I’m 57 years old. I’ve been a metalhead since 8th grade. My thoughts below are based in fact. I lived the entire Metal movement. Call it The New Wave Of British Heavy Metal, Texas Metal, American Metal, Thrash Metal, 80s Hair Metal or what have you; I’ve seen and lived the “waves”. I saw Metallica, Slayer and Motörhead in small clubs, End. Of. Story.
Below are my personal statements that are truth about Metal. If anyone disagrees then you never grew up during the beginning of the Metal years and you need to go back to your ABBA albums.
1. I don’t wanna ever hear again that Blue Cheer started Heavy Metal. That’s bullshit. Black Sabbath started Heavy Metal. Black Sabbath. End of story.
2. Van Halen was Heavy Metal before the DiverDown album. Deal with it.
3. Cinderella was NOT Hair Metal.
4. Def Leppard was NOT part of The New Wave Of British Heavy Metal. Sorry, all you “Rock historians”.
5. Iron Maiden is better than Metallica.
6. Metal never needed MTV’s Headbangers Ball,
7. Grunge never killed Metal. The radio stations and record companies thumbed their noses at Metal. However, Metal was just fine during the 90’s. Just look up the discographies of Overkill, W.A.S.P., Motörhead, Megadeth, Black Sabbath and DIO to name a short list.
8. Metalheads tape traded, demos especially. There was no internet to receive instant music or Metal news; we were socially interacting in person with one another to share our Metal and its news.
9. Heavy Metal parking lot. ‘Nuff said.
10. VENOM. ‘Nuff said.
11. 70s KISS is better than any other decade of KISS.
12. Back then, Kerrang! magazine wasn’t a bullshit magazine that featured crap like Twenty One Pilots.
13. People that wore concert tees back in the day actually went to the concerts and listened to the bands albums.
After touring Australia and Japan as well as kicking off this year’s festival season by introducing new bassist Peter Baltes last month, U.D.O. — the iconic heavy metal five-piece led by legendary vocalist Udo Dirkschneider — today announces their massive, thirteen-track album, Touchdown, set for release late this Summer through Atomic Fire Records.
The band has been very productive recording at various locations in between live activities throughout the year. Crafted with producer and mixing engineer Martin “Mattes” Pfeiffer at Redhead Studio (Wilhelmshaven, Germany) and mastered by Stefan Kaufmann at ROXX Studio (Solingen, Germany), with bass tracks recorded by Baltes, Touchdown is scheduled to land in the end zone of the heavy metal world on August 25th. The record includes a guest appearance by violinist Stefan Pintev on the closing track. Artwork was provided by Martin Häusler who is also responsible for shooting band photos in support of the new album campaign.
First single, “Forever Free,” as well as album preorder options will become available on Friday, June 23rd. Presave “Forever Free” now at: udo.afr.link/foreverfreePR.
Touchdown – Track Listing:
Isolation Man
The Flood
The Double Dealer’s Club
Fight For The Right
Forever Free
Punchline
Sad Man’s Show
The Betrayer
Heroes Of Freedom
Better Start To Run
The Battle Understood
Living Hell
Touchdown
View Udo Dirkschneider’s videos for “We Will Rock You” HERE and “Kein Zurück,” where he sings in his native language for the first time ever, HERE.
U.D.O. / DIRKSCHNEIDER: Udo Dirkschneider – vocals Andrey Smirnov – guitar Sven Dirkschneider – drums Fabian Dee Dammers – guitar Peter Baltes – bass
If you are serious about Heavy Metal, then most likely CRYSTAL VIPER doesn’t need an introduction. The band was founded by the singer and guitarist Marta Gabriel, and released its debut album in 2007. Since then, they toured in more than 15 countries, played in both tiny clubs and at huge open air festivals, released 8 studio albums, and a bunch of singles. So one thing is sure: they are one of the most hard working and most determined bands of their generation.
Their latest studio album entitled “The Cult” is still hot: it came out in 2021, followed by ‘The Last Command’ mini album in 2022, and brought CRYSTAL VIPER back to their roots: the traditional and pure Heavy Metal, full of epic melodies, classic riffs and guitar harmonies, ripping solos, and catchy refrains. The band couldn’t tour properly and promote the album due to the pandemic, yet instead of sitting and waiting for better times, they decided to record more material.
CRYSTAL VIPER ‘s brand new single is a scorching new recorded version of ‘In the Haunted Chapel’ released at the light of the band’s forthcoming tour and festival dates.
Band leader Marta Gabriel comments: “In The Haunted Chapel’ is naturally connected with our latest studio album ‘The Cult’, as it was inspired by the H.P. Lovecraft story – ‘The Haunter Of The Dark’, which was originally published in 1936. It’s actually a very special story, as it’s the last one Lovecraft wrote before his death. The composition itself is based on this shuffle rhythm which is a bit unusual for CRYSTAL VIPER, and the twin guitars are our humble tribute to legendary acts such as Thin Lizzy and Iron Maiden. This version is a little bit different than the one we released last year on “The Last Axeman” EP, because as I recently switched from rhythm guitar to bass, I decided to come up with different bass line, and of course we now have a new drummer on board, Jakub. Except that both Eric and Andy recorded different guitar solos.”
‘In the Haunted Chapel’ video release will be announced at a later date.
Tour dates: 27/05 – Czech Republic, Pasohlavky, Euro Bike Fest 01/06 – Germany, Gries, Iron Fest Open Air 02/06 – Germany, Freiburg, Artik 03/06 – Germany, Bielefeld, JZ Stricker 04/06 – Belgium, Bilzen, South Of Heaven 07/06 – Germany, Berlin, Cassiopeia 08/06 – Czech Republic, Frydek-Mistek, Hellpdays Festival 10/06 – Germany, Selb, Rockclub Nordbayern 14/07 – Sweden, Gavle, Gefle Metal Festival 12/08 – Belgium, Kortrijk, Alcatraz Festival 17/09 – Baltic Sea, Full Metal Cruise
Discography : The Curse of Crystal Viper (Album – 2007) Metal Nation ( Album – 2009) Legends ( Album – 2010) Crimen Excepta ( Album – 2012) Possession ( Album – 2013) Queen of the Witches ( Album – 2017) Tales of Fire and Ice ( Album – 2019) The Cult ( LISTENABLE Album – 2021) The Last Axeman (LISTENABLE Album- 2022)
German heavy metal icons HELLOWEEN will be inducted into the Metal Hall Of Fame! The ceremony will take place on stage on May 20th during the band’s performance at Terminal 5 in New York City.
“HELLOWEEN has helped establish the origins of the power metal genre,” says Metal Hall Of Fame Founder/CEO, Pat Gesualdo. “Power metal is such an important part of the heavy metal community as well. We are proud to induct HELLOWEEN into the Metal Hall Of Fame and have them to help represent the power metal genre and all its fans throughout the world.”
Comments HELLOWEEN founding guitarist, Michael Weikath, “It’s truly an honor to be inducted into the Metal Hall Of Fame! Being listed next to some of the biggest bands in rock and metal makes us very proud and is rewarding our work as ‘The Ambassadors Of Power And Melodic Metal’ for the last four decades.”
HELLOWEEN will return to US and Canadian stages beginning this weekend as part of their ongoing United Forces world tour alongside supporting special guests, HammerFall. The trek will commence on May 13th in Dallas, Texas and wind its way through a total of thirteen cities, the journey drawing to a close on June 3rd in San Francisco, California. Fans can expect an epic night of HELLOWEEN hits spanning the band’s legacy as well as tunes from their latest album, Helloween, marking the first time tracks from the album will be performed live for fans in the US and Canada.
Tickets are on sale now. Secure yours today at THIS LOCATION. See all confirmed dates below.
HELLOWEEN w/ HammerFall: 5/13/2023 The Bomb Factory – Dallas, TX 5/16/2023 Jannus Live – St. Petersburg, FL 5/18/2023 The Fillmore – Silver Spring, MD 5/20/2023 Terminal 5 – New York, NY 5/21/2023 The Palladium – Worcester, MA 5/23/2023 History – Toronto, ON 5/24/2023 Royal Oak Music Hall – Royal Oak, MI 5/26/2023 The Riviera – Chicago, IL 5/27/2023 The Fillmore – Minneapolis, MN 5/30/2023 Ogden Theatre – Denver, CO 6/01/2023 Brooklyn Bowl – Las Vegas, NV 6/02/2023 YouTube Theater – Los Angeles, CA 6/03/2023 The Warfield – San Francisco, CA
Often referred to as the “Fathers Of Power Metal,” and known as one of the most influential European heavy metal bands, HELLOWEEN has released sixteen studio albums, three live albums, three EPs, and thirty singles. The band has fourteen gold and six platinum records and have sold over ten-million records worldwide. HELLOWEEN are known as one of the “Big Four” of the power metal genre, along with Blind Guardian, Sabaton, and DragonForce and has performed at festivals and concerts alongside Iron Maiden, David Lee Roth, KISS, Megadeth, and Guns N’ Roses, among countless others.
The Metal Hall Of Fame is dedicated to forever enshrining the iconic musicians and music industry executives responsible for making hard rock and heavy metal music what it is today. Their contribution to the genre is invaluable, and they continue to inspire fans throughout the world, from generation to generation.
The Annual Metal Hall Of Fame Celebrity Gala is held every January in California. As a non-profit organization, all proceeds from Metal Hall Of Fame events bring free music programs to help special needs children and wounded veterans. The Metal Hall Of Fame voting process is derived by fans of all genres of hard rock and heavy metal, along with the Metal Hall Of Fame voting committee. Fans can cast their vote all year round for their favorite artists, bands, producers, and music industry executives via the Metal Hall of Fame website: metalhalloffame.org.
Los Angeles’ own True Heavy Metal Festival returns October 14-15, 2023 at the Garden Amphitheater in beautiful, sunny Garden Grove, CA! LA’s GATES OF METAL FESTIVAL III features a quality mix of Traditional, Thrash, Power, Speed, Death, Black, Doom, NOWTHM and Classic Heavy Metal bands on two stages!
The venue features a fan-friendly open air stage and a badass indoor stage, as well as metal merchants, vendors, five bars, and food options, all presented in an all ages European-style Heavy Metal festival.
Voted Best Concert Venue in 2018 by OC Weekly, the Garden Amphitheater is conveniently located near the Santa Ana, Long Beach and LAX Airports. If you’re looking for a destination Festival to plan around and attend, THIS IS IT!
The Fest will Feature Special Heavy Metal Performances by Legendary bands, including:
RIOT SADISTIC INTENT HAIL MARY (The Original Triple Axe Attack – Performing a Classic LEATHERWOLF Set) EVIL DEAD HEATHEN VICIOUS RUMORS SIGLOS (Featuring SIN QUIRIN formerly of Ministry) RESISTANCE IRONFLAME HELL FIRE ANGER AS ART HAUNT FUELED BY FIRE STYGIAN CROWN RUTHLESS BONDED BY BLOOD SABER ADAMANTIS INTRANCED
Following their much acclaimed, self-titled 2017-debut, June 30, 2023 sees Australian heavy metal force NIGHT LEGION release their sophomore studio album, entitled “Fight Or Fall” via Massacre Records!
As first album single, “The Hounds Of Baskerville”, immediatly proves, “Fight Or Fall” is a no-nonsense return to fast and powerful heavy metal with screaming vocals, crushing guitars and hooks that remind you what great songwriting sounds like. This record is not a happy walk through a forest of elves – this is the battlefield where metal lives and soaring vocals invoke the spirits of what made metal the force it is today!
Give ear, a music video for NIGHT LEGION‘s new single is now streaming HERE!
“A classic horror inspired track slightly based around the Sherlock Holmes’ “The Hound of the Baskervilles”, however with a much more dark and brutal twist and in our own way,“ the band reveals. “It centralizes to a small town being terrorized by the local werewolves, with descriptive references.
Some people believe it, some people don’t and think it’s a legend we have devised ourselves until they themselves face the terror & wrath. The wolves in this case also represent the 5 of us – we are about to unleash a new record and we have the hunger to unleash on the live circuit!
It’s also inspired by how humanity’s own state of madness can conjure up such evil for the reason to terrorize, deceive and always live in fear. The reference to the chorus “Chase the hounds of Baskerville” really comes from how we as humans are intrigued to learn more about the mysteries of the world and anything that scares us. It’s a pretty bold, in your face, massive memorable chorus – it’s the run to the hills of the album, I’d say, hence being the first single.
It’s a heart stopper vocally & Stu’s guitar work adds another dimension – this song will play a movie in the listeners head.”
“Fight Or Fall” was produced by NIGHT LEGION guitarist Stu Marshall, and was mixed and mastered by Chris Themelco at Monolith Studios. Set to be released on June 30, 2023, the album pre-sale has just started via Massacre Records at THIS LOCATION!
“Fight Or Fall” track listing:
The Hounds Of Baskerville
Babylon Burns
Soaring Into The Black
Fight Or Fall
At World’s End
Beyond The Crimson Dawn
Harvest Of Sin
The Enemy
The Hand Of Death
NIGHT LEGION: Louie Gorgievski – Vocals Stu Marshall – Guitars Col Higginson – Guitars Glenn Williams – Bass Clay Tchakalian – Drums
Heavy metal icons ARMORED SAINT will return to the stage this August as direct support to W.A.S.P.! The 40th Never Stops World Tour 2023 begins August 4th in San Luis Obispo, California and winds its way through nearly three dozen cities, coming to a close September 16th in Los Angeles, California.
Comments vocalist John Bush: “Hello SAINTloyalists! We’re happy to inform you guys that, due to the overwhelming response we got on the W.A.S.P./SAINT tour we did last Winter, we decided to do another leg this late Summer/early Fall: The W.A.S.P./ARMORED SAINT 40th Anniversary tour part 2! This is going to happen in August and September. We will be doing about thirty more shows. The plan is to go to cities we didn’t do on the last run with a few exceptions of some places where we will be returning. There will be some cities that ARMORED SAINT hasn’t played in many, many years as well as some we’ve never played in our history! We’re also happy to be going to Canada including Vancouver, which we haven’t played since 1985. Too bad it won’t be hockey season. It’s gonna be awesome! Thanks as always for all your support, and who knows, maybe we can bring this tour to some other continents on planet earth. Thanks also to [W.A.S.P.]’s Blackie [Lawless] and the guys for making it happen again. Stay healthy and metal!”
Tickets go on sale this Friday, April 14th at 10:00am local time. See all confirmed dates below.
ARMORED SAINT w/ W.A.S.P.: 8/04/2023 Fremont Theater – San Luis Obispo, CA 8/05/2023 Hard Rock Live – Wheatland, CA 8/07/2023 Roseland – Portland, OR 8/08/2023 Vogue Theater – Vancouver, BC 8/10/2023 Moore Theater – Seattle, WA 8/11/2023 Podium – Spokane, WA 8/12/2023 Revolution Concert Hall – Garden City, ID 8/13/2023 The Depot – Salt Lake City, UT 8/15/2023 Steelhouse – Omaha, NE 8/16/2023 The Fillmore Minneapolis – Minneapolis, MN 8/17/2023 The Rust Belt – Moline, IL 8/18/2023 RCU Theater – Eau Claire, WI 8/19/2023 Horizon Events Center – Clive, IA 8/20/2023 Hard Rock Live – Gary, IN 8/22/2023 GLC Live @ 20 Monroe – Grand Rapids, MI 8/23/2023 Egyptian Room – Indianapolis, IN 8/24/2023 Capitol Theater – Wheeling, WV 8/25/2023 Sherman Theater – Stroudsburg, PA 8/26/2023 Hammerstein Ballroom – New York, NY 8/27/2023 Hampton Beach Casino – Hampton, NH 8/29/2023 Dome @ Oakdale – Wallingford, CT 8/30/2023 The Fillmore – Philadelphia, PA 8/31/2023 Packard Music Hall – Warren, OH 9/01/2023 Danforth Music Hall – Toronto, ON 9/03/2023 Mtellus – Montreal, QC 9/05/2023 Andrew J Brady Music Center – Cincinnati, OH 9/07/2023 Graceland – Memphis, TN 9/08/2023 The Hall – Little Rock, AR 9/09/2023 Southside Ballroom – Dallas, TX 9/10/2023 Criterion – Oklahoma City, OK 9/13/2023 Rialto Theater – Tucson, AZ 9/14/2023 House Of Blues – San Diego, CA 9/16/2023 The Palladium – Los Angeles, CA
ARMORED SAINT released their Symbol OfSalvation Live CD/DVD in 2021 via Metal Blade Records. The release came in celebration of the seminal album’s 30th anniversary. A record vocalist John Bush refers to as the band’s “cornerstone record,” Symbol Of Salvation Live is a combination live album and video of the band playing the album in its entirety at New York City’s famed Gramercy Theatre during their 2018 tour. It captures the power, diversity, and peerless songwriting contained within. “I felt like showing Symbol… in another light was a great homage to the record itself,” states bassist Joey Vera. “Also, having all the fans be there and part of that event is a way for us to say, ‘Thank you!’ For, without them, we can’t do any of this in the first place.”
Preview and purchase Symbol Of Salvation Live at THIS LOCATION.
ARMORED SAINT: John Bush – vocals Jeff Duncan – guitars Phil Sandoval – guitars Joey Vera – bass Gonzo Sandoval – drums
w/ RAZOR, WHIPLASH, SKULL FIST, WARSENAL, DROWNING IN BLOOD
This coming May 12th, Montreal, QC will be host to this city’s first-ever Piranha Pit Fest presented by Loudtrax, the one-stop online shop for everything swag from the biggest names in Loud Music.
Piranha Pit Fest will feature headliners RAZOR, the Canadian thrash legends who have been recognized as one of the country’s pioneers of the metal genre. RAZOR released their ninth studio album Cycle of Contempt this past September, making it their first album in 25 years. RAZOR will also be supported by another legendary thrash band, New Jersey’s WHIPLASH, one of the first American East Coast thrash metal bands of the 1980s to inspire many who followed in their footsteps. Also joining the lineup is the 2023 Juno nominated (Metal/Hard Music Album Of The Year) and international tour de force, Toronto’s high-flying heavy metal shredders SKULL FIST along with local Montreal moshers Warsenal and Drowning In Blood.
Piranha Pit Fest will be held at Piranha Bar 680 Sainte-Catherine St W, one of the city’s metal strongholds for extreme music events.
ATAVISTIA is a wall of sound that joyously greets the ears and assails the senses. With sweeping instrumentals, grand orchestrations, and guitars heavier than Thor’s hammer, this Canadian epic metal band from Vancouver is preparing to unleash their next odyssey, Cosmic Warfare on April 21, 2023. Pre-orders are available HERE.
The band comments on the new single: “Cosmic Warfare blasts from beginning to end as a Super Nova cleanses what we know. The amalgamation of chaos and anger brought forth during the pandemic was Cosmic Warfare’s inspiration. Such chaos and speed delivers an outlet for those who greatly suffered during these tumultuous times.”
Today the band has revealed the title track, along with a video. Stream it HERE.
What began as a bedroom project in 2016, became a full band in 2018 with Mattias Sippola on vocals and guitar, Dalton Meaden on guitar, D’wayne Murray on bass and Max Sepulveda on drums.
Fans of WINTERSUN, ENSIFERUM, DIMMU BORGIR, and XANTHOCHROID will be enthralled by the elements of melodic death metal, black metal, and Scandinavian folk that is intricately woven together throughout their diverse soundscape.
ATAVISTIA goes beyond merely crafting songs and takes you on a mental journey through vast sonic landscapes of snow covered forests, desolate tundras and barren permafrost laced landscapes. Beyond the frosty roots of their blackened inspiration, Cosmic Warfare aims for the stars and the vast emptiness of the macrocosm. Bear witness to the destruction of our planet and our cosmos and experience the nothingness of space.
Taking inspiration from the majestic natural landscapes of their homeland, earthly seasons, and ancient Norse culture, ATAVISTIA’s grandiose sound matches these lyrical themes in an impressive symphony of destruction as they balance graceful melodies with brutal rhythmic cacophony.
On stage they are a force of nature, like waves crashing against a rocky shore, their music washes over audiences leaving them gasping for more. In a niche among metal genres, ATAVISTIA has firmly established its presence.
Are you ready to lose yourself in the juxtaposition of lush and arid, the dichotomy of hope and despair, and welcome the inevitable and beautiful end?
German metal commandos PRIMALFEAR celebrated their twenty-fifth band anniversary with select events last year, including live shows and reissuing their iconic self-titled debut album. The time was also spent preparing the huge sonic assault named Code Red, set to be unleashed on September 1st through Atomic Fire!
Produced by bass player Mat Sinner and co-produced by vocalist Ralf Scheepers as well as guitarist Tom Naumann, the record will once again be mixed and mastered by long-time PRIMAL FEAR companion Jacob Hansen at his own Hansen Studios in Denmark. To give fans a first impression of the album, which is still in its recording stages, the group has unveiled its cover artwork, designed by Stan W. Decker who created previous works for the band including 2017’s Angels Of Mercy – Live In Germany, 2018’s Apocalypse, and 2021’s I Will Be Gone.
And PRIMAL FEAR wouldn’t be PRIMAL FEAR if they didn’t announce the first leg of their upcoming European tour as well. Kicking off with a hometown show at Stuttgart’s Im Wizemann venue, the run will also lead the “eagles” to many other countries beyond Germany and Switzerland. Special guests on this run will be power metallers The Unity featuring members of Gamma Ray, Edguy, Primal Fear, and more. Additional dates will be announced in the weeks to come. Find tickets at metaltix.com before they’re gone!
CommentsMat Sinner, “The world is in a state of emergency, one catastrophe follows another. Code Red is our statement about the present and the title of our upcoming fourteenth studio album, which will be released directly at the tour start on September 1st. According to its title, it will be a heavy, powerful, and uncompromising record – 110% PRIMAL FEAR!”
PRIMAL FEAR: 6/24/2023 Koba Live – Abadiño, ES w/ The Unity – Code Red European Tour – Part 1: 9/01/2023 Im Wizemann (Halle) – Stuttgart, DE 9/02/2023 Kaminwerk – Memmingen, DE 9/03/2023 Frankenhalle – Naila , DE 9/05/2023 Backstage (Werk) – Munich, DE 9/06/2023 Zeche – Bochum, DE 9/07/2023 Batschkapp – Frankfurt, DE 9/09/2023 Le Port Franc – Sion, CH 9/10/2023 Z7 – Pratteln, CH To be continued…
Order/stream the band’s reissued debut album, Primal Fear [Deluxe Edition; Remastered], released on July 15th, 2022, at THIS LOCATION.
View PRIMAL FEAR’s previously released videos for “Chainbreaker,” “Running In The Dust,” and so much more at the Atomic Fire Youtube channel at THIS LOCATION.
PRIMAL FEAR: Ralf Scheepers – vocals Mat Sinner – bass, vocals Tom Naumann – guitars Alexander Beyrodt – guitars Magnus Karlsson – guitars Michael Ehré – drums
MEGADETH announce ‘They Only Come Out at Night’ – Live at Budokan – A Global Livestream Event on February 27, 2023 + on-demand for 2 days!
Metal icons MEGADETH will perform live at the legendary Budokan arena in Tokyo, Japan for a special global livestream event on 27th February.
Fans will be treated to virtual VIP access to the band pre-show, with an exclusive behind-the-scenes video capturing their trip through Japan. All leading into the band’s first-ever live performance at the world-famous Budokan where they will be performing classic tracks, as well as tracks from their current album, The Sick, The Dying…And The Dead!, including the GRAMMY® nominated single “We’ll Be Back”.
Do you live in Australia, New Zealand, or anywhere in the United States? GOOD NEWS! Stryper is putting together an impressive list of LIVE concert dates that will take them to Australia, New Zealand and cities across the United States (including the east and west coasts)!
Italy’s ADVERSOR will release their new studio album “Portrait Of A Wasteland” February 24th 2023 via Time To Kill Records, today unveiling the record’s cover art, track listing and stunning first single.
Portrait Of A Wasteland” represents a journey through some of the darkest moments a person can ever experience: suffering, anxiety, grief, frustration, barren dreams, denied future without forgetting a ferocious critic to a rotten society, clearly drowning into a spiral of extremisms. Ten raging tracks of pure metal that define a new chapter for the band, displaying a more mature sound mixing Thrash, Death, Black and classic Heavy. Vitriolic lyrics, razor-sharp riffs, neckwrecking parts are what “Portrait Of A Wasteland” is made of.
Formed in 2015, ADVERSOR released a demo and two full-length albums, “Rise to Survive” and “The End of Mankind”, in quick succession. Both records allowed them to play everywhere in Italy and Europe alongside acts such as Exciter, Protector, Nifelheim, Gama Bomb and many others.
Discography:
Beware of the Soothsayer (demo) – 2016 Rise to Survive – 2016 The End of Mankind – 2018
Line-up:
Dado – Vocals/Guitar Phil – Guitar Ale – Bass Ja – Drums
When it comes to defending the core values of timeless power metal and combining them with fresh stylistic variations and exciting stories, Swedish power metallers Bloodbound have always been fighting at the forefront. With nine studio albums in 16 years under their belt, the six-piece has proven their versatility and inventiveness countless times. Following the much acclaimed, latest record Creatures Of TheDark Realm (2021, AFM Records), Bloodbound have announced the release of their upcoming masterpiece, entitled Tales From The North!
“‘Tales From The North’ is very much a concept album about the viking era. About the lives of our ancestors up here in the dark, cold and unfriendly environments of the north,” explains lead guitarist Tomas Olsson and summarizes the content of their eleven songs: “Different legends and myths intertwine during the course of the songs, leading up to the epic battle of 1066, which marks the end of the viking era.” Those who already know the sound of Bloodbound can imagine the metallic force the band employs to evoke this story. Tales From The Northwill be released on July 7, 2023 via AFM/Soulfood as a 2-CD digipak including a live CD. As a special treat, it will also be released as a strictly limited box set as well as coloured vinyl LPs.
Give ear, as today, the band shared a lyric video for their first album single “Odin’s Prayer”! “Odin’s Prayer is a real banger of a song”, Fredrik Bergh comments. “It represents the new album well and I think it’s a great first taste of the new record. On Tales From The North we have gone back to the roots of bloodbound a bit and I think the bloodheads will like what they hear!“
Watch the Official Lyric Video for Odin’s Prayer HERE
Bloodbound have not only improved in terms of content, but also musically. Says Olsson: “The songs are more fast-paced and closer to some of our earlier stuff like ’Moria’ and ’Nosferatu’, but have more complex arrangements. Compared to the predecessor ‘Creatures Of The Dark Realm’ there are heavier guitars and some deeper sounding keyboards. We have also incorporated some traditional nordic folk music instruments to fit the concept of the album. It’s still pure power metal but we’re trying to take it to the next level.”
Tales From The North was produced by Bloodbound, and was mixed and mastered by Jonas Kjellgren (Amorphis, Overkill, Sabaton) at the Swedish ‘Black Lounge Studios’. The cover artwork was done by Péter Sallai (Hammerfall, Powerwolf & many more).
Tales From The North track listing: 01. Tales From The North 02. Drink With The Gods 03. Odin´s Prayer 04. The Raven´s Cry 05. Mimir`s Crystal Eye 06. Between The Enemy Lines 07. Land Of Heroes 08. Sail Among The Dead 09. Stake My Claims 10.Sword And Axe 11. 1066
BLOODBOUND: Tomas Olsson – lead guitar Fredrik Bergh – keyboards Patrik Selleby – vocals Henrik Olsson – rhythm guitar Anders Broman – bass Daniel Hansfeldt – drums
In support of their upcoming album, Bloodbound has announced an extensive headliner tour and to appear at several festivals such as Karmoygeddon, RockHarz, Masters of Rock, among others. Make sure to catch them live at the following dates this year:
04.02.2023 (SWE) MORA Lilla Helfvetet 28.02.2023 (GER) BERLIN Hole 44* 01.03.2023 (GER) MUNICH Backstage Halle* 02.03.2023 (CH) PRATTELN Z7* 03.03.2023 (FR) COLMAR Le Grillen* 04.03.2023 (BE) VORSELAAR De Dreef* 05.03.2023 (GER) NUREMBERG Hirsch* 06.03.2023 (GER) MANNHEIM 7er Club* 07.03.2023 (GER) ASCHAFFENBURG Colos-Saal* 08.03.2023 (GER) HAMBURG Bahnhof Pauli* 09.03.2023 GER SIEGBURG Kubana* 10.03.2023 (GER) ESSEN Turock* 11.03.2023 (NL) ENSCHEDE Metropool* 12.03.2023 (GER) KASSEL Goldgrube* 04.05.2023 (NOR) KOPERVIK Karmoygeddon Festival 08.07.2023 (GER) BALLENSTEDT RockHarz Festival 16.07.2023 (CZE) VIZOVICE Masters of Rock Festival
Swedish modern sci-fi metal outfit CURSE OFCAIN has joined the Atomic Fire Records roster! Forged in 2000 by ex-Follow The Cipher and ex-Ad Infinitum forward-thinking bassist Jonas Asplind, CURSE OF CAIN focuses on both musical and visual elements to create a futuristic dystopian world while simultaneously unfolding fascinating stories about strong characters such as Cain himself.
Comments the band, “We are beyond excited and really looking forward to this collaboration. Atomic Fire Records is the perfect partner for us, and we are happy to take this huge next step together with them.”
Adds Atomic Fire Records CEO Markus Wosgien, “We were all completely impressed by what CURSE OF CAIN presented to us with their debut album: a coherent, exciting concept and a multi-faceted album with numerous catchy tunes. In short, everything is right here and fantastic musicians come together who have created something unique. I’ve had a close friendship with Jonas Asplind since his time in Follow The Cipher, so I’m all the more pleased to be able to further promote his musical career and to be able to walk with him. CURSE OF CAIN is one of the most exciting newcomers of the hour. Look forward to something very special!”
Today, CURSE OF CAIN also gives a first taste of their music, which can be described as movie metal with a dark touch, with a video for first single, “Alive.”
“‘Alive’ is the natural song for us to start off with,” the band notes. “It’s catchy but dark at the same time; it really captures the movie metal feeling that is our signature.”
The video for “Alive” was produced and directed by George Grigoriadis and Jonas Asplind and filmed and edited by Grigoriadis. The story is by Grigoriadis and Victor Ganebrant.
The band’s debut album, Curse Of Cain, will see release in May 2023. Further details on the concept and the ordeal of Cain and his band of misfits will be revealed soon!
Veteran US heavy metallers JAG PANZER are finally back in full force! Today, the band is proud to announce their signing to Atomic Fire Records for the release of their twelfth full-length album, The Hallowed, which is due out next Spring.
Comments founding guitarist Mark Briody, “JAG PANZER is proud to announce that we have signed to Atomic Fire Records. Over the years, we have seen the incredible promotional work done by Markus, Flori, and their team. We felt that our music combined with their hard work could take JAG PANZER to the next level. We are very excited to bring The Hallowed to Atomic Fire Records.”
Adds Atomic Fire Records founder/A&R MarkusWosgien, “When we got the offer for a new JAG PANZER album, it was already a bit of a no-brainer to give them a deal. When we heard the album, it became a must-have. Honestly, this is one of the best albums they’ve ever done and they have an armada of classics in their discography. They sound hungry, inspired, and take all their trademarks to another level. We cannot wait to release their first singles and believe me; it wasn’t a hard choice to make. This is a future heavy metal classic to come!”
JAG PANZER came into being in 1981 in Colorado Springs and, over four decades later, has lost none of their rebellion and power. Inspired by the onslaught of the New Wave Of British Heavy Metal, Mark Briody and his comrades quickly became one of the most intriguing US power metal acts, releasing a glut of successful studio albums, including their debut album AmpleDestruction (1984), The Fourth Judgement (1997), Thane To The Throne (2000), TheScourge Of The Light (2011), and their latest effort, The DeviantChord (2017).
After facing several lineup changes and a hiatus, JAG PANZER are still holding sway as their forthcoming album The Hallowed proves.
Recently, JAG PANZER welcomed long-time touring guitarist Ken Rodarte as an official band member: Said Briody, “Ken’s done a great job on the last several tours. When he expressed interest in joining the band, we put him on an eight-week audition to see how he’d fit in with our creative process. Ken’s contribution to The Hallowed exceeded all our expectations. Harry, Rikard, John, and I are all excited to have Ken on board.”
JAG PANZER Live: 1/19/2023 Klub Remont – Warsaw, PL 1/21/2023 Hammer And Iron Festival – Essen, DE 1/22/2023 Baroeg – Rotterdam, NL 1/24/2023 Kyttaro Live Club – Athens, GR 1/25/2023 Eightball Club – Thessaloniki, GR 1/26/2023 Down Town Live – Nicosia, CY 7/27–29/2023 Headbangers Open Air Festival – Brande-Hörnerkirchen, DE 8/11–13/2023 Alcatraz Festival – Kortrijk, BE
JAG PANZER: Harry Conklin – vocals Mark Briody – guitars Ken Rodarte – guitars John Tetley – bass Rikard Stjernquist – drums
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania’s long-running traditional metal veterans ICARUSWITCH today drop a banger of a new single, “10,000 Light Years From Home,” as well as a captivating lyric video for the anthem. With this sci-fi-themed single, the band provides a glimpse into their futuristic folklore concept album slated for 2023 through Cleopatra Records.
UK’s Metal Hammer Magazine called ICARUSWITCH, “One of the best New Wave Of Traditional Metal Bands to carry the standard triumphantly into the future.” Today, the band is living up to that prediction as they unveil an animated video that takes place in a dystopian future, created in part with AI, set to an explosive trad metal track called “10,000 Light Years From Home.” This song was road-tested on festival stages around the world this year and showcases the first studio recording released by the band since 2018’s critically acclaimed LP, Goodbye Cruel World. The single marks another milestone for the band as it’s part of their first concept album, No Devil Lived On, which will be released next year.
Founding member Jason Myers sets the scene, “Though written at the height of the global pandemic, the messages in ‘10,000 Light Years From Home’ ring truer today than ever before. The lyrics are taken from the ship’s log of a crew on a doomed space voyage. The story takes place in the near future when an elite group of global government officials as well as several of the world’s wealthiest business leaders, and foreign royals take flight on a mission to escape the planet they helped decimate while seeking to colonize new worlds to satiate their egos and personal fortunes. Will these intergalactic robber barons accomplish their selfish cosmic agenda, or will the prophecy of Gaia’s mysterious occult council prevail? Tune in to find out.”
Featuring a guest spoken word section by Paul Messerle, the guitars and bass for “10,000 Light Years From Home” were recorded by Quinn Lukas at QL Audio, and the vocals and drums were recorded by Andrew D’Cagna at Sacred Sound Studio. The song was mixed and mastered by Brad Cox at Black Paw Studios. Aubrianna Myers handled the graphic design while Jason Myers produced the video using Midjourney AI illustrations animated by Emre Alan.
Watch ICARUS WITCH’s spellbinding “10,000 Light Years From Home” lyric video now at THIS LOCATION.
“10,000 Light Years From Home” is also available on all major streaming services today including Spotify HERE, Apple Music HERE, Amazon HERE, and more.
Watch for updates on ICARUS WITCH’s impending No Devil Lived On album to post in the months ahead.
ICARUS WITCH: Andrew D’Cagna – vocals Quinn Lukas – guitar Jason Myers – bass, synthesizer Noah Skiba – drums
York (PA) – Vintage proto-metal purveyors SPELLBOOK have released a lyric video for “Goddess,” a track from new album DeadlyCharms. You can check out the video at youtu.be/gZEUeAmb4_s or below:
Deadly Charms is available on CD, digital, and vinyl formats via Cruz Del Sur Music. See the links below for streaming and purchase options.
The follow-up to 2020’s Magick & Mischief was recorded in February at Developing Nations in Baltimore, Maryland, with producer/engineer Kevin Bernsten. The album also marks the SPELLBOOK recording debut of their two new guitarists, Les Yarde and Patrick “Patty” Benton.
“The material has new life injected into it while still maintaining the adventurous ’70s hard rock sound we strive for,” says drummer Nick Zinn. “It certainly helped Les and Patty love Magick & Mischief and its no-rules approach. Yet, at the same time, Deadly Charms does seem a bit more focused. We love how the overall vibe has a more anthemic feel.”
Line-Up:
Nate Tyson – Vocals Les Yarde – Guitar Patrick “Patty” Benton – Guitar Seibert Lowe Jr. – Bass Nick Zinn – Drums
According to Zinn, the lyrical themes on DeadlyCharms lean much heavier on horror and reality than the fantasy and fiction approach found in Magick & Mischief. The David Thiérrée (BEHEMOTH, MORTIIS, IHSAHN)-created artwork capably showcases these topics.
“The cover depicts an open spell book spewing forth witches, devils and other ghastly things,” notes Zinn. “These are all subject matters within Deadly Charms songs. We’ve been fortunate to work with so many great artists over the years on different albums dating back to our WITCH HAZEL days and enjoy the excitement of a new artist on each project we do.”
Magick & Mischief was released in the thick of the global pandemic. While it put a premature end to the band’s touring plans, it immediately cultivated a feverish critical following.
The world’s favorite hard rock monsters, LORDI, who are currently busy touring Europe, are gearing up for the next chapter of their spooky discography. Today, the horde is proud to announce their signing to Atomic Fire Records. While their current seven-CD(!) album box, Lordiversity, was released just one year ago, the famed Finnish group led by mastermind Mr. Lordi have fully seized their time at home during the pandemic to record a follow-up album that will see the light of day in Spring 2023.
LORDI comments, “We are damn proud to announce that LORDI are joining the impressive ranks of Atomic Fire Records! We’re quite psyched up to stir the pots with Markus Wosgien, Flori Milz, and their fantastic team. Leaving AFM Records (thanks a million, Jochen) was not an easy decision for us since the support there was always great! Stay tuned monster maniacs — the next era is all set and ready and awaiting just right around the corner…”
Atomic Fire Records label founder/A&R MarkusWosgien adds, “With LORDI, we are happy to welcome another heavyweight of the heavy metal scene to Atomic Fire Records. Twenty years ago, their fantastic debut Get Heavy was released and you simply had to love them! The combination of their monster image with traditional ’80s metal was a real joy on every single one of their albums and is always a guarantee for a true metal inferno live on stage. What Mr. Lordi and his monster clan recently created on the seven-CD package Lordversity still leaves me speechless and will probably never be seen again in this form. We are looking forward to the next chapter with some new monster anthems par excellence!”
New LORDI tunes will come your way soon. In the meantime, you can catch the band live on their European Lordiversitour currently underway and the newly announced The Tour To End All Tours run with Sabaton and Babymetal. See all confirmed dates below. Keep up with all LORDI live dates at THIS LOCATION.
LORDI:
11/23/2022 Der Hirsch – Nuremberg, DE w/ Almanac, Dymytry
11/24/2022 Eventhall Airport – Regensburg-Obertraubling, DE w/ Almanac, Dymytry
11/25/2022 Hole44 – Berlin, DE w/ Almanac, Dymytry
11/26/2022 Hellraiser – Leipzig, DE w/ Almanac, Dymytry
11/28/2022 Backstage (Werk) – Munich, DE w/ Almanac, Dymytry
11/29/2022 Essigfabrik – Cologne, DE w/ Almanac, Enemy Inside
11/30/2022 Garage – Saarbrucken, DE w/ Almanac, Enemy Inside
4th new song offered from the Power/Progressive Metal band’s upcoming new album
As Power/Progressive Metal band IMMORTAL GUARDIAN continues building their next opus, the group issues “Perfect Person” as the fourth sample of their new work. Recording independently and remotely the quartet is assembling the follow-up to 2021’s successful ‘Psychosomatic’ track-by-track and sharing the material as it completes, along with visually captivating music videos, that again the self-contained group produces themselves.
“Perfect Person” is available now for streaming/download at all digital platforms or watch the video at https://youtu.be/MRTrNHlC90A or below:
“I grew up in a very religious Mexican family. It was a big part of our lives, especially every Sunday morning when we went to church,” explains guitarist/keyboardist Gabriel Guardian. “But one day, our pastor had a heart attack while in the middle of a sexual act cheating on his wife and died right there in the church after-hours. It was absolutely bonkers and I remember it really stirred up the moral point-of-views in our tiny Texas town.We stopped going to church after that and really started questioning why we were there, to begin with.You see, some Christians had such a bad taste of the church that they left religion altogether and felt lied to and deceived, while others said the Christian thing to do would be to forgive him and move on and find another church. It was super interesting to grow up and watch both sides of this play out. This made a very interesting topic to write about and it definitely fueled the spark for ‘Perfect Person.’
At the end of the day, it is about NOT over-idolizing and over-glorifying religious figures, politicians, celebrities, even musicians, and the like. I wonder if that pastor had just lived his life and died a non-religious man, nobody would have been bothered, but because everyone sought this man’s advice every week, got baptized by him, got married by him, and put his words and lifestyle on a pedestal, it made it that much more devastating. Everyone can pin a local ‘icon’ in their minds as a perfect figure that could do no wrong and preach endless golden words when in fact, he is just a mortal man with mortal sin.”
Heavy topics are not unfamiliar to Immortal Guardian whose previous album focused on the Covid pandemic, likely the first full album to be thematically linked to the disease and its effect on the globe and its people. In the past year, Immortal Guardian has revealed three brand new songs — “Ozona,” “Echoes” and “Southern Rain” forming a basis for their next conceptual piece. The band will continue to share new material as the creative process proceeds to build up to a follow-up full-length traditional album planned for 2023. More info will be released by Immortal Guardian and M-Theory Audio in the weeks and months to follow, including new tour dates. https://www.facebook.com/igmetal/.
IMMORTAL GUARDIAN: Gabriel Guardian – guitars/keyboards Carlos Zema – vocals Justin Piedimonte – drums Joshua Lopez – bass
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