A limited-edition pressing of punk rock icon Henry Rollins' new book, "A Mad Dash", is available for order at this location.

"A Mad Dash" picks up where 2007's "A Preferred Blur" left off. A seemingly endless stream of words, one after another, details Rollins' travels all over the world, over one hundred performances and the shooting of five documentaries. The book goes right to the end only stopping at the last page.

The limited-edition pressing of 1,500 copies features a black cover, color photos, and is signed and numbered by Henry.

Video footage of Henry talking about "A Mad Dash" can be viewed below.

ALICE IN CHAINS took part in "Stripped", Clear Channel Music Group's exclusive in-studio performance series created for artists who thrive on performing without the typical studio and video embellishments. The three-song performance, which was taped on September 9 at the PC Richard & Son Theater in New York City, can be viewed below.

Acoustic versions of the following songs are available:

* "Check My Brain"
* "Your Decision"
* "No Excuses"

ALICE IN CHAINS will perform on the October 30 edition of NBC's "The Tonight Show with Conan O'Brien".

The band's first all-new album in 14 years, titled "Black Gives Way To Blue", sold 126,000 copies in the United States in its first week of release to land at position No. 5 on The Billboard 200 chart (behind latest albums from PARAMORE, MARIAH CAREY, BARBRA STREISAND and BREAKING BENJAMIN).

Following its last, self-titled record in 1995, the once-mighty Seattle-based act went into a long period of inactivity, partially due to the drug problems of singer Layne Staley. Staley died in 2002, but it was another four years until the three remaining members of the band, guitarist Jerry Cantrell, bassist Mike Inez and drummer Sean Kinney, first regrouped for a benefit show and then officially returned with new frontman William DuVall.

ALICE IN CHAINS recruited pop legend Elton John to contribute piano to the CD's title track, which is written in tribute to Staley.

William DuVall had played with his own group, COMES WITH THE FALL, as well as in Jerry Cantrell's solo band, before joining up with ALICE IN CHAINS in 2006.

"Black Gives Way to Blue" was recorded with producer Nick Raskulinecz (FOO FIGHTERS, RUSH) at the Northridge, California studio of FOO FIGHTERS frontman Dave Grohl.

Behind-the-scenes footage of TESTAMENT guitarist Eric Peterson shooting his new instructional DVD for Rock House can be viewed below.

All Rock House instructional products are distributed through Hal Leonard Corp. 1-800-554-0626. Each of Eric's DVDs is expected to 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.

TESTAMENT recently canceled its previously announced South American dates in September in order to focus on recording the follow-up to its acclaimed 2008 album, "The Formation Of Damnation".

TESTAMENT has been touring non-stop in support of "The Formation Of Damnation", including this year's Priest Feast tour in Europe with JUDAS PRIEST and a phenomenal run on the Metal Masters tour last summer with HEAVEN & HELL and MOTÖRHEAD.

Two classic albums by TESTAMENT — 1997's "Demonic" and 1999's "The Gathering" — were reissued on gatefold double vinyl by Prosthetic Records on February 3. Each features etched artwork on Side D and is limited to 1,000 copies worldwide. Additionally, 100 copies of "Demonic" feature red vinyl, while 100 copies of "The Gathering" feature gold vinyl.



(Thanks: NJthrasher)

According to the Los Angeles Times, ANVIL's acclaimed documentary, "Anvil! The Story of Anvil", was the first official 2009 Academy viewing screener which was mailed Thursday to the nearly 6,000-person membership of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences.

Being the first screener sent out is a nice distinction, and giving voters plenty of time to see it has resulted in good nomination luck for the likes of "Little Miss Sunshine", "Junebug" and last year's "Frozen River", among others.

Read more from the Los Angeles Times.

SYSTEM OF A DOWN singer Serj Tankian is among the musicians who are scheduled to perform at the WTF?! Festival, set to take place Tuesdays through Saturdays, October 13 - December 19 at The Actors' Gang in Culver City, California. Serj will appear on November 7 at 8:00 p.m.

"The name of this festival came to me after a recent board meeting where I was told that due to the economic downswing and recent reduction in donations that we can no longer afford to produce theater," explains Actors' Gang artistic director, Academy Award-winning actor Tim Robbins. "I was told it would be less expensive to do nothing."

The WTF?! Festival was Robbins answer to the board.

"We're not very good at doing nothing. We have seventy members and we are fired up to go into production on a major piece in January, so in the spirit of rebellion and our history of survival we are going to produce three plays, host great artists and authors, screen free documentaries, have open forums for Veterans, have live music nights with great songwriters, present poetry and dance, screen ridiculously funny movies, host talkbacks with directors and try to raise enough money to survive this crap economy, We are offering a wide variety of events that will fire up new audiences, help them to discover The Gang, and support our community outreach."

To that end, the WTF?! Festival is composed of a singer/songwriter series, film talkback series, and a theater and dance series, each curated by Robbins and featuring members and friends of The Actors' Gang. All proceeds will benefit The Gang's many outreach programs, such as theater residencies in public schools; a free Summer-in-the Park family theater series; free holiday shows for families; a theater in prisons program focused on rehabilitation through the arts; and pay-what-you-can nights for Actors' Gang productions on the main stage.

The Actors' Gang is located in the Ivy Substation at 9070 Venice Blvd. (near the intersection of Culver and Venice Blvds.) in Culver City.

For more information, visit www.wtffestival.com.

Swiss noise-mongers KRUGER recently entered Déclanché studio in Yverdon, Switzerland to begin recording their fourth album, "For Death, Glory And The End Of The World". The drum-recording sessions were scheduled to take three days before the band was to move back to its hometown of Lausanne to lay down the guitar, bass and vocals. A posting on KRUGER's MySpace page reads, "After splitting hairs for the past ten months on this upcoming album, the band is pretty excited to finally lay on tape the nine new tracks, which are due for a February 2010 release on the spirited label Listenable Records."

KRUGER's third album "Redemption through Looseness" was mixed at Godcity Recordings by Kurt Ballou (CONVERGE, CAVE IN, OLD MAN GLOOM) and mastered by Alan Douches (THE DILLINGER ESCAPE PLAN, NILE, MASTODON). It was released in 2007 in Europe and North America via Listenable Records.

For more information, go to this location.

Swedish glam-rock band CRASHDIET has scheduled the following dates:

Dec. 02 - Klubi, Tampere, Tampere, FIN *
Dec. 03 - Klubi, Turku, Turku, FIN *
Dec. 04 - Tavastia, Helsinki, FIN *
Dec. 05 - Kellari, Joensuu, FIN *
Dec. 31 - The Rock, Copenhagen, DEN

* Supporting HARDCORE SUPERSTAR

CRASHDIET recently announced the addition of Simon "Simme" Cruz from the Stockholm act JAILBAIT as the group's new lead singer. A new demo track, "Caught In Despair", featuring the band's latest addition is available for streaming on the CRASHDIET MySpace page.

CRASHDIET parted ways with its last vocalist, the Finland-based H. Olliver Twisted, in July 2008. "We need a singer who can commit 100%, which unfortunately Olli couldn't live up to," the group stated at the time. "He, as many know about, has another band in Finland and we couldn't settle for sharing our time. We want to go further than any band has done before and we can't afford to spend time just waiting. We need to function as a full unit, all the time!"

CRASHDIET's sophomore album, "The Unattractive Revolution", entered the Swedish chart at position No. 11 back in October 2007. The CD was mixed in the United States by Kevin Churko.

"The Unattractive Revolution" features a guest appearance on two tracks by MÖTLEY CRÜE guitarist Mick Mars, who flew into Stockholm, Sweden in June 2007 to help CRASHDIET write some of the material.

H. Olliver Twisted joined CRASHDIET as the replacement for David Hellman (a.k.a. Dave Lepard), who committed suicide in January 2006.

A seven-minute interview with KISS members Paul Stanley and Tommy Thayer brought to you by Classic Rock, Metal Hammer and Roadrunner can be viewed below.

According to Billboard.com, KISS' new album, "Sonic Boom", may shift somewhere between 160,000 and 180,000 copies in the United States in its first week of release. If the set sells that much, it will also mark the group's best sales week since Nielsen SoundScan began tracking data in 1991.

KISS has notched seven Top 10 albums. Its highest charting set is 1998's "Psycho Circus", which debuted and peaked at No. 3 with 110,000 copies in its first week, according to Nielsen SoundScan. The group's other high-charting sets include 1975's "Alive!" (No. 9), 1977's "Love Gun" (No. 4) and 1992's "Revenge" (No. 6).

HardTimes.ca has uploaded video footage (see below) of CALIBAN's September 29, 2009 performance in Montreal, Quebec, Canada.

"Say Hello To Tragedy", the seventh album from CALIBAN, sold around 550 copies in the United States in its first week of release, according to Nielsen SoundScan. The CD landed at No. 97 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.

"Say Hello To Tragedy"entered the German Media Control chart at position No. 36. The LP also debuted at No. 71 on the official Download chart.

"Say Hello To Tragedy" was released in Europe on August 24 via Century Media Records (one day later in the U.S.). The follow-up to 2007's "The Awakening" was once again produced by Benny Richter, co-produced by guitarist Marc Goertz and was mixed by KILLSWITCH ENGAGE guitarist Adam Dutkiewicz.

"Say Hello To Tragedy" is available in the following formats:

* CD jewelcase
* Limited digipack with alternative dyecut cover plus two bonus tracks ("Forsaken Horizon" and "Between The Worlds", recorded live at Germany's With Full Force festival in 2008) and CD enhancement ("24 Years" live clip, interview, photo gallery)
- LP + CD (the entire limited-edition CD)
- Digital download

The artwork for the new CD was created by Basti Basti of CALLEJON, who has previously worked with such bands as HEAVEN SHALL BURN and WAR FROM A HARLOTS MOUTH.

BUCKCHERRY frontman Josh Todd will make an appearance on Fox News' "Red Eye" show with Greg Gutfeld early tomorrow morning (Friday, October 9).

"Red Eye" is a late-night/early-morning talk show on the Fox News channel. Airing at 3:00 a.m. EST on weekdays with repeats on weekends at 12:00 a.m. EST, the show covers a variety of topics, including news, entertainment, sports, and gossip. It is hosted by former Maxim U.K. editor Greg Gutfeld.

BUCKCHERRY's live album, called "Live & Loud", sold around 3,000 copies in the United States in its first week of release to land at position No. 172 on The Billboard 200 chart.

The CD was released on Eleven Seven Music with distribution through RED.

BUCKCHERRY reissued its fourth studio album, 2008's "Black Butterfly", in an enhanced edition on September 8. The new version swaps out the song "Too Drunk..." for the band's cover of DEEP PURPLE's "Highway Star", which the group recorded for NASCAR coverage on TNT.

Todd and guitarist Keith Nelson told Billboard.com last month that there will be new BUCKCHERRY music next year, with Todd adding that the band is "working on a project we're kind of keeping secretive right now. It's definitely going to be a departure from what we do. It's definitely coming out great."

BUCKCHERRY has also premiered an acoustic video at Yahoo! Music for the song "Sorry", which was originally included on their 2006 comeback album, "15".

"15" has sold 1.4 million copies in the U.S. so far, according to Nielsen SoundScan.

Kevin Walters of The Tennessean reports: A band founded by employees of Franklin-based Healthways is now officially America's No. 1 corporate rock band — and they can thank MÖTLEY CRÜE's Tommy Lee for helping them win the honor.

The band STRAT5 was picked by Lee and other judges last weekend during a ceremony at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum in Cleveland, Ohio, as part of Fortune magazine's ninth annual Battle of the Corporate Bands competition.

Formed in 1995, the seven-member band took the top spot on its second trip to the finals, facing seven other corporate bands from throughout the country.

After a weekend of soaking up rock 'n' roll, band members Emy Stewart, 34, and drummer Victor Mattingly, 46, were back at their day jobs. Each won individual awards as part of the competition.

Read the entire article from The Tennessean.

Tonight's (Thursday, October 8) Bret Michaels concert at Club H20 in Columbus, Georgia has been "postponed until further notice" due to "a case of the flu," according to a posting on the POISON singer's MySpace page. It is not presently clear if any of the other Bret Michaels solo dates will be affected by this cancellation.

Remaining Bret Michaels shows:

Oct. 09 - Atmore, AL - Wind Creek Casino
Oct. 10 - Valdosta, GA - Wind Creek Casino
Oct. 17 - Leon, Guanajuato, Mexico - Poliforum Leon
Nov. 06 - Onamia, MN - Grand Casino Mille Lacs
Nov. 07 - Onamia, MN - Grand Casino Mille Lacs
Dec. 05 - Brooks, CA - Cache Creek Casino

Michaels' autobiography, "Roses and Thorns: The Rock 'n' Roll Fantasy to My Reality", has had its release date pushed back into 2010 by publisher Simon & Schuster.

The book was originally due out this past June, and while Michaels acknowledges "it would've been great to have it out there," he recently told Billboard.com that the delay "let me talk about the Tonys and the (summer) tour with DEF LEPPARD and CHEAP TRICK and all the nutty stories I'll have from the summer." Michaels made headlines on June 7 when he fractured his nose at the Tony Awards, colliding with a piece of moving scenery after he performed POISON's "Nothin' But a Good Time" with the cast of "Rock Of Ages".

According to Minneapolis, Minnesota's 93X Rocks radio station, former PANTERA/DAMAGEPLAN drummer Vinnie Paul Abbott has revealed that he and his HELLYEAH bandmates have already recorded about half of their next album. Vinnie promises that the work they've done so far on the record is "great," and says fans should expect an album by March or April, with a tour to follow.

Paul did take a little time off recently, flying to Las Vegas to take in the "Slash & Friends" concert at The Mirage casino on Friday, October 2. Then earlier this week, he was scheduled to fly to Austin to prepare to open the latest in his Chicas Bonitas chain of strip clubs. On Friday, he'll head down to Cabo San Lucas to perform this weekend at Sammy Hagar's annual birthday party. As soon as that's done, he says it's back home to Dallas to get back to work on HELLYEAH.

The hard rock "supergroup," which also features MUDVAYNE singer Chad Gray and guitarist Greg Tribbett, NOTHINGFACE axeman Tom Maxwell and DAMAGEPLAN bass player Bob "Zilla" Kakaha, are currently free agents after issuing their 2007 debut through Epic Records. Abbott explained to DallasObserver.com, "We had a one-disc deal with Epic, and they're practically begging us to come back. We sold nearly 500,000 records for them, which is practically unheard of these days. That's like going platinum 10 years ago."

Abbott, who bounced back with HELLYEAH from the devastating 2004 murder of his brother and bandmate "Dimebag" Darrell Abbott, said about the band, "The guys from HELLYEAH and the incredible music we've created have brought me back to what I love . . . The vibe is positive with a kick-your-ass attitude."

HELLYEAH's self-titled debut has sold more than 350,000 copies since arriving in April 2007.

DEF LEPPARD singer Joe Elliott supported the reunited MOTT THE HOOPLE on the final night of their run of shows on Tuesday, October 6 at the HMV Hammersmith Apollo in London, England. Elliott and his backing band — which consisted of members of THE QUIREBOYS — appeared under the DOWN 'N' OUTZ banner in what was described by the vocalist as "a one-off performance, not the start of a new project."

The setlist, which comprised of songs the members of MOTT THE HOOPLE were involved with after they split in 1974, was as follows:

01. Golden Opportunities (Ian Hunter)
02. Overnight Angels (Ian Hunter)
03. One More Chance To Run (BRITISH LIONS)
04. Shouting & Pointing (MOTT)
05. Storm (MOTT)
06. Career (MOTT)
07. Who Do You Love (Ian Hunter)
08. By Tonight (Mott)
09. England Rocks (Ian Hunter)
10. Good Times (MOTT, originally recorded by THE EASYBEATS)

The band was:

* Joe Elliott: Lead Vocals, Rhythm Guitar, Piano
* Paul Guerin: Lead Guitar, Backing Vocals
* Guy Griffin: Rhythm Guitar, Backing Vocals
* Keith Wier: Keyboards, Backing Vocals
* Phil Martini: Drums, Backing Vocals
* Ronnie Garrity: Bass

Only Ronnie isn't a member of THE QUIREBOYS, although he regularly plays in a band with Cosmo, the original guitarist in the HEAVY METAL KIDS, one of Joe and DEF LEPPARD guitarist Phil Collen's favorite bands.

Joe also invited THE QUIREBOYS singer Spike up to sing "Career" while Joe swapped over to the piano!

The show was recorded and filmed, so if there's "enough interest" (as Joe puts it), it may see the light of day some day.

Fan-filmed video footage of the performance can be viewed at this location. A couple of the clips are available below.

Video footage of Philip Anselmo (DOWN, PANTERA) interviewing Canadian metal legends ANVIL for the one-hour season premiere of VH1 Classic "That Metal Show" can be viewed below. The chat was conducted at the 2009 installment of the U.K.'s Download festival — which was held June 12-14 at Donington Park — where Anselmo also joined ANVIL during their June 13 performance on the Tuborg Stage to sing the chorus to the song "Winged Assassins" (see bottom clip below).

"Holy fucking shit man, it only took me 27 years to get back here," said grinning frontman Steve "Lips" Kudlow to the crowd, referring to the time ANVIL performed at the site's Monsters Of Rock festival in 1982.

According to NME.com, Lips introduced "Metal On Metal" as "the national anthem of metal" and told a story about the song "White Rhino" being named after the band's "favorite brand of pot." "White Rhino" also featured a lengthy drum solo from drummer Robb Reiner.

The band finished their hour-long set with "Mothra", during which strobes flashed and Kudlow played his Flying V guitar with a bottle of water.

ANVIL's setlist was as follows:

01. March Of The Crabs
02. This Is Thirteen
03. 666
04. School Love
05. Jackhammer
06. Winged Assassins
07. Forged In Fire
08. Race Against Time
09. White Rhino
10. Metal On Metal
11. Mothra

Philip Anselmo interviewing ANVIL:



"Winged Assassins" featuring Philip Anselmo:



(Thanks: www.downontour.com)

Mars Direct Inc., a division of Mars Snackfood US, announced the launch of the My M&M's Kiss Blend — a rockin' partnership between the beloved candy brand and one of rock's most prolific bands. For a limited time, the KISS Blend will take each of the members' iconic faces and put them on colorful My M&M's chocolate candies, creating a delicious collector's item for any fan.

"KISS has always been and will continue to be all about the fans," said Paul Stanley of KISS. "We couldn't resist the chance to be the first band to grace the iconic M&M's candies and continue to spread the KISS empire!"

The My M&M's Kiss Blend features four customized packages that includes the iconic faces of band members Gene Simmons, Paul Stanley, Tommy Thayer and Eric Singer. The limited-edition KISS Blend will be available starting October 6 exclusively at Wal-Mart locations nationwide, coinciding with the launch of KISS' new album, "Sonic Boom", also exclusively available at Wal-Mart.

"KISS has some of the most recognizable faces in the world of rock and roll, so it's only natural to put their faces on My M&M's," said Jim Cass, vice president and general manager, Mars Direct.

DOWN guitarist/CROWBAR frontman Kirk Windstein will be interviewed tomorrow morning (Friday, October 9) at 9 a.m. EST on WRUW 91.1 FM, the campus radio station of Case Western Reserve University, located in the University Circle section of Cleveland, Ohio.

To listen to the program live via the Internet, go to this location.

DOWN has been confirmed for the 11th annual Voodoo Experience music festival, taking place Halloween weekend in New Orleans.

More than 150 acts will play on eight stages in three separate areas — named Le Ritual, Le Flambeau and Le Carnival — around the city.

Other major acts on the Voodoo Experience bill include KISS, JANE'S ADDICTION, WOLFMOTHER, EAGLES OF DEATH METAL, MEAT PUPPETS and DOWN.

Fuse will provide on-air and online coverage of the Voodoo Experience and will broadcast a one-hour special on Nov. 7.

For more information, visit www.thevoodooexperience.com.

As previously reported, former PANTERA and current DOWN bassist Rex Brown had his gallbladder and polyps on his pancreas removed last month in a surgical procedure.

Brown is suffering from acute pancreatitis, a sudden inflammation of the pancreas which can have severe complications and high mortality despite treatment.

A full and healthy recovery is expected.

DOWN tapped Danny Theriot of Metairie, Louisiana to fill in on bass for the group's recently North American trek, which kicked off on August 3 at Beaumont Club in Kansas City, Kansas.

Video footage of DOWN performing the VAN HALEN classic "Ain't Talking About Love" on September 11, 2009 at the Nokia Theatre in New York City can be viewed below.

Arizona extreme metallers JOB FOR A COWBOY have issued the following update:

"We are super-bummed to announce we are going to have to drop off of our current tour with GWAR and LAMB OF GOD due to a family emergency. We have been having a blast on the road with all these guys and our bros in THE RED CHORD just started on the tour as well!

"We are sorry to anyone who was planning to come out and see us; you should still go to the shows cause all the bands have been killer every night!

Affected dates:

Oct. 08 - Wichita, KS - The Cotillion
Oct. 09 - Des Moines, IA - Val Air Ballroom
Oct. 10 - Fargo, ND - The Venue @ Playmakers
Oct. 12 - Minneapolis, MN - First Avenue
Oct. 14 - Sauget, IL - Pop’s
Oct. 15 - Indianapolis, IN - The Vogue
Oct. 16 - Knoxville, TN - Valarium
Oct. 17 - Detroit, MI - Harpo’s
Oct. 18 - Cleveland, OH - House of Blues
Oct. 20 - Norfolk, VA - The NorVa
Oct. 21 - Asheville, NC - The Orange Peel
Oct. 23 - Atlantic City, NJ - House of Blues
Oct. 24 - Elmira, NY - First Arena
Oct. 25 - London, ON - John Labatt Centre

JOB FOR A COWBOY will resume its North American tour on October 26 in Buffalo, New York.

The band is continuing to promote its sophomore album, "Ruination", which sold around 10,600 copies in the United States in its first week of release to debut at position No. 42 on The Billboard 200 chart. The 10-song follow-up to 2007's "Genesis" was tracked and mixed at AudioHammer studios in Sanford, Florida with producer Jason Suecof (THE BLACK DAHLIA MURDER, DEVILDRIVER, TRIVIUM).

"Ruination" marks the JOB FOR A COWBOY recording debut of drummer Jon "The Charn" Rice, who has toured with the band since the release of "Genesis" and features ten tracks of state-of-the-art heavy metal music.

"Unfurling a Darkened Gospel", the new video from JOB FOR A COWBOY, was shot on location in downtown Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and at the city's distinguished music venue, The First Unitarian Church. The clip was lensed by Doug Spangenberg for Space Monkey Studios (LAMB OF GOD, MAROON 5) and features JOB FOR A COWBOY doing what the band does best; bringing its electrifying live show directly to a crowd of rabid music fans.

Buick McKane (a.k.a. Emily) conducted an interview with JOB FOR A COWBOY guitarist Bobby Thompson before the band's September 30, 2009 concert in New Orleans, Louisiana. Watch the eight-minute chat below.

Swedish metallers ASTRAL DOORS will release their fifth album, "Requiem Of Time" in Europe on January 15 and in North America on February 16 through Metalville, the band and label pool launched by the Cologne, Germany-based company Flying Dolphin Entertainment Group UG.

Commented the band: "All the previous releases from ASTRAL DOORS have been mixed by the master Peter Tägtgren (HYPOCRISY, PAIN). He has done a great job for us and we love and respect him very much. This time around, however, we decided to give our very own guitar player, Martin Haglund, the chance to be in control of the mixing process.

"Martin has really improved as a sound engineer and technician the last couple of years, and we felt that he could do as great job as his best friend Tägtgren.

"Martin's mix is just incredible and we can't wait to share it with the entire world."

Songtitles set to appear on "Requiem Of Time" include "Testament Of Rock", "Power And The Glory", "When Darkness Comes" and "St. Peters Cross".

According to the band, "'Requiem Of Time' is a mixture of classic hard rock, like on the debut, 'Of The Son And The Father', and more modern metal like on the previous disc, 'New Revelation'. Call it what you want; it contains the best songs the band has ever written."

ASTRAL DOORS recently parted ways with bassist Mika Itaranta and replaced him with Ulf Lagerström (LUNATIC PARADE, BARFLY)

ASTRAL DOORS' last album, "New Revelation", was released in September 2007 via Locomotive Music. The CD was recorded at Big Turn Studio and at The Darkside in Borlänge, Sweden and was mixed at the Abyss Studios in Sweden by Peter Tägtgren and ASTRAL DOORS.

ASTRAL DOORS' third CD, "Astralism", was re-released in August 2006 as a digipack, featuring a newly written bonus track, entitled "21st Century Medieval".

"Vaporized", the new video from Denver,Colorado-based techical death/grind metallers CEPHALIC CARNAGE, can be viewed below. The clip was helmed by Brian Kotal from fellow Colorado metallers SILENCER.

In other news, CEPHALIC CARNAGE is "midway through the writing process" for the band's new studio album, which is tentatively due in 2010. Also in the works is a DVD, entitled "Live At Your Mom's House", the details of which have not yet been released.

"Vaporized" comes off CEPHALIC CARNAGE's latest full-length album "Xenosapien", which was released in May 2007 via Relapse Records. The CD was recorded by the band and longtime producer/engineer Dave Otero at their studio in Denver. The album's artwork was designed by Orion Landau.

"Thank You For Drinking", the new video from Buffalo, New York's IT DIES TODAY, can be viewed below. The song comes off the band's new album, "Lividity", which sold around 1,800 copies in the United States in its first week of release, The CD landed at position No. 10 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.

"Lividity" was released on September 15 via Trustkill Records.

The track listing for the CD is as follows:

01. This Ghost (2:52)
02. Reckless Abandon (3:54)
03. Thank You For Drinking (3:01)
04. Miss October (4:09)
05. Bled Out In Black And White (3:12)
06. Martyr Of Truth (3:55)
07. Nihility (3:18)
08. Life Of Uncertainty (4:48)
09. The Architects (3:32)
10. Complacence Without Pursuit (Lividity) (8:18)

Commented singer Jason Wood: "We know a lot of fans are curious about the delays with this new album, but we assure you, if we could have gotten it to you sooner we would have! We have had so many problems with the studio we build to record this album. After spending close to $12,000 on building a completely enclosed soundproofed studio in the house that Mike [Hatalak, producer/guitarist] and I lived in and spending over two months finishing pre-production and tracking, our efforts were thwarted with a forced move out of the house. That move forced us to tear down our entire studio (salvaging about $2,000 of materials) within a holiday weekend. So we moved to a new house and rebuilt the studio."

Providence, Rhode Island's freshly-minted metallic hardcore powerhouse THE EMPIRE SHALL FALL has unleashed a promo video for their upcoming debut, "Awaken", which is due out on guitarist Nick Sollecito's own Angle Side Side Records on November 17, 2009 .

Featuring the vocal talents of ex-KILLSWITCH ENGAGE throat Jesse Leach, THE EMPIRE SHALL FALL's sound is rooted in metal/hardcore, citing luminaries AT THE GATES, MESHUGGAH, and EDGE OF SANITY as major inspirations. However, "Awaken" also draws heavily upon the band members' combined interests in jazz, punk, and experimental music to create a compelling blend of melody, brutality, and sheer determination that is impossible to pin down and sure to intrigue fans of REFUSED, AT THE DRIVE IN, DEFTONES, and BETWEEN THE BURIED AND ME.

Fueled by political outrage and a never-ending search for truth, the band's message is as potent as their music, and serves as a call to arms for a lost generation. Advocating positivity, unity, and empowerment and taking cues from legendary rabble-rousers and free thinkers like Jello Biafra, Benjamin Franklin, Cynthia McKinney, and Ron Paul, THE EMPIRE SHALL FALL's passion for and dedication to their political causes forms the backbone of the band and sets them a head and shoulders apart from their peers.

THE EMPIRE SHALL FALL is:

Jesse Leach - Vocals
Jake Davenport - Guitars
Marcus de Lisle - Guitars
Nick Sollecito - Bass
Jeff Pitts - Drums

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

Brooklyn, New York metal band NAAM will release its self-titled debut album on October 20, 2009 via Tee Pee Records.

The follow-up to the group's three-song mega-EP "Kingdom", "Naam" was recorded on an abandoned dairy farm in New York's Catskill Mountains and delivers "pitch-dark, utterly hypnotic songs that resurrect the concept of space-rock for a new era," according to a press release. "NAAM's raw, feedback-powered sound pools densely distorted riff-o-rama with throbbing bass lines and echoey, buzzy vocals that seem to hang in the open spaces in between. The music of NAAM conjures both post-apocalyptic dazzle and unsettling feeling via punishing, deeply penetrating repetition and twisted vapor trails of guitar. NAAM pounds giant riffs into submission resulting in downered sub-blues melancholia that sounds like the soundtrack to a missing hallucination scene from 'Easy Rider'. NAAM's high-voltage power and addictive sonance has found favor with both metalheads and psychedelic rock fans alike, all of whom have talked up the group's thundering musical muscle."

"Naam" track listing:

01. Kingdom
02. Stone Ton
03. Skyling Slip
04. Fever If Fire
05. Tidal Barrens
06. Icy Row
07. Westered Wash
08. Frosted Tread
09. Windy Gates
10. Black Ice

The CD's primo cover art — created by artist Ryan Hamilton — can be seen below.

The song "Icy Row" is available for download as an MP3 audio file at this location.

Prior to the release of the album, NAAM will play on October 11 at Europa Night Club (with OM).

NAAM features Ryan Lugar (guitars, vocals), John Bundy (bass, vocals) and Eli Pizzuto (drums, percussion).

Reunited Little Rock, Arkansas-based Christian death/thrash/metalcore band LIVING SACRIFICE has pushed back the release date of its new album, "The Infinite Order", to January 26, 2010 from the previously announced November 3 (via Solid State Records).

The group's first CD since reforming in 2008 and seventh studio album overall, "The Infinite Order" was produced in Nashville, Tennessee and Little Rock, Arkansas by the band's longtime friend Jeremiah Scott (THE SHOWDOWN, DESTROY DESTROY DESTROY). Mixing duties were once again handled by Andy Sneap (MEGADETH, MACHINE HEAD, AS I LAY DYING), who worked on the band's last album, 2003's "Conceived in Fire".

"This new record came together great," stated frontman Bruce Fitzhugh. "I could not be more pleased with the final mixes that Andy Sneap has done. We dug deep into our thrash roots on this one, I think.

"The album title refers to God and the universe. Man is finite and limited, our knowledge is limited. Wrestling with the concept of infinity is difficult, but there is true peace in trusting in God."

LIVING SACRIFICE's influence runs deep throughout the scene. Former and current members of LIVING SACRIFICE went on to play in bands such as EVANESCENCE, P.O.D. and NORMA JEAN.

LIVING SACRIFICE broke up in 2002 but returned to the metal community with a vengeance in 2008, self-releasing the two song "Death Machine" digital-only EP.

"The Infinite Order" is described in a press release as "an unapologetic reminder as to exactly why so many of today's heavy music leaders in bands big and small hold LIVING SACRIFICE and their legacy in such high esteem."

Cover illustrations will be handled by Dave Quiggle, with packaging by the Solid State / Tooth & Nail team.

LIVING SACRIFICE toured as part of DEMON HUNTER's "Stronger Than Hell Tour" last summer, followed by Liskfest in Orange County alongside BLEEDING THROUGH, DEATH BY STEREO, CRO-MAGS and GORILLA BISCUITS. This year, they returned to Cornerstone in Illinois and several other festivals and club dates around the country.

Fitzhugh is joined in the reunited LIVING SACRIFICE by founding member/drummer Lance Garvin (SOUL EMBRACED) as well as lead guitarist Rocky Gray (SOUL EMBRACED, ex-EVANESCENCE) and bass player Arthur Green, both of whom have played with LIVING SACRIFICE since 2000's "The Hammering Process".

Video footage of LIVING SACRIFICE's May 29, 2008 performance at the Club Retro in Orangevale, California can be viewed below (courtesy of Capital Chaos

"Uranium", which is exclusively available on Fuse On Demand, recently conducted an interview with Marilyn Manson about his latest album, "The High End of Low", and reuniting with his partner in crime, bassist Twiggy Ramirez.

The full interview is available all October long only on Fuse on Demand.

Watch a clip of the episode below.

MARILYN MANSON's latest album, entitled "The High End Of Low", was the band's first CD with Twiggy Ramirez since 2000's "Holy Wood".

Manson told England's Kerrang! magazine about the new effort, "This is not a record that we would leave black and self-titled and mature. This is the experienced record. This album is the 12th-grade guy that has VD and did cocaine in high school, who has been arrested once and the ninth-grade girl wants to fuck him."

Produced by Manson, Vrenna and Twiggy, "The High End Of Low" was recorded in Manson's Hollywood Hills studio and also features the track "I Want to Kill You Like They Do In The Movies". Manson said of the album, "I think my life definitely ended and began. The record sounds very final, but it's almost optimistic — though that feels like a strange word to use. It's a phoenix from the fire and a redemption resurrection."

DEEP PURPLE has a new live album in the works called "Space Truckin' Round the World Live 68-76". According to Classic Rock magazine, the two-disc set — due out next month — will feature rare live recordings from various concerts all over the world, including gigs in Tokyo, Paris and San Diego. The compilation, which features multiple band line-ups, will also feature a detailed history of the group, individual concert details and photos. It's being released as part of the 10th anniversary of Purple Records — the label that handles the band's music.

The track listing is as follows:

CD 1

01. Hush (Inglewood 1968)
02. River Deep Mountain High (Inglewood 1968)
03. Hey Joe (Inglewood 1968)
04. Wring That Neck (Aachen 1970)
05. Into The Fire (Stockholm 1970)
06. Mandrake Root (Montreux 1969)

CD 2:

01. Child In Time (Granada TV 1970)
02. Lazy (Denmark 1972)
03. Strange Kind Of Woman (Denmark 1972)
04. Burn (San Diego 1974)
05. Mistreated (San Diego 1974)
06. The Gypsy (Paris 1975)
07. Lady Double Dealer (Paris 1975)
08. Wild Dogs (Tokyo 1975)
09. Love Child (Tokyo 1975)

DEEP PURPLE will be IRON MAIDEN frontman Bruce Dickinson's guests on Friday, October 9 during Bruce's weekly BBC 6 Music radio program, dubbed "The Bruce Dickinson Friday Rock Show". Listen to the broadcast live via the Internet between 9:00 p.m. and 12:00 a.m. (midnight) U.K. time at BBC.co.uk.

DEEP PURPLE's 18th studio album, "Rapture of the Deep", was released in November 2005. It is the fourth studio CD from DEEP PURPLE since guitarist Steve Morse joined the band in 1994. It was also the second album to feature veteran keyboardist Don Airey.

"Rapture of the Deep" was produced by Mike Bradford, who also worked on the band's previous release, 2003's "Bananas".

DEEP PURPLE has dates lined up in November in the U.K.

According to Billboard.com, KISS' new album, "Sonic Boom", may shift somewhere between 160,000 and 180,000 copies in the United States in its first week of release. If the set sells that much, it will also mark the group's best sales week since Nielsen SoundScan began tracking data in 1991.

KISS has notched seven Top 10 albums. Its highest charting set is 1998's "Psycho Circus", which debuted and peaked at No. 3 with 110,000 copies in its first week, according to Nielsen SoundScan. The group's other high-charting sets include 1975's "Alive!" (No. 9), 1977's "Love Gun" (No. 4) and 1992's "Revenge" (No. 6).

"Sonic Boom" features three discs — a collection of all new material, a re-recorded greatest hits CD and a live DVD shot in Argentina during the band's recent Kiss Alive 35 South American tour. This marks the band's first set off all new material in 11 years. The collection — produced by guitarist/vocalist Paul Stanley — is available exclusively at Wal-Mart, Walmart.com and Sam's Club. Bassist/vocalist Gene Simmons tells The Pulse of Radio they teamed with Wal-Mart so they could make the package more memorable for fans. "Our good friends at Wal-Mart enabled us to do that, which is to say we've always — in the days when we were dirt poor — when we put out a live one, we were on $85 a salary," he said. "We put all the money right back into the band. So when that first album — that double live album came out — the record industry thought we were nuts because it was expensive. And we put booklets and market research in there — just cram packed it full of stuff. because we always wanted to give the fans more. And because Wal-Mart ordered so many hundreds of thousands of these albums we were able cram pack it full of stuff."

Wal-Mart stores around the country are also stocking various KISS merchandise, including T-shirts, throw blankets, Mr. Potato Heads and M&Ms.

Video footage of KISS performing its new single, "Modern Day Delilah", on Tuesday night's (October 6) edition of CBS-TV's "Late Show With David Letterman" can be viewed below.

KISS filmed footage for the "Modern Day Delilah" video during the band's private warm-up show at Cobo Arena in Detroit, Michigan on September 24. Over 1,500 lucky fans attended the event, where the group also previewed its new stage and taped two songs for an episode of "Jimmy Kimmel Live!"

KISS's new album, "Sonic Boom", was released in Europe this past Monday (October 5) via Loud & Proud/Roadrunner Records.

The "Sonic Boom" cover art was created by Michael Doret, who also designed the band's classic "Rock And Roll Over" album cover.

John Soeder of The Plain Dealer conducted an interview with METALLICA guitarist Kirk Hammett before the band's September 29, 2009 concert in Dallas, Texas. The question-and-answer session follows below.

The Plain Dealer: METALLICA has enjoyed its share of momentous occasions. How big a deal was getting into the Rock Hall?

Hammett: Are you kidding? It was one of the best events to happen in our career.

After 25 years of hard work — a lot of sweat, a lot of tears — it's great that we've been acknowledged by the Hall of Fame. It means a lot to us.

As a guitar player, it really meant a lot to me to be able to hang out with my childhood heroes, my idols: Jeff Beck, Jimmy Page, Ron Wood and Joe Perry. Those guys have been a source of inspiration for me for decades. To be able to sit down and talk to them and play music with them, it was phenomenal.

The Plain Dealer: Between the big pre-induction party that the band threw at House of Blues here and all the hotel rooms that you booked, METALLICA single-handedly sustained Cleveland's economy for a few days there.

Hammett: [laughs] Right on.

For me, it was important to have my mother, my brother and my wife there. My mother, for obvious reasons. My brother, because he was the one who pushed me into pursuing playing guitar for a living and becoming a musician. And, of course, my wife, who's my foundation.

We had the party for a lot of people who've helped us over the course of our career. We got to hang out with people who we haven't hung out with in decades. That was very special, too, because those people played a big part in our ascension, which led to the Hall of Fame itself.

We wanted to do a bit of acknowledgment ourselves, so we flew out, I don't know, about 150 people to Cleveland, to share that moment with us. It was a lot of fun.

The Plain Dealer: Which artists would you like to see get into the Rock Hall?

Hammett: Man, I would love to see RUSH in the Hall of Fame, as well as MOTÖRHEAD and DEEP PURPLE. Those are three that come to mind, only because I'm a hard-rock guy, and those bands had a lot to contribute to the genre.

Those bands have been around a lot longer than we have. It's almost embarrassing that we're in the Hall of Fame and they're not. But everyone has their opinions. There's a bit of a bureaucracy and there's a bit of politics that come along with it.

The Plain Dealer: The "World Magnetic Tour" has been lurching along for nearly a year, with more dates stretching into the foreseeable future. How are you keeping it fresh?

Hammett: We're playing a different set list every night. Sometimes we play songs that we haven't played in decades. We challenge ourselves. Sometimes we overreach in that department. But it keeps it exciting, it keeps us on our toes and ultimately it turns us into better players, which has always been the goal — to progress and become better players.

The Plain Dealer: METALLICA seems to be in a good place these days.

Hammett: We're having such a great time. We're having a lot of fun playing the shows. We're playing better than ever.

We're definitely getting along great, too. Our schedule isn't too hectic. It's pretty well-balanced between home life and being on tour.

I'm particularly excited about the prospect of making this tour be one that we can survive and still have some of our marbles left. [laughs] So far, so good.

I feel very fortunate, and I appreciate the space that METALLICA is in right now. It feels unstoppable again, which is a really good feeling.

Photo below courtesy of Metallica.com

Orange County, California's ATREYU has released another webisode leading up to the release of the band's new album, "Congregation of the Damned".
In the latest clip, which can be viewed below, bassist Marc McKnight talks about the "energy and vibe" that ATREYU rediscovered while recording the CD to create "a perfect record," while guitarist Travis Miguel sums up "Congregation of the Damned" in one word: "huge."

ATREYU filmed a video last month for "Storm to Pass", the first single from "Congregation of the Damned". The song is currently streaming on the group's MySpace page along with the new cut "Stop! Before It's Too Late and We've Destroyed it All".

The video for "Storm to Pass" was shot September 22-23 in the desert near Palm Springs, California and was directed by Sean Stiegemeier, who has worked with the band on clips for "Falling Down", "Doomsday", "The Crimson" and "Lip Gloss and Black".

The "Storm to Pass" video is scheduled to debut the week of October 12.

A video game on ATREYU's web site will premiere on October 13 and will give fans a sneak preview of the track Gallows". In the game, which was influenced by George Romero's classic movie "Night of the Living Dead", players battle a variety of zombies — some of whom resemble powerful political figures — in an attempt to stay alive. The third in a series of ATREYU games was designed by Jason Oda, who has also a designed hit game for FALL OUT BOY and conceived the classic "Dropkick the Faint".

"Congregation Of The Damned" track listing:

01. Stop! Before It's Too Late and We've Destroyed it All
02. Bleeding Is A Luxury
03. Congregation Of The Damned
04. Coffin Nails
05. Black Days Begin
06. Gallows
07. Storm To Pass
08. You Were King Now You're Unconscious
09. Insatiable
10. So Wrong
11. Ravenous
12. Lonely
13. Wait For You

The CD cover artwork can be viewed below.

A review and photos of STEEL PANTHER's October 6, 2009 in-store performance at Newbury Comics in Norwood, Massachusetts can be found at RockMusicStar.com.

Fan-filmed video footage of the event is available below (courtesy of "RealDJames").

STEEL PANTHER's first collection of original material, "Feel The Steel", was produced by Jay Ruston and was officially released in the U.S. on Tuesday (October 6).

STEEL PANTHER is the '80s metal/hard rock tribute act formerly known as METAL SKOOL. The four-member band, known for its outrageous stage presence and gargantuan guitar riffs, has been entertaining fans and scores of rock and entertainment VIPs with its raucous antics via L.A.'s longest-running heavy metal show on the Sunset Strip for nearly a decade (now running at the infamous Key Club every Monday night). The band also holds residencies at the Green Valley Resort and Casino on Friday and Saturday in Las Vegas and the Typhoon Saloon in San Diego every Wednesday.