Former VAN HALEN frontman Sammy Hagar enjoyed another great year this past week at his infamous "Birthday Bash" (he's 62 years old) in Cabo, San Lucas. He commented, "Wow, I am sitting on the beach trying to remember how all this happened in one week. Two awesome shows with the WABOS. I feel like we didn't miss a beat, it was so fun playing with them again! Then Chad [Smith; CHICKENFOOT/RED HOT CHILI PEPPERS drummer], Mike [Anthony; CHICKENFOOT/ex-VAN HALEN bassist] and Joe [Satriani; CHICKENFOOT guitarist] came in like a storm or should I say with the storm. The FOOT at the Wabo — dream come true is about all I can say. What an awesome night, something I have thought about since we all got together as CHICKENFOOT just after last year's bash. Then we had the last two nights: I have to say, Matt Sorum [VELVET REVOLVER, ex-GUNS N' ROSES], an original Wabo Rat was full on as he brings so much energy to the new show as well as his better half Ace who sang some ZEPPELIN on Tuesday. Mikey and THE OTHER HALF was something to remember. I always love playing those songs with him. And who can forget Emeril [Lagasse]; his birthday is October 15th and he comes down every year for a charity cooking event that we have done together for the past three years. He is now an official Wabo Rat as well.

"Looking ahead, we will have the second best place on the planet to party at Las Vegas, baby!!! The Cabo Wabo on the strip will open in mid-November and we will be there to play in December.

"I have been thinking about all my special fans and realize we have to come up with a better system for tickets next year. I cannot stand the thought of my fans sleeping on the street and with the weather issues we have had over the past few years, if anything happened to one of you I would be devastated! So we will be working on a new system for next year.

"Thank you all for sharing my birthday with me."

Watch fan-filmed video footage of the festivities below.

"Best Of Both Worlds" w/ Sammy Hagar and Michael Anthony:



"Mas Tequila & Cabo Wabo" w/ Sammy Hagar, Michael Anthony, Emeril Lagasse and Matt Sorum:

MusikUniverse.net webzine conducted an interview with guitarist Matias Kupiainen of Finnish melodic metallers STRATOVARIUS on September 19, 2009 in Quebec City, Quebec, Canada. Watch the chat in two parts below.

"Polaris", the new album from STRATOVARIUS, landed at position No. 57 on the Top New Artist Albums (Heatseekers) chart, which lists the best-selling albums by new and developing artists, defined as those who have never appeared in the Top 100 of The Billboard 200.

"Polaris" entered the official chart in the band's home country at position No. 2. The album also debuted on the German Media Control chart at No. 55.

"Polaris" was released in the U.S. on May 26 via Armoury Records (a division of Eagle Rock Entertainment).

The cover artwork for "Polaris" was created by Gyula Havancsák.

"Polaris" was recorded in the fall 2008 at Hästholmen and 5by5 studios in Helsinki, Finland. It was mixed by the longtime confidant of the band, Mikko Karmila.

STRATOVARIUS 2009 is:

Timo Kotipelto - Vocals
Matias Kupiainen - Guitars
Lauri Porra - Bass
Jörg Michael - Drums
Jens Johansson - Keyboards

Part 1:



Part 2:

Chuck Loesch of "No Control Radio", which airs on the Austin, Texas radio station KROX-FM (a.k.a. 101X), recently conducted an interview with MEGADETH mainman Dave Mustaine. The 18-minute chat is available for streaming using the audio player below.

MEGADETH's new album, "Endgame", has sold around 72,000 copies in the United States since its release four weeks ago. The CD currently sits at position No. 105 on The Billboard 200 chart.

"Endgame" sold 45,000 copies in the United States in its first week of release to debut at position No. 9 on The Billboard 200 chart.

MEGADETH's previous CD, "United Abominations", opened with around 54,000 copies in the U.S. to debut at No. 8. This was more than the 46,000 first-week tally registered by its predecessor, "The System Has Failed" (which landed at No. 18 on The Billboard 200 chart), and was a bit less than the 61,000 opening number of 2001's "The World Needs A Hero" (No. 16).

"Endgame" was recorded at MEGADETH's brand new, self-built studio in San Marcos, California — Vic's Garage — which was named after the legendary and iconic Vic Rattlehead character. The CD was helmed by Mustaine and British producer Andy Sneap (EXODUS, NEVERMORE, ARCH ENEMY, MACHINE HEAD).

Dave Mustaine interviewed on "No Control Radio" (click on player below to launch audio):

The U.K. branch of Roadrunner Records conducted an interview with vocalist James LaBrie of progressive metal giants DREAM THEATER when the band played London, England on October 10, 2009. Watch the chat below.

DREAM THEATER recently finished filming footage for the promotional video for the song "Wither".

The "Wither" EP, which was released via online retailers, contains the following track listing:

01. Wither (Album Version) (5:25)
02. Wither (Piano Version) (5:07)
03. Wither (John Petrucci Vocal Demo) (5:24)
04. The Best of Times (Mike Portnoy Vocal Demo) (13:04)

Track 1 taken from the album "Black Clouds and Silver Linings"
Track 2-4 previously unreleased

DREAM THEATER's new album, "Black Clouds & Silver Linings", sold 40,000 copies in the United States in its first week of release to land at position No. 6 on The Billboard 200 chart.

DREAM THEATER's last CD, "Systematic Chaos", opened with 36,000 units in 2007 to enter The Billboard 200 chart at No. 19. 2005's "Octavarium" premiered with 27,000 copies to debut at No. 36.

In addition to the standard-version CD, DREAM THEATER's tenth studio album, "Black Clouds & Silver Linings", was also made available on vinyl LP, as well as a three-disc, special-edition CD that includes the full album, a CD of instrumental mixes of the album and a CD of six cover songs.



(Thanks: NJthrasher)

Stephen Adams of Telegraph.co.uk reports: Three years ago QUEEN guitarist Brian May surprised many by coauthoring a book on astrophysics with Sir Patrick Moore, called "Bang! The Complete History of Universe".

Now May, who penned 22 QUEEN hits, including "Fat Bottomed Girls" and "Who Wants to Live Forever?", has turned his polymath's gaze on another unlikely subject — mid 19th century stereoscopic photography.

He and Elena Vidal, a photo-historian, have published a book of pairs of images, each taken from a slightly different angle, that a Victorian pioneer took of vanishing rural life in the 1850s.

Read the entire interview from Telegraph.co.uk.

"Of Doom And Death", the title track of SAVAGE CIRCUS's long-awaited second album, is available for streaming on the band's official web site.

SAVAGE CIRCUS is the multinational project featuring Jens Karlsson (vocals; PERSUADER), Emil Norberg (lead guitar; PERSUADER), Piet Sielck (guitar, bass, backing vocals; IRON SAVIOR) and Mike Terrana (drums; AXEL RUDI PELL, RAGE, YNGWIE J. MALMSTEEN, MASTERPLAN).

"Of Doom And Death" is scheduled for release on October 23 via Dockyard 1 Records. According to a press release, the follow-up to 2005's "Dreamland Manor" "shows all trademarks of [its predecessor]. Progressive and powerful songwriting combined with elaborate arrangements, tons of melodies and harmonies, raging guitars rounded up with the trademark vocals towering on the music. From speed monsters such as the title track, 'Of Doom And Death', to the majestic 'Ballad Of Susan', SAVAGE CIRCUS created an album with all the varieties one would expect and beyond.

"Of Doom And Death" track listing:

01. Of Doom And Death
02. The Ordeal
03. Devil's Spawn
04. Chasing The Rainbow
05. Empire
06. Ballad Of Susan
07. Legend Of Leto II
08. From The Ashes
09. Dreamland

SAVAGE CIRCUS' current lineup:

Jens Carlsson (lead vocals)
Emil Norberg (guitar)
Piet Sielck (guitar, backing vocals)
Yenz Leonhardt (bass guitar, backing vocals)
Mike Terrana (drums, percussion)

SAVAGE CIRCUS fired drummer Thomen Stauch (ex-BLIND GUARDIAN) in August 2007 due to personal differences.

The band released a DVD, entitled "Live in Atlanta", through Dockyard 1. The live footage was filmed in 2006 at the ProgPower USA VII festival in Atlanta, GA.

SAVAGE CIRCUS issued its debut album, "Dreamland Manor", in North America in March 2006 via Century Media Records. The North American version of the CD, which was issued in Europe in August 2005, includes the "Evil Eyes" video.

"Stay Forever", the new video from DELAIN — the Dutch gothic rock/metal project founded by ex-WITHIN TEMPTATION keyboardist Martijn Westerholt (brother of WITHIN TEMPTATION's Robert Westerholt) — can be viewed below. The song comes off the band's second album, "April Rain", which entered the German Media Control chart at position No. 96. The CD was released in North America on June 30 via Sensory Records (with U.S. distribution through Ryko and Canadian distribution through Sonic Unyon). The North American version of the album features a bonus track — "Come Closer" — which was previously only available on the limited-edition digipack version of the LP.

"April Rain" benefits from the return of NIGHTWISH bassist/vocalist Marco Hietala who sings male vocals on two tracks, as well as world-renowned cellist Maria Ahn.

DELAIN has been confirmed as one of the headliners of the Femme Metal Festival, set to take place November 7-8, 2009 at The Asylum (Saturday) in Birmingham and The Peel (Sunday) in London, United Kingdom.

Rafi (a.k.a. DeathWish) of VampireFreaks.com recently conducted an interview with Max Cavalera (SOULFLY, CAVALERA CONSPIRACY, SEPULTURA). Watch the 15-minute chat below.

As previously reported, Max can now be reached via TheLiveLine, a service launched by MEGADETH mainman Dave Mustaine that enables musicians to connect to their audience over the phone. Get updates on Max and leave messages for him by calling (888) 716-5450.

For more information, click here.

Regarding the songwriting process for the next SOULFLY album, Max said in a recent interview, "I am working on new songs with Marc [Rizzo, guitar], a little bit. We're thinking about making the songs a little shorter, so if you can imagine maybe a little bit like MINOR THREAT mixed with [SLAYER's] 'Reign In Blood' mixed with SOULFLY, with still some world music, but much smaller, and the songs not so long — shorter. It'll be more aggressive than [last year's] 'Conquer' [album] even, because it'll be shorter — it'll be like when SLAYER did 'Reign In Blood', [that] kind of thing. I don't know why some interviewers talked to me and said that they thought that the album was gonna be less aggressive, more like [2000's] 'Primitive', which I don't know where it came from, because I never said that. In fact, I just started working on the album on this tour, so it's only been a month. But this is the official news right now — it's gonna be more aggressive, faster, shorter."

"Conquer" sold around 8,400 copies in the United States in its first week of release to debut at position No. 66 on The Billboard 200 chart This number is in line with the opening tally of the CD's predecessor, "Dark Ages", which shifted a little more than 8,000 copies during its first week of release in October 2005 to enter the chart at No. 155.

"Flame Salvation", the new video from REV 16:8 — the Swedish metal band formerly known as BLOODSHED — can be viewed below. The clip was shot by Dino Medanhodzic in the old ruins located next to the Haga Park in Stockholm.

"Flame Salvation" comes off REV 16:8's full-length debut, "Grand Tidal Rave", which was released in July 10 via Temple Of Darkness Records. Check out audio samples on the group's MySpace page.

REV 16:8 recently parted ways with vocalist Themgoroth (ex-DARK FUNERAL, INFERNAL) "due to personal reasons." Handling the vocals on the CD and for the band going forward is guitarist Talon.

Regarding its reasons for changing the band's name, REV 16:8 previously stated, "The change is a natural step and is based on several reasons. The return of the original guitarist 'Nefastus' gave the band the edge it had lost. With new strength and new killer material, it's obvious that there's noone out there that could ever do his job better. Since the arrival of 'Pata,' the drumming has given the creative process the freedom it needs, without boundaries. It has and is continuously contributing to raising the music to a new level. The musical skills and the songwriting of guitarist 'Talon' challenges the mainstream and will always push the envelope in the band's material evolvement. The visual artist and lyrical mastermind 'Ill' with his basslines makes the band grow several steps further. To sum it up, the current lineup of musicians is the best this band has ever seen.

"The name 'BLOODSHED' has been and is being used by several groups. Continuing the use of the old name wouldn't give the band any justice. It would merely reflect an affiliation to the general mediocracy. REV 16:8 stands above the masses, it's something unique that isn't to be associated with the rest of the sheep. The new moniker marks the beginning of a new era in the band's history, and we gaze upon the future with great expectation."

Video footage of DRAGONFORCE bassist Frédéric Leclercq talking about his brand new ESP signature bass guitar can be viewed below.

DRAGONFORCE's massive final leg of the "Ultra Beatdown" tour kicked off last month in the USA with special guests SONATA ARCTICA. The band will be hitting cities across the U.S., Canada, Mexico, South America, mainland Europe and finishing up in the U.K. Joining DRAGONFORCE in the U.K. will be Swedish power metallers SABATON, tech-metal lords SYLOSIS and rising stars GLAMOUR OF THE KILL.

MY RUIN — the Los Angeles based rock duo featuring lead screamer Tairrie B and husband/guitarist Mick Murphy — has inked a new deal with Tiefdruck-Musik. The band will enter the studio this month to begin recording its sixth full-length album, "Ghosts and Good Stories", for an early 2010 release.

Commented Tiefdruck-Musik founder Daniel Heerdmann: "Tairrie and Mick are two of the most talented and inspiring musicians I have ever had the pleasure to work with. Tairrie's authentic lyrics and her unique singing style scream 'integrity' with every syllable she delivers, while Mick's songwriting abilities, his production skills, resulting in albums like 'The Brutal Language' and 'Throat Full Of Heart', deserve my deepest respect. Tiefdruck-Musik feels very blessed to have the chance to work with MY RUIN and we are sure the new recordings will result in a monster of a metal album we have not experienced before."

Added Tairrie B: "Mick and I have been together for almost a decade and we've basically put our band first the whole time. These last three years, in particular, were pretty crazy and personally hard on me. I got into a serious car accident in late 2006 on the eve of recording our last full length album, 'Throat Full Of Heart', but found myself quickly back in the studio recording while I was still in the middle of my surgeries and recovering. Not long after, we were on the road again and releasing our first live album/DVD, 'Alive On the Other Side'.

"It's been non-stop for us for so long that after we were married last Christmas Eve in Knoxville, Tennessee, we decided to take some time off from our band to celebrate just being husband and wife, but, as usual, soon we found ourselves writing again and all of a sudden we had a new album ready to be recorded and a new label wanting to work with us. Everything has come together naturally and we're excited about this next chapter of MY RUIN.

"We're a DIY band and always will be but were looking forward to working with our new label manager Daniel Heerdmann and Tiefdruck-Musik in 2010 as well as Sharon Richardson and Factory Music Management and Agency LTD in the U.K. who have also become a part of our new team and both have some great ideas for our next release."

The idea of MY RUIN began as a project in which Tairrie planned to work with various musicians in the studio and on the stage, something that would always be changing. It has been like this on every recording, with the exception of Mick, who has been a constant as MY RUIN guitarist, co-writer, producer and Tairrie's real-life partner for the last 9 1/2 years.

With their new album MY RUIN has come full circle, deciding to keep it just the two for the new recordings, which see Mick Murphy not only producing once again and playing guitar but also handling the bass and drum duties, as he did on the band's 2005 release, "The Brutal Language".

"MY RUIN has always had a revolving rhythm section and an interesting cast of characters both live and in the studio, including four bass players and six drummers," said Tairrie. "While some were with us longer than others, becoming a real part of our lives, most did not play on our albums and were just hired to tour with us.

"Our new album will be a testament to our strength as a band and the devotion we share to the music we have continued to create together against all odds and outside forces.

"We all have regrets and mistakes we have made trusting and believing in something or someone and ghosts of our past that haunt us, but we also have passion for what we love and love lasts. Ironically, at this same time last October, I could never have imagined we would write this album which is by far the most honest and heartfelt album of our career. I definitely have some good stories to tell and there will be some serious heavy metal rock and roll thunder underneath them as well."

In addition to launching her first online blog, where — according to Tairrie — you will find her random fashion, music, art and outspoken political related musings; the sharp tongue of MY RUIN has also launched her first online store this past year at www.bgd.bigcartel.com for her trademark BGD line of covet worthy sacred adornments and one-of -a-kind custom -made jewelry and deconstructed clothing designs in which she has recently debuted her third and final collection of 2009.

"I'm amazed at how successful my store has become and what a loyal following I have in regards to my designs," she said. "I really had no idea it would take off like it did but it's something I plan to keep putting myself into and developing. I'm a DIY girl from my music to my art and both my store and blog are extensions of my band. I have always been drawn to religious imagery, Catholic icons and reliquary and I enjoy working with found objects and unique vintage materials. I like to think of BGD as wearable art for the individual at heart."

According to a posting on MESHUGGAH's newly revamped official web site, the Swedish experimental extreme metal band's long-awaited concert DVD will finally be released in early 2010. More information will be made available soon.

MESHUGGAH will tour Australia and New Zealand in February/March 2010.

The band's schedule is as follows:

Jan. 16 - Copenhagen, Denmark - Danish Metal Awards
Feb. 20 - Brisbane, Australia - RNA Showgrounds
Feb. 21 - Sydney, Australia - Eastern Creek Raceway
Feb. 26 - Melbourne, Australia - Showgrounds
Feb. 27 - Adelaide, Australia - Bonython Park
Mar. 01 - Perth, Australia - Steel Blue Oval
Mar. 03 - Wellington, New Zealand - SFBH
Mar. 04 - Auckland, New Zealand - Transmission Room

In a July 2009 interview with the Sonisphere web site, MESHUGGAH guitarist Mårten Hagström stated about the songwriting process for the band's next album, "We never write as such while we're on the road. What we've got is some leftovers from the last album that we could work on and pick up again. We're playing around with some loose ideas and I've got a couple that I'll start to work on when I get back home. But as far of really getting into it and just mashing away, that's going to happen in late August." He added, "I'd say right now we have one track that needs to be remodelled and then it's good to go. Apart from that, it's just bits and pieces right now."

When asked how long fans will have to wait before they get to hear the new MESHUGGAH stuff, Hagström said "Well, we're a really slow band. A lot of times there're four years between albums. Sometimes it has to do with the writing process itself, sometimes it's to do with the technical stuff, like how to go about the recording it. This one I'm thinking will be another two years — hopefully it's shorter."

Released in March 2008, MESHUGGAH's "obZen" album debuted at No. 59 on The Billboard 200 chart and at No. 14 on the iTunes Top Rock Albums chart.

"obZen" was nominated in the "Best Hard Rock" category at the Swedish Grammis awards, which was held January 7, 2009 at Hovet in Stockholm.

CityVice Networks and Domination TV recently conducted an interview with guitarist Buz McGrath of Massachusetts metallers UNEARTH before the band's September 22, 2009 performance at Nosturi in Helsinki, Finland. Watch the chat below.

On November 10, 2009, fans will be able to get their hands on the new deluxe version of UNEARTH's latest album, "The March". The CD will come with a bonus DVD featuring a tour documentary entitled "The Three Day March", with footage shot by acclaimed director Doug Spangenberg (LAMB OF GOD, EVERY TIME I DIE, JOB FOR A COWBOY) during UNEARTH's recent tour of the northeastern U.S. The DVD will also contain footage from inside the studio during the band's recording sessions for "The March" as well as party material from the band's recent tour with TESTAMENT, entitled "Gig Life". In addition to the candid behind-the-scenes clips, performance footage of four songs will be included from last year's Wacken Open Air festival. Rounding out the DVD are the three music videos shot for "The March" — "My Will Be Done", "Grave Of Opportunity" and "Crow Killer".

Fans who have got their hands on the band's DVD, "Alive From The Apocalypse", know that UNEARTH are a near-perpetual party machine while on the road, so this bonus footage and the new videos are not to be missed!

UNEARTH's song "Grave of Opportunity" is now available as a downloadable track on the Guitar Hero World Tour. The song is part of the Ferret Music/Metal Blade Track Pack, which also contains THE DEVIL WEARS PRADA's "Dez Moines" and CHIMAIRA's "On Broken Glass".

"The March" originally hit streets on October 14, 2008 and debuted at No. 45 on The Billboard 200 chart. Revolver magazine called "The March" a "magnificently majestic group effort" and praised it as "some of the smartest writing in metal."

INFERNAL, the project led by Swedish guitarist David Parland (NECROPHOBIC, DARK FUNERAL), has announced the addition of Norwegian drummer Carl (RECOVERY INJECTION, ASTAROTH) to the group's ranks. According to Parland, Carl will "do the job for the next couple of tracks. Whether this is a session job only, or longtime thing, is up for time to tell." He added, "We believe that [Carl] can do the job as good as our previous drummer."

The new lineup of INFERNAL will start work on new material "in about a month."

In other news, INFERNAL has posted a "very, very rough version" of the "Killing Christ" track which was previously available only as a 45-second snippet. Parland says, "It is both untight and not fully professionally performed, but this is what is the cool thing with the Net — you can post stuff that might not be up to album standards that you never ever would hear [if it wasn't for] the Internet. However, of course, this track will be recorded 100 % professionally for both the next demo and the full-length album, coming in 2010."

Check out the song at the band's MySpace page.

Joining Parland and Carl in the new INFERNAL lineup is guitarist Martin Halfdan (ex-NECROPHOBIC).

Regarding the decision to use the INFERNAL name for the new project (INFERNAL's previous lineup split up in 2003), David previously said, "When we started up again, we initially wanted to call the band something totally different, but we never came up with anything good enough, and whenever we did, we found out that these names already were taken. . . The concept still remains 100% Satanic; we see no reason to not call ourselves something less good or half-assed, just because the sound mainly is no longer the hyper-blast stuff we used to do in our earlier bands. This new INFERNAL is still purely Satanic, but generally has a more accessible sound, more melodic, but still brutal, and with some blast parts as well. We generally want to people to think of this as new band, more or less a complete rebirth of a band that once was (and still is again). We don't want people to even compare it with the old stuff since it's in most ways not the same band."

Australian atmospheric/gothic/doom metallers THE ETERNAL will enter 301 Studios in Byron Bay, Australia on December 3 to begin recording their new album for an early 2010 release. More information will be made available soon.

In other news, the song "To Drown" from THE ETERNAL's "Sleep Of Reason" album is featured in the motion picture "Tomboys". The band states, "It's the first time one of our songs has been in a feature-length film so make sure you check it out!"

"Lost Our Way", the latest video from THE ETERNAL, can be viewed below. The song comes off the group's most recent album, "Kartika", which was released in November 2008 via Firebox Records. The CD was issued in Australia through SLP/Amphead Music.

The artwork for "Kartika" was created by Italian designer Diego Maniscalco at Unspire. The CD was mastered by John Ruberto at Crystal Mastering.

The first pressing of "Kartika" came with a limited-edition bonus disc featuring unreleased demos & remixes; over 95 minutes of new material from THE ETERNAL.

THE ETERNAL released its sophomore album, "Sleep of Reason", in 2005 through Firebox Records to critical acclaim, with stunning artwork provided by renowned artist Travis Smith.

Vocalist Dani "Filth" Davey of British extreme metallers CRADLE OF FILTH has posted a lengthy update on the band's official MySpace blog. An excerpt from his message follows below.

"At the time of writing, September is almost through, with skies fire-paved and a gorgeous Indian summer settling like a phoenix on the east coast of England, the last few weeks finding me extremely busy with the trivialities of being at home and working in a band at the same time. Thus creativity has flourished under this wonderful boon and the first ideas for a new CRADLE album have started to creep and crawl in the far-flung shadows of our combined imaginations. Bearing in mind we have merely the skeletal structures of a few songs laid out, that autumnal vibe is already spreading like a mist, and the tunes are sounding very malefic indeed. Very much like the 'Godspeed...' album thrust up a gear.

"Paul [Allender; guitar] has moved to a luxury apartment on the dockside quay in Ipswich, the apocalyptic vision of a reddened sun split by the thin silhouettes of bobbing yacht masts, highly inspirational, tempering his writing with furious abandonment. In the meantime, Martin [Skaroupka; drums] is hard at work on his practice kit back in the Czech Republic, providing the midi backbone to Paul's initial structures, which are then later embellished by guitars and keyboards. Luckily, Dave [Pybus; bass] lives in spitting distance of Paul's new gaff, so he's in partnership with the basic skeleton of every track, which is then flown past [keyboardist] Ashley ['Ellyllon' Jurgemeyer] (who has just moved this week from Phoenix to Los Angeles), who then goes all symphonic on its rugged ass. Things therefore are moving well towards our new, as-yet-untitled album, with a possible studio start date of early January to be ringed in all gothic diaries. Bring it on!

"Now I think everybody got to hear about the stupid happenings at this year's Bloodstock with the kilo-weight candy balls and the cancelled set, so much so this will be the last thing I'll say about it. Period. It's just a crying shame that some idiot ruined for so many people, least of all and very selfishly, me, as it was the last of our summer festival run, it was on home turf and friends and family were present. Plus the weather was damn near perfect and there was a really cool vibe amongst people as the sun slunk towards our headline set. Aside from the fact that Paul, in really bad pain, had to be whisked to hospital for a body scan, two children, one of whom was handicapped, were almost hit by these deadly projectiles. And who the hell sells these things at a fucking festival anyway? Stupid beyond belief."

Read Dani's entire message at this location.

ARCH ENEMY, TÝR and EVIG NATT are the first confirmed bands for the KarmøyGeddon metal festival, set to take place April 23-24 at Byscenen in Haugesund, Norway.

More acts will be announced soon.

For more information, visit www.karmoygeddon.no.

According to News-JournalOnline.com, a concert by MÖTLEY CRÜE singer Vince Neil, scheduled for 7 p.m. tonight (Saturday, October 17) at Peabody Auditorium in Daytona Beach, Florida has been cancelled.

The concert was cancelled by the promoter, according to auditorium personnel.

Ticket refunds are available at point of purchase.

A number of photos taken during the installation of a home recording studio for Zakk Wylde (BLACK LABEL SOCIETY, OZZY OSBOURNE) at his residence outside of Los Angeles can be found at this location. A few of the pictures are available below. Late September saw the start of initial interior demo of the existing structure and construction prep work.

Zakk's home studio is being built by Zack Fagan of Under The Wire, a Studio City, California-based company which specializes in the installation of commercial and private recording studios and post-production complexes.

Commented Fagan: "Having demolished the old walls and removed all of the debris from Zakk's guest house, the real work of prepping the structure and starting the construction phase can begin. An entire new subfloor has been installed under the amp room, control room, drum room and piano room. The floors have all been re-insulated with eco-friendly 100% cotton insulation and an additional floating floor will soon be installed on top of the new subflooring. Amp room and drum room have been built out to be totally isolated from the rest of the structure and an entirely new electrical system has been installed. A state-of-the-art power transformer and dedicated isolated grounding system has also been put in place."

Wylde and his BLACK LABEL SOCIETY bandmates will spend January/February tracking a new album for a tentative spring 2010 release.

Zakk's wife Barbaranne revealed in a recent online posting that Wylde is suffering from "a rare genetic clotting disorder" for which he is currently receiving treatment in California.

Wylde got the "green light" from his doctor to take part in the Halloween (October 31) BLACK LABEL SOCIETY performance in Times Square (New York City) to promote his new limited-edition Epiphone Graveyard Disciple guitar. Zakk has also scheduled an in-store signing session on October 30 at Sam Ash in New York City to unveil the guitar.

BLACK LABEL SOCIETY's "Skullage" DVD package sold 5,100 copies in the United States in its first week of release to debut at position No. 1 on the Top Music Videos chart. Released April 21 in three different configurations — CD, DVD and CD/DVD — this collection features the best of Zakk Wylde & Co. This massive greatest hits package is chock-full of live material, music videos, interviews, and a vivid cross-section of brutal and introspective tracks, from amped-up blazers like "Fire It Up" and "Suicide Messiah" to raw power ballads like "In This River" and "Spoke In The Wheel".

BLACK LABEL SOCIETY announced in June 2007 that it had parted ways with Roadrunner Records.

The group's sole release through Roadrunner was 2006's "Shot to Hell" album.

"Shot to Hell" sold just under 32,000 copies in the United States during its first week of release — less than the 45,000 copies shifted by BLS's "Mafia" (Artemis) back in March 2005 — to land at position No. 21 on The Billboard 200 chart.

(Thanks: The Metal Den)

Southern California technical death metallers RECIPROCAL have parted ways with Unique Leader Records. According to the band, "the split was mutual [and] this will not affect our progress."

RECIPROCAL's self-titled debut album was recorded at Mad Dog Studios with engineer Samur Khouja and will be released independently on November 19 via all major digital distributors (iTunes, Amazon, Rhapsody, etc.) as well as through the band's official web site.

"Reciprocal" track listing:

01. Voice of Evil
02. Victims of Circumstance
03. Hopeless
04. Wrath
05. Spiritual Disease
06. Idiopathic Pandemic Spreading
07. Zombiopsy
08. Hadalpelagic Worms
09. Below
10. Aeons of Ruination
11. Fallen

The CD's cover artwork, which was created by Tom Berg at So Cal Tattoo, can be viewed below.

RECIPROCAL will play a CD-release show on November 17 at Whisky A Go-Go in Hollywood. Also scheduled to appear are VEHEMENCE, ABYSMAL DAWN and ENTHRALLER.

Jeff Hughell (ex-BRAIN DRILL, VILE) joined RECIPROCAL in June 2008 as the band's permanent bassist.

RECIPROCAL was formed in January 2007 when ex-GATEKEEPER vocalist Jacob Enfinger and former WILLOW WISP guitarist Andy McLeod joined forces with ex-CRUSHING SKULLS guitarist Alex Crescioni and former GRIMFIST drummer Dustin Perle.

For more information, visit the group's MySpace page.

Jeffrey Easton of Metal Exiles recently conducted an interview with MEGADETH bassist James Lomenzo. A couple of excerpts from the chat follow below.

Metal Exiles: What were the thoughts on how "Endgame" should be before you started the recording process?

James Lomenzo: Interesting question. When we went into recording "Endgame", Dave [Mustaine] was pretty explicit on what he wanted to accomplish. On "United Abominations" we had touched on the vitality of the earlier MEGADETH albums and he wanted to take "Endgame" a little closer to that. Taking into account we are all a little older and our abilities change and our perspectives shift, the idea was to reach the goal of pulling out the old MEGADETH vibe. A lot of the music on the record was picked off of tapes that Dave had from years ago. We set up a studio in San Marcos, California called Vic's Garage and we went through piles of tapes and while digitizing them we peeled off riffs from years ago that we thought would spark what we were trying to accomplish.

Metal Exiles: I would say you found the sound you were looking for.

James: I am happy to hear that. It is weird because when you are in the middle of it you try to be true to each and every song you make and it is hard to see the big picture but you have to keep the focus. That is what made having Andy Sneap [producer] on the project so great. He is a fan of the old MEGADETH as well as the newer stuff and he kept us on target.

Metal Exiles: When Andy came onto the project what was the first thing that he wanted for the record?

James: Andy is a polite British guy so he did not have much to say. He was just taking Dave's direction as we all do and focusing on that. We had discussions on my side so we could focus on finding a cool bass tone. Dave wanted the bass stuff simple, like an old English metal vibe which is something I usually do not do, I usually sit on top of things. The rest of Andy's job was considering where the guitar solos would go, finding the best riffs etc.

Metal Exiles: I know Dave is the head writer, so what did you bring to "Endgame"?

James: I brought years of bass playing knowledge. I do what most players in symphony orchestras do, I interpret. The music is generally there and laid out for you, you just have to interpret it and make it exciting. Inspirationally-wise, I just bang stuff out with Dave and talk about different things. Sometimes on the bus we will have a four-track recorder and throw some things on there, everybody acts as peripheral editor.

Metal Exiles: I know in the last several years you have bounced from project to project. Do you feel that you have a solid standing in MEGADETH?

James: Dave adopted me immediately when I joined the band. He told me I could stay here as long as I like. I took that as a compliment and an extension of friendship. I am quite happy to be here. What a lineage this band has. I have been privileged to have been involved with some great musicians in the past but MEGADETH is such an iconic metal band, what a great place to be.

Read the entire interview from Metal Exiles.

Photos taken on the first day of the Loud Park festival, which is being held October 17-18 at Makuhari Messe, a convention center in Japan located in the western region of Chiba Prefecture, close to Tokyo, can be found at this location.

According to Japan Times, Loud Park is Japan's biggest gathering of heavy-metal maniacs, and a relatively new but much-loved event. Since 2006, the two-day festival has presented the world's heaviest and hairiest, from SLIPKNOT to MARILYN MANSON, and this year sees the return of the festival's first headliners, SLAYER and MEGADETH, as well as JUDAS PRIEST.

The festival is less park and more loud, held as it is at the Makuhari Messe exhibition hall. While the surroundings are not exactly picturesque, at least there is no distraction from the music: This year, three stages will play host to over 30 bands from around the world.

The festival billing is as follows:

Saturday, October 17:

JUDAS PRIEST
MEGADETH
ARCH ENEMY
ANTHRAX
DOKKEN
FIREBIRD
OUTRAGE
STEEL PANTHER
BLESSED BY A BROKEN HEART
POISON THE WELL
LYNCH MOB
LED ZEPAGAIN
HIROAKI TAGAWA
FADE
LIV MOON

Sunday, October 18:

SLAYER
ROB ZOMBIE
FAIR WARNING
CHILDREN OF BODOM
PAPA ROACH
ANVIL
GOTTHARD
NAPALM DEATH
HATEBREED
HIBRIA
H.E.A.T
DEAD BY APRIL
LAZARUS A.D.
ROYAL HUNT
GALNERYUS
CROSSFAITH

For more information, visit www.loudpark.com.

Austin, Texas rock titans THE SWORD have announced a special live performance as part of the 2009 Fun Fun Fun Fest, set to take place November 7-8 at Waterloo Park in the band's hometown. THE SWORD joins a stellar lineup of featured acts set to perform at the event, which includes JESUS LIZARD, DANZIG, RATATAT, DESTROYER and OF MONTREAL. Additional details can be found at www.funfunfunfest.com.

THE SWORD has completed the writing process for its highly anticipated third album, which the group plans to lay to tape later this year. As part of its performance at the Fun Fun Fun Fest, THE SWORD will debut "a number" of new songs set to appear on the forthcoming release.

"At FFF in 2007, we played all of 'Gods of the Earth' months before the album was released," comments THE SWORD drummer Trivett Wingo. "It was the first time many of those songs had ever been performed in public. In keeping with that tradition, we will be performing a whole ton of stuff from our forthcoming and as yet untitled record that we have just finished writing. We'll play some old favorites too, so for at least part of the show you'll know when to move your mouth and pretend to know the lyrics. Just remember: Moshing makes your dick shrink! Just say no."

THE SWORD has taken the music world by storm in the time since the release of its debut album, "Age of Winters" (2006), gaining widespread acclaim for its aggressive sound, mountaintop-friendly hooks and lyrical themes rife with myth and mythology. The band's sophomore album, "Gods of the Earth", was released in April, 2008 to a landslide of both fan and critical acclaim and THE SWORD supported the record by touring the globe with METALLICA on its "Death Magnetic" world tour. Guitar World has called THE SWORD's sound "massive", stating that its songs "are packed with unison guitar-and-bass riffs." THE SWORD song "The Black River" is featured on Guitar Hero: Metallica and the band's track "Celestial Crown" appears on the soundtrack to the movie "Jennifer's Body".

Rob Zombie's fourth solo studio album, "Hellbilly Deluxe 2: Noble Jackals, Penny Dreadfuls and the Systematic Dehumanization of Cool", has been pushed back to " an undetermined 2010 date" from the previously announced November 17 (via Geffen Records). No reason was given for the delay.

"Hellbilly Deluxe" was the name of Zombie's first and most successful solo outing, issued back in 1998.

"The plan was always to make this kind of like the sequel to 'Hellbilly Deluxe', but I didn't want to force it," Zombie recently told AOL's Noisecreep. "I always figure records dictate their own journey. You might say, 'Oh, we're going to write the heaviest thing ever.' But you get in there and, you know, you might write things that aren't heavy that are great, so you kind of go with it. But this one seems like a great follow-up to that record."

"The record's really varied, just like the first one," Zombie says of the new CD. "There are huge, epic songs with 100-piece orchestras. And then there's something like 'What,' which is just the four of us in a garage literally playing live together and making a big noise."

Prior to the decision to move the release date back to 2010, "Hellbilly Deluxe 2" was supposed to contain the following track listing:

01. Jesus Frankenstein
02. Sick Bubblegum
03. What?
04. Mars Needs Women
05. Werewolf, Baby!
06. Virgin Witch
07. Death and Destiny Inside The Dream Factory
08. Burn
09. Cease to Exist
10. Werewolf Women of the SS
11. The Man Who Laughs

"Sick Bubblegum" and "What?" are available for streaming in the YouTube clips below.

Rob Zombie will kick off his upcoming North American tour on October 29 in Phoenix, Arizona, according to a press release. He will hit the road with the same band that toured behind his 2006 CD, "Educated Horses", consisting of guitarist John 5, bassist Piggy D. and drummer Tommy Clufetos. Although Zombie is also busy these days directing movies, he told The Pulse of Radio he can always count on his current bandmates to return. "Whenever I'm making a movie they go off and do whatever they want, but they're all part of this band," he said. "We just did all of our photos for the tour and stuff. It's the same band, it's just that I know those guys get itchy to play."

"Sick Bubblegum" audio stream:



"What?" audio stream:

Scott Iwasaki of Deseret News recently conducted an interview with LACUNA COIL singer Cristina Scabbia. A few excerpts from the chat follow below.

On the band's new album, "Shallow Life":

"The main thing is playing live and making good records. Of course we entered the studio knowing we were going for a change. You never know where a change is going to take you. It's always a risk. You can write the same thing over and over just to please the fans. But that wouldn't be fair. As an artist, you try to create and evolve all the time."

"We entered the studio with a new energy because we knew that some of the songs were going to be completely different. And we knew that we have gained a lot of new fans, but we also knew that a lot of people that have followed us since the very first record will be kind of confused because it's not like a gothic metal album or something like that. It's definitely more rock than in the past."

On working with producer Don Gilmore (LINKIN PARK, TRAPT, AVRIL LAVIGNE, GOOD CHARLOTTE, THE VERONICAS, PEARL JAM, TRUST COMPANY, DURAN DURAN):

"He came to Milano (the band's homebase) and we played some of the songs for him. We basically worked a little bit more on polishing the songs because some parts were too long. And we worked a lot with him on the lyrics. He really taught us good lyrics are important because you have to be clear on what you are saying. And this doesn't only mean good lyrics, but also the pronunciation of the words."

On "Shallow Life" being the highest-debuting CD of LACUNA COIL's career (the disc entered the Billboard 200 at No. 16):

"We were hoping to get a result like that. We didn't really know what was going to happen, especially right now since (CD) sales are so down compared to the past. We were absolutely pleased, being a band from Italy."

Read the entire interview from Deseret News.