Just in time for Halloween, Lita gets covered in blood, fights zombies, and escapes evil…. bunny rabbits? Yes, those are the scenes going on in the Queen of Metal's first foray into the world of comics.

First up is Lita and her family — husband Jim and sons Rocco and James Gillette — in a four-panel, full color adventure webcomic where 8-year-old Rocco is dreaming about evil bunnies coming to get him, only to wake up to find that a fiercer danger actually lies ahead for this rock and roll family.

The webcomic is just a tease to where the real action goes down in The Gillettes: Family Business comic book, which is out just after Halloween via JLRG Entertainment and Wham Bang Comics. The 24-page, full-color comic book has Lita and her brood fighting their way to a concert by battling zombies, which were created through an ancient curse by a supernatural mastermind. The dead, soulless and impenetrable-to-pain zombies can only be taken down by extreme force or decapitation and that's just what Lita, Jim, Rocco and James set out to do.

"Halloween's always been one of my favorite holidays," says Lita, whose first new album in 14 years, "Wicked Wonderland", is out now, "and what better way to spend it than on the pages of a comic book covered in blood and fighting off zombies with my family?"

The creative team behind the comic book — fourteen-year-old comic scribe Jake Tinsley and veteran Manga artist Jason Dube — love to tell these kinds of horror stories. "Zombies are icky, they're gross, and they're dead," Jake Tinsley said. "They're really kind of spectacular."

JLRG and Wham Bang Comics have released some finished artwork to give readers a taste of what the final version will be like. This art sample includes some color pages, some black and white pages, and a four-panel of The Gillettes webcomic — published primarily on the Internet for promotional purposes — which teases readers with a short hint of the zombie story. This will mark young Jake Tinsley's 21st published webcomic. The Gillettes: Family Business will be Jake's seventh published comic book. He was 12 when his first comic was published.

Fans can also get a glimpse of the promo The Gillettes: Family Business, which Lita also plans to sell on tour starting in November, on the back page of Jake's Amber Hagerman Deserves Justice: A Night Owl Story, which is in stores on October 28.

Meanwhile, "Wicked Wonderland" has been heating up metal and hard rock radio with such scorching rockers as "Crave", a duet with husband Jim; "Piece (Hell Yeah)", a strip club anthem; and the slammin' "Scream 4 Me", which is sure to excite the senses.

(Thanks: Fullshred)

Video footage of NEVERMORE guitarist Jeff Loomis's October 17, 2009 clinic at Euroguitar in Lille, France can be viewed below (courtesy of "ArilOnSylphes").

Loomis recently inked a deal with Rock House Method — the fastest growing and most widely used musical instruction system in the world — to release his instructional DVDs. At least two DVDs showing the building blocks that make up Jeff' signature sound are planned.

Although no exact release dates have been set at this time, it is likely to be sometime in the fourth quarter of 2009 or the first months of 2010.

Jeff is the lead guitar player and main songwriter of NEVERMORE, a band that has certainly made its mark on modern music by forging a unique sound that fuses different forms of metal that has given birth to an authentic and very influential style. His recent solo CD, "Zero Order Phase", took the #4 spot in a April 2009 Guitar World magazine's readers' poll in the "Best Shred Album Of The Year" category — a notable accomplishment when you consider the top three vote-getters, Paul Gilbert, Yngwie Malmsteen and Joe Satriani. Jeff has become one of his generation's most recognizable guitarists and the source of many of the last decade's best riffs.

Jeff's complex shredding has been a central part of the progressive power guitar scene since 1992 and is responsible for some of the most awe-inspiring riffs modern metal has ever heard. Nearly every aspiring musician who has been listening to metal for the past 10 years or so has undoubtedly had the pleasure of hearing Jeff Loomis' progressive and technically superior playing. "Jeff epitomizes the very essence of modern guitar playing; there is a huge fan base that has waited a long time for this type of product from him," stated Joe Palombo, Executive Director of Rock House.

Jeff's Rock House instructional products will be available at MI retailers around the world for $24.99. All Rock House instructional products are distributed through Hal Leonard Corp. 1-800-554-0626. Each of Jeff's DVDs will come with a FREE tab lesson booklet, iPod-ready video and membership to Rock House's lesson support site at RockHouseMethod.com. This feature, exclusive to Rock House and its partners offers students supplementary support for the lessons featured on the DVDs.

Loomis' solo album, "Zero Order Phase", was released in September 2008 through Century Media Records.

An interview with WATAIN aired on Swedish national television (SVT) as part of a series of documentaries which aim to investigate horror from a cultural perspective as it discusses the influence, inspirations and importance of horror through out the arts. The Swedish black metal band is featured in episode 7 in the series, titled "Skräckministeriet" ("The Ministry Of Horror"), which can be viewed at this location. (Note: The WATAIN report begins around the 21-minute mark.)

WATAIN will enter Necromorbus Studio in Stockholm in January to begin recording its fourth album for a late spring release. According to the band, "WATAIN shall . . . unleash the energy that has been building up since 'Sworn To The Dark'. It is pressing against the barriers, and it cannot be held back much longer. Beware the hungry darkness!"

WATAIN is confirmed for next year's Maryland Deathfest, set to take place May 28-30, 2010 at Sonar in Baltimore.

WATAIN's third full-length album, "Sworn To The Dark", was released in February 2007 via Season of Mist.

Kerrang! magazine conducted a short 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.

Peruvian newspaper Correo reports that METALLICA will perform in Peru next January as part of its "World Magnetic Tour".

The Colombian brach of Universal reportedly issued a press release stating that "we're a few days away from confirming METALLICA's South America tour. But despite not having the complete information, it is already confirmed that METALLICA will perform in Colombia, Peru and Venezuela."

Several media outlets, such as Conciertosperu.com, report that the concert in Lima will take place on January 10, while other news sources say it will be held on January 19.

Meanwhile, a Universal Music Peru executive reportedly stated that METALLICA will play at Lima's Universidad San Marcos Stadium.


(Thanks: www.chileanhorsemen.cl)

Drummer Ted Larsson has left Swedish melodic doom/death metallers SLUMBER "because of private reasons." The band, which is scheduled to enter the studio on January 7 to begin recording its new album, "Resonance", will utilize the services of two session drummers during the tracking process.

"Resonance" will be recorded and mixed over a four-week period at Panic Room Studios in Skara. A late spring release is expected.

An audio preview of a new track called "Skylight", which is set to be included on "Resonance", is available for streaming at the band's MySpace page.

The CD will also include appearances by Ida Sundquvist, Lina Svärd and the Vinköl choir.

SLUMBER's debut album, "Fallout", was released in 2004 via Karmageddon/New Aeon Media.

Washington D.C.-based metallers DARKEST HOUR recently shot a video for the song "The Tides". The clip was helmed by the band's "close buddy" Joseph Pattisall and will make its online debut soon.

DARKEST HOUR is currently writing material for the follow-up to this year's "The Eternal Return", which was released through Victory Records. The band says, "Things are already coming together and as crazy as it sounds we can't wait to get back in the studio and bang out some more jams!"

DARKEST HOUR's next album will be released through an as-yet-undetermined new label following the group's split with Victory.

"The Eternal Return" was produced by Brian McTernan (SENSES FAIL, THRICE, FROM AUTUMN TO ASHES) at his Baltimore, Maryland studio, Salad Days.

DARKEST HOUR recently completed a tour with TRIVIUM, DIRGE WITHIN and WHITECHAPEL.

Cindy Adams of Examiner.com reports: Dave Gardner, a University of Virginia graduate told WDBJ that he spoke to missing Morgan Harrington, 20, prior to her disappearance.

"It was definitely her, I'm 100 percent certain of that," said Gardner.

Gardner travelled from New Jersey to see the METALLICA concert in Charlottesville. He said Morgan seemed excited to see the show and was anxious to get into the venue.

Morgan, a Virginia Tech student, vanished during the concert on Saturday night.

Gardner said he spoke to the both Morgan and the group she was with, and no one appeared to be drinking. After the concert, he noticed that Morgan was not in the car she and friends had arrived in.

Read the entire report from Examiner.com.

Watch a video report below.

Mexico's Search & Destroy recently conducted an interview with THE COMPANY BAND members Nell Fallon (vocals; also of CLUTCH) and James Rota (guitar; also of FIREBALL MINISTRY). The chat is now available for streaming using the audio player below.

THE COMPANY BAND — featuring Fallon, drummer Jess Margera (CKY), guitarists Rota and Dave Bone with bassist Brad Davis (FU MANCHU) — will release their full-length debut on November 10 via Restricted Release. The self-titled effort was recorded earlier this year in Los Angeles and teamed the band with renowned producer/engineer Andrew Alekel (QUEENS OF THE STONE AGE, FOO FIGHTERS). A special digital-only single will precede the full-length CD, featuring the album track "It's A Confusing World" with an exclusive cover of BTO's "Not Fragile". The single will be available for download via various digital service providers in early October.

"It was pretty awesome to get everyone into a studio together and make this record," reveals Margera of the album's recording process. "I never thought it would happen given that everyone has insanely crazy touring schedules. But, sure enough, the results turned out amazing."

He adds, "It was a strange reality for me, personally, as I am a huge fan of FIREBALL MINISTRY, CLUTCH and FU MANCHU. So to be in a room playing drums with members of all those bands was kind of unbelievable."

"It's not very often that one gets to write and play music with people that they respect as well consider family," says Jim Rota. "This band is a dream come true."

"Good times and great friends made this music that we are proud to bring you," adds Dave Bone. "So pick up your balls and load up your cannons for the 21 gun salute!"

Founded by Margera, Rota and Bone in 2006, THE COMPANY BAND originally got together to jam among friends. Their initial recordings were laid down for the band's 2008's mini-album "Sign Here, Here, And Here". It quickly sold through its limited pressing and has continued to be a popular digital seller via CDBaby.com and others since release. Restricted Release has now pressed it on a special 10-inch available now exclusively through the label's Amazon store. The vinyl pressing features exclusive artwork and is hand-numbered; limited to 1,000 copies.

For more information, visit www.myspace.com/thecoband.

Long-running German power metallers HELLOWEEN have teamed up with Sony Music in co-operation with SPV Records, to release the band's upcoming albums. The group's long awaited "Unarmed - Best Of 25th Anniversary" album will be made available on the following dates:

Dec. 16 – Japan, Southeast Asia (JVC/Victor)
Jan. 29 - Europe (Sony/SPV)

The U.S. release date has yet to be announced.

The band says, "'Unarmed - Best Of 25th Anniversary' is a big 'thank-you' to all our fans, old and new, all over the world! Instead of putting together a regular greatest-hits compilation featuring our most successful tracks to celebrate this anniversary, we completely rearranged and re-recorded the greatest songs and melodies of our career. Together with our tried and tested producer, Charlie Bauerfeind, we invited many great musicians to guest on this special record, with the doubtless highlight of having the 70-piece Prague Symphonic Orchestra performing 'The Keeper's Trilogy', a 17-minute medley consisting of the songs 'Halloween', 'Keeper Of The Seven Keys' and 'The King for A 1000 Years' — goose bumps guaranteed!

"We aren’t one of those bands who like to celebrate themselves, we just want to say 'thank you' in our own special way to all of you who have followed us through the past 25 years. To us, this album stands for an official celebration.

"It was a big challenge and great experience and we had a lot of fun recording our most important tracks in an entirely new 'outfit' and with new arrangements. We hope you like them!

"Unarmed - Best Of 25th Anniversary" will feature the following tracks:

01. Dr. Stein
02. Future World
03. If I Could Fly
04. Where The Rain Grows
05. The Keeper's Trilogy
06. Eagle Fly Free
07. Perfect Gentleman
08. Forever & One
09. I Want Out
10. Falling To Pieces
11. A Tale That Wasn't Right

Massachusetts metallers SHADOWS FALL recently performed on Fearless Music, which is dedicated to showcasing "up-and-coming stars in music." Watch video of their performance below.

SHADOWS FALL's new album, "Retribution", sold around 13,000 copies in the United States in its first week of release to debut at position No. 35 on The Billboard 200 chart.

"Retribution" was released on September 15 via Everblack Industries, the label SHADOWS FALL created in conjunction with Warner Music Group's ILG, Ferret Music and ChannelZERO Entertainment. The CD was produced by Chris "Zeuss" Harris (HATEBREED, MUNICIPAL WASTE), with vocal production by Elvis Baskette (INCUBUS, ALTER BRIDGE). The cover artwork was created by Sons of Nero (UNEARTH, EVERY TIME I DIE, BRING ME THE HORIZON).

ANTHRAX drummer Charlie Benante has told AOL's Noisecreep that the band is "in the process of regrouping with" singer John Bush following the departure of Dan Nelson in late July. "We played two shows with [John] [Sonisphere festival in the U.K. in early August and Loud Park festival in Japan earlier this month], and we are looking forward to proceeding with this lineup."

Regarding why the band doesn't try to reunite with Joey Belladonna, the singer during ANTHRAX's heyday and part of the band'most commercially successful lineup, Benante said, "It's a difficult thing to talk about.

"I watched this movie last night, and it was basically a two-hour documentary, called 'Rock the Bells', about a promoter in California trying to put together a show with the headliner being the WU-TANG CLAN with all nine members, which is unheard of. At the end of the night, the last member showed up and it came together. I watched that, and thought, 'It can happen!' But I've read on message boards and stuff where people think we can't just get it together and do it. Believe me, man, it's harder than you think. I wish it would all come together. But I am happy with John Bush. If we move forward with him, that, to me, would make my life complete. It would be perfect."

Video footage of ANTHRAX — featuring vocalist John Bush (ANTHRAX's singer from 1992 to 2005) — performing the song "Only" at this year's installment of the Loud Park festival on October 17 at Makuhari Messe, a convention center in Japan located in the western region of Chiba Prefecture, close to Tokyo, can be viewed below.

ANTHRAX (featuring John Bush) is confirmed for the 2010 edition of Austrlia's Soundwave Festival, which will kick off on February 20 in Brisbane.

The dates are as follows:

Feb. 20 - Brisbane, AUS - RNA Showgrounds
Feb. 21 - Sydney, AUS - Eastern Creek Raceway
Feb. 26 - Melbourne, AUS - Melbourne Showgrounds
Feb. 27 - Adelaide, AUS - Bonython Park
Mar. 01 - Perth, AUS - Bassendean Oval

In a recent interview with Kerrang! magazine, ANTHRAX guitarist Scott Ian stated about the band's recent appearance at Sonisphere, "It went better than I even hoped it would go. I'd been waiting four years for that moment that we had on [August 1] to have John Bush back in the ranks, and it was an unbelievably, magnificently emotional hour of my life; it was really amazing."

When asked about the likelihood that John Bush will rejoin ANTHRAX on a permanent basis, Ian replied, "It's obviously what we want, and I think this is just hopefully the first of a couple of steps to make it happen. The show went great — we all had a great time; John had a fucking blast — and hopefully this is now... the foot's in the door to make this happen again. But it's absolutely what we want to happen. I don't really see any other possibility."

ANTHRAX parted ways with singer Dan Nelson in July due to what has been described as "personal differences." As a result, the band canceled 10 European shows and pulled out of a U.S. tour with SLIPKNOT which was scheduled to take place in August and September.

ANTHRAX's manager, Izvor Zivkovic of Split Media, told BLABBERMOUTH.NET on July 21 that the band's new album, "Worship Music", which was previously due in Europe on October 23 via Nuclear Blast Records, will now be "pushed back to a later date." According to Ian, Dan Nelson's tracks will most likely be erased from the CD, which was mixed at a New Orleans studio by Dave Fortman (a former member of UGLY KID JOE who has also worked with artists such as MUDVAYNE, EVANESCENCE).

On October 18, 2009, Italian rockers LACUNA COIL performed an acoustic version of the song "I Won't Tell You" on Santa Rosa, California's 101.7 The Fox radio station. Watch the performance chat below.

Three unique artists were approached to remix LACUNA COIL's "I Like It" track for a single, which was made available digitally only on September 21 in Europe and Australia.

Interface: One of New York's longest-running electronic music acts, Interface combines the sonic edge of industrial, the club energy of trance, and a melodic sensibility for a unique experience.

Das Basslaster: Das Basslaster, synthies/samples/computer and vocals as well as producer for electro/pop/emo/trash darlings FRITTENBUDE, went for a more pop mix of the song.

Dan Peace: 20-year-old underground electro/big bass producer and DJ from the Northeast England, Dan Peace emerged from the bedroom mid-September 2008. He has since been knocking out his own brand of dance music and DJing regularly.

LACUNA COIL's latest album, "Shallow Life", was recorded in September/October 2008 at NRG Studios in North Hollywood, California with producer Don Gilmore, who has previously worked with LINKIN PARK, TRAPT, AVRIL LAVIGNE, GOOD CHARLOTTE, THE VERONICAS, PEARL JAM, TRUST COMPANY and DURAN DURAN.

LACUNA COIL is currently on the road in North America as part of the "HardDrive Live Tour", which also features ALL THAT REMAINS, MAYLENE AND THE SONS OF DISASTER, FROM SWORD TO SUNRISE (first leg) and TAKING DAWN (second leg).

Swedish black metallers RIMFROST will release their second album, "Veraldar Nagli", on November 16 in Europe and January 12 in the U.S. via Season of Mist's Underground Activists division. The CD was recorded at Andy La Rocque's (KING DIAMOND) Sonic Train Studios in Varberg, Sweden.

"Veraldar Nagli" track listing:

01. Veraldar Nagli
02. The Black Death
03. The Raventhrone
04. Legacy Through Blood
05. Mountains Of Mána
06. I Stand My Ground
07. Scandinavium
08. Void Of Time

The song "The Raventhrone" is now available for free download at this location. It can also be streamed using the audio player below.

Check out the cover artwork below.

RIMFROST is:

Hravn - Guitar, Vocals
Throllv - Drums
Peter Laustsen - Session Bass

RIMFROST previouslystated about their new label home, "We have been playing for six years with RIMFROST and since our first demo recording we have always had our eyes on Season of Mist. Finally we've got the chance to work with this heavyweight label in the black metal scene. We signed our first contract three years ago with a German underground label, but since being signed there confronted us with completely unforeseen negative consequences, we decided to sign off due to serious disagreement. Season of Mist gives us fucking great vibrations now: we look forward to work with an elite, professional label that we can grow strong with. Let the cooperation between RIMFROST and Season of Mist begin!"

For more information, visit www.myspace.com/rimfrostofficial.

Norway's black metal masters URGEHAL (featuring ex-KVIST members and current members of VULTURE LORD, CREST OF DARKNESS, ASMEGIN, FORGOTTEN REALMS, and BLOODSWORN) will release their new album, "Ikonoklast", on November 16 in Europe and January 12 in the U.S. via Season of Mist's Underground Activists division. According to a press release, the band's sixth opus "offers impressive dynamics from doom-laden solemnity to furious outbreaks. An unholy groove adds to the malignant atmosphere permeating this Norwegian masterpiece. With their roots tight in the past URGEHAL now reach for the future of black metal! None shall resist!"

"Ikonoklast" track listing:

01. Stesolid Self-Destruction To Damnation
02. Dødelagt
03. Cut Their Tongue Shut Their Prayer
04. The Necessity Of Total Genocide
05. Kniven Rider Dypt I Natt
06. Astral Projection To Rabid Hell
07. Approaching Doom
08. Holocaust In Utopia
09. Sopor Necrosanctus

The song "Dødelagt" is now available for free download at this location. It can also be streamed using the audio player below.

URGEHAL celebrated its 15 year-anniversary in 2007 by releasing the album "The Eternal Eclipse - 15 Years Of Satanic Black Metal".

Canadian death metallers KATAKLYSM have just revealed the cover artwork and bonus material for the upcoming tour edition re-release of their latest masterpiece, "Prevail". The album is due on January 8, 2010 via Nuclear Blast.

Commented KATAKLYSM frontman Maurizio Iacono: "We decided to give 'Prevail' a little facelift with a new artwork, and we had a cool song we had recorded during the 'Prevail' studio sessions called 'Cross The Line Of Redemption' that never got on the album. We also added a version with vocals to our most popular instrumental song 'The Last Effort'. On the visual end, we added some cool songs from some European open-air festivals we did and added some videoclips. Just a little something for our fans to hold them over until the next album will come out. This will be a 'Touring Edition' since we will embark on a Euro headliner tour and do some selected shows In Canada next year."

Bonus material:

Audio:

01. Cross The line Of Redemption
02. The Last Effort (revisited)

Video:

01. Prevail (live At Graspop Metal Meeting)
02. Crippled & Broken (live at Summer Breeze)
03. Taking The World By Storm (video)
04. Blood In Heaven (video)

KATAKLYSM will embark on a European headlining tour in January 2010. Support on the trek will come from BELPHEGOR, DARKEST HOUR, SUICIDAL ANGELS and RESISTANCE.

"Prevail" was honored in the "Album Of The Year" in the "Metal/Hardcore" category at the Quebec Indie Music Awards (GAMIQ), an awards show that recognizes achievements by Quebec independent artists. The event was held on Sunday, September 21, 2008 at the Corona Theatre in Montreal and was produced by the Quebec Independent Music Association, which is also behind the Montreal International Music Initiative (MIMI).

The U.K. branch of Roadrunner Records recently conducted a short interview with KISS drummer Eric Singer as part of the "Getting To Know You" series. The question-and-answer session follows below.

Q: What were you doing when we interupted you to do this?

Singer: I was eating in the other room actually some... chicken quesadilla, with my shoes off, relaxing.

Q: Date of Birth?

Singer: May 12th.

Q: Where did you go to high school?

Singer: I grew up in Cleveland, Ohio and I went to high school on the east side of Cleveland. At that time it was in the Seventies and I was lucky to grow up in a cool time of music and culturally, at least in America. It was a typical Midwestern town but Cleveland's a real rock and roll city its where the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame is at. It was a great place, very open-minded — I mean, as regards to music (not so much culturally with people), but when it comes to music people just really loved rock and roll there, always have and what we looked forward to was buying records every week or going to a show. I saw so many great concerts in my formative years as a kid so I'm glad I grew up there. It was a great place to grow up, no doubt about it.

Q: What was the first instrument you ever played?

Singer: I think I tried playing piano in like the second grade or something for a short time but I gravitated towards drums, even though I love guitar and always have been influenced by mostly guitar based music. I guess I liked hitting things! My mom told me that typical drummer story - that I liked to the hit pots and pans you know when I was a little kid?! She'd pull them out of the cupboard and with the wooden spoons and all that. Once I discovered bands like LED ZEPPELIN and that in like 1969, that was it, I was hooked!

Q: What was the first band you guys ever played in and what did you guys sound like?

Singer: I had a band in sixth grade — I can remember everybody in the band and we called ourselves THE AXE. I have no idea why. We actually had two drummers because another friend of mine also played drums so we ended up taking turns playing. And I do remember playing for the school classroom and in sixth grade — we played "Hey Jude" by THE BEATLES and I remember being scared to death!

Q: Favourite food?

Singer: Anything Thai.

Q: Beverage of choice?

Singer: Sparkling water.

Q: What's your biggest peeve on the road?

Singer: Just not being able to sleep sometimes — imsomnia.

Q: Track of the moment?

Singer: THE BEATLES. I've been listening to those remastered, reissued BEATLES records...

Q: Movie of the moment?

Singer: The last one I saw that I really liked was "The Watchmen". That was killer, I thought.

Q: When you look back on your career thus far, what's the most prominent moment?

Singer: Well, in some ways it's still making them. I still look at it this way — the fact that I've been able to make a living as a musician; that in itself, to me, is the most prominent thing, rather than singling out any particular moment or any band or any person I worked with (because I've gotten to play with some great musicians and some cool situations and great people). I just remember I started off as a kid, not unlike a lot of other kids that had posters on the walls of bands saying, "I wanna do that. Some day I wish I could do that." And the fact that I've got to do that and still do that — that, to me, that's big for me. So to me the story's kinda been written every day, in a way.

According to The Pulse of Radio, PEARL JAM, RAGE AGAINST THE MACHINE guitarist Tom Morello and NINE INCH NAILS are among the musical acts that demanded on Thursday (October 22) that the U.S. government release the names of songs that were played at deafening volume for hours or days on end to torture prisoners since 2002, according to the Washington Post. Dozens of musicians supported the filing of a Freedom of Information Act by the National Security Archive, which seeks to declassify all records related to the use of music in so-called "enhanced interrogation" practices.

Tom Morello said in a statement, "The fact that music I helped create was used in crimes against humanity sickens me. We need to end torture and close Guantanamo now."

Roseanne Cash, country singer and daughter of the late Johnny Cash, told the Post, "Music should never be used as torture . . . It's beyond the pale. It's hard to even think about."

Other artists throwing their names behind the campaign to release the songs include R.E.M., Jackson Browne, Bonnie Raitt and Steve Earle. The artists just want to find out which songs were used, and will explore any possible legal options once that is learned.

The same artists have also launched a new lobbying effort to close the Guantanamo Bay detention center, where much of the torture under the Bush Administration took place. The Obama Administration ended the use of torture as an interrogation technique on the President's second day in office, although it may prove difficult to close the camp down by the end of his first year in office, as promised in the 2008 campaign.

METALLICA drummer Lars Ulrich appeared as a guest on MSNBC's "The Rachel Maddow Show" last April 27 (see video below), where Maddow asked Ulrich how he felt about METALLICA's music being used to psychologically torture prisoners of war. "There is a lot of METALLICA music that's helping a lot of scared 18, 19 and 20-year-old kids out there who are out on the front lines and who are doing a hell of a job on behalf of you and me and the rest of us," he said. "But obviously when you hear stories like the one you're telling, it all seems so bizarre and so strange that METALLICA's music, which generally sort of facilitates bringing people together, is used in these bizarre circumstances. It's certainly not something that we in any way advocate or condone."

Suzanne G. Cusick, a professor at New York University who has studied the use of music as torture, told the Post, "Sound at a certain level creates sensory overload and breaks down subjectivity and can (bring about) a regression to infantile behavior. Its effectiveness depends on the constancy of the sound, not the qualities of the music."

Jayne Huckerby, a research director at the Center for Human Rights and Global Justice, affirmed that the prolonged use of loud music to control or coerce prisoners is a violation of the U.N. Convention Against Torture, to which the U.S. is a party, and constitutes both torture and cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment.

The German-language television network 3SAT spoke to METALLICA guitarist/vocalist James Hetfield last year about the use of METALLICA's music to torture Guantanamo Bay, Cuba prisoners. "Part of me is proud is because they chose METALLICA," Hetfield said about the reports that the band's song "Enter Sandman" was used during the interrogation of Mohammed al-Qahtani — known as the 20th hijacker on Sept. 11 — and that listening to the track brought al-Qahtani to tears "because he thought he was hearing the sound of Satan." James added, "It's strong; it's music that's powerful. It represents something that they don't like — maybe freedom, aggression… I don't know… freedom of speech. And then part of me is kind of bummed about it that people worry about us being attached to some political statement because of that. We've got nothing to do with this and we're trying to be as apolitical as possible, 'cause I think politics and music, at least for us, don't mix. It separates people, [and] we wanna bring people together. So, so be it. I can't say 'Stop.' I can't say 'Do it.' It is just a thing — it's not good or bad."



Hetfield talking to 3SAT about use of METALLICA's music to torture Guantanamo Bay, Cuba prisoners (go to four-minute, 45-second mark):



Former Guantanamo prisoner Ruhal Ahmed describes his experience of being tortured by earsplitting music in the hands of the U.S. authorities:

Legendary heavy metal drummer Vinny Appice (HEAVEN & HELL, BLACK SABBATH, DIO) joined Las Vegas, Nevada's SIN CITY SINNERS — which consists of Brent Muscat (formerly of FASTER PUSSYCAT), Todd Kerns (AGE OF ELECTRIC), Mike Eliis, and Rob Cournoyer (RAGING SLAB) — for the following shows:

Oct. 02 - Railhead @ Boulder Station - Las Vegas, NV
Oct. 03 - Ovation @ Green Valley Ranch - Las Vegas, NV

Fan-filmed video footage of his appearance can be viewed below.

SIN CITY SINNERS is best known for having a special celebrity guest jam with the band each week.

The group has been taking Las Vegas by storm in 2009. They were voted "Best Local Band," second only to THE KILLERS in the Las Vegas Review-Journal's "Best Of Vegas" readers' poll.

Although the band is known primarily for its sets of cover songs, SIN CITY SINNERS has announced plans to release a CD of original songs in December, titled "Exile on Fremont St.".

For more information, visit www.myspace.com/scsinners.

Austria's Stormbringer.at webzine conducted an interview with drummer Tobias Gustafsson of Swedish death metallers VOMITORY at this year's Way Of Darkness festival, which was held October 2-3, 2009 in Lichtenfels, Germany. Watch the chat below.

VOMITORY released its seventh album, "Carnage Euphoria", in Europe on May 11 via Metal Blade Records (May 8 in Germany).

To celebrate VOMITORY's 20th anniversary, a limited first edition of "Carnage Euphoria" was made available with a 90-minute bonus DVD. Titled "Dead & Drunk For 20 Years", the disc contains footage spanning the band's entire career — from the very first VOMITORY show in 1990 to shows in 2008. Also featured was one previously unreleased song, "Putrefaction", performed live in 1990, live clips from different shows during the '90s with different lineups and drunk moments on the road and in the studio.

Commented Gustafsson: "'Carnage Euphoria' was a bit harder album to record than our predecessor, but damn, it was worth it! We are ridiculously happy with how the album turned out in the end! Engineer/producer Rikard Löfgren of Leon Music Studios did once again a killer job to get what we wanted for this album, and then some. Compared to our previous albums, 'Carnage Euphoria' is a lot wider, warmer and more natural sounding-wise. But still, 'Carnage Euphoria' runs you over like a steamroller, just as expected. The true VOMITORY elements are all in there, but there are also some more mid-paced groovy stuff that adds diversity to this album like never before. Even some ore melodic hooks that won't go unnoticed. Songs like 'The Ravenous Dead' and 'Great Deceiver' add fresh slices of flesh to the VOMITORY slab, while 'Rage Of Honour' and 'Possessed' are rotting chunks of the relentless death metal VOMITORY is known for."

Norway's SWORN has posted the song "Bastards and Conquerors" on the band's MySpace page. The track is the title cut of the group's new album, which is scheduled for release on October 30 via Twilight-Vertrieb.

According to a press release, "Bastards and Conquerors" sees SWORN bringing "the expression 'melodic extreme metal' to a level beyond your imagination. Nine tracks of melancholic metal, mixed with powerful rhythms and aggressive instrumental abuse. All enclosed with that haunting atmosphere you can expect from SWORN.

"With their new member Dag Anderson (AETERNUS, DEATHCON), SWORN releases a worthy follow-up to their debut. 'Bastards and Conquerors' is faster, darker, more aggressive, and even more atmospheric. [It was] mastered at Cutting Room (IN FLAMES, DIMMU BORGIR, WITHIN TEMPTATION) and mixed by Bjørnar E. Nilsen (VULTURE INDUSTRIES, BLACK HOLE GENERATOR), who also has a guest appearance on the album."

"Bastards and Conquerors" track listing:

01. Prophecies From The Land Of Lost Voices
02. The Bastard, The Conqueror
03. Summoning The Sinister
04. Beyonder
05. Somnolence
06. Damnation Spawned
07. Carnal Monuments
08. The Archaic Wraith
09. Descendant

For more information, visit www.myspace.com/swornband.

This past summer while co-headlining the Rockstar Energy Drink Mayhem Festival tour, the members of SLAYER sat down on their tour bus backstage in Camden, New Jersey and talked about the eleven tracks on their upcoming album, "World Painted Blood". In the latest clip — which can be viewed at Ultimate-Guitar.tv — Kerry King (guitar), Dave Lombardo (drums) and Tom Araya (bass, vocals) give us the backstory on "Hate Worldwide"".

The official CD-release and listening party for "World Painted Blood" will be held on Friday, October 30 at Duff's Brooklyn in Williamsburg, New York beginning at 9:00 p.m. Free "World Painted Blood" merchandise and autographed copies of the best-selling Decibel magazine to date — the SLAYER issue — will be given away at the 21-and-over event, for which there is no cover.

The address is:

Duff's Brooklyn
168 Marcy Avenue (between S 5th & Broadway)
Williamsburg, New York

For more information, visit www.duffsbrooklyn.com.

"World Painted Blood" is scheduled for release on November 3 via American Recordings. The CD will initially ship with four special collector's edition covers. Each of the four covers will display one-fourth of a provocative continental map illustrated with human skulls and bones; when placed together, the four images form a complete and grisly map of the world.

All four of the initial CD packages will include a special blood-red, see-through top panel with the map displayed beneath it.

"World Painted Blood" track listing:

01. World Painted Blood
02. Unit 731
03. Snuff
04. Beauty Through Order
05. Hate Worldwide
06. Public Display Of Dismemberment
07. Human Strain
08. Americon
09. Psychopathy Red
10. Playing With Dolls
11. Not Of This God

"World Painted Blood" was recorded in Los Angeles over two time periods, during October 2008 and then between late January and March 2009. The CD was produced by Greg Fidelman, who's spent time in the studio with METALLICA, THE GOSSIP, THE (INTERNATIONAL) NOISE CONSPIRACY, SLIPKNOT and others, and executive-produced by longtime SLAYER colleague Rick Rubin, who suggested Fidelman for the project.

"World Painted Blood":



"Unit 731":



"Snuff":

DIAMOND HEAD guitarist Brian Tatler's autobiography, "Am I Evil?", will soon be available in an exclusive first edition print run of 500 copies for the band's fans worldwide through www.diamond-head.net. At just £16.95, it is a collector's item and a great Christmas present. It is not available anywhere else. It contains many unseen photos and has forewords by both Lars Ulrich (METALLICA) and Dave Mustaine (MEGADETH, ex-METALLICA).

"DIAMOND HEAD were 50% of what ended up being METALLICA…" – Lars Ulrich, METALLICA

It all started in a bedroom with a biscuit tin drum kit and a cheap fuzzy guitar, and went on to create some of the most exciting music ever written and inspire the biggest heavy metal band on the planet.

Forever tipped as the next big thing, DIAMOND HEAD have opened for IRON MAIDEN, AC/DC and METALLICA, and toured with BLACK SABBATH, MEGADETH and THIN LIZZY. Yet they were beset by management difficulties, poor decisions, bad deals, nightmare producers, band splits, ego problems… And when they finally signed to a major label, it was the wrong one. But amongst all that, their legacy is enormous and their music timeless, with their classic signature tune "Am I Evil?" appearing on METALLICA's 2009 "Guitar Hero" game.

"DIAMOND HEAD were a really important band… The most important band of the whole New Wave Of British Heavy Metal movement… More important than IRON MAIDEN, SAXON, DEF LEPPARD or whoever. Musically they were just streets ahead." – Geoff Barton, Classic Rock magazine

Brian Tatler founded DIAMOND HEAD in 1976. In "Am I Evil?", he reveals frankly what it's like to be chasing the dream of wanting to be a rock 'n' roll star, what it's like when you attain it, and how it feels to see it unravel before your eyes — a story all too familiar to musicians of all genres.

"Am I Evil?" co-author John Tucker was hooked by DIAMOND HEAD's first single, "Shoot Out The Lights", in 1980. He is also the co-author of Biff Byford's autobiography "Never Surrender (Or Nearly Good Looking)" and the author of "Suzie Smiled… The New Wave Of British Heavy Metal".

The latest episode of "Talking Metal" features interviews hosts Mark Strigl and John Ostronomy conducted with Max Cavalera of SOULFLY and CAVALERA CONSPIRACY as well as NON-FICTION's Dan Lorenzo and Mike Cristi.

The podcast can be downloaded at this location. It can also be streamed using the audio player 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.

NON-FICTION, who released three full-length albums and an EP from 1990 to 1994, has scheduled a one-night reunion show on Saturday, November 7 at Dingbatz in Clifton, New Jersey. Tecchio, Lorenzo, drummer Mike Cristi and bassist Kevin Bolembach will perform songs from their three CDs "Preface", "In The Know", and "It's A Wonderful Lie".

Swedish thrash metal band CARNAL FORGE returned to the studio in June month to record the vocals for a new track called "Blood War" (formerly "Non Existence"). The song will appear on the band's next album, tentatively due in January 2010. An accompanying music video (produced and directed by guitarist Dino Medanhodzic) was filmed this past weekend and will be released soon.

Behind-the-scenes footage from the "Blood War" video shoot can be viewed below.

"Blood War" was written, recorded and produced by CARNAL FORGE in the band's own studio in Sala, Sweden. The track was mixed by Medanhodzic.

CARNAL FORGE's current lineup includes the band's latest additions, Peter Tuthill on vocals and Medanhodzic on guitar.

CARNAL FORGE is:

Peter Tuthill - Vocals
Dino Medanhodzic - Lead Guitar
Petri Kuusisto - Lead Guitar
Lars Lindén - Bass
Stefan Westerberg - Drums

CARNAL FORGE's latest album, "Testify for My Victims", was released in the U.S. in May 2007 via Candlelight Records.

The full-length version of "Blood War" can be heard in the YouTube clip below.

"Blood War" behind the scenes:



"Blood War" audio only:

"We had our hearts broken by losing Layne and losing ourselves" ALICE IN CHAINS' guitarist Jerry Cantrell says of the band's long road back from the death of singer Layne Staley in 2002. The heartbreak led the band to eventually recruit new singer William DuVall and record new album "Black Gives Way To Blue", which debuted at No. 5 on The Billboard 200 this month and which spawned a title track that went all the way to No. 1 on the Rock Songs chart. The heart-centric album cover, Cantrell explains in a video interview with Billboard.com, is no coincidence.

In the interview, Cantrell, DuVall, bassist Mike Inez and drummer Sean Kinney talk about band life after Layne, collaborating with Elton John on the new album, and fan reception to DuVall.

"It took a lot to get through this process and to even take the chance, and stand-up and risk," Cantrell says.

"I think initially people came [with] arms crossed, sort of hoping against hope. I hear that a lot," DuVall says. "I'm not trying to do a Layne. One of the things I loved about him was how individual he was. He was just being himself, so that's what I do."

NON-FICTION vocalist Alan Tecchio and guitarist Dan Lorenzo will guest on the "Metal Mania" show (hosted by Scott Evil) on New Jersey's WDHA radio station tonight (Friday, October 23) at 11:15 p.m.

You can listen to the program live via the Internet at www.wdhafm.com.

NON-FICTION, who released three full-length albums and an EP from 1990 to 1994, has scheduled a one-night reunion show on Saturday, November 7 at Dingbatz in Clifton, New Jersey. Tecchio, Lorenzo, drummer Mike Cristi and bassist Kevin Bolembach will perform songs from their three CDs "Preface", "In The Know", and "It's A Wonderful Lie".

NON-FICTION formed after HADES broke up in 1989. Lorenzo originally hooked up with vocalist/guitarist Dan Nastasi from MUCKY PUP before Tecchio moved back to Jersey from Texas and his stint with WATCHTOWER. Around that time, Nastasi formed DOG EAT DOG. NON-FICTION added Bolembach (drummer Cristi was already in place)and performed shows locally, including at New York City's CBGB.

NON-FICTION released two CDs rather quickly, shot to #1 on New Jersey radio station WSOU for months at a time and started touring. In 1993, NON-FICTION opened an American tour with OVERKILL, then flew to Europe as openers for both OVERKILL and SAVATAGE.

For more information, visit www.myspace.com/nonfictionnj.

Former MEGADETH and current F5 bassist David Ellefson has posted the latest episode in "David Ellefson's Rock Shop", an ongoing YouTube video series hosted by the bassist himself.

In Episode 21, entitled "Building A Team", David discusses the components of building a music industry team for an artist's success.

Ellefson previously stated about his "David Ellefson's Rock Shop" YouTube video series, "I'm always asked questions from fans and other musicians about playing the bass, the business side of our industry, and music in general. So, I decided to create these regular video webisodes as a way to inform and respond to many of those questions."

In addition to numerous gold and platinum records and seven Grammy-nominated works, David is the author of the book "Making Music Your Business" and has two metal bass guitar instructional DVDs through Rock House Method entitled "Metal Bass Vol. 1" and "Vol. 2". He is also a featured bass clinician, keynote speaker and panelist on the subject of music and the music industry.

Previous episodes can be viewed at this location.

For more information, visit David's brand new official MySpace page.

U.K. progressive metallers THRESHOLD have posted the song "Smile At The Moon" on their MySpace page. According to the band, this is a new recording of an old track that was previously unreleased but was made available on THRESHOLD's limited-edition eight-disc box set, entitled "Paradox - The Singles Collection", which came out on October 12. The box contains eight singles with rare B-sides and a 20-page booklet.

The singles are presented in individual sleeves and housed in a black and silver box. The accompanying booklet features a number of previously unseen pictures, sleeve notes on every track and an introduction by Karl Groom.

The complete track listing is as follows:

CD 1:

01. Paradox (radio version)
02. Conceal The Face
03. Shifting Sands

CD 2:

01. Sunseeker (radio version)
02. Fist Of Tongues
03. Half Way Home

CD 3:

01. Virtual Isolation (radio version)
02. Somatography (alternative version)
03. Smile At The Moon

CD 4:

01. Freaks (radio version)
02. Voyager II (urban version)
03. Change (acoustic version)

CD 5:

01. Light And Space (radio version)
02. Long Way Home (alternative version)
03. Turn On Tune In (compound version)

CD 6:

01. Phenomenon (radio version)
02. New Beginning (alternative version)
03. Round And Round (acoustic version)

CD 7:

01. Mission Profile (radio version)
02. Flags And Footprints (acoustic version)
03. The Ravages Of Time (live version)

CD 8:

01. Pilot In The Sky Of Dreams (radio version)
02. Elusive (radio version)
03. Safe To Fly (acoustic version)

"Paradox - The Singles Collection" is available for order at this location.

"Picture Perfect", the new album from Chicago heavy rockers SOIL, can be streamed in its entirety on the band's TuneLab Music. The CD was released in the U.S. on October 20 via Bieler Bros. Records and three days later in Europe through AFM Records/Soulfood.

"Picture Perfect" was created by the production team of Grammy-nominated producer Johnny K (DISTURBED, STAIND), Ulrich Wild (DEFTONES, INCUBUS) and SOIL, with Dave Fortman (MUDVAYNE, EVANESCENCE) handling mixing duties. Other songtitles set to appear on the CD include "Temptation", "Surrounded", and "Picture Perfect".

SOIL's new album was originally supposed to be released in the U.S. via Driven Music Group, the Phoenix, Arizona-based music label and entertainment company created by former KORN guitarist Brian "Head" Welch. However, that relationship appears to have been dissolved without producing any releases from the band.

SOIL is taking part in KITTIE's U.S. headlining tour, which kicked off on September 27 in New York City. Also appearing on the bill are ARKAEA and STRAIGHT LINE STITCH.

SOIL's previous album, "True Self", was released in May 2006 via DRT Entertainment. The follow-up to 2004's "Redefine" was recorded and mixed at Bomb Shelter studios in Los Angeles, California with producer Ulrich Wild (STATIC-X, TAPROOT).

SOIL in 2007 amicably parted ways with guitarist Shaun Glass due to "personal differences." The band decided against seeking a replacement guitarist and has opted to remain a four-piece, with Cavalier filling in on some of the guitar duties.