The Rock in Copenhagen, Denmark can be viewed below.
UFO's latest best-of collection, "Best Of A Decade", was released in North America on September 28 via SPV/Steamhammer.
The band's most recent studio album, "The Visitor", came out in June 2009.
The current lineup continues to consist of the three original members, Phil Mogg (vocals), Paul Raymond (guitar, keyboards), and Andy Parker (drums), as well as American world-class guitarist Vinnie Moore.
METALLICA's new live album called "Live At Grimey's" sold around 3,000 copies in the United States in just a three-day sales window (Friday-Sunday). The effort is being sold as a standard CD and as a limited-edition two-disc vinyl set in a gatefold sleeve.
Released on Friday, November 26, "Live At Grimey's" is available only at the approximately 700 independent record stores that support the annual Record Store Day, held each year in April. The set was recorded on June 12, 2008 at the tiny 150-capacity venue The Basement, located below the Grimey's New & Preloved Music record store in Nashville. The intimate gig was a warm-up for the band's debut at the Bonnaroo Festival that same weekend.
Drummer Lars Ulrich told The Pulse of Radio why the band decided to put "Live At Grimey's" out through independent stores only. "Pretty much all of my musical inspirations and roots can be traced back to independent record stores, where I sort of put my whole collection together, so when they asked us if we would release the Grimey's performance, it was what we call a no-brainer," he said. "So people that are interested in getting this and supporting the independent record stores, the mom-and-pop record stores, I mean it definitely has that kind of good vibe to it."
In announcing the album, METALLICA posted at its web site, "We were honored to be part of the first-ever annual event celebrating independently owned records stores, a.k.a. Record Store Day, with an in-store at Rasputin Music in Mountain View, California on April 19, 2008 and we're very proud to be a part of another special event with our friends at independent retail."
"Live At Grimey's" track listing:
01. No Remorse
02. Fuel
03. Harvester of Sorrow
04. Welcome Home (Sanitarium)
05. For Whom The Bell Tolls
06. Master of Puppets
07. Sad But True
08. Motorbreath
09. Seek And Destroy
The new DVD and Blu-ray titled "The Big Four: Live From Sofia, Bulgaria", filmed last June at a concert starring METALLICA, SLAYER, MEGADETH and ANTHRAX, has reached gold status in Norway, Portugal, New Zealand, and Germany, and double platinum in France and Australia.
"The Big Four: Live From Sofia, Bulgaria" debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard "Top Music Videos" sales chart earlier this month with sales of 22,000 copies. The set also debuted at No. 1 in Canada, the U.K. and Austria, while entering at No. 4 in Germany.
The show was part of a two-week European tour featuring the four biggest names from the Eighties thrash metal era. The idea first came up last year and METALLICA drummer Lars Ulrich told The Pulse of Radio he was glad to finally see it happen. "It's pretty amazing if you think about it, that it's the first time basically in 25 years or 30 or whatever that the four of us have actually played shows together," he said. "So it was a lot of fun, a lot of memories, a lot of fun times — new fun times, and fun times talking about the old fun times. So it sort of was a, it was a winner on every front."
Michael Monroe, iconic rock 'n' roll frontman and founding member of hugely influential Finnish outfit HANOI ROCKS, has confirmed a 13-date headline U.K. tour for April 2011.
The dates are as follows:
April 04 - Brighton, Concorde 2
April 05 - Bristol, Academy 2
April 06 - Exeter, Phoenix
April 07 - Portsmouth, Wedgewood Rooms
April 08 - London, O2 Academy
April 09 - Leeds, T.J.'s
April 11 - Norwich, Waterfront
April 12 - Newcastle, Academy 2
April 13 - Sheffield, Corporation
April 14 - Manchester, Academy 3
April 15 - Glasgow, Garage
April 16 - Nottingham, Rock City
April 17 - Birmingham, HMV Institute
A support act will be announced in due course.
Monroe recently entered a Los Angeles studio with legendary producer Jack Douglas (AEROSMITH, JOHN LENNON, CLUTCH, SLASH'S SNAKEPIT, NEW YORK DOLLS) to begin recording his new solo album, due in early 2011 via Universal Music subsidiary Spinefarm Records. The CD will feature a guest appearance by MOTÖRHEAD's Ian "Lemmy" Kilmister and three-time Grammy-winning country/folk singer-songwriter Lucinda Williams.
Monroe's brand new live album, "Another Night In The Sun/Live In Helsinki", was released on November 1 via Spinefarm. Mixed in Los Angeles by Niko Bolas (whose credits include NEIL YOUNG, FRANK SINATRA, KEITH RICHARDS, KISS, SPINAL TAP and more) and mastered by Grammy winner Richard Dodd (the man behind TOM PETTY and DIXIE CHICKS), the CD — recorded on July 6 at the Tavastia Club in Helsinki, Finland — features key tracks from Monroe's solo career spiced up with selected HANOI classics, some well-chosen covers, plus two brand new, previously unreleased songs — "You're Next" and "Motorheaded For A Fall".
Monroe's current solo band includes THE WILDHEARTS mainman Ginger on guitar, Yaffa on bass, Steve Conte of NEW YORK DOLLS and COMPANY OF WOLVES fame on guitar, and Karl "Rockfist" Rosqvist, a Swedish/Finnish drummer who has played with both CHELSEA SMILES and DANZIG.
Nikki Sixx has joined forces with Keep a Child Alive's (KCA) co-founders Leigh Blake and Alicia Keys for the launch of the Digital Death campaign as part of KCA's larger fundraising effort Buy Life.
On Wednesday, December 1, World AIDS Day, Nikki Sixx along with fellow celebs Alicia Keys, Lady Gaga, Kim Kardashian, Ryan Seacrest, Justin Timberlake, P. Diddy, Usher, Jennifer Hudson, Khloe Kardashian, Jay Sean, Swizz Beatz, Serena Williams, The Buried Life, Elijah Wood, Janelle Monae, Kimberly Cole, David LaChapelle, Daphne Guinness, Bronson Pelletier and others will end their digital lives and sign off from all social networking platforms, including Twitter and Facebook, in solidarity for those in Africa and India affected by HIV/AIDS. The participating celebrities will not come back online until their digital lives have been bought back and $1 million has been collectively raised for KCA.
Sixx, founding member of MÖTLEY CRÜE and nationally syndicated radio host of "Sixx Sense with Nikki Sixx", says, "Twitter has become somewhat of a lifeline for many people and I think this is a great way to support such a great cause. I look forward to my tweet confirming we've reached our goal of $1 million."
Nikki will direct fans to his personal page at www.buylife.org, where his "last tweet and testament" video will be posted. From there, fans can either donate directly online or text the first name of the celebrity they wish to support (example NIKKI) to 90999 in order to donate $10 to KCA, and then reply YES to confirm their donation.
Keep a Child Alive provides first-class AIDS care, support, nutrition and love to children and families affected by HIV/AIDS in Africa and India. With 30 million already dead, the disease continues to wipe out whole societies, threatening economic infrastructure and devastating the family structure. There are currently 14.9 million AIDS orphans in Africa alone. Anti-retroviral (ARV) treatment has transformed the lives of people with AIDS in the West, returning them to health from illness. However, millions of people with AIDS have no access to these lifesaving drugs. KCA currently provides funding to 10 clinical and orphan care sites in five countries: Kenya, Rwanda, South Africa, Uganda and India; with previous projects in Ethiopia, Kenya, Mali, Zimbabwe and South Africa that have been successfully scaled to new levels of service and self-sustainability within their communities.
Keep a Child Alive is committed to engaging the global public in the fight against AIDS and is proud to be a pioneer in fundraising. KCA was the first charity to ask the public to donate directly to purchase AIDS treatment and the first to make an online documentary, "Alicia in Africa", available for free download. Keep a Child Alive also pioneered text messaging as a means to donate using its innovative Text ALIVE campaign to inspire whole new audiences to support its work. Keep a Child Alive was the first charity to successfully implement a text-message donation campaign in the United States, launching Text "ALIVE" in conjunction with the "As I Am" concert tour of its co-founder, Alicia Keys, in 2008. To date, KCA has raised over $800,000 from one-time $5 donations through texting. Keep a Child Alive's latest campaign, Buy Life, uses the smart-phone applications Wimo/Stickybits to scan bar-code technology to donate directly to KCA. Since founded in
2003, Keep a Child Alive has raised $27 million to fund the sites it supports; $13 million of which is from our legendary Black Ball events.
THE DAMNED THINGS — the new band featuring members of FALL OUT BOY (Joe Trohman, Andy Hurley), ANTHRAX (Scott Ian, Rob Caggiano) and EVERY TIME I DIE (Keith Buckley, Josh Newton) — will perform on the Thursday, January 13 episode of ABC-TV's "Jimmy Kimmel Live!" (which will actually air the morning of Friday, January 14).
THE DAMNED THINGS will release its debut album, "Ironiclast", in North America on December 14 (one day earlier internationally) via Island/Def Jam.
Punk rock icon Henry Rollins celebrating the milestone that is his 50th birthday by booking a few spoken-word shows. The dates include a special 50th-birthday event in Henry's native Washington, D.C. on February 13, sandwiched between multiple-night runs at Joe's Pub in New York (February 8-12) and Largo in Los Angeles (February 16-19).
Pre-sales for the New York and Los Angeles shows started today.
Additional details about Henry's Washington, D.C. birthday event, as well as national tour dates, will be announced soon.
"Relentless", the new album from the legendary Swedish guitarist Yngwie Malmsteen, sold around 1,600 copies in the United States in its first week of release.
Yngwie's previous CD, "Perpetual Flame", opened with around 2,000 units back in October 2008, according to Nielsen SoundScan.
Released on November 22 via Malmsteen's own Rising Force Records, "Relentless" contains more than 60 minutes of brand new material and showcases the guitar great at his best with the signature virtuosity and mind-blowing technical speed for which he has come to be known. "Relentless" also features striking vocals from Tim "Ripper" Owens (JUDAS PRIEST, ICED EARTH), who first collaborated with Malmsteen on "Perpetual Flame" (Malmsteen's first album for the Rising Force Records label).
Of the new album, Malmsteen commented, "The album title really says it all. The drive to surpass my own accomplishments can best be described with one word — relentless. After all these years of composing and playing music, I still am passionate about pushing myself to the limit — to the highest, most demanding level of playing possible."
"Relentless" track listing:
01. Overture
02. Critical Mass
03. Shot Across The Bow
04. Look At You Now
05. Relentless
06. Enemy Within
07. Knight Of The Vasa Order
08. Caged Animal
09. Into Valhalla
10. Tide Of Desire
11. Adagio B Flat Minor Variation
12. Axe To Grind
13. Blinded
14. Cross To Bear
15. Arpeggios From Hell *
* Bonus track
Check out the cover artwork below.
For nearly three decades, Grammy-nominated Swedish guitar icon Yngwie Malmsteen has been amazing audiences with dazzling technical speed and ability. Malmsteen's signature style of playing, which combines elements of seemingly disparate styles of music — metal and classical, spawned the now commonplace genres of heavy metal known as "shred guitar" and "neo classical" and earned Malmsteen the title "the Paganini of heavy metal." Malmsteen was the first guitarist to have his own Fender signature guitar model (even before Eric Clapton). He has graced the cover of more than 200 magazines worldwide, has won every guitar award imaginable and to date, has sold millions of records. Time recently named Malmsteen one of the "Top Ten Greatest Electric Guitar Players," an honor he shared with the likes of Les Paul, Jimmy Page and Jimi Hendrix. "Guitar Hero" enthusiasts know they have arrived when they are bestowed with the Yngwie Malmsteen award in the Xbox 360
version of "Guitar Hero 2". The award signifies a 1000-plus-note streak in succession.
San Francisco Bay Area metallers MACHINE HEAD have begun writing and demoing material for their new studio album, which they hope to begin recording by next April. At least two songs have been fleshed out in demo form, with several others in the works.
MACHINE HEAD's long-awaited follow-up to 2007's "The Blackening" is tentatively due late 2011 via Roadrunner Records.
"The Blackening" was recorded at Sharkbite Studios in Oakland, California with MACHINE HEAD frontman Robb Flynn returning to the producer's chair, and Mark Keaton once again handling engineering duties. Longtime MACHINE HEAD collaborator Colin Richardson (CANNIBAL CORPSE, TRIVIUM, BULLET FOR MY VALENTINE) mixed the record in London.
"The Blackening" — which has garnered numerous awards and enjoyed praise from both critics and fans alike since its release in 2007 — received yet another incredible honor in an issue of U.K.'s Metal Hammer magazine, having been recognized by fans and magazine staff as the "Album of the Decade." The CD, which was re-released as a "special edition" in October 2008 via Roadrunner Records, was also certified silver by the BPI (British Phonographic Industry) for U.K. sales in excess of 60,000 copies.
The management for doom metal legends SAINT VITUS has confirmed to BLABBERMOUTH.NET that the band's former drummer, Armando Acosta, passed away Thanksgiving Day (November 25) at the age of 58.
Armando was one of the original SAINT VITUS members, having joined the group in 1979 when they were known as TYRANT. He was replaced in 2009 by the band's current drummer, Henry Vasquez.
When asked by The Obelisk in a January 2010 interview what caused the split between Acosta and SAINT VITUS, the band's guitarist, Dave Chandler, stated, "He's got some major health problems, and it's just restricting his playing. We had set up to do a really, really big show in France with 100,000 people, 80,000 — the Hellfest. We did Roadburn and like three German shows, and we were like, 'Man, you gotta get help, dude,' because we can't have something going on like this for the France thing, because that could open up a lot of doors for other things.' We played between HEAVEN & HELL and MÖTLEY CRÜE, so we couldn't have stuff screwing up. Hopefully he'll attend to it. We all hope that he does."
An official statement from Dave Chandler and SAINT VITUS regarding Acosta's passing is expected later today.
Doom metal legends SAINT VITUS have released the following statement to BLABBERMOUTH.NET regarding the passing of their former drummer, Armando Acosta:
"It is with great regret that we announce a great loss to the world of heavy metal with the passing of former SAINT VITUS drummer Armando Acosta.
"Armando's last show with SAINT VITUS was April 29, 2009 in Stuttgart, Germany.
"Armando had been struggling with health issues over the years but came back into the VITUS fold for one last hurrah by headlining Roadburn [festival in Tilburg, Holland] in 2009 and playing a handful of European dates directly after the festival.
"Henry Vasquez replaced Armando Acosta in 2009, making his debut on the main stage at Hellfest [in Clisson, France].
"The December 2010 SAINT VITUS tour will be dedicated to our old friend, Armando Acosta.
"R.I.P., brother!!!"
Acosta died Thanksgiving Day (November 25) at the age of 58.
Armando was one of the original SAINT VITUS members, having joined the group in 1979 when they were known as TYRANT.
Jeff "Oly" Olson, former TROUBLE drummer and current host of Internet radio show "Heady Metal With Jeff Olson", has released the following statement regarding the passing of ex-SAINT VITUS drummer Armando Acosta:
"Sadly, it has been confirmed that the original drummer for SAINT VITUS, Armando Acosta, passed on Thanksgiving Day (November 25) at the age of 58.
"I had scheduled an interview with Henry Vasquez (current SAINT VITUS drummer) for this Monday's show before anyone had known of the passing. Therefore, this Monday's (December 6) edition will be a memorial for the late Armando Acosta. The interview with Vasquez will be rescheduled for a later date.
"Armando was one of my dear friends from SAINT VITUS. The last time I saw Armando was when he ate dinner at my house after a SAINT VITUS show in Chicago. He had a very kind heart and was funny.
"I'm saddened by this news. He will be very missed by so many. May he rest in peace."
Armando was one of the original SAINT VITUS members, having joined the group in 1979 when they were known as TYRANT. He was replaced in 2009 by the band's current drummer, Henry Vasquez.
"Heady Metal With Jeff Olson" has moved to a weekly program (previously bi-weekly). The show will continue to air on Monday evenings from 7 to 9 p.m. EST. The encore, however, will now run on Saturdays from 8 to 10 a.m. (previously on Fridays).
"Heady Metal With Jeff Olson" is Olson's first radio show endeavor and features interviews with musicians from different metal genres across the board, comedic segments, music news, and giveaways. The show airs exclusively for Metal Messiah Radio with the podcasts available the following day at the show's newly launched web site.
Olson has been writing and recording in the music industry since the formation of TROUBLE (1979) and holds a Bachelor of Music degree in film scoring, cum laude, from Berklee College of Music.
Hard rock foursome FIREBALL MINISTRY will release the 180-gram white vinyl pressing of its March 2010 self-titled album, "Fireball Ministry" on December 22, 2010 via Restricted Release.
Known by fans and critics alike as an uncompromising, unpretentious and entirely authentic hard rock force, FIREBALL MINISTRY's Rev. James A. Rota II (guitar, vocals), Emily J. Burton (guitar), John Oreshnick (drums) and Johny Chow (bass) re-teamed with renowned producer/engineer Andrew Alekel (QUEENS OF THE STONE AGE, FOO FIGHTERS) for the self-titled LP.
"We are very excited to have a release on vinyl — it's the way nature intended music to be heard," says Rev. James A. Rota II.
Recorded at Grandmaster in Hollywood, with additional vocals tracked at Dave Grohl's 606 Studio, FIREBALL MINISTRY's ten-track, collector's edition LP has a limited run of 1,000 copies and is the band's second release without a traditional label.
The "Fireball Ministry" vinyl pressing is currently available for pre-order at FireballMinistry.com and includes the full album digital download and bonus video for "Butcher, Faker, Policy Maker".
"Fireball Ministry" track listing:
01. Hard Lines
02. Fallen Believers
03. Thought It Out
04. Followed By a Fall
05. Kick Back
06. Butcher, Faker, Policy Maker
07. End of Story
08. Common Enemy
09. Sleeping With Angels
10. In Their Own Right
November 9, 2010 — When you have 25-plus years of metal scene cred under your belt, you basically have permission to do whatever you want. That's what led to power metal pioneers Helloween releasing an experimental album chock-full of remakes of their biggest hits (Unarmed) last year. This time around, they've gone back to their roots: their latest release, 7 Sinners (out now), promises to be the band's heaviest album in years. Below, guitarist Michael Weikath discusses the biggest challenge behind recording the new material, which country has the craziest Helloween fans and the flute solo that can bring alien invaders to their knees.
Thanks so much for your time today Michael, we have a lot of Helloween fans on myYearbook.
Oh really? I just clicked on a guy who is 19-years-old and he looks like I did when I was 17. [Laughs] The same messy hairdo, unshaven and he looks like a wreck. I must be pretty modern, you know?
You've got young people copying off your look now.
Oh, probably. There's like a community in the States of people who want to be like Mikey from Germany.
Your new album, 7 Sinners, is said to be your fastest and heaviest album in years. What made you guys want to return to your roots?
On our previous album, Unarmed, we made renditions of our most well-known tracks in a classical and pop fashion. There were many people who disapproved of that. But we always said we were going to come out with something real heavy next. We had a lot more time than before to come up with new material for 7 Sinners. We had two tracks in the making that had the term 'sinner' in the title. I said to [Andi] Deris, our singer, 'We're not likely to change any of the tracks, so why not call the album something like 'sinner,'?' He said 'Yeah, 7 Sinners!'
Did you encounter any challenges while recording the album?
Yes, in fact we recorded everything on 432 hertz and as opposed to 440 hertz, which would be the usual way of recording ways, but no, we had to do it at 432. Sascha, our guitarist, thought the planet Earth has a frequency of eight hertz and if you multiply that for something to record as an instrument, if you want to have the same vibe, the same swing, it would be 432. There are surely other artists who proclaim that and do recordings at 432. We had to get some extra tuning meters that could be tuned to 432. We record everything that way, for it to come across even more natural, catchy and magical. For us, everything about this record was about being heavy, instant impact and magic.
Do you have a favorite song off the new album so far?
I never have any favorites because albums for me are like photo albums. I would never say, 'Oh that's my favorite photo, and the others I think are crap.' But we have a track called "Are You Metal?" that has the most memorable title. You hear it once and you won't forget it. I wrote a track called "Raise the Noise," which deals with the planet being occupied by another planet and the aliens just faint when they're exposed to complicated things like melodies. We have a flute solo in there that supposedly makes those occupiers faint so they can be collected and held for ransom against the government.
Have you played any of the new songs live yet?
None yet, because the tour starts mid-November. Right now we're doing a video for "Are You Metal?" We're going to do a flashy, heavy metal, speedy, high- impact video. The tour will eventually take us to the United States later on in the next year.
Your last album, Unarmed, featured experimental versions of your songs, including the Prague Symphony Orchestra performing "The Keeper's Trilogy" and a ska version of "Dr. Stein." Was the band happy with the result of Unarmed and is this something you'd consider doing again?
No, not again, but possibly in another 10, 15 years time. If you have the opportunity to do something like that, you want to do it as a musician. I was born in '62, I grew up with the Beatles and Elvis. I have a different view than someone who was born 10 years ago. It's quite OK if there's criticism from evangelists or critical people or whatever. If they don't follow what we did on the record, that's quite OK, you've got to respect that. On the other hand, we had the opportunity to do it, we didn't want to do another unplugged album, we wanted to do it a different way. So that's the result and we were cool with that. It's exactly what we wanted at that point in time.
People maybe think differently about it in 15 or 20 years. That doesn't help anyone right now, but it's fine if in 10, 20 years someone says, 'Hey, I misjudged that back then.' That's just a point in time where you are as a musician, as somebody who's doing creative stuff. If you can do it, you tend to do it. It's for yourself, it's for the fans who appreciate it. You can't be everyone's darling all the time.
As someone who has been in the metal scene for some time, what are your thoughts on where the genre is headed today?
I think it's gotten more and more extreme, whatever that may lead to. I'm an old fart, like I said; I was born in '62. I'm more like a hippie or what people would call a freak. I've been in the business a long time, but that doesn't mean anything. I'd say people will do whatever they like to somehow create an impact.
Are there any metal bands out there right now that you listen to?
I'm not following everything, but the new Ozzy Osborne album is quite great. What I just downloaded on iTunes is the new Soilwork. Soilwork is a pretty extreme band from Sweden and they have the [makes roaring sounds] and they also have melodies. It's extremely intense what they do, but they do it extremely well at the same time. I've loved Muse ever since they did their Showbiz album. I'm a collector of whatever they do because I can't get enough of it.
I've always been a huge Beatles fan, I grew up with that. The re-release of their studio albums sound even better than what I could recreate on my artsy-fartsy, high-fi equipped record players I have, so it's really worth getting those CDs of the re-mastered material. They did that Rock Band Beatles game that was the hugest thing ever. The fact that they are able to release a video game like that just shows how huge they still are.
As a band that's toured in so many countries around the world, which country has the craziest Helloween fans?
That's hard to say because wherever you go, even in the U.S., we have lots of Helloween fans. In South America, Brazil and the other countries down there, we get a big following. Sometimes police are involved because sometimes there's upheaval going on when we play. It's incredible. Wherever you go in Europe, things are more civilized.
Does the band have any preshow rituals?
We have one thing; we touch each other for just one bit, fist to fist or a slap on the shoulder. That's usually what we do before we go on stage. Others have rituals that remind you of football teams, that's what we don't do. We couldn't do that each day, it's too phony.
Thanks for your time today and good luck on your upcoming worldwide tour!
Thank you, I just hope I didn't fuck anything up or make myself appear too stupid.
Not at all!
So Matias, you've been in the band for about two years now. How has the journey been so far?
So far so good. The guys have been very mellow and very nice to work with, so absolutely no reason to complain.
And with Timmo Tolki being in the band for such a long time, how was it to fill those shoes? Did you feel any pressure?: In the beginning of course. I felt a lot of stress and pressure when we first started rehearse the old songs, and at the beginning of the Polaris tour. But now its piece of cake, it's easy. We've now done two records together and proved that we still can compose great songs, so it's all good.
So how was it to enter the studio for the first time?: Well you have to remember, when we first started to record the Polaris album we had no material at all to work with, and I had just began to play with Stratovarius , so we were basically just a bunch of guys putting some music to the table to see if there was something to make an album out of. The results of that later became the Polaris album, which was that kind of album we were able to do at those circumstances. But now the new album is coming out soon, which I think is much much better.
Yeah, about that new album, what can we expect? And What makes it different from the other albums? – Well now we had so much more material to work with. We had almost 18 tracks composed and did a whole lot more rehearsals before the recording sessions began. You certainly get a feel that this is an album we have put much more work into. So more time together as a band and more time in the studio is obviously one of the key ingredients.
On the new album, Elysium, do you have any favorite tracks? : Hmm, I don't know. I think it's was a couple of weeks ago, I was still sitting in the studio mastering and mixing the final bits of the album, so at this point it's very hard for me to say. If you ask me that question in a year or so I can answer you, but it's all been so fucking hectic lately, so I haven't had that much time to think about it.
I see, no doubt about that – But I see that you've written the title track for the album which lasts for about 18 minutes. How do you write and record a song like that? : Well, the song itself took me about a 8 months to write. The whole writing process happened while we were on tour, so it took a little more time that planned. But after that we recorded a demo, and then a second demo, haha, and then we just went in the studio and recorded it like any other track. We are machines!
You surtenly did a lot of writing on the new album, how do you approach the songwriting?
Well, I don't know actually, hard to say. Of course when you have cool riffs or melodies in your head you try to write it down so it will, in the end, develop into real music. But I prefer to maybe get hold of a singable melody first, and THEN put some riffs together and work my way from there. But I'm not that kind of guy that comes up with a couple of chords and has a song ready in ten minutes, It takes usually a few days, weeks or even months.
And when it comes to lyrics? : That's hard to say. Sometimes ideas pops out from nowhere when we are out on tour traveling. So I tend to write about things that I see or experience. Everything makes an impact in some way, so that makes the writing process much easier.
The new album Elysium has an absolutely awesome cover. Is it a story behind it, or is it just, you know, a cover? : Yeah, isn't it? It's done by an Hungarian artist called Gyula Havancsá. I really really like it. He's done the EP as well, but no, there is no story behind it sorry.
When it comes to guitars and equipment, what kind of amps, guitars and effects do you use today in the studio?
Hmm, we did use a lot of the Pro Tools stuff, but afterwards we did some preamping with a ENGL Fireball heads and some vintage celestion 30's which is like a basic Marshall 1968 cabinet. Other stuff we used was a lot of different Marshalls, like JMP's from the late 70's or early 80's, some JCM 800's, for clean parts we used a VOX AC30 Combo. Some tubescreamers, Sonic Maximizer, gates and a Wah Wah of course.
A whole lot of gear in other words he he. Do you try to minimalize your live rig when you're out on tour? Yeah, but not so easy always. I use a ENGL B60 full stack with two heads(Fireball/Powerball) with goes through this small rack which contains a ENGL E-530 tube preamp, the wireless system and a Rockman MIDI Octopus. On the floor I use a Wah-Wah and volume pedals and a TC Electric Nova System to control the rig.
Since Im a guitarist myself, I couldn't help notice you guitarstyle while seeing you guys live at Rockefeller, Oslo last time, You seem like a quite disciplined and accurate guitarplayer. How has your style and sound evolved over the years?
That's hard to say, but I've played a lot of classical music for many years, since I was 5 years old or something, which definitely has impacted my style. My roots sticks pretty deep into the whole classical genre. Technicalwise I've always admired people like Al Di Meola and Eric Johnson. They have very good accuracy and technique in general.
I was going to ask you that Matias, who your favorite guitarplayers are. Any you like to add to the ones you mentioned above?
In addition to Al Di Meola and Eric Johnson? Well of course the whole progressiverock genre has influenced me a lot. Guitarists like John Petrucci from Dream Theatre and Michael Romeo from Symphony-X.
Yeah, that Michael Romeo guy ain't that bad he he:
No, I've could kill myself to play like him, but then I wouldn't be able to play anyway so, HAHA.But he's fuckin' amazing.
But you know, playing in a band like Stratovarius, it is really a great achievement. And for all of us who's still pursuing a career as a guitarist in a band like that, can you please tell us your secret?
HAHAHA, well I really don't know. Maybe you can tell me. Keep practicing and work hard on your playing. The reason why I got to join the band, was because Timmo came by my studio on day and asked me if I wanted to play with the band. I was like "What the fuck? Yeah, let's go for it man" and the rest is history you know.
Thank you so much for you time Matias, I'm really looking forward to see you guys in Oslo. Now GetMetal would like to send all the best wishes to Jörg Michael – A drummer of that caliber can beat any decease on the face of this earth!
No Worries See you at Rockefeller – And I will tell Jörg that. Thank you so much for the support.
British doom metal band ELECTRIC WIZARD will release its long-awaited new album, "Black Masses", in North America on January 18, 2011 via Rise Above Records. The legendary group's seventh studio album and first since 2007's "Witchcult Today" was recorded with Grammy Award-winning British recording engineer Liam Watson (THE WHITE STRIPES) in London's Toe Rag Studios and promises to deliver "a crushing behemoth of funereal march psychedelia" and "the oblivion and ecstasy of 10,000 watts of doom!"
Long hailed as the true heirs to BLACK SABBATH, ELECTRIC WIZARD has achieved near iconic status in the metal underground but has not — as of yet — crushed the world! Now, in league with Satan himself, ELECTRIC WIZARD prepares to annihilate the planet with "Black Masses", its new LP and dark prayer to "Luciferian heavy metal" via crackling, vintage valve amplifiers set to full overdrive. Propelled by gigantic riffs and dripping with dark, bluesy undertones, "Black Masses" is an ugly, sleazy and dirty album steeped in unruly themes of '70s exploitation cinema, occultism, substance abuse and narco-satanism. Taken as a whole, the record creates a twisted amalgam of late 60's dark acid psychedelia and early '80s satanic metal, all draped in both vile, misanthropic imagery and lyrics.
"This ritual incantation of heavy metal sorcery will break down your psyche as wave upon crushing wave of lead weight acid-laced Doom leaves you numb and broken before our unholy altar," declared ELECTRIC WIZARD cult leader Jus Oborn when reached for comment. "Violent, bleak and ritualistic, we bow to the black altar of the RIFF. We do not rock, we kill!"
"Black Masses" track listing:
01. Black Mass
02. Venus in Furs
03. Night Child
04. Patterns of Evil
05. Satyr IX
06. Turn Off Your Mind
07. Scorpio Curse
08. Crypt of Drugula
Accessible and exciting yet violent and evil, ELECTRIC WIZARD has been riding a black wave of success since its formation in 1993. The band is an all encompassing paean to "dark and weird subjects" and a true celebration of bizarre low brow art (think: Weird Tales), vintage horror and B-movies, subversive foreign comics and H.P. Lovecraft coupled with a morbid fascination in cults, witchcraft, freemasonry, biker culture and ancient occult sciences and how these dark arts can be applied to music. The quartet's incendiary and apocalyptic live performances have thrilled audiences the world over culminating in near iconic status amongst true fanatics and devotees of HEAVY music. Now the band has prepared "Black Masses" — its greatest work and bleakest art — in unholy thanks.
In addition to Oborn, ELECTRIC WIZARD features Liz Buckingham (guitar), Tas Danazoglou (bass) and Shaun Rutter (drums/percussion).
Bob Pantella of MONSTER MAGNET, ATOMIC BITCHWAX and RIOTGOD fame is the featured session drummer on LADYKILLER's debut self-titled album. In addition to playing on 13 of the 16 tracks, he engineered all of the drums and most of the guitar tracks in his recording studio in Sayreville, New Jersey.
LADYKILLER is being described in a press release as "the last good thing that will happen to rock 'n' roll until the world ends, roughly one year from now."
For more information, visit www.facebook.com/ladykillerrock.
U.K. thrash metal veterans ONSLAUGHT will release their fifth album, "Sounds Of Violence", via AFM Records on the following dates:
Japan: January 12
Europe: January 28
USA: February 8
The track listing for the effort is as follows:
01. Into The Abyss (intro)
02. Born For War
03. The Sound Of Violence
04. Code Black
05. Rest In Pieces
06. Godhead
07. Hatebox
08. Antiheist
09. Suicideology
10. End Of The Storm (outro)
11. Bomber (MOTÖRHEAD cover)
The effort will be made available in three formats: CD, limited digipack and vinyl.
The follow-up to 2007's "Killing Peace", "Sounds Of Violence" was recorded and mixed at Hansen Studio in Ribe, Denmark with acclaimed Danish producer Jacob Hansen (RAUNCHY, MERCENARY, VOLBEAT, HEAVEN SHALL BURN).
Regarding the direction of ONSLAUGHT's new material, guitarist Nige Rockett previously said, "Musically and lyrically, this is definitely the most brutal and intense ONSLAUGHT album to date. It's full of machine-gun riffs, ferocious drum patterns and some pretty fucked up lyrical content.
"This album was never meant to be pretty. It's not a concept album by any measure but there's a definite theme to the whole package, right through from the sleeve design to the music and onto the words; it's violence all the way.
"There's a lot of hate in 'Sounds of Violence' and a whole lot of reality in there, too, much of it straight from the heart."
ONSLAUGHT will release a double single, "The Sound of Violence" / "Bomber", on December 17 through AFM Records. The single will include one track from "Sounds Of Violence", backed with a cover version of the MOTÖRHEAD classic "Bomber".
SLIPKNOT singer Corey Taylor says he has "no plans" to make a new album with the band "anytime soon" despite drummer Joey Jordison's claim that work on the group's next CD is already underway. Jordison told Billboard.com that he and other members of the group are recording demos of new material separately, and that he hopes to see them get together in the studio sometime in the first half of 2011. He told The Pulse of Radio that he expects great things out of the next SLIPKNOT record. "I think it's gonna be really, really cool," he said. "I think it's gonna be a really, really great record because, I mean, everyone's being really involved in the process and I think it should be, definitely for me it's gonna be, I think it's gonna be a healing process for all of us."
In response, Taylor had the following to say via Twitter: "Before anyone gets the wrong idea, let me be clear. I have NO PLANS to make a new SLIPKNOT album anytime soon. Shows? Maybe. Album? No. As for Joey's comments, he took that on himself to say that in print. I can think of five people in this band who haven't written/heard a thing."
Gray was found dead in a hotel room in a Des Moines, Iowa suburb last May at the age of 38 from an overdose of morphine.
The members of SLIPKNOT have indicated that when they record and tour again — whenever that is — Gray will not be replaced and the bass parts will be played by other members of the group.
Meanwhile, Jordison's side band MURDERDOLLS canceled a tour slated to start on December 3 due to an "unforeseeable family emergency."
Warwick recently conducted an interview with MUDVAYNE bassist Ryan Martinie. A couple of excerpts from the chat follow below.
Warwick: Can you name some of your bass influences as well as some bass players you admire for their playing and/or contribution to bass playing?
Ryan: It's always hard to name influences, I grab from absolutely everyone I hear, including somebody who plays the guitar or brass players or drummers. Your style is made up of everything you ever hear, even though your conscious mind might not remember that you heard it. It's amazing to think that our conscious and unconscious mind working together really makes up who we are as people. But in terms of bassists, I'm all about Steve Bailey right now, he put out record called "So Low" that's really beautiful and quite daring with some of the stuff he does on the fretless bass. He lives not far from here and he was kind enough to drop by for a chat and I got to make the master lunch! As far everyone I've heard, I like many of the legends that influence folks like Jaco, Geddy, Les Claypool, etc. But I try to sound like myself even though I draw from these influences. I think everyone should sound like themselves and explore as much music as they can,
including less obvious stuff like the role of the bass in more recent pop music.
Warwick: How do you feel about MUDVAYNE's latest album, why did you make such a drastic change in your bass tone?
Ryan: I helped make the record, so I'm proud of it. As far as a change, we changed some of our gear for one thing which made a difference sonically. As well it was produced by us and Jeremy Parker, who hadn't done any of our other records. It wasn't a conscious choice, a lot of people don't realize in recording situations how difficult it is to find and make space, and things are often shaped like that. It's whether something works with anything else or not. I just try to find the best way to be heard and at the same time remain musical with those songs.
Warwick: There are lots of rumors of you having a side project. What musical direction will this be going in? Do you intend to share it soon with the world? Which musicians do you target to work with you?
Ryan: I'm not going to comment specifically on that, because nothing is really solidified in terms of who I'm working with. But yes, of course, I will share it with the world when the time comes and it's something relevant that I'm happy with. I'm always messing around with ideas but I don't necessarily record them. If they are important enough and strong enough ideas then I'll remember it, I'm not about forcing things. I don't like to have to make music. It's good to be able to let go of music after experiencing it. A melody can have an aspect to it that's like nature, has a life cycle, and it can come and go.
Warwick: What is your opinion on the direction that MUDVAYNE has taken since you guys first began, not just specifically your opinion on the last record.
Ryan: I think that what we did is valuable. It's become a cog in the wheel of music in some sort of way. We are a piece of musical history now. I'm not trying to sound pretentious when I say that, it's there whether I like it or not. I don't know that we had the foresight to look ahead, and see where the band would take us and what level we would reach. We were always just responding to our environment. I always saw the band to be important as an aspect of my life, as something that was supposed to take us places that are positive, and in that sense everything that happened with the band has happened for a reason.
Warwick: Concerning your relationship with your fans. Do you try to make yourself available to hang out a little and talk with them or do you find that you have to maintain a little distance from them for security reasons or possibly other reasons?
Ryan: Man, I always try to talk to everybody, unless I'm just burnt, but even in those times I try my hardest. Having said that, in general you shouldn't always expect musicians or performers to talk to you after the show, the performance is the show! You don't go to the movies and, "That was great. Now where's Tom Cruise?" But I usually just choose to go out and talk to everybody, I've always felt really safe around fans, even though there must be disgruntled people out there but generally people are very nice and sincerely want to meet me and talk with me.
Drummer Chris Adler of Richmond, Virginia metallers LAMB OF GOD told the Gun Shy Assassin that the band is preparing to begin writing material for the follow-up to 2009's "Wrath", tentatively due in late 2011/early 2012 via Epic.
"We just finished all the touring for 'Wrath' which ended up taking, in full, about two years; I think the longest we were home at any time during those two years was about three weeks, so it's not often that — just kind of seeing what's going on out there — bands are able to tour that long," Adler said. "In fact, most bands are struggling to do anything and they're putting out an album a year. We've been lucky to be able to keep going and it's been cool, but it's also been really exhausting, so we're going to kind of lay low for the holidays, and then I think probably February, get together and start writing the new one which we hope to have done by the end of next year."
He added, "We're already booked for several tours in 2012, so, we've already got the schedule rolling and a little job security, so things are good. We're booked through the end of July of 2012… if we can hold it together."
Regarding the songwriting process for the next CD, Adler said, "It's going to take a minute, but hopefully February, we'll start knocking around ideas. I know there are a lot of ideas already. I think [guitarists] Willie [Adler, Chris' brother] and Mark [Morton] have eight or nine really good long ideas of what they want to do. We are working with [producer] Josh Wilbur again and hoping by July, we will be in a studio somewhere, with songs written, kind of banging 'em out."
"Wrath" sold around 68,000 copies in the United States in its first week of release to debut at position No. 2 (behind TAYLOR SWIFT's "Fearless") on The Billboard 200 chart.
LAMB OF GOD's 2006 album, "Sacrament", opened with around 63,000 units to land at No. 8. This represented almost double the amount of records sold by its predecessor, "Ashes Of The Wake", which registered a first-week tally of 35,000 in September 2004.
"Wrath" was released in North America on February 24, 2009 via Epic. The CD was issued in other territories through Roadrunner Records.
"Wrath" was produced by Josh Wilbur and was recorded in studios in New York, Virginia, and New Hampshire.
The "Wrath" album was released in four configurations: an LP, a CD, a deluxe-edition CD with bonus disc — which contains isolated recording parts — as well as a super-deluxe version featuring a limited-edition box containing an LP, deluxe-edition CD and USB drive containing two exclusive bonus tracks.
NUCLEAR ASSAULT and 3 INCHES OF BLOOD have been confirmed for next year's edition of the Manitoba Metalfest, set to take place March 24-26, 2011 at the Park Theatre and the Zoo in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada.
The festival billing is shaping up as follows:
Thursday, March 24 at the Park Theatre (all ages; $15)
3 INCHES OF BLOOD
ELECTRO QUARTERSTAFF
GRAND MASTER
TYRANTS DEMISE
Friday, March 25 at the Zoo (18+; $20)
3 INCHES OF BLOOD
DREADNAUT
LEGION OF LIQUOR
PROPHET
DISSOLUTION
Saturday, March 26 at the Zoo (18+; $20)
NUCLEAR ASSAULT
PUTRESCENCE
FUCK THE MIDDLE EAST (S.O.D. tribute)
EVIL SURVIVES
BESIEGED
For more information, visit www.myspace.com/manitobametalfest08.
Long-running Maryland doom legends IRON MAN have parted ways with vocalist Joe Donnelly (also from the BLACK SABBATH tribute band SABBRA CADABRA) and have replaced him with "Screaming Mad" Dee Calhoun (ex-AFTER THERAPY, LAND OF DOOM). According to the band, "Dee brings a very powerful and unique 'metal' voice to IRON MAN's ever-evolving music."
A new IRON MAN release featuring Calhoun should be out sometime in 2011.
Joe is still with SABBRA CADABRA and will now be pursuing a soon-to-be-announced side project as well as a solo release in the near future.
Reactivated seminal technical metal pioneers ATHEIST will embark on a headlining tour of Europe in April 2011.
Confirmed dates are as follows:
April 22 - Oslo, Norway - Rockefeller Music Hall (Inferno Fest)
April 23 - London, England - Relentless Garage
April 24 - Essen, Germany - Turock
April 25 - Paris, France - Divan du Monde
April 26 - Zürich, Switzerland - Dynamo
April 27 - Milan, Italy - Live Club
April 28 - München, Germany - Feierwerk, Kranhalle
April 29 - Tilburg, Holland - Neurotic Death Fest
April 30 - Athens, Greece - Kyttaro Live
Commented ATHEIST frontman Kelly Shaefer: "Thank you all for the overwhelming support of our new album, 'Jupiter'. We are humbled by all of the nice things being said about the new stuff and cannot wait to bring it to the stage. So now it's time to come pull some faces off in Europe on our first headlining run in support of the new album! And we are stoked to share the tour with the boys from EXHUMED. We are able to play a few places we have never been before so we are all very excited about that, as well as the fact that we of course have some fun new shit to play live — the songs from 'Jupiter' along with songs from all three prior albums."
"Jupiter" sold around 500 copies in the United States in its first week of release. The CD landed at position No. 88 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.
"Jupiter" was released on November 9 (one day earlier internationally) via Season Of Mist. The CD was recorded at LedBelly studios in Atlanta, Georgia with engineer Matt Washburn and was mixed by Jason Suecof (TRIVIUM, CHIMAIRA, DEVILDRIVER). The cover artwork (see below) was created by Eliran Kantor, who has previously worked with TESTAMENT, SIGH, ANACRUSIS and GWAR, among others.
"Jupiter" track listing:
01. Second To Sun
02. Fictitious Glide
03. Fraudulent Cloth
04. Live And Live Again
05. Faux King Christ
06. Tortoise The Titan
07. When The Beast
08. Third Person
KAMELOT bassist Sean Tibbetts has joined THE EVIL AMIDST, the South Florida-based "all-star" death metal band featuring members of MALEVOLENT CREATION, HATE PLOW and KULT OV AZAZEL. But fear not, KAMELOT fans — Tibbetts will remain in KAMELOT, pulling "double duty."
Commented THE EVIL AMIDST guitarist Gio Geraca: "Sean has been a longtime friend and he is an amazing bass player. He is a big fan of our music and has decided to put his talents to use for any future tours and recordings for us. His classical style of power metal should add to the ever expanding sound of THE EVIL AMIDST."
THE EVIL AMIDST's recently released debut album, "Lords Of The Nine", is available via iTunes. The CD was produced by Brian Elliott (CANNIBAL CORPSE, VITAL REMAINS) at Mana Recording Studios in St. Petersburg, Florida.
THE EVIL AMIDST is:
* Gus Rios (MALEVOLENT CREATION) - Drums
* Gio Geraca (MALEVOLENT CREATION) - Guitar
* Lenny Warmbrandt (HATEPLOW) - Vocals
* Xaphan (KULT OF AZAZEL) - Guitar
* Sean Tibbetts (KAMELOT) - Bass
For more information, visit the group's MySpace page.
Current TRIPTYKON and former HELLHAMMER/CELTIC FROST singer, guitarist, and main songwriter Tom Gabriel Warrior has posted the following message on his official blog:
"I just returned home to Zurich from essential visits, together with TRIPTYKON guitarist V. Santura, to the offices of Century Media Records (TRIPTYKON's worldwide recording licensing partner) and Twisted Talent Concerts (TRIPTYKON's concert agency), in Dortmund, Germany. Much time was spent critically assessing the activities of the past few months and discussing TRIPTYKON's future plans and projects. I took the train home, as I've done before, because it gives me plenty of time to think, read, and listen to music.
"In spite of intending to also listen to much newer releases on my MP3 player, I eventually never deviated during the entire, long ride from listening to DEEP PURPLE Mk. II, III, and IV, and to EMERSON, LAKE & PALMER. This is music I already listened to as a young teenager, long before I even remotely thought I would ever have the chance to become a musician myself. It has never lost its intensity and magic for me. Quite on the contrary, in fact. It served to flood my mind with so many thoughts and images.
"Everything else in the world — TRIPTYKON, music, touring, and what have you — becomes entirely insignificant, however, when you are told that Jörg Michael, friend for many years, business partner in Twisted Talent Concerts, and drummer in STRATOVARIUS, is in the process of fighting cancer."
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) — has been confirmed for next year's edition of the Metal Female Voices Fest, set to take place October 21-23 at Oktoberhallen in Wieze, Belgium.
The festival billing is shaping up as follows:
AMARANTHE
BENEDICTUM
DRACONIAN
ECHOTERRA
HANGING DOLL
MIDNATTSOL
NEMHAIN
VISIONS OF ATLANTIS
For more information, visit www.metalfemalevoicesfest.be.
AMARANTHE recently entered Hansen Studio in Ribe, Denmark with producer Jacob Hansen (VOLBEAT, MERCENARY, NIGHTRAGE) to begin recording its debut album for a spring 2011 release via Spinefarm Records.
AMARANTHE vocalist Elize Ryd was selected to fill the female singer spot on KAMELOT's last European tour.
AMARANTHE is:
* Olof Mörck (NIGHTRAGE, DRAGONLAND) - Guitar, Keyboards
* Jake E (ex-DREAM EVIL, DREAMLAND) - Clean Vocals
* Andy Solveström (WITHIN Y, EVILDOER, CIPHER SYSTEM) - Screams
* Morten Lowe Sorensen (THE ARCANE ORDER, SUBMISSION) - Drums
* Johan Andreassen (ex-ENGEL) - Bass
* Elize Ryd - Female Vocals
For more information, visit www.myspace.com/amaranthemetal.
Swedish doom/death metal act THE GARDNERZ has inked a deal with Abyss Records. The band's debut album, "The System Of Nature", is due in early 2011.
01. The Art Of Suffering
02. Lady In The Grave
03. Your Final Solution
04. Born To Consume
05. Incident
06. Shift In Thought
07. Flaw In The Axiom
08. More Or Less
09. Confusion
10. Maybe It's Time
11. Bloody Vengeance (VULCANO cover)
12. Servants Of The Warsmen (WINTER cover)
A doomy death metal band from the south of Sweden, THE GARDNERZ was formed in the middle of 2008 by Wilhelm. In late 2008 Francisco joined the band and our debut album started to take shape. A longtime friend of Francisco, Juan Pablo was recruited to do the drums and after a long time of searching for a vocalist Niclas stepped in to the picture.
Commented the band: "Blending slow and heavy riffs with melodies distorted and clean, we try to create our own slice of metal. Taking influences from all over the musical spectra, but keeping a solid metal foundation. Mixing technicality with simplicity to get such a varied album as possible. The lyrics deal with philosophical ideas and random rants about the strange ways of man, covering topics such as: the fallacies of religion, the rat-race of our over-consuming life style, the hypocrisy found in the writing of history, how a seemingly insignificant event shapes a man's entire life."
THE GARDNERZ is:
Niclas Ankarbranth (VANDÖD, D.JOSEF BAND) - Vocals
Wilhelm Lindh (ex-TRISTITIA) - Guitar
Francisco Martín (INNER SANCTVM, SACRAMENTO) - Bass
Juan Pablo Donoso (SADISM, THORNAFIRE) - Drums
For more information, visit www.thegardnerz.com.
KYPCK ("Kursk" in the western alphabet) — the Russian-singing Finnish doom metal band featuring former SENTENCED guitarist Sami Lopakka (a.k.a. S.S. Lopakka) — will release its sophomore album, which is named after the Russian word for "lower" (pronounced "nizhe"), on February 9, 2011 via an as-yet-undisclosed record label.
"Lower" track listing (English translations; all original titles are in Russian):
01. Gifarus
02. After
03. The Alley Of Stalin
04. Stranger
05. Felitsa
06. Rupture
07. Burlaks On The Volga
08. Brothel
09. Comrades
10. Death Waltz
The CD will have a total running time of approximately one hour.
Florida-based death metallers SIX FEET UNDER have canceled their "Christmas Metal Meeting" tour which was supposed to kick off today (Wednesday, December 1) in Cologne, Germany.
Commented vocalist Chris Barnes: "Circumstances and events beyond our control has forced the cancellation of our December tour in Europe. We are deeply aware of the burden this puts on our loyal fans and we apologize. We live to play in front of our fans and our commitment to our European fans could not be stronger. You have always been there for SIX FEET UNDER and we do not take that for granted. You are important to US! In April 2011 we will do a tour of Europe to support our new DVD, 'Wake The Night! Live In Germany'. We will make as many of these canceled dates as possible while adding many more. Thank you for understanding but more importantly, thanks for supporting SIX FEET UNDER."
Affected dates:
Dec. 01 - DE - Köln - Essigfabrik
Dec. 02 - DE - Adelsheim - Live Factory
Dec. 03 - DE - Berlin - K 17
Dec. 04 - DE - Glauchau - Alte Spinnerei
Dec. 05 - DE - Cham - L.A.
Dec. 06 - SI - Ljubljana - Gala Hala Metelkova
Dec. 07 - AT - Vienna - Szene
Dec. 09 - AT - Graz - Explosiv
Dec. 10 - AT - Aigen - Kikas
Dec. 11 - DE - Bischofswerda - East Club
Dec. 12 - DE - Kassel - Kulturfabrik Salzmann
The third installment of SIX FEET UNDER's cover series, "Graveyard Classics 3", sold around 800 copies in the United States in its first week of release. The CD landed at position No. 31 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.
Released on January 19 via Metal Blade Records, "Graveyard Classics 3" was recorded at D.O.I. Digital Audio in Tampa, Florida, was mixed at Audiohammer Studios by Mark Lewis, and was produced by vocalist Chris Barnes.
SIX FEET UNDER covered AC/DC's entire "Back In Black" album for "Graveyard Classics 2", which came out in October 2004.
The original "Graveyard Classics" LP, was released in October 2000. It included cover versions of BLACK SABBATH's "Sweet Leaf", DEEP PURPLE's "Smoke on the Water" and JIMI HENDRIX's "Purple Haze".
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