The self-titled CORPSEGRINDER release is a monstrous and impressive leap for this Death Metal legend. CORPSEGRINDER is jam packed with infectious riffs, entertaining lyrics and more badass grooves than I can count. This is way more like Obituary than Cannibal Corpse; yet CORPSEGRINDER stands alone on its musicianship and overall nod to straight-up Metal.
KillerBeKilled exemplify’s how Metal has evolved up to this point in time; a modern Metal sound that benefits from the brilliance of this supergroup. Max Cavalara shows off clean vocals with his growls, while each song on ReluctantHero I find to be outstanding. GregPuciato is a tremendous force on this album. An amazing Metal albumwhich I already consider as a classic.
BurningWitches carry the torch for Traditional Heavy Metal while adding their own recipe of sound. These ladies bring a hefty dose of speed and melody to their songs, along with some growls and European Metal vibes. TheWitchOfTheNorth settles into this band’s growing and impressive discography perfectly. If you love DORO, you’ll love BurningWitches.
St. Louis Heavy Metal band Torchlight Parade are pleased to announce that they will release their upcoming album “Never Laugh When A Hearse Rolls By” on June 6 2022. The album will be released on both CD and digital formats. The band features guest musician Teddy Andreadis (Guns-n-Roses, Alice Cooper) on keyboards and a guest appearance from Sam Bam Koltun of Faster Pussycat.
The band comments: ““Three fifths of our band is morticians by day. Both our band name and first album definitely made references to our morbid professions, but we thought we would go full tilt into the funeral theme for our second album. It tells the story of a gothic funeral ceremony with classic old school metal. In keeping with this theme, we even brought on board former Guns-n-Roses and Alice Cooper keyboardist Teddy “Zig Zag” Andreadis. We home listeners enjoy the Rock n Soul Ceremony! “
Megadeth announce bass player James LoMenzo as a permanent member of the band. LoMenzo was Megadeth’s bass player in the mid-2000s and recently stepped back in as a touring member for The Metal Tour of the Year. LoMenzo now officially rejoins the Megadeth family.
Dave Mustaine adds, “I am thrilled to welcome back James to the Megadeth family. James rejoined the fold as the touring bassist and it’s been a blast having him back, we thought let’s make it permanent.”
James: “I’m so excited to rejoin Megadeth and move forward full steam into the next phase of this iconic band’s history! With Dave, Kiko and Dirk there’s no stopping us! It just feels great to be home again.”
The Finnish power metal regiment, Remains of Destruction, released their album called “New Dawn” on May 28, 2022. The revolutionary album transports the listener through beautiful melodies, heavy riffs, and epic moods. R.O.D has released a total of five singles from the album that have received good feedback, and the band assures that listeners will not be disappointed with their first full-length album.
“New Dawn” has also had high-level collaborators, such as Topias Kupiainen of Arion, long-time power metal expert Esa Orjatsalo, award-winning game music composer Kohld Haveneson, and Venezuela’s gift to music production, producer Felipe Grüber.
The songs’ themes on the album primarily deal with modern-day themes, and the texts revolve around the war in Ukraine, the pandemic, and the current state of humanity.
Album cover by Nicolás Oliveros
The band’s singer Jesse Yrjölä, who was responsible for the production and recording of the album, says of the new album:
“New Dawn” is an epic journey through a post-apocalyptic fictive alternate reality full of velocity and dangerous situations. The album follows the real world’s ugly situation through a third-person view, likened to a slightly whimsical universe according to our ideology through the eyes of different characters.
The concept of the album and some of the songs was in mind even before the whole band was formed. In the turn of the year, when our lineup was complete, we decided together to book an album-release gig and made a deal that we are going to finish the album by the gig. At that time we had released 3 singles and a total of five songs had been written! We worked our asses off throughout the beginning of the year and we were able to finish an album consisting of nine songs 3 weeks before the release! (Theband’ssingerlaughs). We got a real supergroup of awesome peers who I want to thank a thousand times for their work! Without them, this album would have never seen the light of day.
We hope everyone gets on board with us to spread the message of power metal!
The traditional metal powerhouse from Portland, Oregon, are beginning their next chapter by unleashing the high-octane recordTheGreaterGoodofManon August 19th 2022. Refining their classic metal sound fused with progressive hard rock and striking melodies, SPLINTEREDTHRONE have created a majestic and vivacious release.
Well known for their high energy live performances, and having supported the likes of FLOTSAM & JETSAM, PRIMAL FEAR, LITA FORD, and more, TheGreaterGoodofMan sees the band distill their captivating sound. Following the departure of vocalist and founding member Brian Garrison, two-time Blues Music Award winner and European Blues Award nominee Lisa Mann stepped into the role.
Lisa Mann Comments: “I still pinch myself that I’m even in this band- and now we’ve written and recorded a kick ass album? It’s as good a feeling as sex and chocolate. Can’t wait to unleash it upon the world!”
Lisa was by no means a stranger to the world of metal having released her heavy debut album under the pseudonym of WHITECRONE receiving raving reviews in the underground scene. Despite the pandemic disrupting initial plans, the band have produced an astounding new record. Opening with the enthralling “The Reaper is Calling”, SPLINTEREDTHRONE bring a high-spirited energy into the deadly track. Channeling their melodic essence, this opening number aptly establishes the mood of the album.
The title track, “The Greater Good of Man” delivers bluesy influences with dynamic bass, groove rhythms, and soaring vocals. Yielding a thrilling pace of high-speed riffs and unrelenting energy, the epic lyrical narrative of “Night of the Heathens” draws the listener into the storytelling. Also included on the album is a moving re-recorded version of the power-ballad “Immortal”.
TheGreaterGoodofMan is the eagerly anticipated next milestone in SPLINTEREDTHRONE’s career. Showcasing compelling composition and genre fusion across the tracks, the album is a dynamic collection of energy, emotion and storytelling.
SPLINTERED THRONE: Brian Bailey – bass Matt Dorado – guitar Kris Holboke – drums Lisa Mann – vocals Jason “JMo” Moser – guitar
Track Listing: 1.The Reaper is Calling* (4:10) 2. The Crossing (6:09) 3. Morning Star Rising (5:50) 4. The Greater Good of Man (3:55) 5. Let it Rain (4:04) 6. Underdogs** (4:50) 7. Night of the Heathens (3:23) 8. Time Stands Still (4:03) 9. Immortal 2020 (Remastered)** (4:34)
Credits: All songs written by Jason Moser & Lisa Mann except: *written by Jason Moser, Lisa Mann, & Fred Osborn,**written by Jason Moser ALL SONGS ARRANGED BY SPLINTERED THRONE
“Underdogs” was inspired by those struggling with addiction and to those who made it into Recovery.
A new Heavy Metal festival is being forged in the heart of New England. StormbringerMetalFestival, named after the infamous black sword of the Elric saga, arrives with an ambitious mission: to carve itself a spot on the map of some of the best heavy metal festivals of North America.
Founded by three musicians (Evgeny Gromovoy of Adamantis, Dwayne Eldredge of Mourn the Light and Carmine Blades of Seax), the festival will be celebrated on June 10-11, 2022 in Worcester (Massachusetts, USA) at the legendary Ralph’s Rock Diner. This year’s headliners include Riot City (Friday, June 10) and Attacker (Saturday, June 11). Supporting acts include Glacier, Gatekeeper, Icarus Witch, Greyhawk, Tower, Ironflame, Blazon Rite and Olorin among others. For most of these bands, Stormbringer will be their first appearance ever in New England.
“In addition to bringing some of the finest heavy metal acts of North America, we want to highlight our vibrant local scene,” Dwayne says. This year Stormbringer will feature five New England based bands: Entierro (feat. Victor Arduini of Fate’s Warning fame), Archdruid, Mourn the Light, Seax and Adamantis. “Moreover, we hope that the festival will establish a place for the north-eastern heavy metal vendor community to thrive,” Carmine adds.
Stormbringer Metal Festival features six bands on the Cruz del Sur Music/Gates of Hell Recordslabels: Tower, Gatekeeper, Adamantis, Attacker, Blazon Riteand Olorin. “Their inclusion on the bill is testimony to the great work Cruz del Sur Music/Gates of Helllabel does to support northamerican heavy metal scene”, Evgeny adds.
“This year’s festival is just the beginning of a saga, the Stormbringer saga” – the promoters conclude. “We have huge plans for years to come! Don’t miss this one, the one that started it all. It will be one to remember!”
HELLOWEEN will release a special vinyl single titled “Best Time” via AtomicFire on May 20th. The single features a 2022 remix of its title track on side A as well as an exclusive alternative vocal remix of the song on side B.
Purchase the band’s 2021 self-titled full-length in various formats as well as other records and merchandise at the Atomic Fire Records webshop HERE.
HELLOWEEN’s “Best Time” single comes in celebration of the band’s awaited United Forces European tour with HammerFall, set to begin this Wednesday, May 4th, at Manchester Academy in the UK. The band’s full upcoming itinerary can be found below.
HELLOWEEN w/ HammerFall: 5/04/2022 Manchester Academy – Manchester, UK 5/05/2022 Brixton Academy – London, UK 6/23/2022 Hellfest – Clisson, FR* 6/28/2022 Papp László Sportaréna – Budapest, HU 6/29/2022 Gasometer – Vienna, AT 6/30/2022 O2 Arena – Prague, CZ 7/02/2022 Olympic Fields – Zvolenská Slatina, SK 7/16/2022 Metal Paradise – Fuengirola, ES * 8/27/2022 Ippodromo Snai San Siro – Milan, IT *
8/28/2022 Riverside Open Air – Aarburg, CH * 8/30/2022 L’Olympia – Paris, FR* 8/31/2022 Le Transbordeur – Lyon, FR* 9/08/2022 Verti Music Hall – Berlin, DE 9/09/2022 Donau-Arena – Regensburg, DE 9/10/2022 Brose Arena – Bamberg, DE 9/13/2022 013 – TilburgM NL 9/14/2022 Rockhal – Luxembourg, LU 9/16/2022 Hanns-Martin-Schleyer-Halle – Stuttgart, DE 9/18/2022 MCK – Katowice, PL 9/22/2022 Centro de Eventos Pedregal – San José, CR 9/24/2022 Arena CDMX – Mexico City, MX 9/27/2022 Coliseo General Rumiñahui – Quito, EC 9/29/2022 Movistar Arena – Bogotá, CO
10/02/2022 Estadio Luna Park – Buenos Aires, AR 10/04/2022 Movistar Arena – Santiago de Chile, CL 10/06/2022 Arena Eurobike – Ribeirão Preto, BR 10/08/2022 Espaço das Américas – São Paulo, BR 10/09/2022 Espaço das Américas – São Paulo, BR 10/13/2022 Arena Armeec – Sofia, BG 12/09/2022 Jahrhunderthalle – Frankfurt, DE 12/11/2022 bigBOX – Kempten, DE 12/13/2022 The Hall – Zurich, CH 2/03/2023 Sant Jordi Club – Barcelona, ES 2/04/2023 WiZink Center – Madrid, ES 4/28/2023 Sentrum Scene – Madrid, ES 4/29/2023 Partille Arena – Gothenburg, SE 5/01/2023 Black Box – Helsinki, FI 5/02/2023 Noblessneri Valukoda – Tallinn, EE 5/05/2023 RuhrCongress – Bochum, DE 5/06/2023 Sporthalle – Hamburg, DE
No HammerFall
Visit/subscribe to HELLOWEEN’s official YouTube channel at THIS LOCATION and watch videos for “Out For The Glory,” “Skyfall [Single Edit],” “Fear Of The Fallen,” “Mass Pollution,” “Angels,” “Rise Without Chains,” “Indestructible,” “Robot King,” “Cyanide,” “Skyfall [Album Version]” and so much more!
Artwork by Eliran Kantor
HELLOWEEN: Michael Kiske – vocals AndiDeris – vocals Kai Hansen – guitar, vocals Michael Weikath – guitar SaschaGerstner – guitar Markus Grosskopf – bass Daniel Löble – drums
SURVIVE are set to release their first live album “Live At Death Valley” on May 4th 2022 in conspiracy with PestRecords. The CD version will feature 8 tracks plus a bonus EP made of 4 tracks, one having Tony “DemolitionMan” Dolan (Venom Inc) as special guest!
Here’s what the legendary Mantas from VenomInc. had to say about SURVIVE‘s live potential:
I had the pleasure and honor of touring Europe with Survive and they proved themselves to be a valuable asset to the touring package. I can say without hesitation or reservations that they were most definitely my favorite band on the tour. Incredibly nice and gracious guys who obviously loved their music and delivered every single night. I gave them the nickname ‘The Japanese Machine Head’ a song that they played at every sound check became the tour anthem because of its wonderful chorus structure. Melody, hook lines and brutally heavy guitar riffs define this amazing band who deserve global recognition. Maximum Respect from Jeff (Mantas).”
“Live At Death Valley” coverart + booklet created by Mohsen Fayazi.
Track list : 01 Degenerate 02 Wrath 03 Fuck Against Authority 04 Obey Your Own Army Corps 05 Rules Of Lies 06 Immortal Warriros 07 Human Misery 08 the Road to hell is paved by goodwill
+bonus tracks from EP ‘The Road To Hell Is Paved By Good Will’: 1.The Road To Hell Is Paved By Good Will (Featuring Tony “DemolitionMan” Dolan/VenomInc) 2. Rules Of Lies (Orchestra Ver) 3. Seize The Victory 4. The Road To Hell Is Paved By Good Will (Live@Club Citta Metallization Festival 2020)
“It is easy to be technically brilliant metal band in the studio but the true trial by fire is a Live album! With this “Live At Death Valley” album SURVIVE proves they are truly the “Samurais From Hell”! The album was mixed live so it is 100% authentic, no studio gimmicks! Great songs, fantastic technical skills! On top of that you get great new bonus tracks! Brilliant!” – KimmoKuusniemi, Band Manager, Sarcofagus Guitarist
German hard rock quartet and recent Atomic Fire Records signees SINNER have unveiled the artwork of their forthcoming studio album, Brotherhood, scheduled for release on July 15th, via Atomic Fire Records.
Notes vocalist/bassist MatSinner of the record’s title, “This band is held together by a tight friendship. Without this friendship, SINNER simply would not exist. We belong together and this album is meant to express that.”
Today, the group has also released the record’s track listing.
Brotherhood Track Listing:
Bulletproof
We Came To Rock
Reach Out
Brotherhood
Refuse To Surrender
The Last Generation
Gravity
The Man They Couldn’t Hang
The Rocker Rides Away
My Scars
40 Days 40 Nights
When You Were Young (The Killers Cover) ** ** Bonus Track (physical only)
Brotherhood was produced by Mat Sinner, co-produced by guitarist Tom Naumann, and recorded by Basi Roeder at Backyard Studios as well as Mitch Kunz at Apollo 13 Audio. Jacob Hansen mixed and mastered it at Hansen Studios, Denmark. Artwork was completed by 123RF GmbH / W. Cliff Knese (Terrafolio). Additionally, a variety of special guests will appear on SINNER‘s Brotherhood contributing different roles to this milestone in the band’s eventful career.
BrotherhoodSpecialGuests: Dave Ingram Erik Martensson Giorgia Colleluori Lisa Müller Mark Basile Neil Witchard Oliver Palotai Ralf Scheepers Ronnie Romero Sascha Krebs Stef E. Tom Englund
SINNER’s first single, “Bulletproof,” as well as preorders, will be launched on Friday, May 6th. Be ready!
SINNER: MatSinner – vocals, bass Tom Naumann – guitars AlexScholpp – guitars Markus Kullmann – drums
SKULLFIST’s impending new full-length PaidInFull will see release on April 22nd via Atomic Fire Records. In advance of the record’s official unveiling, today the band has issued a special track-by-track breakdown of the album. Watch band leader Zach Slaughter give insight into each of the eight songs comprising the offering (as well as an opportunity to get a sneak peek of the record in advance).
Watch the track-by-track video breakdown at THIS LOCATION or below:
View SKULLFIST’s previously release videos for “For The Last Time” HERE and “Long Live The Fist” HERE.
PaidInFull will be available on CD, vinyl in various color variants, limited edition boxset, and digitally. Find preorders at THIS LOCATION.
Since their steely inception back in 2006, dungeon keeper Zach Schottler (AKA Zach Slaughter) and his shredding band of reckless companions have released three classic heavy metal almanacs, have eaten more dust than is good for their health, have endured various hardships and propped up countless beers at countless bars in countless cities. But now, after fifteen years of metal and mayhem, Schottler is coming into his own with the proverbially titled PaidInFull album, a heavy metal wonder of the defiant middle finger variant.
Delivering tales of steel and legends from the underworld, PaidInFull was written at home, recorded at Vespa Studios near Toronto, and encompasses Schottler’s sonic efforts of the past two years. With heads held high, empty pockets, and enough gas to make the next show, SKULLFIST has won 2022. Don’t mess with the FIST. The FIST is the law!
One of the biggest names in the glam metal/sleaze rock scene, CRASHDÏET, announce the release of their upcoming album, Automaton, available for pre-sale now on digital, CD and vinyl, through Crusader Records/Golden Robot Records. The digital and CD are set to drop on April 29, with limited edition coloured vinyl due for release on September 9.
To celebrate the pre-sale of Automaton, CRASHDÏET serve up another delicacy in the form of a new single and video, ‘Together Whatever’, which is available now on all digital platforms.
‘Together Whatever’ is a true party anthem! Exploding with raging guitars and scorching vocals, it’s a tribute to the decadent good old days and the band’s early roots.
Watch the new music video for ‘Together Whatever’ HERE or below:
Just like a gigantic robotic machine with pre-determined instructions, failure was never an option…
No matter what obstacles may have come their way in the past, CRASHDÏET have always marched forward, delivering their own style of Sleaze Metal they have become so well known for. Automaton contains 12 powerful sing-along anthems with massive drums, guitars, bass, and powering vocals (including a surprise special guest and a haunting voice from the past).
Toronto-based heavy metal outfit SKULLFIST are pleased to reveal their latest video single, “For The Last Time.” The track comes by way of the band’s impending new full-length, PaidInFull, set for release on April 22nd via Atomic Fire Records.
Comments the band’s Zach Schottler, “We filmed this video in -20º C weather in my shed. For your sake, I hope you are nowhere near as cold as we were when we did this. This song was actually written more recently than the other ones and I’m happy its tombstone has finally been erected.”
View SKULL FIST’s “For The Last Time” video HERE. Listen, download, or stream the track HERE.
View previously released single “Long Live The Fist” at THIS LOCATION. The song is available on all streaming platforms HERE.
Since their steely inception back in 2006, dungeon keeper Zach Schottler and his shredding band of reckless companions have released three classic heavy metal almanacs, have eaten more dust than is good for their health, have endured various hardships and propped up countless beers at countless bars in countless cities. But now, after fifteen years of metal and mayhem, Schottler is coming into his own with the proverbially titled PaidInFull album, a heavy metal wonder of the defiant middle finger variant. With heads held high, empty pockets, and enough gas to make the next show, SKULLFIST has won 2022. Don’t mess with the FIST. The FIST is the law!
Written at home and recorded at Vespa Studios near Toronto, PaidInFull encompasses Schottler’s sonic efforts of the past two years: tales of steel and legends from the underworld…
Paid In Full will be available on digipak CD, vinyl in various color variants, limited edition boxset, and digitally. Find preorders at THIS LOCATION.
Atomic Fire Records today welcomes German hard rock quartet SINNER to its expanding roster. The band will release a twelve-track full-length, aptly titled Brotherhood, this Summer. Produced by frontman MatSinner and co-produced by guitarist Tom Naumann, Brotherhood was recorded by Basi Roeder at Backyard Studios as well as Mitch Kunz at Apollo 13 Audio, and mixed and mastered by Jacob Hansen at Hansen Studios, Denmark.
Vocalist/bassist Mat Sinner comments, “We’re enormously happy to be a new member of the Atomic Fire Records family and to work with many great ex-colleagues. Brotherhood simply is such a strong album that we need their motivated and loyal team to make it a big success.”
Says Atomic Fire Records CEO Markus Wosgien, “We’ve been connected and good friends with Mat Sinner and his band mates for a long time. To welcome SINNER at Atomic Fire Records is nothing but a matter of the heart for us because – like Primal Fear – they’re a very important part of our past but now also of our present and future again; and we’re even prouder and happier about their monstrous new album that was crafted in brilliant teamwork by Mat (mostly) alongside Tom Naumann. Brotherhood is a heavy, straight, and hard-hitting opus, graced with an impressive amount of guests and friends. The album title says it all – it’s definitely another masterful addition to the already long listing of great SINNER records.”
More information on SINNER‘s Brotherhood as well as the first digital single and preordering details will be announced soon.
SINNER: MatSinner – vocals, bass Tom Naumann – guitars AlexScholpp – guitars Markus Kullmann – drums
Recently signed to Crusader Records / Golden Robot Records, South African sleaze rockers L.A. COBRA havereleased their first single for the label, ‘She’s My Prison’, which is available now on all digital platforms.
Formed in November 2005, L.A. COBRA is the only sleaze/glam/hair metal band on the African continent. They are the “sleaze rocking hair metal stars” from Pretoria (home of multi-platinum rock superstars SEETHER), flying the 80’s glam rock flag from the handlebars of their Harley’s whilst making a name for themselves internationally and locally.
‘She’s My Prison’, is an anthemic arena rock single that revolves around the restrictive nature of a failed relationship. The track features screaming guitars, thunderous drums and bass, and a sing-along chorus that fans will distinctly recognize as L.A. COBRA.
L.A. Cobra has been let loose to cause a rebellion amongst the youth with their revival of the 80’s glam era. Largely influenced by 80’s rock bands like Mötley Crüe, Guns & Roses, W.A.S.P. and Skid Row, L.A. COBRA is all about girls, Harley’s, big hair and a good time.
The band is: Don Cobra on vocals and guitar, Spade on lead guitar, Ewil on bass guitar and Callie ‘The Animal’ on drums, bringing back those memorable guitar solos and “balls to the wall” hard rock shows we’re all starved for. With a modern twist from their song-writing as we know them, these guys are the real deal, and live rock and roll!
L.A. Cobra and Crusader Records will have a slew of announcements in 2022 including new music, merchandise, tours and a whole lot more…stay tuned.
“Emergency” is the haunting opening track of MSG’s upcoming new studio album, Universal, set for release on May 27th via Atomic Fire Records.
The album’s first single comes along with an official music video, produced by Justin Griffiths. Comments MICHAEL SCHENKER, “‘Emergency’ is quite a complicated song with different rhythms but catchy at the same time. It’s fun to play and to listen to. Enjoy and keep on rocking.”
View MSG’s “Emergency” video at THIS LOCATION or below:
Universal will be available as a CD digipak (including two bonus tracks), Earbook (CD including two bonus tracks), on vinyl, and digitally. Find preordering options at THIS LOCATION.
Few rock guitarists on this planet have had such a lasting influence on so many renowned musicians as MICHAEL SCHENKER. With his outstandingly fluid style, inexhaustible wealth of ideas, and instinctive feel for hooks and melodies, MICHAEL SCHENKER is a living legend who, despite his longstanding and distinguished history, still impresses with his unflagging energy and drive. The blond stringsman from Sarstedt, Germany (near Hanover) began his international career in the early 1970s with the Scorpions, achieved worldwide fame after joining British rock group U.F.O., and then seamlessly continued his exceptional global success story under his own name, as well as with acts such as MICHAEL SCHENKER GROUP (otherwise known as MSG), Temple Of Rock, and MICHAEL SCHENKER Fest. SCHENKER and his career, which has spanned more than five decades, are absolute exceptions in the otherwise short-lived music industry.
To celebrate his latest MSG album, Universal, scheduled for release on May 27th through Atomic Fire Records, as well as his 50th anniversary of recording, MSG will embark upon an extended US tour this Fall. The trek will run from September 27th through November 6th. See all confirmed dates below.
MSG US Tour 2022 w/ Eric Martin, Images Of Eden: 9/27/2022 The Coach House – San Juan Capistrano, CA 9/28/2022 Goldfield Trading Post – Roseville, CA 9/29/2022 Great American Music Hall – San Francisco, CA 10/01/2022 Saban Theater – Los Angeles, CA 10/02/2022 Count’s Vamp’d – Las Vegas, NV 10/04/2022 Oriental Theater – Denver, CO 10/06/2022 Pop’s – Sauget, IL 10/07/2022 Des Plaines Theater – Des Plaines, IL 10/08/2022 Arcada Theater – St. Charles, IL 10/09/2022 Pabst Theater – Milwaukee, WI 10/11/2022 The Art Theater – Hobart, IN 10/12/2022 Piere’s – Ft. Wayne, IN 10/14/2022 The King Of Clubs – Columbus, OH 10/15/2022 Agora Theater – Cleveland, OH 10/16/2022 Harpo’s – Detroit, MI 10/17/2022 Jergels – Pittsburgh, PA 10/19/2022 The Vault – New Bedford, MA * MSG only 10/20/2022 Flying Monkey – Plymouth, NH 10/21/2022 Cabot Theater – Beverly, MA 10/22/2022 Sony Hall – New York, NY 10/23/2022 Newton Theater – Newton, NJ 10/25/2022 Keswick Theater – Glenside, PA 10/26/2022 Tally Ho – Leesburg, VA 10/27/2022 Sherman Theater – Stroudsburg, PA
w/ Damon Johnson & The Get Ready, Images Of Eden: 10/29/2022 Bogarts – Cincinnati, OH 10/30/2022 Brooklyn Bowl – Nashville, TN w/ W.A.S.P., Armored Saint: 11/02/2022 White Oak Music Hall – Houston, TX 11/03/2022 Concrete Street Pavilion – Corpus Christi TX 11/04/2022 Eaton Arena – San Antonio, TX 11/05/2022 Amplified Live – Dallas, TX 11/06/2022 Tulsa Theater – Tulsa, OK
MSG – USTour2022Lineup: Michael Schenker – lead guitar Ronnie Romero – vocals Bodo Schopf – drums Steve Mann – keyboards, guitars BarendCourbois – bass
MSG’s Universal will feature all the strengths of this exceptional musician: first-rate songs with anthemic melodies, catchy guitar riffs, and inspiring solos. As fans have come to expect, SCHENKER has once again enlisted a number of prestigious fellow musicians for the recording of his new studio production, among them, as main vocalist, Ronnie Romero (Rainbow, Vandenberg), who will also be MSG’s frontman on their upcoming tour, Michael Kiske (Helloween) and Ralf Scheepers (Primal Fear), keyboard player Steve Mann (Lionheart), drummers Simon Phillips (Toto, The Who), Brian Tichy (Whitesnake, Foreigner), Bobby Rondinelli (Rainbow), and Bodo Schopf (Eloy), as well as legendary bassists Bob Daisley (Black Sabbath), Barry Sparks (Yngwie Malmsteen, Dokken) and BarendCourbois (Blind Guardian, Zakk Wylde), with Tony Carey as a very special guest.
For over 30 years, J.B.O. are the specialists for vociferous escapism at the highest stage. Gold albums, frenetically acclaimed live appearances and top ten chart positions pave their way. Their new album, PlanetPink, makes no exception. Especially in a world we are currently living in on planet earth, with pandemics, insane dictators, ecological disasters, surging prices for beer. Mankind’s only chance is escapism, so let’s enter the orbital glider and head for the stars when PlanetPink, the upcoming album by iconic J.B.O., starts to make its rounds on April 15, 2022 via the metal powerhouse mothership AFM Records!
After previously-released singles, “Metal Was My First Love”, the album title track and just recently, “Nicht Doof” (“Not Stupid“), today the charismatic German-based collective released a new, official music video for “Einhorn” (in engl: “unicorn”).
Escape to Planet Pink & watch J.B.O.‘s new music video for “Einhorn” HERE:
For obvious reasons, Planet Pink was created under very special circumstances. Usually the band bosses Vito C. and Hannes “G.Laber” Holzmann sit together on a couch and exchange ideas. This time they jammed through the phone. It worked out, because Vito and Hannes know each other better than identical twins.
Planet Pink was recorded with producer Christoph Beyerlein at Sound and Groove studio, Nuremberg. Beyerlein is part of the J.B.O. family since 1994 and the fifth band member in the studio. Supervised by the observing ears of Beyerlein, the rest of the crew sorted and refined a lot of demo recordings for only one reason: in the end there will be just one planet glow in the brassiest colours. “It’s Planet Pink”!
This year’s Monsters of Rock Cruise was captained by none other than Alice Cooper. Due to the size, the amount of guests on the cruise and the size of the room in which Alice would be performing, the cruise decided to split guests into two groups. The red group would see Alice perform on the 12th while the blue group would see him on the 13th. The red group’s show started at 7:30 PM and the crowd packed in quickly.
The stage was hidden by a beautiful curtain that would rise revealing a scaled down, yet still highly decorated, version of Alice’s normal stage set up. The crowd roared as the intro of “Feed My Frankenstein” began. Members of the band walked on stage and began to play. Right after the first strum all sound in the house vanished. Fans began pointing at their ears trying to let the band know we could not here them. The band finished the song and they all exited the stage, Alice leaving with noticeable anger.
Ryan Roxie informed a group of fans, who attended an unannounced Rock N’ Roll Parking Lot (on a boat), what had happened that night. According to Roxie, Alice was the first band to use the curtain on this cruise. As the curtain lifted it pulled the main cable to the PA system out completely. The crew worked hard and fast to figure out the issue and sound was restored within five minutes. Roxie also let fans know that because everyone on stage was wearing a monitor and could hear what they were playing, they did not realize what was going on. It was not until the second verse of the song that they noticed something was wrong. Roxie said they all looked out trying to find the devoted fans and did not understand why everyone was not singing along.
Once the technical difficulty was fixed the show continued without a single problem. Even though the stage and set up were smaller than normal, that did not stop Alice from pulling out all the stops. Props were used as normal including crutches, knives, and canes. During “Billion Dollar Babies” a giant baby paraded on stage meeting Alice’s minions who brought out a giant confetti cannon that shot gold, silver, and green pieces of confetti, as well as fake money with Alice’s face on it into the audience.
The fun continued all through the show as Alice and his gang of ghouls wowed the audience with their fine-tuned sound and silly stage antics. During “Teenage Frankenstein” Alice chased his band around the stage with arms stretched out in frontof him and knees locked like Frankenstein. It did not stop there. As Alice and his band walked back on stage for the famous encore of “School’s Out” one extra musician joined them. Taime Downe of Faster Pussycat came out to sing and enjoy the pleasure of popping many confetti filled balloons over the crowd with one of Alice’s knives.
Alice has been performing for over 50 years and at the ripe age of 74, is still performing with as much heart and soul as he did when he first began. His voice has not changed and everything you have heard about Alice Cooper you get times 10.
There are few rock guitarists on this planet who’ve had such a lasting influence on so many renowned musicians as MICHAEL SCHENKER. With his outstandingly fluid style, inexhaustible wealth of ideas, and instinctive feel for hooks and melodies, MICHAEL SCHENKER is a living legend who, despite his longstanding and distinguished history, still impresses with his unflagging energy and drive.
The blond stringsman from Sarstedt, Germany began his international career in the early 1970s with the Scorpions, achieved worldwide fame after joining British rock group U.F.O., and then seamlessly continued his exceptional global success story under his own name, as well as with acts such as MICHAEL SCHENKER GROUP (otherwise known as MSG), Temple Of Rock, and MICHAEL SCHENKER Fest. SCHENKER and his career, which has spanned more than five decades, are absolute exceptions in the otherwise short-lived music industry.
Now his latest MSG album is about to be unleashed, scheduled for release on Atomic Fire Records on May 27th under the programmatic moniker of Universal. His latest offering will feature all the strengths of this exceptional musician: first-rate songs with anthemic melodies, catchy guitar riffs, and inspiring solos.
As we have come to expect from him, SCHENKER has once again enlisted a number of prestigious fellow musicians for the recording of his new studio production, among them, as main vocalist, Ronnie Romero (Rainbow, Vandenberg), who will also be MSG’s frontman on their upcoming tour, Michael Kiske (Helloween), and Ralf Scheepers (Primal Fear), keyboard player Steve Mann (Lionheart), drummers Simon Phillips (Toto, The Who), Brian Tichy (Whitesnake, Foreigner), Bobby Rondinelli (Rainbow), and Bodo Schopf (Eloy), as well as legendary bassists Bob Daisley (Black Sabbath), Barry Sparks (Yngwie Malmsteen, Dokken), and BarendCourbois (Blind Guardian, Zakk Wylde), with Tony Carey as a very special guest. But more about that later.
First, let’s talk about the basic parameters of the new recording: Like its predecessor Immortal (2021) and the MICHAELSCHENKERFest albums Resurrection (2018) and Revelation (2019), Universal was produced by MICHAEL SCHENKER and Michael Voss (Lessmann/Voss, Mad Max) at Voss’s Kidroom Studio, which has become something of a creative home-away-from-home for SCHENKER. “Michael Voss is happy to wait until I have worked out an idea and takes the time to really get to know the song, simultaneously developing ideas for the vocals,” SCHENKER describes of the fruitful collaboration which has one cog intermesh with the other. “Then we work out the drums, bass, and some keyboard parts together. He always has plenty of great ideas up his sleeve.” Compositional highlights abound on Universal, from the haunting opener “Emergency” and the subsequent “Under Attack” with its casually driving groove to “The Universe,” featuring an atmospheric duet by Ronnie Romero and Gary Barden, “Wrecking Ball,” performed as brilliantly as ever by Ralf Scheepers, and “London Calling” with its homage to the British capital’s musical spirit.
The rock anthem “A King Has Gone” and its intro “Calling Baal” both have a special significance: The track, sung by Helloween frontman Michael Kiske, is a tribute to the immortal Ronnie James Dio, in particular to his performance on the 1976 hard rock classic RainbowRising. For this reason, SCHENKER has brought together an original Rainbow rhythm section consisting of Bobby Rondinelli and Bob Daisley, additionally enlisting keyboardist Tony Carey, who also played on Rainbow Rising, for a terrific Moog synth intro – a direct reference to the iconic intro of the 1976 album opener “Tarot Woman.” The impressive result “Calling Baal / A King Has Gone” is already considered to be one of the most important and successful songs in SCHENKER’s career to date, both musically and lyrically.
In line with all these highlights, the spectacular MSG album cover designed by ZsofiaDankova (Powerwolf, among others) features SCHENKER in a futuristic spaceship, floating high up in orbit. The artwork is based on the guitarist’s own visions, “I had the original idea for the album cover a few years ago, but only now does it seem to fit perfectly. So, I sent some older sketches to my label Atomic Fire Records and based on this the final artwork and album title were created.”
No doubt about it: The title, artwork, and new songs suit MSG as perfectly as his characteristic Flying V suits MICHAEL SCHENKER! Stand by for more from MSG in the weeks to come.
Heavy rockers NOTINGODZ will release their self-titled EP on April 8, 2022.
The trio are a powerhouse of groove rhythms, soaring melodies and distortion. From “I Walk Alone” to “Hell Yeah” their energy never falters. Forging a full sound drawing influences from traditional metal such as BLACK SABBATH, to the heavy of ROB ZOMBIE, and melodic style of GHOST, NOTINGODZ deliver a heavy modern twist with a rock ‘n’ roll edge.
The epic impact of the intro riff in “I Walk Alone” establishes the hard-hitting intensity NO TIN GODZ produce. Melodic commanding vocals and intricate guitar leads, along with rhythmic experimentation, show the clever manipulation of dynamics across the tracks which cultivate charismatic moods. “We Are Zombies” combines NOTINGODZ energy with a darker atmosphere. While “Just Before Dawn” ventures into a greater focus of guitar riffs and licks, with a raw sentiment portrayed through the chorus.
NOTINGODZ’s unyielding spirit storms through the album. Exposing all sides of the human condition with great enthusiasm, the new EP is a model of pure, high voltage heavy metal.
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