Jimmy Page has promised to make a "radical" solo album.
The former Led Zeppelin star is currently working on his first new LP since 1988 and has warned fans to open their expectations of the music.
He said: "I think it's very important to do some musical statements with new material and that's exactly what I plan to do over the forthcoming year. Musically it will be a different picture in quite a radical frame, I hope. I'd like to try some ambitious projects. But we'll see."
Jimmy also played down rumours of a rift between himself and former bandmate Robert Plant , insisting they get on "fine" and claiming to be a big fan of the singer's recent work with Alison Krauss .
He added: "the one thing I don't want to do is to try to make it look as though I'm trying to be controversial about what they're doing. Whatever anyone else does is fine. Theirs was a really acclaimed album, and it's really good."
Ben Lammas of Express & Star recently conducted separate interviews with JUDAS PRIEST frontman Rob Halford, Rob's sister Sue, his brother Nigel and Rob's parents Barrie and Joan (both of whom are in their 80s). A few excerpts follow below.
On the possibility of a hometown performance — in Walsall, a large industrial town in West Midlands County in England, U.K. — one day in the future:
Rob: "If someone came up with an idea and we could get everyone there in the same place I would never say never to performing back in Walsall, you can't beat a local gig."
On retaining a house in Walsall which he tries to return to a few times a year from his base in America where he spends most of his time in San Diego:
Rob: "I miss good chips or a curry, I still have my British accent and I love my home town. I come back two or three times a year for flying visits and always for Christmas and New Year.
"I would hate it if I could not come back and push my trolley around The Saddlers centre. I think it must be terrible for these people who are hugely famous and can't even do that sort of thing."
On how Rob Halford came to join JUDAS PRIEST:
Sue (Rob's sister): "The original JUDAS PRIEST had split up and were looking for a singer . I was going out with Ian Hill [JUDAS PRIEST bassist] at the time, who plays bass, and I met Ken [JUDAS PRIEST guitarist K.K. Downing] through Ian.
"Rob was in his own band at time but had a reputation already and Ian and Ken were asking me about him.
"I went to meet Rob with Ken and with a little gentle persuasion he agreed to join as long as he could bring his drummer John Hinch with him. So I like to think I had a bit to do with their success. The lineup has stayed pretty much the same but the drummers have changed over the years."
On never tiring of playing in a band:
Rob: "I still love being in a band — even when PRIEST was at the height of its success in the '70s and on 'Top of the Pops', we always kept our noses to the grindstone and never put our feet up. I think that is a Black Country sensibility.
"I never really had any other ambition when I left school I went to work at the Grand Theatre at Wolverhampton and would stand at the side of the stage and watch the magic of those shows. That would really be exciting and gave me added determination to be on stage.
"I used to play at venues in Freer Street and at the town hall and working men's clubs.
"The thing about JUDAS PRIEST was we never turned down a gig and we had some bizarre ones."
On when Rob's family realized he had made it big:
Nigel (Rob's brother): "There is a bit of an age gap between me and Rob but when I was at Frank F Harrison School some of the metal fans put two and two together and realized who I was related to and it was only then I really realized how famous he was."
Barrie (Rob's father): "Success hasn't changed Rob at all even though he's known throughout the world as The Metal God."
DANZIG is the latest act confirmed for the 2010 edition of the Sauna Open Air festival which is scheduled for June 11th - 12th at Eteläpuisto in Tampere, Finland.
Acts confirmed for the festival include: ANVIL, CHILDREN OF BODOM, GRAVE DIGGER, KISS, LIPUT, RATT.
More acts will be confirmed soon.
German guitarist AXEL RUDI PELL and his solo band have finished recording their new studio CD which he calls "definitely our masterpiece!" He adds, "Everybody in the band is so excited about the new songs and I really can say that it will be our best album by far."
Pell and producer Charlie Bauerfeind (BLIND GUARDIAN, HAMMERFALL, RAGE) are currently finalizing the new album mix for a tentative spring release.
In other news, AXEL RUDI PELL will release a new DVD called "One Night Live - Live At The Rock Of Ages Festival 2009" in Germany on February 19 and in the rest of the world on February 22. Pell states, "As the title [implies], [the disc] features our complete 75-minute performance [at] last year's Rock Of Ages festival in Germany. We definitely didn't do any overdubs, so what you hear and see is what really happened that night, with all the mistakes and 'blue' notes! But that's liv(f)e!!!"
A "best-of" compilation from AXEL RUDI PELL was released last year via SPV in time for the second part of the axeman's "The Skull Crown Tour" which saw his band support HEAVEN & HELL on all five dates of their German tour. Entitled "Best Of - Anniversary Edition", the CD celebrated the ten-year anniversary of PELL's current lineup, the 20-year anniversary of Axel as a solo artist ("Wild Obsession" came out in 1989) and the 25th anniversary of Axel as a recording artist (the first STEELER record came out in 1984).
"Tales Of The Crown" was recorded at Gelsenkirchen's Redhouse Studios by the tried-and-tested lineup consisting of Axel Rudi Pell, American vocalist Johnny Gioeli, keyboardist Ferdy Doernberg, bassist Volker Krawczak and drummer Mike Terrana. The album was produced by Axel Rudi Pell and sound engineer Charlie Bauerfeind, who also mixed the CD.
According to JonLord.org, former DEEP PURPLE keyboardist Jon Lord will release his next album, "To Notice Such Things", on March 22 through Avie Records.
Titled after the main work — a six movement suite for solo flute, piano and string orchestra — the album was inspired by, and is dedicated to the memory of Jon's dear friend Sir John Mortimer, the English barrister, dramatist, screenwriter , author and creator of British television series "Rumpole of The Bailey", who died in January 2009.
"He was a great friend and a great inspiration to me and I hope my love and respect for him comes out in the music ," says Jon.
"A few weeks after he passed away, I was offered a commission to write a piece for solo flute and strings — a flute concerto in essence. At first I turned it down because I thought there wasn't enough time, but after a couple of days of thought, I realized that I had these three little pieces for flute and piano that I had written for the theater shows that I used to do with Sir John, and I thought that they might provide the basis for this 'flute concerto' and that I could write in his memory.
"John and I became friends about 12 years ago. A couple of years later he asked if I would be interested in playing the piano and writing a bit of music for him, for his theater shows — Mortimer's Miscellany — during which he sat on the stage and, accompanied by two actresses, a pianist and a flute player, he read poetry and prose, told stories and jokes and related hilarious legal anecdotes, giving his wonderfully wise and witty take on life, love and the law."
The music written for those shows has now evolved into Jon's new album, "To Notice Such Things".
"There was a total of about six minutes of music which has now grown into a 27-minute suite for solo flute, piano and string orchestra," Lord says. "I wrote it during March, April and May, and it was an emotional yet fascinating experience to work on it when John's presence was still so very strong. In fact it still is, but back then he had only just passed away.
"I think he's pretty much in every note of the piece and I'm really pleased with it, because I think he would be happy with what my thoughts about him are."
The suite ends with a movement called Afterwards, named after the Thomas Hardy poem that John Mortimer used to read at the end of his show.
Both the Suite itself and the album are called "To Notice Such Things" because the last line of the Hardy poem are "He was a man who used to notice such things."
The all-instrumental album was recorded at the end of last September with the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra conducted by Clark Rundell with Cormac Henry on flute, and also features three additional pieces.
"To Notice Such Things" track listing:
01. To Notice Such Things
a. As I Walked Out One Evening
b. At Court
c. Turville Heath
d. The Stick Dance
e. The Winter of a Doormouse
f. Afterwards
02. Evening Song
03. For Example
04. Air on the Blue String
Germany-based singer Cloudy Yang (pictured below) has joined the list of guest musicians who will appear on the forthcoming release from EDGUY frontman Tobias Sammet's AVANTASIA project.
Commented Tobias: "I know people have speculated and thrown in a lot of names [about which female vocalist will appear on the next AVANTASIA album], but it's not about names, it's foremost about quality.
"Together with the amazing Amanda Somerville, Cloudy Yang had been singing backing vocals during the AVANTASIA world tour, and also performed backing vocals for EDGUY's 'Dragonfly'. Cloudy's vocals are simply terrific! And having a gifted singer like that in my extended rock and roll family that a lot of people may not have known yet, I consider it my duty to give her as much exposure as I possibly can.
"Cloudy had sung the demo that we had recorded to guide the real singer later on — whoever that was going to be. But Cloudy was perfect on that demo, and we really, really had to keep her vocals on there. She reminds me a lot of Lisa Dalbello, some people said Kate Bush . You will hear it — she is nothing but amazing!"
So far Tobias has confirmed the following musicians to be part of the forthcoming AVANTASIA opus:
* Klaus Meine (SCORPIONS)
* Tim "Ripper" Owens (JUDAS PRIEST , YNGWIE MALMSTEEN, ICED EARTH)
* Eric Singer (KISS, ALICE COOPER )
* Michael Kiske (HELLOWEEN)
* Jorn Lande (MASTERPLAN, ARK, MILLENIUM)
* Bob Catley (MAGNUM)
* Sascha Paeth
* Felix Bohnke (EDGUY)
* Alex Holzwarth (RHAPSODY, SIEGES EVEN)
* Russell Allen (SYMPHONY X)
* Jens Johansson (STRATOVARIUS, DIO, YNGWIE MALMSTEEN)
* André Matos (ANGRA, SHAAMAN, VIPER)
* Bruce Kulick (KISS, GRAND FUNK RAILROAD)
* Cloudy Yang
AVANTASIA project will celebrate its comeback next year with a new epic masterpiece, to be released on April 3, 2010 as two separate albums and in a limited deluxe edition (in one box set) entitled "The Wicked Symphony" and "Angel Of Babylon".
Regarding his decision to release the next AVANTASIA chapter in two separate CDs, Tobias said, "I have always given my very best, but this new chapter in AVANTASIA's history is too much and too ambitious to be just a regular album. I have worked on it for years now, and it has become even more than two albums!
"I knew that story would be spread out over two albums back then when we started working on it in 2006, 'cause we had written a real rock opera of over 20 songs even back then. But since then, we kept composing, and out came even bigger and better material.
"Looking at the music industry today with all the CD burning and downloading, I guess in the near future many of us traditional rock and metal bands won't be able to spend such a production budget. I am afraid I won't be able to afford so many guests and such a big production with orchestration and a choir and all that. That's why this production takes so much time; it may be the last big epic I will be able to afford, and I want it to be the biggest piece I have worked on so far."
Kiske has appeared on every AVANTASIA album so far, including the first two full-length releases, "The Metal Opera" (2001) and "The Metal Opera Pt. II" (2002).
On the topic of the new AVANTASIA album's musical direction, Sammet recently stated, "We've got quite many songs, and it ranges from epic ballads to metal opera. From pop to hard rock to folk to speed metal. My best friend, who co-wrote the story of 'The Metal Opera' back then, just listened to some of the tracks and he said that it will blow people away and enchant AVANTASIA fans and it will surely piss people off . . . It's just enchanting music. And these days honest and good music is kind of offending to some, that's pretty sick, isn't it? But as long as I get goose bumps hearing majestic music, I do not really care if I am fashionable or not."
The most recent album from AVANTASIA, "The Scarecrow", was one of the 20 best-selling albums in whole Europe during the fourth week of January 2008, according to a press release.
"The Scarecrow" was released on January 25, 2008 as a standard CD as well as rare picture (double) vinyl. It features a long list of guest musicians, including Bob Catley, ex-MASTERPLAN frontman Jorn Lande, ex-HELLOWEEN singer Michael Kiske, Alice Cooper, KISS drummer Eric Singer, SCORPIONS guitarist Rudolf Schenker and GAMMA RAY's Kai Hansen. The album produced a Top 10 German hit single, "Lost In Space", and entered the national charts in 15 countries, with the CD landing in the Top 10 in four countries.
DREAM EVIL, PESTILENCE and STATE:CHAOS have been confirmed for this year's edition of the Elsrock festival, set to take place August 28, 2010 in Rijssen, Netherlands.
The festival billing is shaping up as follows:
DREAM EVIL
HAIL OF BULLETS
ONSLAUGHT
PESTILENCE
STATE:CHAOS
For more information, visit www.elsrock.nl.
AVIAN, the melodic metal band featuring singer Lance King (BALANCE OF POWER, PYRAMAZE) and guitarist Yan Leviathan, is currently in pre-production for its third album, to be released in late 2010/early 2011.
Commented Leviathan:"The new material is heading toward a heavier and faster feel than the previous two albums. There will be a few of the trademark riff-heavy songs reminiscent of 'From The Depths Of Time' and 'Ashes And Madness', in addition to the heavier and faster songs. Yes, I know that every band says that, but what else are we going to say?! That the new songs are slower and melower? They're not, so please forgive the cliché."
AVIAN will support HAMMERFALL on Thursday, March 18 at the Station 4 in St. Paul, Minnesota. Leviathan says, "This is a treat for me, as HAMMERFALL have been a huge influence on me. I am looking forward with much anticipation to sharing the stage with this amazing band."
AVIAN's sophomore album, "Ashes and Madness", was released in Europe in February 2009 via Germany's Silverwolf Productions.
The recording lineup for the CD was as follows:
Lance King - Vocals, Keyboards
Yan Leviathan - Guitar, Bass
Jerry B. - Drums
Bill Hudson (ex-CELLADOR) - All Guitar Solos
Former SKID ROW singer Sebastian Bach was interviewed earlier this month on "The Paulie Z Show". The chat is now available for streaming using the audio player below.
When asked about his current record-label situation, Bach said, "The music industry's so screwed up, I almost don't wanna even rely on anybody but me. Even though I am doing another record, but it's so cool to be in control of your music and be able to just get it out without asking anybody, you know what I mean?!
"I have my own label, Get Off My Bach, which is distributed through EMI, and we sold about 200,000 [copies] worldwide of [Bach's latest solo album] 'Angel Down' so far, which is recouped from this little record company that I work with. I'd like to be on a way bigger label and all that, but I can't control things like that.
"Just to paint a picture for everybody, Jason Flom [former A&R rep at Atlantic Records ] signed SKID ROW and a million other bands. He's the guy who signed us. He also got me on Broadway. He's always been there for me. He has this thing in his contract where he gets this thing called the first right of refusal on anything that I do, and that's for the rest of my life. So whenever I make a CD, he gets it first. He got 'Angel Down' first and he passed on it. He gave it to Jack Ponti at MRV [Merovingian Music, Ltd.], who signed it. Now that was a very cool thing for him to do. But the fans should know that Jason Flom passed on me, Sebastian Bach, with Axl Rose on a record and then he put out STEEL PANTHER. (Laughs) I just want people to realize that — this same guy who says no to Sebastian Bach and Axl Rose together on record — 'No. No, thanks.' — he says yes to a bunch of fucking goofs, clowns, comedy guys. He says yes to them.
"We live in a world [where] VAN HALEN doesn't have a record deal. I mean, Eddie Van Halen doesn't have a fucking record deal. (Laughs) How can there be such a thing as rock and roll if VAN HALEN doesn't have a record deal? (Laughs)"
Bach's current solo band includes guitarists Nick Sterling and Johnny Chromatic, drummer Bobby Jarzombek and bassist Rob DeLuca.
Bach and DANKO JONES will support GUNS N' ROSES on their upcoming Canadian tour in January/February.
Quality video footage of Bach and his solo band performing the SKID ROW classic "Big Guns" on December 21, 2009 at B1 Maximum in Moscow, Russia can be viewed below.
Sebastian recently collaborated with HATEBREED frontman Jamey Jasta on several tracks for Bach's new solo album, with Nick and Charlie Bellmore of the Connecticut band PHANTOMS assisting during the pre-production process. The singer has also written material with John 5 (ROB ZOMBIE, MARILYN MANSON).
Congratulations are in order for Pepper Keenan (DOWN, CORROSION OF CONFORMITY) whose significant other gave birth to a baby girl, Flannery Rose, over Christmas.
DOWN is scheduled to return to the studio soon to begin writing what will eventually become the band's fourth album, tentatively due in late 2010. The group's long-awaited rockumentary, "Down – Diary of a Mad Band", is expected this spring.
Bassist Rex Brown sat out DOWN's recent North American tour because he had his gallbladder and polyps on his pancreas removed in September in a surgical procedure.
Rex is suffering from acute pancreatitis, a sudden inflammation of the pancreas which can have severe complications and high mortality despite treatment.
DOWN tapped Danny Theriot of Metairie, Louisiana to fill in on bass for the group's North American trek, which kicked off on August 3, 2009 at Beaumont Club in Kansas City, Kansas.
Los Angeles' FIREBALL MINISTRY will release its self-titled fourth album on March 16 via Restricted Release. The follow-up to 2005's "Their Rock Is Not Our Rock" marks the group's first release without the support of a traditional label.
After an extended break where outside projects were allowed to flourish — Reverend James A. Rota II (guitar, vocals) with members of CLUTCH and CKY in THE COMPANY BAND and Johny Chow (bass) with Max and Igor Cavalera in CAVALERA CONSPIRACY — FIREBALL MINISTRY reconvened with its sights set on a more hands-on approach to its career via Restricted Release.
"A million bands are going through this right now, but we decided to take matters into our own hands," Rota says. "With the new technology available to us, we're able to get our music out in a much more hands-on kind of way."
For its new album, FIREBALL MINISTRY re-teamed with renowned producer/engineer Andrew Alekel (QUEENS OF THE STONE AGE , FOO FIGHTERS) — whom they'd previously worked with on 2001's "FMEP" and 2003's "The Second Great Awakening".
"Fireball Ministry" was recorded at Grandmaster in Hollywood, with additional vocals tracked at Dave Grohl's Studio 606 in Northridge.
During the recording process, the foursome shrugged off any preconceived notions. As a result, "Fireball Ministry" is a triumph of will from a band who knows exactly what they are... And exactly what they aren't. "Nobody looked at each other in the practice room and said, 'That riff doesn't sound like FIREBALL,'" explains Rota. "If a song is great, it's great. We wrote the songs we wanted to write and the record glows with this freedom."
The new songs flow effortlessly: the slight rustic twang that opens "Fallen Believers" is as meat and potatoes as it gets with a stomach-punch groove that drops from the speakers when it kicks in. "Butcher, Faker, Policy Maker" pulses with an anthemic verse stronger than most bands' choruses. "Thought it Out" is the best CHEAP TRICK song you haven't heard, filtered through the hard-driving FIREBALL engine.
"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
After storming across Europe, MACHINE HEAD's "The Black Procession" tour will hit Japan and Australia, putting an end to three incredible years of roadwork in support of the band's highly acclaimed, Grammy-nominated album "The Blackening". Continuing the assault with MACHINE HEAD are HATEBREED and BLEEDING THROUGH, with CROSSFAITH opening in Japan and EMMURE providing support in Australia.
The newly dates are as follows:
March 16 - Japan, Tokyo - O East
March 17 - Japan, Tokyo - O East
March 18 - Japan, Osaka - Quattro
March 22 - Australia, Perth - Metropolis
March 24 - Australia, Adelaide - The Barton
March 26 - Australia, Melbourne - Festival Hall
March 27 - Australia, Sydney - Luna Park
March 28 - Australia, Brisbane - River Stage
After touring through the world with SLIPKNOT and then METALLICA, "The Black Procession" provides MACHINE HEAD with the opportunity to put on a full headline show before closing out its epic tour cycle. Drummer Dave McClain states, "It's going to be awesome to get out there and rock a full set, to mix it up night after night, and be able to do things 100% our way!
"It's really just dawning on us that after almost three years of touring on 'The Blackening' that 'The Black Procession' will be the final tour of this cycle... but instead of being in wind-down mode, we're super excited to get out there and crush it one last time! Our fans have been asking for a full-fledged MACHINE HEAD tour and we are ready to bring it!"
Singer /guitarist Robb Flynn adds, "It's been an amazing album cycle and we are thankful for the relentless support we get from our fans.
"We are all well aware of the fact that the touring market around the world is in a tough spot due to economic conditions, and it's great and humbling to be able to actually add dates to this tour in spite of that fact.
"We can't wait to see all you crazy fuckers out there!"
Congratulations are in order for TRIVIUM vocalist/guitarist Matt Heafy, who is marrying his girlfriend Ashley Howard later today (Saturday, January 9) in a ceremony in Orlando, Florida.
Valerie Bastien, a contributing editor to The Voice Connection and RockSource360, conducted an interview with Heafy when TRIVIUM played Toronto, Ontario, Canada in November 2009. The chat is now available for streaming using the audio player below.
TRIVIUM has contributed a new song, entitled "Shattering The Skies Above", to the digital extended play (EP) soundtrack for the highly anticipated PlayStation3 (PS3) exclusive videogame "God of War III". The EP, titled "God of War: Blood & Metal", will be released in March via Roadrunner Records as a part of the "God of War III Ultimate Edition", and will feature four other previously unreleased songs from Roadrunner artists — KILLSWITCH ENGAGE, DREAM THEATER OPETH and TAKING DAWN.
Consumers who purchase the "God of War III Ultimate Edition" will receive a voucher code to download the tracks, as well as downloadable music in the form of the "God of War Trilogy" soundtrack. Fans will also receive a special code to download a director's cut of "God of War: Unearthing the Legend", a full-length movie documentary depicting the history of the "God of War" franchise, access to an exclusive "God of War Challenge Arena" environment with up to seven unique challenges, an exclusive Kratos skin, and a limited-edition art book.
The "God of War III Ultimate Edition" will retail for $99.99 (MSRP).
"When we were initially asked to write an original song for the game, we were slightly perplexed since we've never actually written a track for something other than a TRIVIUM record," said Heafy. "But we answered the call as we are fans of the game. Writing the song was a fun experience. We started piecing riffs together on tour and then we really put time into the song when we got home and had the chance to go into the practice space to work on our ideas as a group. This new song captures a certain energy we've been trying to harness on record as well, as it will show all our fans worldwide where TRIVIUM is heading musically in the future."
For more information about "God of War", visit www.GodofWar.com.
Savannah, Georgia's BLACK TUSK will enter the Jam Room studio (BARONESS, BAND OF HORSES , KYLESA, WITHERED) in Columbia, South Carolina today (Monday, January 11) with engineers Jay Matheson and Steve Slavich to begin recording the band's new album, tentatively titled "Taste The Sin", for a spring/summer release via Relapse Records. Songtitles set to appear on the follow-up to "Passage Through Purgatory" include "Unleash The Wrath", "Double Clutchin, Part 1", "Redline, Part 2", "The Take Off, Part 3" and "The Ride, Part 4".
BLACK TUSK recently announced a handful of U.S. tour dates which will see the trio headline several shows in addition to joining SKELETONWITCH, IRON AGE and HOWL in select cities.
BLACK TUSK was featured in the December 2009 issue of Spin magazine along with labelmates BARONESS as part of a story on Savannah's burgeoning metal scene.
Formed in 2005, BLACK TUSK released its full-length debut, "Passage Through Purgatory", in 2008 via Hyperrealist. The band more recently issued a series of split seven-inch singles, including those with ASG, THE HOLY MOUNTAIN and FIGHT AMP.
For more information, visit www.myspace.com/blacktusk.
German power metal band SINBREED (formerly NEOSHINE), which features in its ranks guitarist Flo Laurin, BLIND GUARDIAN drummer Frederik Ehmke and SEVENTH AVENUE vocalist Herbie Langhans, will release its debut album, "When Worlds Collide", in Europe on March 26 via Ulterium Records. Release dates for Japan and North America will be announced shortly.
"When Worlds Collide" was produced by Flo Laurin, mixed and mastered by Markus Teske (VANDEN PLAS, SYMPHONY X), and it includes guest appearances by Joost van den Broek (AFTER FOREVER) and Morten Sandager (MERCENARY) on keyboards, and Thomas Rettke (REDKEY, ex-HEAVEN'S GATE) on vocals. The artwork was created by Felipe Machado Franco (ICED EARTH, AYREON).
SINBREED's brand of power metal is described as a "blistering combination of speed, melodic and aggressive arrangements combined with high and soaring vocals."
"When Worlds Collide" track listing:
01. Newborn Tomorrow
02. Book Of Life
03. When Worlds Collide
04. Dust To Dust
05. Infinity's Call
06. Through The Dark
07. Enemy Lines
08. Room 101
09. Arise
10. Salvation
SINBREED is:
Herbie Langhans (SEVENTH AVENUE) - Vocals
Frederik Ehmke (BLIND GUARDIAN) - Drums
Alexander Schulz - Bass
Flo Laurin - Guitar, Keyboards
For more information, visit www.sinbreed.com.
Norwegian "ompa-party-trollish" metallers TROLLFEST, featuring members of PANTHEON I and SARKOM, will enter the studio tomorrow (Sunday, January 10) to begin recording their fourth full-length CD for a spring/summer release. The band says, "The album will primarily consist of nine fabulous new tracks, our most exotic tunes so far. Expect nothing but over-the-top TROLLFEST madness."
Long-running Venice Beach, California thrash/punk band SUICIDAL TENDENCIES and INFECTIOUS GROOVES, the funkadelic side project of SUICIDAL TENDENCIES frontman Mike Muir, will tour Europe in March/April.
Confirmed dates are as follows:
SUICIDAL TENDENCIES:
Mar. 13 - Prestatyn, UK - Hammerfest
Mar. 18 - Paris, France - Elysee Montmatre
Mar. 26 - Darmstadt, Germany - Central Station
Mar. 29 - Berlin, Germany - Huxley's
Mar. 30 - Warsaw, Poland - Stodola
Apr. 03 - Schijndel, Holland - Paaspop
INFECTIOUS GROOVES:
Mar. 14 - Ris Orangis, France - Le Plan
Mar. 16 - Brussels, Belgium - VK
Mar. 19 - Sannois, France - EMB
Mar. 20 - Bordeaux, France - Rock School Barbey
Mar. 22 - Marseille, France - Espace Julien
Mar. 23 - Toulouse, France - Le Bikini
Mar. 24 - Orleans, France - L'Astrolabe
Mar. 28 - Hamburg, Germany - Markthalle
Apr. 01 - Prague, Czech Republic - Abaton
Apr. 04 - Schijndel, Holland - Paaspop
Since their beginnings in Venice, California in the early '80s, SUICIDAL TENDENCIES have led the charge in the skate punk/thrash metal movement, consequently influencing an entire generation of bands along the way.
Fontana Distribution has announced "Live At The Olympic Auditorium", SUICIDAL TENDENCIES' first-ever DVD release . The DVD will street January 26, 2010 via the band's own imprint, Suicidal Records. The approximately 80-minute DVD features 16 tracks, including ST classics "Institutionalized", "War Inside My Head" and "Possessed To Skate" and captures the band in their most natural environment: onstage, uncensored and ready to tear you to shreds.
Commented SUICIDAL TENDENCIES founding vocalist Mike Muir: "The band started getting emails from some crazy guy that always said, 'I know you'll probably think I'm crazy, but I'm not. I'm wanna book ST for a show and I got this idea...'. Well, one by one we shot down the 'unique' ideas until one time he emailed and said the Olympic Auditorium was being bought by a Korean church. Shouldn't it be sent off with a special last gig? The band agreed and then the work began. The promoter — Evel Dick Donato who went on to win Big Brother — tells a bit about the show, making of etc. on the intro. Lots of drama, none more than the day before the show when I woke up and couldn't walk. But the show must go on and the back surgery would have to wait till afterwards. SUICIDAL recorded live at the Olympic Auditorium in front of 4,000 Cycos... but now you can enjoy it in the safety of your living room."
The track listing is as follows:
01. Intro
02. I Shot Reagan
03. War Inside My Head
04. Subliminal
05. Ain't Gonna Take It
06. Suicidal Failure
07. We Are Family
08. Possessed To Skate
09. I Saw Your Mommy
10. Waking The Dead
11. Show Some Love...Tear It Down!
12. Cyco Vision
13. Two-Sided Politics
14. Won't Fall In Love Today
15. Institutionalized
16. Pledge Your Allegiance
SUICIDAL TENDENCIES in January 2009 released a video for the band's new single, "Come Alive". Muir told the Great Falls Tribune about the song's lyrical content, "There's a lot of people ... their heart's beating and they've got brain waves, but they're not livin.' It's about taking control and standing up and realizing that you're always gonna have an excuse to sit back and wait and see what happens. You've gotta take control. I've gotta take control. I don't want someone else to have that control, and I'll do my best to fight to keep them from having it."
"Come Alive" is included on "Year Of The Cycos", the first album from the SUICIDAL crew featuring all-new tracks from the "cycos." The CD is available from ST's "Suicyco Street Team" web site.
WARMEN, the brainchild of CHILDREN OF BODOM keyboardist Janne Wirman, will celebrate its 10-year anniversary with a concert during the Helsinki Metal Meeting weekend on February 18 at Dante's Highlight in Helsinki Finland. As if WARMEN's third live performance ever wouldn't be enough to make this a very special event, the band vows to make the show truly a night to remember by bringing a wide variety of guests on stage, including Alexi Laiho (CHILDREN OF BODOM), Timo Kotipelto (STRATOVARIUS), Finnish pop/rock queen Jonna Kosonen (JONNA'S PROBLEM) and Pasi Rantanen (ex-THUNDERSTONE). Some tickets are still available at Tiketti for just five euros plus fees.
Spinefarm Records will release a WARMEN compilation album entitled "The Evil That Warmen Do" in early 2010. The track listing for the CD is as follows:
01. Beyond Abilities
02. Spark (Timo Kotipelto)
03. Singer's Chance (feat. Timo Kotipelto)
04. The Evil That Warmen Do
05. Lying Delilah (feat. Marko Vaara)
06. Hidden (feat. Kimberly Goss)
07. Dawn (feat. Pasi Nykänen)
08. Alone (feat. Kimberly Goss; HEART cover)
09. Invisible Power (feat. Timo Kotipelto)
10. Devil's Mistress (feat. Kimberly Goss)
11. They All Blame Me (feat. Jonna Kosonen)
12. Somebody's Watching Me (feat. Alexi Laiho; ROCKWELL cover)
13. Separate Ways (feat. Pasi Rantanen; JOURNEY cover)
WARMEN's fourth album, "Japanese Hospitality", entered the Finnish chart at position No. 36. The CD was released via Spinefarm Records. The 10-song effort includes two cover versions — "Separate Ways", originally recorded by JOURNEY, and "Black Cat" by JANET JACKSON, featuring a guest appearance by Jonna Kosonen. Other guest musicians that appear on the CD include Laiho, Rantanen, Kotipelto and Marko Vaara.
Check out the "Japanese Hospitality" e-card at this location.
WARMEN's third full-length album, "Accept the Fact", was released in July 2005 via Spinefarm Records.
Kosonen, who was previously a member of the multiplatinum-selling Finnish female pop duo NYLON BEAT, had contributed her vocals to CHILDREN OF BODOM's cover version of the BRITNEY SPEARS smash "Oops, I Did It Again" (which appeared on the "In Your Face" single), and was also one of the guest musicians on "Accept the Fact".
Danish metallers DOWNSWITCH have inked a deal with Dutch Metal Records. The band's debut album, "Let Clarity Descend From Blackened Skies", is scheduled for release on January 28. The CD was mixed and mastered by Tue Madsen (ABORTED, EXMORTEM, GOREFEST, KATAKLYSM) at his Antfarm studio in Århus, Denmark.
DOWNSWITCH will support the release of "Let Clarity…." with extensive touring.
For more information, visit www.downswitch.com.
Militant extreme metal contingent BLOOD REVOLT will enter the studio within the next week to lay down its much-anticipated debut album for a late spring release in North America via Profound Lore Records and in Europe through Invictus Productions.
Featuring the vocals of singer extraordinaire Alan "Nemtheanga" Averill of PRIMORDIAL, along with the whirlwind drumming of J. Read (REVENGE, CONQUEROR, AXIS OF ADVANCE) and the string attack of C. Ross (AXIS OF ADVANCE), BLOOD REVOLT is a musical forging between members who have been involved in some of Canada's most-legendary extreme metal acts and a vocalist who many claim is one of the most charismatic vocalists in metal today. This forging between Canada and Ireland is one that aims to construct "a monument to the lone wolf who calmy awaits to attack."
A statement from BLOOD REVOLT reads as follows:
"There is extremity for the sake of it, bound within certain confines and boundaries. They might be the confines of the metal scene as it is or simply the confines and limits of having no imagination, foresight, understanding or temerity. Little in modern metal deals with genuine extremity, concerning itself more with fantasy than cruel cold reality.
"Disregarding scene conventions or politics, in what seems like an odd mix on paper, makes complete sense when you take into account the bloody-mindedness with which each musician has pursued their goals and the absolute conviction of their ideals.
"BLOOD REVOLT deals with man's descent into desperation, alienation, madness, salvation, and ultimately self-immolation and martyrdom. BLOOD REVOLT's debut album follows the first person narrative of a man who comes to the realization that he lives outside of the system as an animal, a law unto himself. To his salvation through striking at the system, severing its artery, wringing its neck in the only self-expression left to those with no choice in this world. In over the course of eight acts, you will witness his descent into madness, salvation at the barrel of a gun, dehumanization and ultimately his redemption in destroying himself.
"The music , as you can expect from the pedigree of the musicians involved, doesn't follow any typical paths open to extreme metal. It is militantly precise in its execution but eschews tired clichés and generic pathos. This is truly for those who wear the mark, who stand on the outside even when on the inside, for those who strive and search for genuine rebellion in a scene of compromise and weakness.
"Strike with wrath for now and forever..."
For more information, visit www.bloodrevolt.com.
Norwegian black metallers GRAVDAL will join fellow countrymen GORGOROTH and KEEP OF KALESSIN on a short European tour in April. The trek will mark GORGOROTH's first tour following the release of its new album, "Quantos Possunt ad Satanitatem Trahunt".
The dates are as follows:
April 09 - Vosselaar, Belgium - Biebob
April 10 - Rotterdam, Holland - Baroeg
April 11 - Paris, France - Trabendo
April 12 - Hamburg, Germany - Marx
April 13 - Cologne, Germany - Underground
April 14 - Ludwigsburg, Germany - Rockfabrik
April 15 - Milan, Italy - Magazzini Generali
April 16 - Osnabrueck, Germany - N8
April 17 - Glauchau, Germany - Alte Spinnerei
Niklas "Kvarforth" Olsson has recorded vocals for a track on the forthcoming second album from Norwegian black metallers
GRAVDAL's secodn album, "Torturmantra", will be released in early 2010 via Unexploded Records.
Formed in 2005 by guitarist Phobos (AETERNUS, MALSAIN, GALAR) and drummer Taakesjel (BIZZAREKULT), GRAVDAL is part of the legendary Bergen scene, which, over the years, has had a huge influence on the black metal genre, spawning such seminal bands as GOROGOROTH, ENSLAVED, IMMORTAL, TAAKE, BURZUM, etc.
GRAVDAL, whose lineup includes Galge on vocals and Specter on guitars, originally started life as a studio project, but, following the release of 2005's demo "Massegrav", the band decided that they wanted to do more with their music .
GRAVDAL first hit the stage in 2006 and has continued to perform live since then, with its own brand of "in-your-face" black metal.
According to the band, "Torturmantra" will be a huge step forward in GRAVDAL's development. "You will still be able to find the madness that was apparent on 'Sadist' but our songwriting skills have developed considerably since we produced that album, and our new material has much more depth and variety to it, both in sound and concept," the group said in a statement.
"Torturmantra" was produced by ENSLAVED's Herbrand Larsen, and was recorded by Larsen, Bjørnar E. Nilsen (VULTURE INDUSTRIES, BLACK HOLE GENERATOR) and Arve Isdal (ENSLAVED, AUDREY HORNE) at the Earshot and Conclave studios in Bergen.
For more information, visit www.myspace.com/gravdal.
GORGOROTH, BELPHEGOR and THORMESIS have been confirmed for this year's Ragnarök Festival, set to take place April 30 - May 1, 2010 at Ostbayernhalle in Rieden/Kreuth, Germany.
The festival billing is shaping up as follows:
AGATHODAIMON
AKREA
ARKONA
BELPHEGOR
CARACH ANGREN
CATAMENIA
CTULU
EQUILIBRIUM
GORGOROTH
GRAILKNIGHTS
HAGGARD
HEATHEN FORAY
HELFAHRT
HELLSAW
HELRUNAR
HOLLENTHON
IMPERIUM DEKADENZ
KROMLEK
MIDNATTSOL
OBSCURITY
RIGER
SLARTIBARTFASS
SÓLSTAFIR
SUIDAKRA
THE VISION BLEAK
THORMESIS
VARG
VREID
For more information, visit www.ragnaroek-festival.com.
Extreme metallers BRUJERIA and New York death metal veterans IMMOLATION will headline "Deathfest - The Second Coming", set to take place Sunday, May 2 at Leeds University Union in Leeds, England. Fans can also expect a rare live appearance from Brummie grind/black/punk purveyors FUKPIG, northern death metallers DAWN OF CHAOS, and the heavy doom of VOLITION, as well as 11 other bands across two stages at the Damnation Festival-backed event.
And in a bid to beat the financial gloom, tickets for the all-day festival will be priced at an unrivalled £10 until the end of January.
Deathfest director Gavin McInally said: "It's a great double couplanding both BRUJERIA and IMMOLATION to headline our second Deathfest and we're sure they'll provide a suitable soundtrack to the chaos which will undoubtedly unfold in Leeds this May.
"Putting festival tickets on sale for less than most gigs is a first-class lesson in financial suicide, but it's important that money, or the lack of it, isn't a reason to stop fans getting along to Deathfest and if we can pack the venue again, it'll be a gamble worth taking.
"Similar to last year, we'll have a main stage, again sponsored by Terrorizer magazine, which will be dominated by death metal from home and abroad.
"And to break the tempo up and offer a little diversity over the course of the day, we'll have a selection of doom, black, grind and filthy noise on the second PHD stage.
"So grab a ticket while they're dirt cheap, grab a hotel room while they're dirt cheap and come along for a first class day of extreme metal!"
Tickets are on sale now priced at £10 until 9 a.m. on Monday, February 1, and £19.50 thereafter.
For more information, visit www.deathfest.co.uk.
George Pacheco of Examiner.com recently conducted an interview with vocalist Mikael Stanne of Swedish melodic death metallers DARK TRANQUILLITY. A few excerpts from the chat follow below.
On how the band's new album, "We Are The Void", compares to the group's previous releases:
Mikael: "I was very happy with 'Fiction'. It really opened things up in lot of territories for us. It was awesome, and a lot of things happened because of it. I think 'We Are The Void' is a bit more 'difficult' in comparison, but for us it's way more interesting and serious, I think. It has a more serious tone to it. It's hard to compare, but we always forget everything about the last album whenever we sit down to write a new one. We just hope that we've learned something, and focus on new material. Whenever something sounds similar to what we've done before, we just throw it away and move on. We try to start fresh from a place where the last album didn't really exist. It's hard to be separate from all the other albums, but we try to put our minds in that place, at least. For this one, we felt that we had a bit of a lineup change, and we celebrated twenty years of the band, so we know we wanted something serious; something which showed that we're not
just a twenty year old band, doing the same thing over again. We need to show that we're going to be around for the next twenty years. We put a lot of pressure on ourselves to make sure that this album sounds relevant and up to date, while also containing everything we decided on twenty years ago that we wanted to do the band. I guess this is as close as we can get to that sound we were talking about as kids when we first had guitars in our hands."
On the band's refusal to delve into typical death metal clichés:
Mikael: "Things we especially said during the period of 'The Gallery' album, where people would cry, 'This is NOT death metal! What are you doing?!' It was our version of it, though. Deal with it. We always tried to be a little outside the core death metal scene, indulging in influences besides the most obvious ones. Of course, we liked all the straight-forward death metal stuff, but we tried to incorporate other things we liked, as well. People shunned us like the plague in those early years. They thought that melody had no place in death metal; that we could play power metal if we wanted to be melodic. We stuck to it, though, and hoped that some people would get it, even though we knew that most wouldn't. It didn't matter, though, because we loved it. Eventually…people did! That's something which I consider our greatest triumph: that it eventually worked!"
On the band's upcoming U.S. tour with KILLSWITCH ENGAGE and THE DEVIL WEARS PRADA:
Mikael: "For us, it's still about building a fan base in the States, so if we can have a tour with bigger and more diverse bands, then we'd love to do that; to show our stuff. So we're doing that first this year with KILLSWITCH ENGAGE, which means we're exposing our music to a lot of new fans. We're coming back after that, however, to do a proper headlining tour, which is going to be awesome. We're going to bring a full production with us, and do it the same as we do here in Europe."
On the band's staunchly dedicated fanbase, which might not be so keen on buying a ticket to see a mere half-hour set from DARK TRANQUILLITY:
Mikael: "I totally get that. It's just how it works sometimes; you don't want to pay money and see a short set, which I understand. That's why we decided that we really need to come back afterwards. I can't wait to do it, to incorporate all of these new songs , while also bringing back some really old songs in the set, as well."
On the danger of becoming stale within the band's songwriting:
Mikael: "You don't want to be too comfortable. That's why we started out with different ideas and songs which perhaps a few years ago we would have thrown away immediately. We just worked on them anyway, even though they were a bit different. The last song on the album, for example, was written by Niklas [Sundin; guitar] around '95 or '96. We always talked about it and tried to make it work, because we really loved the song, but it just didn't, even though we arranged and re-arranged it over the years. Finally, though, we just made a real emphasis on making it work, and think it did, though it took some time. I think that goes for a lot of songs on the album, to be honest."
On the lyrical themes on "We Are The Void":
Mikael: "It actually does deal with death, and how we handle that. It comments on how we fill our empty lives with stupid ideas and belief systems which don't work. We had the idea when we started the band that we wouldn't sing about death, because it was too obvious; everyone else was doing it. We wanted to be different. On this album, though, we just said, 'It's been twenty years: let's do it!' Most of the songs are really about the fear of death; or different aspects of the end of life as we know it, pretty much. Of course there's a lot of disappointment and anger in there, as well, but that was the core idea I had in mind for a theme, originally."
Swedish death/black metal band ZONARIA has completed the songwriting process for its new album and will soon enter the Abyss studio in Sweden with producer Jonas Kjellgren (SCAR SYMMETRY, SONIC SYNDICATE, HYPOCRISY, CENTINEX, CARNAL FORGE) to begin recording the effort for a spring/summer release.
Commented vocalist/guitarist Simon Berglund: "I'm stoked about going into the studio with Jonas. He did an amazing job on [ZONARIA's 2007 release] 'Infamy And The Breed' and has done some more incredible work with other bands. And not to mention recording in studio Abyss for the first time. Many of our all-time favorites have recorded in that studio and something magic always happens with the albums recorded there."
ZONARIA's second full-length album, "The Cancer Empire", was released in the U.S. in January 2009 via Century Media Records. The CD was produced by Fredrik Nordström at Studio Fredman and was mastered by Peter In De Betou at Tailor Maid.
Formed in 2002 by guitarist, main songwriter, and vocalist Simon Berglund along with axeman Emil Nyström (both were only 15 years old at that time), ZONARIA has outgrown its local underground status with the debut album "Infamy And The Breed" (Pivotal Recordings, 2007) and gained Europe-wide attention through tours with IMPALED NAZARENE, MARDUK, PAIN and VADER. With influences ranging from HYPOCRISY to DIMMU BORGIR to ARCH ENEMY, ZONARIA's misanthropic mix of brutal riffs, melodic harmonies, maniacal drumming, and ominous synth lines was well received within the metal community and the band succeeded in shaping its own, unique sound.
Swedish death metallers SYN:DROM (formerly BLACKBREATH) have set "With Flesh Unbound" as the title of their debut album, tentatively due this spring via ViciSolum Productions. The CD is being recorded at Nevo studios in Sundsvall, Sweden and is being engineered and mixed by the bandmembers themselves.
The band describes its musical direction as "high-quality death metal in the vein of HATE ETERNAL, AEON and DECAPITATED."
SYN:DROM is:
Jonny Pettersson (BONEGOD, MOURNING, HUMAN HARVEST) - Vocals
Roger Bergsten (PSYCHO POETRY, ex-HECTORITE) - Guitars
David Karlsson - Lead Guitars
Daniel Mikaelsson (MOURNING) - Drums
Daniel Åsén – Bass
------------------------------------
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