 |
|
May 21, 2012 |
 |
|
 |
 |
|
ARCH ENEMY Split With Christopher Amott; Replacement Announed
Posted: March 05, 2012 at 14:37 (PST)
ARCH ENEMY has split amicably with longtime guitarist Christopher Amott, who was a member between 1996-2005 and again between 2007-2011. The band have released this statement on the matter:
"We thank Christopher for the time he's worked with the band and of course wish him the very best in his future endeavors.
Thankfully, there is no drama behind the scenes here. This is the best way forward for all involved. Christopher simply does not feel at home with playing extreme Metal anymore.
We have already chosen and rehearsed with a new guitar player and we will complete the 'Khaos Legions' 2012 touring cycle as planned. We are highly motivated and look forward to continue spreading our music around the world!
Finally, our deepest thanks go to the ARCH ENEMY fans, whose amazing support and belief inspires us ever onward."
The new man on the axe is 26-year-old American guitarist Nick Cordle.
Founding guitarist Michael Amott comments:
"Nick was my first choice as he ticks all the right boxes for ARCH ENEMY with his musicality and technicality as well as his personality and dedication. Looking forward to having him join us stage, the rehearsals have shown we have a devastating twin axe attack going on!"
Nick Cordle was raised in a musical family in Virginia by parents who teach classical piano and was immersed in 19th century piano music as a child. Rachmaninoff, Brahms, and Liszt are his early memories. There were piano and violin lessons from a very early age but a rebellious streak led to the guitar at the age of 10, and within a few years he discovered the classic Thrash Metal albums by METALLICA, MEGADETH, and SLAYER. This was his first real musical passion and gateway into extreme music.
Nick also studied Jazz and music theory at the University of Virginia from 2003 to 2007 but remains self-taught in the ways of "shred" and Metal. Shortly thereafter, he joined ARSIS playing bass and guitar over a three year period performing with them on various European tours and countless gigs across the US, Canada, and Mexico.
|
|
ACCEPT - New Album Cover, Track Listing Revealed
Posted: February 15, 2012 at 10:56 (PST)
German Heavy Metal band ACCEPT will be releasing their new album, "Stalingrad" [view cover], on April 6, 2012. Nuclear Blast states that it's a "no compromise album from start to finish without a filler track anywhere to be found." ACCEPT once again worked with producer Andy Sneap on "Stalingrad".
Due to the large success of their last album, "Blood Of The Nations", expectations are very high for "Stalingrad". Guitarist Wolf Hoffmann states: "We put ourselves under enormous pressure to bring out a new album right after this tour marathon, which brought us two times around the globe. But we are very proud about what we delivered with 'Stalingrad' and we hope our fans will like it as well."
Here is the full CD track listing:
01. Hung, Drawn And Quartered
02. Stalingrad
03. Hellfire
04. Flash To Bang Time
05. Shadow Soldiers
06. Revolution
07. Against The World
08. Twist Of Fate
09. The Quick And The Dead
10. Never Forget (bonus track)
11. The Galley
The album will be available in Ltd. CD + DVD, CD, 2 LP (red) in Gatefold and 2 LP (white/red) in Gatefold (excl. Blast! Mailorder Edition).
The DVD will include:
Official bootleg:
Live at Bang Your Head 2011
01. Princess Of The Dawn
02. Pandemic
03. No Shelter!
Live at Masters Of Rock 2010
04. Teutonic Terror
05. The Abyss
Video clips:
06. Teutonic Terror
07. Pandemic
|
|
VAN HALEN Taking Over ESPN.com
Posted: February 06, 2012 at 18:29 (PST)
VAN HALEN will be releasing their new album, "A Different Kind Of Truth" tomorrow (February 7). In celebration, the band has joined with ESPN.com for some very special promotions. As part of the takeover, fans can stream six new tracks from the album, enter a sports "Tattoo" contest conceived by David Lee Roth himself, and rank the best VAN HALEN albums featuring Roth.
VAN HALEN will begin their 2012 North American tour on February 18 with Kool & The Gang.
"A Different Kind Of Truth" is VAN HALEN's first studio album with original vocalist David Lee Roth since the band's immortal classic "1984". Check out the video for lead single "Tattoo".
|
|
DRAGONFORCE Announce New Album
Posted: February 02, 2012 at 10:26 (PST)
DRAGONFORCE has revealed the title of their new album, due to be released in North America on April 17 through Roadrunner Records. "The Power Within" boasts 10 tracks and is the first to feature new singer Marc Hudson. Check out Marc wailing out the vocals on YouTube.
DRAGONFORCE guitarist Herman Li comments: "The last two years have been the most fun we ever had making an album. Through writing, jamming and touring together, we have built this incredible energy and it has been fully captured on the new album."
Li also says the album contains the fastest song the band has ever recorded. "This time around we've really brought our Metal side to the surface and made some of the best music of our career. From the fastest song we've ever recorded to the slower songs, and some things you would never expect from us, this is by far the most diverse DRAGONFORCE album yet."
The track listing:
1. Holding On
2. Fallen World
3. Cry Thunder
4. Give Me The Night
5. Wings Of Liberty
6. Seasons
7. Heart Of The Storm
8. Die By the Sword
9. Last Man Stands
10. Seasons (Acoustic Version)
A digital special edition featuring the bonus tracks "Cry Thunder (Live Rehearsal)", "Heart Of The Storm (Alternative Chorus Version)" and "Avant La Tempete (Instrumental)" will also be available.
|
|
SCORPIONS Vocalist Falls Ill; Tours Concert Cancelled
Posted: December 12, 2011 at 11:39 (PST)
SCORPIONS vocalist Klaus Meine writes this message via the band's website:
"Dear Fans,
I want to thank you all for your fantastic support over the last few weeks and hope that you can understand why we had to cancel the concert in Tours. Unfortunately, I am suffering from a virus that I caught in France which totally knocked me out after the concert in Brussels! I was confined to bed with pneumonia and even though I'm slowly getting better, it will still take some time to get back to 100%. Nevertheless it was a fantastic year and I hope to see you all again in good health on the Final Sting tour 2012. I wish you all a Merry Christmas.
Rock On......Klaus"
SCORPIONS' album, "Comeblack", a collection of remakes of some of the band's classic anthems and other favourites, is out now on Sony Music.
|
|
ICED EARTH - Webisode #4 Online
Posted: October 07, 2011 at 11:15 (PST)
ICED EARTH have posted Webisode #4, where you get to watch vocalist Stu Block, band leader Jon Schaffer, and studio wizard Jim Morris bring the song "Anthem" to life. Pay close attention as Jim reveals one of the secrets to ICED EARTH's powerful recorded sound - mastering to both digital and analog, and then comparing the two to achieve the perfect finished sound. Jon also talks about Matt Barlow's last live show with the band at Wacken Open Air, 2011.
ICED EARTH's brand new album, "Dystopia", drops on October 17. Revolver magazine is giving fans an exclusive taste of the title track, so check out the onslaught of Metal.
|
|
JUDAS PRIEST On Late Night With Jimmy Fallon Tonight
Posted: October 07, 2011 at 11:05 (PST)
JUDAS PRIEST will be performing on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon tonight (Friday, October 7) on NBC! You can check out the episode guide for more information.
JUDAS PRIEST will be releasing release their new CD "The Chosen Few" next Tuesday, October 11, just a day before their North American "Epitaph" Farewell tour begins on October 12 in San Antonio at the AT&T Center.
|
|
ACCEPT Begin Working On New Album
Posted: September 30, 2011 at 10:29 (PST)
German legends ACCEPT have begun work on the follow-up of their comeback album, "Blood Of The Nations". The band is currently writing material for their new album with British producer Andy Sneap (MEGADETH, EXODUS, NEVERMORE, ARCH ENEMY).
ACCEPT guitarist Wolf Hoffman tates: "ACCEPT and Andy Sneap have the perfect synergy. This was so clear with 'Blood Of The Nations' and we are excited to continue on that path. Andy is not only an amazing and prolific producer, but also a very good friend who has long become a member of the ACCEPT family."
"Blood Of The Nations" has sold 27,000 copies in the U.S. since its release last September according to Nielsen Soundscan. It debuted as the #25 Rock Album on iTunes and at #187 on The Billboard 200 chart, #170 on the Top Current Albums chart, and on the #41 Independent Albums chart. In Canada, the album debuted at #53 on the Nielsen Soundscan Top Hard Albums chart. In Europe, "Blood Of The Nations" entered the German album charts at #4 - the highest German chart entry in the band's career - and debuted at #12 on the Billboard European chart with the following additional worldwide chart entries: #7 in Sweden; #7 in Hungary; #9 in Finland; #19 in Austria; and #27 in the Czech Republic.
|
|
ICED EARTH - New Album Cover, Release Date Announced
Posted: July 27, 2011 at 10:36 (PST)
Although "Dystopia" [view cover], ICED EARTH's 10th studio offering, is not a concept album, founder Jon Schaffer admits there are unifying themes to several of the songs - and even an appearance by band mascot "Set Abominae".
"I've always been fascinated by the darker side of life," Schaffer said during a break from master tracking ICED EARTH's forthcoming album. "Movies like Metropolis, Brazil, and The Matrix resonate with me. The same for albums like 2112, The Wall, and of course Operation:Mindcrime. Their images of a soulless, repressive society stuck with me over the years. It must be the sci-fi fan in me."
In much the same way "Horror Show" (ICED EARTH's tribute to classic characters from literature and movies) was born, Schaffer said his interest in dystopian themes in music and movies led him to try his hand at that genre as well - even paying homage on the new album to the movies Dark City, V For Vendetta, and Soylent Green. The end result is ICED EARTH meets the nightmarish offspring of Brave New World and Blade Runner.
Of special interest to long-time fans are two songs on "Dystopia" (the title track and "Tragedy and Triumph") that feature the return of the "Something Wicked" storyline and "Set Abominae" - who, when last seen in "The Crucible of Man" [2008], had taken his position as ruler of the world.
"The opening song is a step back timeline-wise from the 'Come What May' track," said Schaffer. "'Come What May' [the last track on "Crucible"] sets the scenario that it's up to us and the decisions we make that will determine the future of the human race. These two songs [on "Dystopia"] take place at a time when people are in highly controlled prison-like city states, and their eventual emancipation in the closer, 'Tragedy and Triumph'."
In an uncanny case of art imitating life, Schaffer said Set Abominae fit perfectly with the general theme of "Dystopia". "I remember it hit me like a ton of bricks in '97, the whole Something Wicked story did," Schaffer said. "I thought, 'Man, this is going to be so cool.' Many years later, we were on tour for Crucible and we were doing an interview over in Eastern Europe. A buddy of mine said, 'You know, Jon, this whole Something Wicked thing could be true.' I thought about it a moment and said, 'Well, I don't know about that. But there are some creepy parallels in contemporary life.'"
"So as I was thinking about all of the great movies, albums, and books with dystopian themes, I remembered that conversation and it occurred to me that the Something Wicked story could continue in a few tracks here very nicely," Schaffer said.
Schaffer admits the recording of "Dystopia" has been especially challenging because of the band's summer festival gigs requiring him to criss-cross the ocean numerous times.
Despite the challenges, Schaffer says working with new vocalist Stu Block is "a pleasure."
"You just can't ask for a better attitude," said Schaffer. "Stu is so excited to be here. He brings a youthful exuberance to the band, which is a lot of fun. And he's a real dude. He's down to earth, and willing to try anything that Jim [Morris, co-producer, engineer] or I throw at him. He's stepping into the shoes in a very natural way."
Schaffer continues: "We're opening up a part of his voice and a style of singing that he didn't even really know he had. We're exploring this whole new range. And we're just getting started. I believe Stu will continue to grow - and has the potential to grow - into one of the greats, one of the guys that will go down in Metal history. If he stays on this course, with the attitude that he has, his willingness to learn, and his passion, he's destined for really great things. I firmly believe that."
Song titles on "Dystopia" include: "Dystopia", "Anthem", "Days Of Rage", "Soylent Green", "V", "Boiling Point", "Anguish Of Youth", "Iron Will", "Dark City", "End Of Innocence", "Equilibrium" and "Tragedy And Triumph".
"Dystopia" is scheduled for release in Europe on October 17, and in the U.S. on October 18 both via Century Media. Two bonus tracks are also being recorded for inclusion on special editions of the album.
The release of "Dystopia" will be followed by the most extensive world tour ICED EARTH has ever undertaken. The European leg of the 2011-2012 World Dystopia Tour begins October 30th in Bochum, Germany. See below for the dates!
Schaffer formed ICED EARTH in Tampa, Florida, in 1984. Since then, he has released 9 studio albums, one live album, two compilations, three boxed sets, and several DVDs - the most recent of which is "Festivals of the Wicked". With worldwide sales in the millions, ICED EARTH has earned a seat in the pantheon of America's most successful Heavy Metal bands.
|
|
CHILDREN OF BODOM Live Video Chat Tonight
Posted: June 24, 2011 at 14:52 (PST)
CHILDREN OF BODOM drummer Jaska Raatikainen will be participating in a live video chat tonight, June 24, at 7pm PST from House Of Blues in Hollywood, CA. Tune in to the live feed and ask him questions.
CHILDREN OF BODOM are currently on the road in North America. For tickets to a show near you, check LiveNation.
|
|
Next >>>
|
|
|
|
