A new IT DIES TODAY track, entitled "Reckless Abandon", is available for free download at this location (e-mail sign-up required). The song comes off the Buffalo, New York band's new album, "Lividity", which is scheduled for release on September 15 via Trustkill Records.

"Lividity" track listing:

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're really pumped about this new record and finally releasing it for our fans!

"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.

"I'm looking forward to hearing reactions from our fans and foes and hopefully this album will make up for the long wait!".

"Smash The Control Machine", the new video from California's OTEP, can be viewed below. The song is the title track of the band's new album, which is scheduled for release on August 18 via Victory Records.

The track listing for the CD is as follows:

01. Rise, Rebel, Resist
02. Sweet Tooth
03. Smash The Control Machine
04. Head
05. Numb And Dumb
06. Oh, So Surreal
07. Run For Cover
08. Kisses & Kerosene
09. Unveiled
10. UR A WMN NOW
11. Serv Asat
12. Where The River Ends
13. I Remember

The "Smash The Control Machine" deluxe CD/DVD package includes:

* DVD includes interviews, poetry readings and more
*CD/DVD deluxe edition includes: holographic cover, digipack, 52-page booklet with lyrics, poems and illustrations from Otep Shamaya

Singer, songwriter, renegade Otep Shamaya says of the album, "The economic crisis is hitting every working family in this country. The album and its title track, 'Smash The Control Machine', will lay bare the greed and corruption that fostered this calamity, but will also focus on the undying spirit of the working class that always fights the good fight. The title is a line from a William S. Burroughs poem. It is my intention to create an album that serves every head of the hydra that is OTEP. From poetry, to politics, to shock and awe, to sex and righteousness, to standing up and fighting back. Like the mystical symbol of the Ouroboros (the sacred serpent swallowing its tail) all things will be brought back to circle."

OTEP's all-encompassing musical approach coupled with her shaman like artistic qualities and other creative musings have lead to over half a million albums sold over the course of three studio albums. Shamaya describes the band's music as "a total and complete mutiny on the senses. We are a fusion band by nature, inspired by many styles and tones from a variety of musical genres- rock, punk, metal, hip-hop, spoken word, jazz and classic rock. We never allow the antiquated limits of a genre confine or restrict us. Our music is universal and does not belong nor can it be contained in a nice, neat, little box."

OTEP was originally signed after only four shows, without a demo, strictly on the power of the band's live performance. Sharon Osbourne offered the unsigned act a spot on the 2001 Ozzfest tour, leading to three appearances on the festival.

Shamaya, is well respected for her lyrical content and dramatic live performances. She has also published two books of poetry, spoke at the Democratic National Convention in 2008, is a gifted painter and Revolver magazine compared Otep to Woodie Guthrie and Zack de la Rocha (RAGE AGAINST THE MACHINE) for her fusing of political activism and music.

In addition to lending her support to numerous groups and causes (some being the genocide in Darfur, women's and artists' rights, marriage equality, the war in the Congo and support of President Obama), Ms. Shamaya, an accomplished, captivating and astute technophile, has started the social networks All Shapes and Sizes and Girls Out Now. On December 21, 2008 she created a popular and highly trafficked blog entitled "I'm Not A Monster". The site was an instant success and a reliable source for current events and her latest musings. Her loyal and passionate fan base are active followers of her frequent Facebook and Twitter postings. Coupled with Victory's proprietary marketing and promotional platforms (VicTorV, VictorStream, VictoryMetal and VictorME) a truly interactive and real-time artist/fan/label fusion has been realized for selling music in 2009.

Fabien Blackwater of More-Metal.com conducted an interview with BIOHAZARD guitarist Bobby Hambel on July 14, 2009 in Berlin, Germany. Watch the 10-minute chat below.

Regarding how the reunion of BIOHAZARD's original lineup came about and the group's future plans, Hambel said, "The 20th anniversary of BIOHAZARD came up last year, and we decided to get the original band back together and just go out and play some shows — be the old band that we were and go play for the audience that we miss and play the old songs and feel alive again and celebrate 20 years of great BIOHAZARD. We went all over the world with it. There's no record out — there's no record company or anything; it's just us, four friends, playing. BIOHAZARD's the same old band that it was; it's like nothing's changed [even though] 10 years, 12 years, have gone by. We wanna do a new record. So we're gonna take this experience and just be completely inspired by the crowds that we have been playing to for the last year and a half. It's such a great opportunity to have a second chance, so we're gonna do a new record, man. So 2010 should see a brand new original BIOHAZARD album. . . We're working on music. We're trying to get the live playing out of the way. This is, like, the last leg of the tour. We're doing this here in July and then we have one more show in August — we fly back to Europe to play a big festival in Prague — and then we go home. The only thing we're scheduling right now is to be in the studio and be recording throughout September, October and November, putting together a new record."

When asked for his opinion on the current metal/hardcore scene, Hambel said, "It's great. It's great that there's all these new bands coming out, there's always somebody trying to take it to the next level. We really like the bands that are trying to do their own thing a little bit, that are not afraid to be original. It's really easy to put together a band and sound like everybody else, but it's the people that have the guts to go out and try to be a little bit different and risk failing... Just to be themselves, you have to take a risk — we all do. BIOHAZARD did. In the beginning, people were like, 'What the fuck is this?' The politically correct hardcore people were like, 'You're not hardcore because you do this and you do that,' and the metal people were like, 'You're not metal because you do this and you do that.' And we were like, 'Fuck you and fuck you.' We're doing what the fuck we do and we're doing it with conviction and that makes us hardcore. Instead of being stereotypical hardcore, we're just trying to be our own version. And anytime we see new bands coming out that are trying to do their own thing, it's great. We just love music; we love music. There's a lot of great bands; I could sit here all day and name them. But we're also glad to see a lot of the older bands that we started out with still playing, like SICK OF IT ALL and AGNOSTIC FRONT; it's fucking amazing, and it's such an inspiration to us. And we see, like, HATEBREED and fucking SLIPKNOT and all these others bands that came up kind of after us, but they took it to another level with a whole new style of intensity, which is also inspiring to us. So it's just great that we're still a part of it."

A new METALLICA biography, "All That Matters", is scheduled for release in October via Plexus Publishing. Written by Paul Stenning, the 320-book is "the first all-access biography to detail [METALLICA's] entire history from early childhood through to the present day based on exclusive interviews with the band members themselves and those closest to them," according to a posting on the author's MySpace page. METALLICA's personal stories are documented in this comprehensive biography — from the tragic death of guitarist Cliff Burton in 1986 to alcoholism, divorce, departed band members, and the conflicts that drove band members to pursue group therapy and rehab.

The book includes contributions from:

Fred Cotton
Adam Dubin
Bob Nalbandian
Brian Slagel
Brian Tatler
Buffo Schnadelbach
Corinne Lynn
Flemming Rasmussen
Gary Holt
Harald O
Jim Martin
John Kornarens
Ken Anthony
Ken Jacobsen
Lloyd Grant
Pepper Keenan
Ron McGovney
Ron Quintana
Torben Ulrich
Troy Gregory
Willy Lange

For more information, click here.

Finnish gothic metallers TO/DIE/FOR entered the studio on August 6 to begin recording their sixth album, tentatively due in early 2010. Vocalist Jape Perätalo writes on the band's MySpace page, "We have 11 songs at the moment. Personally I've never felt this relaxed at the studio. Finally we have songs with that 'thing and feeling' we have always dreamt about.

"We had some riffs and some melodies and then we just sat together. We had guitars and keyboards and we composed these 11 songs right there at the studio. Some songs are already named like 'Angelica' and 'End In Tears'.

"We will continue recordings at Tonmi's [Lillman; TO/DIE/FOR drummer] place after all drum tracks have been edited etc. Next comes keyboards and programming stuff. After that, we need a couple of days here at the D studio for bass and guitar.

"By the way, there is going to be only one guitarist in the new [TO/DIE/FOR] lineup! And we still do not know who will he be, but surely he must be very unique!"

Currently unsigned, TO/DIE/FOR plans to release its next album through the band's own company. Peratalo explained, "We are not gonna look for any record label for releasing this album! All we need is find right labels which we could sign license deals with. Now it seems that licenses for Russian, Japan and Finland are already in our hands. And I am looking for new license deals all the time. So... things will happen mainly through our own company."

TO/DIE/FOR's fifth album, "Wounds Wide Open", was released in Finland in October 2006. The follow-up to 2005's "IV" was recorded by Samu Oittinen at Fantom Studios and by Jari-Jukka Nippala at Sonic Image, and was mixed at Sweden's Abyss Studios by Peter Tägtgren (DIMMU BORGIR, CELTIC FROST).

PESTILENCE, MESHUGGAH, DARK FUNERAL, MUNCIPAL WASTE, SEPULTURA, ARCH ENEMY and CARCASS are among the bands that performed at the Lorca Rock festival on July 24-25, 2009 in Murcia, Spain. Check out photos from MetalSymphony.com.

Former MANOWAR guitarist Ross "The Boss" Friedman and his solo band will make their only Midwest appearance on Saturday, August 29, at the Station 4 nightclub in downtown St. Paul, Minnesota.

Ross will perform songs off the first six MANOWAR albums as well as material from his new solo CD, entitled "New Metal Leader".

Tickets for this special engagement are $10 and the doors open at 7:00 p.m.

"I have been a MANOWAR fan for years and booking this show is one of the crowning moments in my metal promotion career," says Nathan Block of SwordLord Productions. "This will be an unbelievable evening for MANOWAR fans and power metal fans in general!"

Ross was presented with a commemorative plaque for his 35-year career in music by Nikos Athineos, a rock DJ and presenter on the "Stargazer" metal radio show, one of the longest-running metal radio programs in the world. The award presentation was held on stage at the Notos Club in Chania, Crete on Friday, May 8 at the conclusion of Ross' headlining performance at the venue.

"New Metal Leader" was released in August 2008 via AFM Records. According to a press release, Ross "continues his legacy with a true metal album that doesn't deny his past and displays his charismatic style of creating great music. Imagine a basket of first-class, stomping, ground shaking epic heavy metal in the style of 'Battle Hymns', 'Into Glory Ride', 'Hail To England' and 'Sign Of The Hammer' — this is exactly what you get here. . . Tracks like 'Blood Of Knives', 'God Of Dying' and 'I Got The Right' would have been highlights even on MANOWAR's glorious releases from 1982-1988. The battle shouts of 'We Will Kill' haunt you to the day you die, the thrilling up-tempo smasher 'Death & Glory' and a goodtime-rocker like 'May The Gods Be With You' then round off the whole spectrum of ROSS THE BOSS. Add to this the majestic epic tracks 'God Of Dying' and 'Immortal Son' (both in the tradition of eternal hymns like 'Bridge Of Death' and 'Guyana (Cult Of The Damned)', every fan of the early MANOWAR must be crying out in joy!"

"New Metal Leader" was made available in the following formats: standard CD, limited digipack CD and limited two-LP gatefold vinyl. The limited digipack and the gatefold vinyl contain two bonus tracks.

Video footage of guitarist Stéphan Forté of French neo-classical metallers ADAGIO performing the band's song "Archangels In Black" at the Musikmesse Frankfurt 2009 fair — which was held April 1-4 in Frankfurt, Germany — can be viewed below.

Stéphan's new LAG signature model guitar was introduced at Musikmesse and will be available worldwide early 2010.

The Musikmesse in Frankfurt am Main is the world's leading trade fair for musical-instruments, music software, computer hardware, sheet music and accessories and has been the most important meeting place for the musical-instrument industry for over 25 years.

"Archangels In Black", the new album from ADAGIO, was released in February via Listenable Records. The cover artwork was created by Guilherme Sevens and the CD was mastered at the Cutting Room in Sweden with Björn Engelmann (RAMMSTEIN, MESHUGGAH).

According to a press release, "without being a concept album, 'Archangels In Black' evokes the band's convictions about a certain Nightside philosophy and a very personal approach of life and death." Forté says, "Darkness is a concept with many branches, often misunderstood from outside, but elemental for some kind."

"Archangels In Black" is the first CD to feature ADAGIO's latest addition, Finnish singer Christian Palin.

Palin is a member of the Swedish/Finnish combo ESSENCE OF SORROW and RANDOM EYES.

JERSEY DOGS, the late '80s band formed by the ex-ATTACKER members Lou Ciarlo and Mike Sabatini, will have its original EP, "Don't Worry, Get Angry!" (1989) and full-length album, "Thrash Ranch" (1990), released as a double CD in early 2010. "Thrash Ranch" will feature the new remixes and a new cover that were both done in 1991, but never released until now. Also included will be four demo tracks and one brand new song. The booklet will contain 16 or more pages with many live and other photos.

According to the BNR Metal Pages, "Unlike the more traditional metal of ATTACKER, the DOGS were a standard turn-of-the-decade thrash band, not really offering much new at the time. The band disappeared soon after 'Thrash Ranch', with Sabatini and guitarist Mike Benetados resurfacing in the reformed ATTACKER a decade later."

Video footage of JERSEY DOGS performing live in 1990 can be viewed below.

Quality footage of progressive metal giants DREAM THEATER performing the song "Prophets Of War" on Sunday, August 9 at the Beacon Theater in New York City can be viewed below.

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.

Germany's DIE APOKALYPTISCHEN REITER's will have its latest album, "Licht", released in the U.S. on November 10 via The End Records. The U.S. version of the LP will come with six bonus tracks (two studio, four live) and "stunning" new album art, including an alternate cover.

Released in Europe on August 29, 2008 via Nuclear Blast Records, "Licht" was the group's first and only album to feature guitarist Lady Cat-Man, who replaced Pitrone in February 2008.

"Licht" registered the following first-week chart positions:

Germany: #29
Austria: #49
Switzerland: #88

DIE APOKALYPTISCHEN REITER parted ways with Lady Cat-Man earlier in the year and replaced her with Ady.

DIE APOKALYPTISCHEN REITER's live CD, "Adrenalin", will be given away for free with the September 2009 issue of Metal Hammer magazine (street date: August 19). The full-length album was recorded during the band's fall 2008 Reiterfestspiele tour in Germany and Russia and is comes with a complete booklet, rare pictures, and liner notes.

DIE APOKALYPTISCHEN REITER fans who do not reside in Germany can order the magazine directly at www.metal-hammer.de.

JUDAS PRIEST guitarists K.K. Downing and Glenn Tipton were interviewed earlier in the year by Eric Blair of "The Blairing Out With Eric Blair Show". Watch the 10-minute chat below.

JUDAS PRIEST's August 17, 2009 performance at the Hard Rock Live at the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Hollywood, Florida will be filmed for a DVD that will be included in a forthcoming expanded 30th-anniversary edition of their 1980 classic, "British Steel".

As they have done at all of their U.S. summer dates this year, PRIEST will perform the "British Steel" album in its entirety at the Seminole Hard Rock Arena.

Tickets for this show are now on sale via Ticketmaster.com.

JUDAS PRIEST kicked off its "British Steel" 30th-anniversary tour on June 29 at the Murat Theatre in Indianapolis, Indiana. Halford recently told Noisecreep, "It's like suddenly, thirty years have come upon us and we're about to celebrate. The album's technical anniversary is April of next year, but want to start the party early."

Halford added, "In today's economy, all artists have to think of something to do differently. We decided that this would be a great opportunity to do something that PRIEST has never done before, which is to play an album in its entirety. The band and the name 'JUDAS PRIEST' have both been around since 1969, so it is our fortieth anniversary, too. We seem to be in a constant celebration mode!"

Swedish black metallers NAGLFAR have issued the following update:

"NAGLFAR is currently working on the follow-up to 'Harvest'. In the not-too-distant future, the recordings will begin and further information will then be released."

"Harvest" was released in February 2007 through Century Media Records. According to a press release, "Harvest" combines NAGLFAR's "original sound with the massive thrust of later years. True to the Swedish formula of bringing the harsh bleakness of the black style together with the technical prowess and high-speed assault of death metal, NAGLFAR have created another masterpiece of their genre." A limited-edition version of the album containing a bonus DVD (featuring four professionally recorded live clips from the Party.San Open Air festival 2006, the video for the track "The Perpetual Horrors" as well as an interview with lead singer Kristoffer Olivius) was also made available. The cover artwork was created by Travis Smith.

Finnish metallers THUNDERSTONE will release their fifth studio album, "Dirt Metal", on September 9 via Sony Music Finland. A video for the CD's first single, "I Almighty", was recently filmed and is expected to make its online debut later this summer.

"Dirt Metal" track listing:

01. Rebirth
02. I Almighty
03. Dirt Metal
04. Star
05. Ghosts Of Youth
06. Counting Hours
07. Dodge The Bullet
08. Deadlights
09. At The Feet Of Fools
10. Suffering Songs

The cover artwork can be viewed below.

THUNDERSTONE was originally hoping to release the new album in April, but decided to push back the effort because they wanted to take their time creating what bass player Titus Hjelm has called the band's "heaviest, grooviest and all-around best album yet."

THUNDERSTONE recently posted a new song, "Star", on the band's MySpace page. The track showcases THUNDERSTONE at its heaviest so far and features guest vocals from AMORPHIS frontman Tomi Joutsen. The song was also released on Playground Music's "Dark Playground" compilation, which was made available for free at the Finnish Metal Expo on February 13-14.

THUNDERSTONE last year announced the addition of singer Rick Altzi from Sweden to the group's ranks. Rick has contributed his wonderful voice to many metal albums, most recently with German group AT VANCE (a band which he is still a member of).

THE RED CHORD bassist Greg Weeks was in attendance at this year's Maryland Deathfest and assumed (rightfully so) that nobody at the show knew who he actually was. So he went undercover for Metal Injection to get the fans at the event to explain to him what metal is tr00ly about. Watch the resulting footage below.

THE RED CHORD is hard at work on its fourth album, "Fed Through The Teeth Machine", which is tentatively due this fall via Metal Blade Records. The CD is being recorded at Jonny Fay Backyard Studios, which is owned by the band's former guitarist Jonny Fay, and it will be mixed and mastered by Chris "Zeuss" Harris, who has previously worked with HATEBREED and SHADOWS ALL, among others.

Regarding the new album title, vocalist Guy Kozowyk told Revolver magazine, "It's from the Discovery Channel show 'How It's Made'. They were talking about this machine they feed zippers through, but we just though the name was creepy."

The disc will be the band's first since the mid-2007 departure of Faye, whom the group chose not to replace. "With the economy being so bad, we figured it was time to downsize," Kozowyk said, only half-joking. "Writing as a four-piece is actually more efficient because there's one less opinion you have to deal with."

According to Kozowyk, the new songs are more intense and mature than those on 2007's "Prey for Eyes". "It's faster and heavier, but it's definitely groove-oriented and melodic where it needs to be," he said.

Metal Gods TV conducted an interview with U.K.-based modern thrash hopefuls SYLOSIS at the Sonisphere festival, which was held on August 1-2, 2009 at the legendary Knebworth Park, United Kingdom. Watch the four-minute chat below.

SYLOSIS's latest album, "Conclusion Of An Age", was released on October 24, 2008 via Nuclear Blast Records. The CD was recorded at Grindstone Studios with producer Scott Atkins, who is being described by the band as "one of the best producers around."

The iTunes version of "Conclusion Of An Age" includes the exclusive bonus track "The Fate Of Vultures".

An e-card for the for "Conclusion Of An Age" is available at this location.

According to a press release, the album's lyrical theme deals with "the direction in which the planet is heading and the consequences humanity will face. The album covers many areas but the main concept is the idea of mankind destroying itself through war, self-indulgence, religion etc., and how the earth is being ravaged by humanity to the point of being destroyed… but how the earth's might will eventually prevail!"

The artwork for the album was created by Colin Marks of Rain Song Studios who has previously worked with STRAPPING YOUNG LAD, ABORTED and WHITECHAPEL.

SYLOSIS' musical style was described in a previous press release as "brutal, technical and deceptively melodic modern metal that favours invention over cliché and never shies away from nimble shifts in style, tempo or mood. The quintet manage to bring an epic, technical and melodic feel to the old-school thrash sound, combining incredible guitar solos and bloodlust vocals. The outcome, a sound that is both devastatingly feral and blisteringly precise."

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

INSIDIOUS DISEASE (formerly INSIDIOUS), the international metal project featuring members of DIMMU BORGIR, NAPALM DEATH, OLD MAN'S CHILD and MORGOTH, made its official live debut at this year's Wacken Open Air festival which was held July 30 - August 1, 2009 in Wacken, Germany. The band performed on the W.E.T. stage on Friday, July 31. A warm-up show also took place on July 30 at the Magnet club in Berlin, Germany as the support act for CALIBAN.

Photos of the Wacken Open Air performance are now available for viewing on the band's MySpace page (all pictures by Vanessa DeCampos).

Due to Tony Laureano's (ex-DIMMU BORGIR, NILE, ANGELCORPSE) touring commitments with ALL THAT REMAINS, he was unable to join INSIDIOUS DISEASE for their two German shows. His replacement for these performances was DIMMU BORGIR/ex-VADER drummer Dariusz "Daray" Brzozowski.

INSIDIOUS DISEASE recently posted another new song, "Nuclear Salvation", on the band's MySpace page.

INSIDIOUS DISEASE's long-awaited debut album, tentatively titled "Shadowcast", was mixed with Russ Russell (NAPALM DEATH, DIMMU BORGIR) for a late 2009/early 2010 release via an as-yet-undetermined record label. In addition, the band has recorded a cover version of the DEATH classic "Leprosy" as a tribute to "one of the greatest metal bands ever," according to vocalist Marc "Groo" Grewe (ex-MORGOTH). He tells BLABBERMOUTH.NET, "The INSIDIOUS DISEASE version is not denying the original [since it] can't get any better."

INSIDIOUS DISEASE recorded 12 songs for its debut CD at a studio in Norway with producer Terje Andersen (a.k.a. Cyrus) of SUSPERIA.

NECROPHAGIA frontman Frank "Killjoy" Pucci has co-written and contributed guest vocals to a cut called "Rituals of Bloodshed" which is included on the album. Other songtitles set to appear on the CD include "Conceived through Hate", "Desire" and "Insomanic".

INSIDIOUS DISEASE is:

Marc "Groo" Grewe (ex-MORGOTH) - Vocals
Sven Atle Kopperud (a.k.a. Silenoz) (DIMMU BORGIR) - Guitar
Shane Embury (NAPALM DEATH) - Bass
Tony Laureano (ex-DIMMU BORGIR, NILE, ANGELCORPSE) - Drums
Jon Øyvind Andersen (a.k.a. Jardar) (OLD MAN'S CHILD) – Guitar

In an interview with U.K.'s Terrorizer magazine, Silenoz described INSIDIOUS DISEASE's material as "a good variation; a good mix of groovy, downtuned stuff, but it doesn't sound too modern, it's more back-to-basics. It's not really technical by any means, like some people might expect, it's more heavy riffing, attitude. It's hard to explain, but it's safe to say that the word 'extreme' would cover most of it. We have fast stuff, of course, but we also have slow stuff."

Regarding INSIDIOUS DISEASE's influences, Silenoz said, "Not anything specific, but me and most of the guys in the band, we grew up with the '80s extreme stuff and I think that shines through the music but I wouldn't say that we take any direct influence, it's more that feel of what was going on in that time in the late '80s. That quick and clean production on everything loses its charm so we tried to make it sound as analogue as humanly possible to digital recording."

All photos below by Vanessa DeCampos

Quality video footage of ATHEIST's August 9, 2009 performance at De Kade in Zaandam, Holland can be viewed below (courtesy of "letthemetalflow").

ATHEIST's new live album, entitled "Unquestionable Presence: Live At Wacken", was released on July 21 via Relapse Records. The set, which was mixed by Matt Washburn at LedBelly Sound Studio in Canton, Georgia, features the band's complete performance at the 2006 edition of the Wacken Open Air festival in Wacken, Germany along with a bonus disc featuring "essential ATHEIST tracks" hand-picked by the group. Also included is a 24-page booklet with extensive liner notes and photos.

ATHEIST vocalist Kelly Shaefer previously stated about the "Live At Wacken" release, "It's a very stripped-down, no-overdubs live recording from our appearance at Wacken Open Air in 2006 as part of the reunion dates we did. This was only the fourth show on what would become many. So why record the fourth show? Well, we did not actually ever intend on it, but we found out that Wacken had raw tracks that could be remixed, whereas most recordings we get are from soundboards, and you cannot turn up guitars, vocals etc. on those type of recordings. So... we obtained the raw tracks and have mixed eight tunes with Matt (MASTODON, GNOSTIC) at LedBelly studios in Atlanta. The results? A very, very live (mistakes and all) and raw set of tracks from the 'Piece of Time' and 'Unquestionable Presence' era of ATHEIST. It sounds surprisingly warm, and for those who were there in Germany that afternoon to see ATHEIST on what was probably one of the more 'magical' performances we have ever had as a band, it was really the first time we had played for people who had been around back in the early days of the band, and were now writers, or owned record companies, plus all of the new fans of this strange technical metal genre of music... This will encapsulate that experience for us, you and as well as those who were not there that day... It was a great day!

"Unquestionable Presence: Live At Wacken" track listing (first disc only):

01. Mother Man
02. Unquestionable Presence
03. Your Life's Retribution
04. Enthralled in Essence
05. Incarnation's Dream
06. Formative Years
07. Brains
08. And The Psychic Saw

JANE'S ADDICTION frontman Perry Farrell's video for the song "I Like 'Em Big" can be viewed below. Directed by Andrew Bennett, whose work includes videos for DEFTONES and many others, the clip "captures a side of Perry and his wife Etty that will undoubtedly surprise viewers, reinforcing Farrell's knack for pushing boundaries and having fun while doing so," according to a posting at Lollapalooza.com.

The Festival Crashers web site reviewed Farrell's performance at this past weekend's Lollapalooza festival, calling the singer "the most full self-indulgent, overrated 'rock star'" at the event. A posting on the site reads, "Sasha Baron Cohen must have watched Perry Farrell a few times to get his flaming Bruno movements down. Perry prances around the stage to his miserable poppy atrociousness. His new single, 'I Like 'Em Big', seemingly about his wife's breasts, feels like a George Michael track that he decided not to record because he thought it sounded too gay."

Read the entire review from Festival Crashers.

On April 21, 2009, Jason Saulnier of the "GTMO" (Good Time Metal Oldies) radio show conducted an interview with GOD SEED/ex-GORGOROTH bassist King (bass; real name: Tom Cato Visnes). The 11-minute chat is now available for streaming below.

GOD SEED is the new Norwegian band featuring former GORGOROTH members King and Gaahl (vocals; real name: Kristian Espedal).

Video footage of the group's performance at this year's Hellfest, which was held on June 19-21, 2009 in Clisson, France can be viewed below.

GOD SEED's lineup for the Hellfest performance consisted of the following musicians:

Gaahl Vocals
King - Bass
Teloch - Guitar
Sir - Guitar
Dani "Garghuf" Robnik - Drums

Gaahl and King recently lost a court battle against guitarist Infernus (real name: Roger Tiegs) over the rights to the GORGOROTH band name.

Speaking to U.K.'s Terrorizer magazine, King stated about his band's new name, "It's actually strange because there's lots of excitement, of course, around it. Because we are starting a new era and changing the name, there's a big symbolic value in doing that — but at the same time it's strange because we've worked under the GORGOROTH banner for so many years. Since dramatically nothing is changing on our part, it's the same thing, me and Gaahl making music and working, so the same things are happening behind the scenes. It's just that we are not using the GORGOROTH name anymore. We will, of course, do some different things in the future; this gives us a lot of new opportunities."

Swedish death/black metal band TORCHBEARER has changed the title of its forthcoming third album to "Death Meditations" from the previously announced "Dying Codex". The CD will be mixed by Tomas "Plec" Johansson, who is now also a member of TORCHBEARER, at his Panic Room studios, for a possible late November release through Vic Records.

TORCHBEARER's forthcoming album will be the group's first with the band's latest additions, drummer Rolf Pilve and bassist Tomas "Plec" Johansson.

TORCHBEARER is:

Pär Johansson - Lead Vocals
Christian Älvestam - Rhythm Guitar And Backing Vocals
Patrik Gardberg - Lead Guitar
Tomas "Plec" Johansson - Bass
Rolf Pilve - Drums

TORCHBEARER released its sophomore album, "Warnaments", in April 2006 via Regain Records.

Fan-filmed video footage of California metal veterans AGENT STEEL performing the song "Unstoppable Force" at the second edition of the Alcatraz Metal Festival this past Saturday (August 8) at Brielpoort in Deinze, Belgium can be viewed below (courtesy of "stoneagelightning").

Commented the band: "The Alcatraz Metal Festival was SO F*CKIN METAL!!!! We went right after ONSLAUGHT and another great band called THE DIFFERENCE and the sound was amazing (thanks to Luc — F.O.H.). We had a few technnical problems on our end with broken guitar strings, but overall it was so kick-ass indeed!! Opening song was 'Fashioned From Dust' from 'Alienigma', and we also included songs like 'Forever Black' and ended the set with 'Mad Locust Rising'. HELSTAR, TESTAMENT and SAXON all delivered great live sets as well."

AGENT STEEL recently entered the studio to record a few new songs for demo purposes for the band's label and management.

The group's fifth album, "Alienigma", was released by Mascot Records on August 31, 2007.

Capital Chaos conducted an interview with Brook Reeves (vocals) and David Sittig (bass) of California-based Christian death metallers IMPENDING DOOM on July 23, 2009 at The Boardwalk in Orangevale, California. Watch the 13-minute chat below.

"The Serpent Servant", the latest album from IMPENDING DOOM, sold 4,300 copies in the United States in its first week of release to debut at position No. 144 on The Billboard 200 chart. The CD landed at No. 3 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.

"The Serpent Servant" was recorded at Lambesis Studios in San Diego with Tim Lambesis and Daniel Castleman (AS I LAY DYING, WAR OF AGES, WINDS OF PLAGUE) and was released today (March 31) through Facedown Records. It was mixed and mastered by Zeuss (HATEBREED, SHADOWS FALL, TERROR).

IMPENDING DOOM refers to its style of Christian metal as "gorship" — a portmanteau of gore and worship. The band also clarify on their MySpace blog that "gorship" is their way of worshipping God through their gore-sounding music; not worshipping "gore" as some are led to believe.

Metal Mark of SkullsNBones.com conducted an interview with bassist Max Lavelle of Montreal extreme metallers DESPISED ICON on August 6, 2009 at the Atlanta, Georgia stop of this year's Thrash And Burn tour. Watch the four-minute chat below.

A new DESPISED ICON track, "MVP", is available for streaming on the band's MySpace page. The song comes off the group's new album, "Day Of Mourning", which is scheduled for release on September 22 via Century Media Records. The CD was produced by Yannick St-Amand, while the mixing duties were handled by Chris "Zeuss" Harris (HATEBREED, THE ACACIA STRAIN, WHITECHAPEL) in Massachusetts. The whole thing was mastered by Alan Douches (MASTODON, THE DILLINGER ESCAPE PLAN, NILE).

DESPISED ICON released a DVD entitled "Montreal Assault Live". The disc features a "stellar" multi-camera shoot from the band's sold-out hometown show, alongside a new hour-long documentary and all of the band's promotional video clips.

The "deluxe edition" of DESPISED ICON's "The Ills of Modern Man" album came out in June 2008, featuring a bonus DVD composed of a live set from a monumental hometown performance, interviews and behind-the-scenes footage. The live footage includes the following songs: "A Fractured Hand", "Bulletproof Scales", "Harvesting The Deceased", "Immaculate", "Retina", "The Sunset Will Never Charm Us" and "In The Arms Of Perdition".

Swedish hard rockers BABYLON BOMBS will release their third album, "Babylon's Burning", in the fall. The CD was recorded at the legendary Polar Studios in Stockholm with producer Chris Laney (CANDLEMASS, EUROPE, CRASHDIET, EASY ACTION).

"It was an obvious choice to work with Chris," says frontman Dani. "We wanted to do it big, with Chris's string arrangement ideas and to record everything intense during two weeks and a lot of pre-production."

The first single from the forthcoming CD, "Goodbye Good Luck", was released on iTunes in late 2008 as a teaser. Although the sound was "much harder than before, the band still managed to [retain] the great melodies they are known for.," according to a press release. "Now, in 2009, the band comes full circle with new bassist Ricky on board and an album that will blow you away!"

BABYLON BOMBS recently filmed a video for the album's second single, "Liberation". Photos from the video shoot can be found on the band's MySpace blog.

BABYLON BOMBS has previously released two critically acclaimed albums — 2005's "Cracked Wide Open and Bruised" and 2006's "Doin' You Nasty".

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

Massachusetts metallers SHADOWS FALL will release their new album, "Retribution", on September 15 via Everblack Industries. The deluxe version of the CD will feature bonus covers of OZZY OSBOURNE's "Bark At The Moon", NUCLEAR ASSAULT's "Critical Mass" and CRO-MAGS' "Age Of Quarrel", along with a companion DVD, featuring making-of-the-album footage, live material, lessons, interviews and more.

SHADOWS FALL will make its network television debut on the September 3 episode of "Late Night with Jimmy Fallon". The program will air Thursday night/early Friday morning at 12:35 a.m. EST on NBC.

Commented singer Brian Fair: "We look forward to bringing a whole lotta metal to the late-night television schedule and into unsuspecting living rooms across America. Set your DVR and raise your horns."

Starting August 17, the new video from SHADOWS FALL, "Still I Rise", will be available exclusively on Music Choice, the award-winning, multi-platform music network. The clip was helmed by longtime SHADOWS FALL director Zack Merck at the Affliction warehouse in southern California, and was shot in the ring with actual Affliction fighters. Fans were invited to come down and rock out, and they received a special place as extras in the video.

SHADOWS FALL created Everblack Industries label in conjunction with Warner Music Group's ILG, Ferret Music and ChannelZERO Entertainment.

"Retribution" was produced by Chris "Zeuss" Harris (HATEBREED, MUNICIPAL WASTE), with vocal production by Elvis Baskette (INCUBUS, ALTER BRIDGE). The cover artwork (see below) was created by Sons of Nero (UNEARTH, EVERY TIME I DIE, BRING ME THE HORIZON).

"Retribution" track listing:

01. The Path to Imminent Ruin
02. My Demise
03. Still I Rise
04. War
05. King Of Nothing (feat. Randy Blythe)
06. The Taste Of Fear
07. Embrace Annihilation
08. Picture Perfect
09. A Public Execution
10. Dead And Gone

Austrian extreme metallers MASTIC SCUM have issued the following update:

"After intense weeks in the studio, we ended up recording 12 songs for our upcoming album. Everything went well in the recording process. The result is fucking exciting and will be a blast for your speakers! The album will be mixed at Grindlab Studio and mastered by Jacob Hansen (HEAVEN SHALL BURN, ABORTED, HATESPHERE) in September. Artwork will be designed by Killustrations (SIX FEET UNDER, KATAKLYSM, AMON AMARTH). We're pretty fuckin' psyched about it and can't wait to hear/see the final product."

Video footage from the studio can be viewed below.

MASTIC SCUM recently parted ways with vocalist Will due to "musical differences" and replaced him with Maggo Wenzel (INZEST, TRISTWOOD, WATCH ME BLEED).

A pre-production version of the new song "Regression" is available for streaming on the band's MySpace page. Other songtitles set to appear on the CD include "Construcdead", "Dead Remains", "The Consciousness In A State Of Mind", "The Sufferage" and "Extinction".

In 2007, MASTIC SCUM celebrated its 15th anniversary by issuing "The EPs Collection 1993-2002" via Power It Up/Twilight. This CD includes all of the band's vinyl releases plus two bonus tracks. This was MASTIC SCUM's 17th release since the band's inception in 1992.

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

Finnish melodic metallers AGONIZER have parted ways with vocalist Pasi Kärkkäinen and are currently seeking a replacement.

Commented Kärkkäinen: "A little over a year ago, at Spinefeast festival, I had a strong lack of motivation to be a singer in this band and also disbelief in my own skills and whether they are good enough. I discussed it with my wife and also with the rest of the band and decided that I would give this band a real effort for a while and then see what happens.

"This winter that feeling of failure came again probably as a result of my over-growing problems with my throat. My voice would just not fuction as it used to be. Regardless my problems being real or just psychological, I started to lose the motivation and started to wonder about continuing. I have always enjoyed making songs and playing them to the audience, but I never enjoyed the fame side of the band. I'm a bit of a recluse, if you will. Also, I had my daughter born at the spring and it just pushed everything else aside, including the band. Together these things influenced the need to talk with the other members about my future in the band. I told them that I would like to resign from this band and concentrate to my personal life and daughter with the fullest.

"We had one gig that I enjoyed as much as ever before and will not forget it. That made me question if I was making the right decision. However, other bandmembers thought that since the new record was almost ready to be recorded, it would be better to have a new vocalist that have the necessary motivation to continue the work on the band after the recording itself. So Joni called me and told me that they have decided to look for a new singer and with a relief I realized that they were right.

"So I hereby resign as a vocalist of this band and AGONIZER will be looking for a new replacement. It is my wish that AGONIZER will find someone really good so that I myself can enjoy this good metal music from the audience side. I also hope that someday I will enjoy a trip again with this band, perhaps as a driver or other more alcohol-spiced job available. I also wish good luck and success to the band and thank all the fans for these years that I have had. They have been amazing and memorable."

The band adds in a statement: "We are looking for a highly motivated, creative and musically talented person, who has the ability to nail our older material and take our new stuff into another dimension. If you think that you have what it takes, do the following: Download the instrumental versions and lyrics for 'Prisoner', 'Prophecy' and 'Black Sun' from www.agonizer.org. Return the material to us with your own vocals recorded on top to agonizer_band@hotmail.com in MP3 format. Include some info about you, and remember that you don't have to record all three songs."

AGONIZER reportedly made the Guinness Book of World Records in the "Deepest Concert Underground" category for their CD-release show for the band's debut album, "Birth / The End", which took place on August 4, 2007 at the Pyhäsalmi mine (the deepest mine in Europe) at 1,410 meters below sea level. The concert was available only for a limited audience as a safety measure.

QUEENS OF THE STONE AGE tried a similar stunt on November 20, 2007, but they only reached 700 meters in a former salt mine in Erfurt, Germany.

Formed in 1998 in Pyhäjärvi, Finland, AGONIZER released five self-produced demos in addition to representing Finland in Wacken Open Air's "Metal Battle" contest in Germany.

"Birth / The End" was recorded at Astia studio in Lappeenranta, Finland.

The U.K. branch of Roadrunner Records recently asked vocalist Dez Fafara and guitarist Jeff Kendrick of Santa Barbara, California's DEVILDRIVER a few questions about the band's recently released fourth full-length album, "Pray For Villains". The question-and-answer session can now be viewed below.

"Pray For Villains" sold around 14,600 copies in the United States in its first week of release to debut at position No. 35 on The Billboard 200 chart.

DEVILDRIVER's previous album, 2007's "The Last Kind Words", shifted a little more than 14,000 copies during its first week of release to debut at No. 48 — around 40 percent more than the opening-week number of 2005's "The Fury of Our Maker's Hand", which premiered at No. 177 with sales of 10,400.

"Pray For Villains" was released on July 14 via Roadrunner Records. The effort — which was also made available as a special-edition CD/DVD package featuring three bonus tracks, a behind-the-scenes DVD and expanded artwork — was recorded at Edge of the Earth studios in Los Angeles with producer Logan Mader (FIVE FINGER DEATH PUNCH, GOJIRA, DIVINE HERESY).

Lemi, Finland-based heavy metal act STAM1NA has announced the addition of keyboardist Emil Lähteenmäki to the group's ranks. The band says, "Emil has played all the keyboard parts for STAM1NA's records and has been playing live with STAM1NA since 2007. "

A photo of the new STAM1NA lineup taken at this year's Jurassic Rock festival — where Emil's addition to the group was first announced — can be viewed below.

STAM1NA's "K13V" DVD topped the Finnish music DVD chart in May 2009. The set is said to be an overview of the band's entire career thus far — from the group's inception through the release of the band's last album, "Raja". The title of the DVD refers to the fact that this summer marks the 13th year of STAM1NA's existence.

"Raja" came out in February 2008 through Sakara Records and landed at No. on the Finnish chart. The CD was recorded at Purple Fly studio in the band's hometown. Production duties were handled by Janne Joutsenniemi, whose legendary band STONE was one of the STAM1NA's biggest influences. Miitri Aaltonen, who produced the first two STAM1NA albums, mixed the CD.

Photo credit: Henri Käck

(Thanks: Melica / Night Elves)