TESTAMENT guitarist Alex Skolnick has issued the following update:

"The highlight of [the last week of June] for me was meeting, ACRASSICAUDA (Latin for 'The Black Scorpion'), Iraq's only metal band and the subject of the awesome documentary 'Heavy Metal In Baghdad'.

"Recently, I'd been in touch with the film's producers, both to express my appreciation for their work and to offer any assistance with increasing awareness of the film in the metal world. They informed me that the band was now living as legal refugees in Istanbul, Turkey, and that they (Vice Films) are working with an NGO (non government organization) and the UNHCR (United Nations High Commission For Refugees) to help their case and determine their future. Since TESTAMENT had a concert scheduled in Istanbul on our current tour, this presented the perfect opportunity to invite ACRASSICAUDA to our show. We had discussed it and figured the best thing was to send a reminder to them just before we arrived in Turkey. After doing so, I immediately heard back from Suroosh Alvi, the film's producer/director/narrator that the guys would like nothing more than to attend our show, adding that Marwan, the group's drummer, could not stop saying, 'It's f**king TESTAMENT!'

"After the last song, we took our bow and I immediately went to the fence by my side of the stage to look for the guys. Hordes of fans were running towards me yelling 'Aleex!! Aleex!!' and holding out tickets and pens for me to sign. Worried about not being able to find the guys in this mob, I reached through the team of burly Turkish security guards to shake a few hands. The guards, clearly thinking me out of my mind, tried to push the fans away and direct me towards the dressing room. I tried to explain, but they weren't understanding. Right then, I heard "Alex!! It's Marwan!" I looked out and saw him holding his cell phone, pushing his way through the hordes of screaming metal Turks.

"The crowd pushed forward and I lost him for a moment, the whole time trying to be nice to the sea of fans, whose numbers were increasing by the second. Finally, I saw Marwan again and signaled to a security guard that he and the others were fine to come back. A bit scuffed up, we hugged and high-fived each other. As he introduced me to each of the other guys, I felt I was meeting five long-lost friends, Faras, Faisal, Tony, Marwan and their buddy Cengiz. We walked backstage and it was immediately like a party.

"Most of the ACRASSICAUDA guys don't drink but they chain-smoke like nobody's business. I enjoyed my traditional post-show wine as the guys shared with me more details on their incredible story and updated me with recent developments. They couldn't wait for me to walk them around and introduce them to each guy from TESTAMENT. Marwan was especially excited to meet our drummer, Paul Bostaph, who used to play for SLAYER. It turns out Paul's his favorite drummer and they talked one on one for much of the time. Before the night was done, they guys presented me with a finished DVD of 'Heavy Metal In Baghdad' and a black wristband with their scorpion logo, which I've been wearing at every one of our concerts since.

"Soon it was time for the bus to take us back to the hotel, where we had about an hour until being taken to the airport at 4am. Yes, this life is brutal sometimes but nothing compared with what our Iraqi friends have lived through.

"A couple days later, I showed the film 'Heavy Metal In Baghdad' to the other guys from TESTAMENT, and they were blown away. It was hard for them to believe that those funny, crazy kids we met in Turkey had been through dictatorship, foreign occupation of their country and the destructive aftermath.

"While it was only recently that I first saw the film myself, I am proud to be contibuting in just a tiny way by letting people know about the film, inviting these guys to their first ever Western heavy metal concert and offering support. I look forward to staying in touch with ACRASSICAUDA, am so proud of their determination and perseverance and wish them the best."

"Heavy Metal in Baghdad", a feature film documentary that follows ACRASSICAUDA from the fall of Saddam Hussein in 2003 to the present day, was released on DVD on June 10.

Playing heavy metal in a Muslim country has always been a difficult (if not impossible) proposition but after Saddam’s regime was toppled, there was a brief moment for the band in which real freedom seemed possible. That hope was quickly dashed as their country fell into a bloody insurgency. From 2003 to 2006, Iraq disintegrated around them while ACRASSICAUDA struggled to stay together and stay alive, always refusing to let their heavy metal dreams die. Their story echoes the unspoken hopes of an entire generation of young Iraqis.

The "collector's edition" of the "Heavy Metal in Baghdad" DVD features over 90 minutes of bonus material, including the following:

* 45-minute featurette: "Heavy Metal In Istanbul" — the documentary that picks up where "Heavy Metal in Baghdad" left off
* Seven additional and deleted scenes: 30 minutes of extra content including extended interviews with the band plus a meeting with the "Iraqi Godfather" in Syria; three live performances: "Acrassicauda Live!" – Original ACRASSICAUDA songs "Underworld", "King Without A Throne" and "Message From Baghdad" performed in 2006 and 2008.
* Eight-page booklet: including the original Vice magazine article "No War For Heavy Metal"
* Movie trailer

For more information, visit www.heavymetalinbaghdad.com.

"Heavy Metal in Baghdad" trailer:




ACRASSICAUDA on VBS.tv's music show "Practice Space" - Part 1:



ACRASSICAUDA on VBS.tv's music show "Practice Space" - Part 2: