LAMB OF GOD frontman Randy Blythe performed with CANNABIS CORPSE at the Cory Smoot (GWAR) memorial concert on Saturday, January 7 at The Canal Club in Richmond, Virginia.

Blythe's appearance with CANNABIS CORPSE was a one-off event following the recent departures of the band's vocalist Andy "Weedgrinder" Horn and guitarist Nick "Nikropolis" Poulos.

Fan-filmed video footage of the concert can be seen below.

Blythe previously stated about his performanace with CANNABIS CORPSE: "Cory was the guitarist in GWAR who passed away recently and was a friend of mine who recorded my guest vocals on the JASTA CD. He leaves a pregnant wife behind (their first child) and a mortgage.

"Cory didn't have life insurance and his wife is going to need every penny she can get with a kid on the way and bills to pay.

"Although GWAR is a relatively large band and are doing all they can for Mrs. Smoot, the fact of the matter nobody is rich and times will be hard.

"My friends in CANNABIS CORPSE were scheduled to play the benefit show, but suddenly are having lineup difficulties (lost the singer). So what the fuck and why not?

"On January 7, CANNABIS CORPSE WILL play — but I will be singing!

"Come check out some brutal death metal for a good cause! I'll be working on my death metal voice 'till then, pretending to smoke weed and getting deeper than fuck.

"I'm quite confident I can properly do the CANNABIS CORPSE tunes justice AND add something new. Now I need a 'weed metal' name!"

Smoot, a.k.a. Flattus Maximus, was found dead as GWAR was about to enter Canada on November 3. He was 34 years old.

CANNABIS CORPSE is currently seeking replacements for Horn and Poulos. Interested parties can contact the group at Landphilbass@hotmail.com.

SOULFLY/CAVALERA CONSPIRACY guitarist Marc Rizzo was recently interviewed by "Démentièllement Vôtre" on Québec City's CKRL 89.1 FM radio station. The chat can be streamed using the audio player below.

Interview (audio):



New Jersey native Marc Rizzo embarked on his first U.S. solo tour in 2007. He released two solo albums with Shrapnel Records in 2006 and 2007, entitled "Colossal Myopia" and "The Ultimate Devotion", respectively. In 2010, Marc issued his latest album on his own Phlamencore Records, entitled "Legionnaire".

Rizzo has been endorsed by the likes of Peavey, Yamaha and B.C. Rich, and currently has a B.C. Rich Stealth Pro seven-string signature guitar available for public purchase.

Rizzo is well known for his position in popular metal act SOULFLY, with whom he has released four records to date; "Prophecy" (2004), "Dark Ages" (2005), "Conquer" (2008), and "Omen" (2010). In addition, he is a member of CAVALERA CONSPIRACY with SEPULTURA co-founders Max and Igor Cavalera, with whom he collaborated on the project's debut album, "Inflikted", in 2008 and the recently released follow-up effort, "Blunt Force Trauma".

ENEMY REMAINS, the band featuring former FATES WARNING drummer Steve Zimmerman, has released its debut album, "Two Faces Two Minds".

According to a press release, fans of FATES WARNING both old and new will enjoy this album to its entirety, as "Two Faces Two Minds" is being made available in a number of different formats, including full-length CD and digital download through iTunes with a bonus track called "The Blame".

"Two Faces Two Minds" sees ENEMY REMAINS adopting "the influences of others" but molding them to create its own identity, thanks for the songwriting chemistry between Zimmerman and longtime bandmate/guitarist Tommy Blardo (formerly of MOLTEN'S LORE).

"Two Faces Two Minds" track listing:

01. Remember Tomorrow
02. Live For Today
03. Upside Down
04. Never Forget
05. Breathe Again
06. Fallen
07. Seasons
08. Buried
09. Holdin' On
10. Drift Away
11. The Blame

Zimmerman appeared on FATES WARNING's first three studio albums: 1984's "Night on Brocken", 1985's "The Spectre Within" and 1986's "Awaken the Guardian".

For more information, visit www.enemyremains.com.

Last fall, METALLICA started writing the studio follow-up to 2008's "Death Magnetic", working from riffs and licks taped during the band's tuning-room jams over the past three years of touring.

"We're about seven, eight songs into it," METALLICA drummer Lars Ulrich tells Rolling Stone magazine about the record, which will once again be produced by Rick Rubin. "We do it in rounds. We come up with something, we leave it, go to the next thing, come up with something basic, leave it and circle back around. Next month we'll go back and start embellishing: 'Let's double that one part and come up with a middle bit.'"

"If 'Death Magnetic' was a logical successor to [1988's] '…And Justice For All', the next album will be a heavier Black Album," METALLICA guitarist Kirk Hammett tells Rolling Stone, using the popular nickname for 1991's "Metallica". "We're not going to the depths of complexity that we did for 'Death Magnetic'. The stuff we're coming up with is more groove-oriented, a heavier version of what we were doing in the early Nineties."

"When people talk about the old stuff, they think 'Justice'," Ulrich tells Rolling Stone. "But look at 'Harvester Of Sorrow' on that album. It's a fairly simple five-minute song. And 'Fuel' [on 1997's 'Reload'] is an absolute scorcher live. Right now, I'm thinking shorter, more to-the-point."

A 3D movie starring METALLICA is in the early stages of production, with a projected release date of summer 2013. The film does not have a title yet, a finished script or a director. "Imagine if you took 'The Song Remains The Same'," Ulrich tells Rolling Stone, referring to the 1976 LED ZEPPELIN movie, "which is 75 percent concert, 25 percent other stuff, and flipped it around. And all the nonconcert footage, instead of being about the band members, is a story that unfolds, set against the backdrop of the concert."

According to Ulrich, the METALLICA members are financing the film production on their own. "We tend to pay for these things ourselves," he says. "The minute you take somebody else's money, you have to consider their opinions. And that's no fun."

"We didn't want to do it at first," Hammett tells Rolling Stone about the 3D flick. "We were sold on it by our managers, that it would be a lot of fun and we would have a big-ass stage to play on — the biggest METALLICA live show we've ever done, next-level stuff."

METALLICA will release a physical CD edition of its current digital EP, "Beyond Magnetic", on January 31. The four-song EP, which featured songs recorded during the sessions for "Death Magnetic", was issued digitally on December 13, shortly after the band premiered all four songs live during its quartet of 30th anniversary shows in San Francisco earlier that month.

The tracks are "Hate Train", "Just A Bullet Away", "Hell And Back" and "Rebel Of Babylon".

METALLICA issued a collaborative album with Lou Reed called "Lulu" in November, but the conceptual disc was a commercial and critical flop.

The band is scheduled to perform the Black Album in its entirety at several European festivals this summer, and has hinted at several other big events on tap for 2012.

Queens, New York progressive instrumental trio DYSRHYTHMIA has inked a deal with Profound Lore Records. The band will enter the studio this spring with DYSRHYTHMIA bassist Colin Marston handling production duties to begin recording its next album for a late summer/early fall release. The group states, "We're gonna do our most to make this the best DYSRHYTHMIA [effort] yet."

DYSRHYTHMIA's latest album, "Psychic Maps", was released on CD and LP in July 2009 in via Relapse Records.

DYSRHYTHMIA is:

Jeff Eber - Drums
Kevin Hufnagel - Guitar
Colin Marston - Bass

According to the El Paso Times, a 29-year-old El Paso woman told investigators she set fire to her childhood home because of messages in the heavy-rock music of MARILYN MANSON and NINE INCH NAILS, a court document stated. No one was injured in the blaze.

Christina Paz (pictured below) told investigators "she was angry at her mom and dad for trying to kill her on Christmas Day, that they had planned to sodomize her and chop her up with the help of a neighbor."

An investigator asked Paz how she knew her parents wanted to kill her "and she said through the music of MARILYN MANSON and NINE INCH NAILS."

Paz faces a felony charge of arson of a habitation and remains jailed in lieu of posting $20,000 bond.

Read more from the El Paso Times.

Photo below courtesy of El Paso Fire Dept.

Oakland, California thrashers DEFIANCE have officially called it quits.

Commented the band: "After coming to the realization that the music industry was falling apart, and without the internal bond that DEFIANCE had in back in their heydays, it was decided by [guitarist] Jim [Adams] to shut down all activities to avoid being completely financially wiped out. Jim has since moved on and joined SEVERED FIFTH and will be releasing a full length album in February 2012 titled 'Liberate'.

The final lineup of DEFIANCE was as follows:

Jim Adams - Guitar
Shawn Bozarth - Guitar
Keven Albert - Vocals
Mike Kaufmann - Bass
Burton Ortega - Drums

DEFIANCE played its first show since 1994 on December 19, 2009 at Blake's on Telegraph in Berkeley, California.

Mark Hernandez (drums) and Steev Esquivel (vocals) left DEFIANCE in 2009 to concentrate on their primary bands, FORBIDDEN and SKINLAB, respectively.

DEFIANCE's latet album, "The Prophecy", was released on October 19, 2009 via Candlelight Records. The first collection of new music from DEFIANCE in over 15 years was recorded at Trident Studios and Greendot Studios in East Bay, California.

An e-card for "The Prophecy" can be accessed at this location.

Part of the so-called "second wave" of Bay Area thrash (which also included the likes of FORBIDDEN, VIO-LENCE, DEATH ANGEL, and TESTAMENT), DEFIANCE officially disbanded in 1993 after the departure of vocalist Steev Esquivel (who would go on to form SKINLAB, and later RE:IGNITION), while the remaining members, with the addition of vocalist Dave Godfrey White (HEATHEN), formed INNER THRESHOLD, which would also eventually disband.

Video footage of DEFIANCE's free in-store performance on March 12, 2010 at Rasputin Records in Mountain View, California can be seen below.

RockNLive.org recently conducted an interview with vocalist Andrea Ferro of the Italian rock/metal band LACUNA COIL. You can now watch the chat below.

LACUNA COIL's new album, "Dark Adrenaline", is scheduled for release in North America on January 24, 2012 via Century Media Records. The CD was helmed by acclaimed producer Don Gilmore (LINKIN PARK, BULLET FOR MY VALENTINE) and "promises to deliver the melodic, sensual, metallic rush for which the band has come to be known," according to a press release.

Fans both old and new will have a variety of options to choose from, as "Dark Adrenaline" will be released in numerous formats, including standard-edition CD and vinyl, deluxe edition digipak with a bonus DVD, sticker, poster and guitar pick and as an iTunes LP with expanded packaging, five bonus audio tracks and video. The Metal Club edition will feature exclusive artwork designed by the band and will be limited to 3,000 units. The Hastings edition will feature a bonus 10-track LACUNA COIL sampler, and the Amazon digital edition comes with a free five-track sampler. Finally, for true fans of the band, is the "Darkest Adrenaline" box set, which includes both the digipak and vinyl versions of the album along with a hardcover photo book, a LACUNA COIL custom syringe pen and ink, a lyric pad, signed lithographs created by the band and more, all housed in a LACUNA COIL medical box. This box set is limited to 500 pieces and is available exclusively through CM Distro.

"Dark Adrenaline" track listing:

01. Trip The Darkness
02. Against You
03. Kill The Light
04. Give Me Something More
05. Upsidedown
06. End Of Time
07. I Don't Believe In Tomorrow
08. Intoxicated
09. The Army Inside
10. Losing My Religion
11. Fire
12. My Spirit

"American Idol" returns for its 11th season with a two-night premiere event Wednesday, January 18 (8:00-10:00 p.m. ET/PT) and Thursday, January 19 (8:00-9:00 p.m. ET/PT) on Fox. Featuring host Ryan Seacrest and returning judges Randy Jackson, Jennifer Lopez and AEROSMITH singer Steven Tyler, television’s No. 1 series continues with a special, extended primetime broadcast Sunday, January 22 (10:00-11:00 p.m. ET/7:00-8:00 p.m. PT) following the NFC Championship Game on Fox.

Jackson, Lopez and Tyler traveled to Savannah, Aspen, Galveston, Pittsburgh, Portland, San Diego and St. Louis in search of contestants with the raw talent and potential to become the next "American Idol."

Lopez will reportedly earn $20 million next season, a nice raise from the $12 million she is said to have gotten for her first season. Tyler reportedly got an increase as well.

Despite Tyler's insistence that AEROSMITH would play the finale of the last season of "American Idol", AEROSMITH guitarist Joe Perry said in an online posting that the band was "never asked by producers" to perform at the event. He added that "Brad [Whitford, AEROSMITH guitarist had] a gig that night with [Experience Hendrix]. [It was] not logistically possible."

Perry did write that AEROSMITH is "looking forward to playing 'American Idol' next season when our new CD is out and we can prepare [for] a kick-ass show if they ask us."

After a seven-year break, Italian metallers PANDAEMONIUM will release a brand new studio album, entitled "The Last Prayer", on January 27 via IceWarrior Records. According to a press release, the group "once again manages to create an extraordinary, first-class epic/melodic power metal album while keeping all their established trademarks like great melodies, fantastic guitar riffs and the unique vocals from singer Daniel Reda." The cover artwork was created by Diego Ferrarin, wo has previously worked with WHITE SKULL, WILD STEEL and SHADOWS OF STEEL, and who was responsible for the art on the first two PANDAEMONIUM albums. The layout was designed by Oscar Petersson (KATANA, EYE, OSUKARU, BYFIST).

01. Alone In The Dark
02. Two Spirits One Heart
03. Through The Wind
04. Holy Voice
05. Tower Of Fears
06. The White Voice
07. Go Your Own Way
08. Today
09. Braveheart
10. Epitaph
11. Until The End

PANDAEMONIUM is:

Daniel Reda - Vocals
Lorenzo Zirilli - Bass
Steve Volta (PERPETUAL FIRE) – Guitar, Keyboards
Federico Ria (ex-PERPETUAL FIRE, SKYLARK) - Drums

Finnish melodic gothic metal/rock band LUNAR PATH will release its debut album, "Memento Mori", on February 1 via Inverse Records.

According to a press release, "Memento Mori" is "a concept album about a downward spiral in depression and death, set out to stretch the boundaries of traditional melodic/gothic metal with its dark and brooding atmosphere. This nightmarish journey through hell and back was inspired by arson, mishaps, bad luck as well as the lineup changes the band endured during these past years. These events shaped the band and transformed the album into a dynamic ensemble with warm and cold flashes of traditional metal and darkly progressive stunts, promising to raise eyebrows and make hearts race."

"Memento Mori" features guest appearances by such acclaimed musicians and vocalists such as Attila Csihar (MAYHEM, ABORYM), Tuomas Saukkonen (BEFORE THE DAWN, BLACK SUN AEON), Juha-Pekka Leppäluoto (CHARON, NORTHERN KINGS, HARMAJA) and Antti Leskinen (FATAL SOUND PROJECT, CHAINED, MURENA).

Formed in late 2006, LUNAR PATH released a few demos and EPs before starting to work on "Memento Mori". The band became victims of arson in early 2010 when a deranged person intentionally set fire to the ground floor of their practice flat while the band was playing, trapping them upstairs. During the attempt to reach safety, guitarist and album producer Jonas Eriksson sustained severe damage to his foot, but luckily nobody else was hurt in the fire. The band didn't spend their time crying over spilled milk as a few months later the band toured Scandinavia supporting DEATHSTARS and ex-IRON MAIDEN vocalist Paul Di'Anno; with Eriksson playing the entire tour sitting down with his broken leg in a cast.

LUNAR PATH lead vocalist Janica Lönn has been working with BLACK SUN AEON lately, most notably singing on their newly released and highly acclaimed "Blacklight Deliverance" album. She will also perform live with BLACK SUN AEON at this year's Summer Breeze open-air festival in Germany and other European festivals.

"Memento Mori" track listing

01. The Beginning And The End
02. Promise Me
03. We'll Be There
04. The One Behind The Mirror
05. Thin White Lines
06. In The End (feat. Juha-Pekka Leppäluoto)
07. Deadweight
08. Farewell To Arms
09. The Only Way Out Is Through
10. Walls Are Whispering (feat. Attila Csihar)
11. Close The Door
12. Nothing To Regret
13. Drag Me Down To Hell (feat. Tuomas Saukkonen, Antti Leskinen)
14. Who Are You Talking To?
15. River Runs Deep

Austrian symphonic extreme metal outfit HOLLENTHON is making professionally filmed video footage of its entire December 4, 2010 concert at Szene in Vienna available for streaming in five parts. The first clip can be seen below, with the second part set to follow on January 15.

HOLLENTHON's latest EP, "Tyrants and Wraiths", came out in 2009.The CD featured four new tracks and two live videos from the 2008 Graspop Metal Meeting in Dessel, Belgium.

HOLLENTHON's most recent album, "Opus Magnum", was released in June 2008 via the Austrian record label Napalm Records. The CD featured eight songs and a cover version, plus a video.

HOLLENTHON issued two critically acclaimed albums a decade ago — "Domus Mundi" (1999) and "With Vilest Of Worms To Dwell" (2001).

German thrash metal veterans KREATOR have entered Studiomega in Varberg, Sweden with producer Jens Bogren (OPETH, AMON AMARTH, PARADISE LOST) to begin recording their new album for a late spring 2012 release.

When asked about the musical direction of KREATOR's new material, the band's guitarist/vocalist Miland "Mille" Petrozza stated in a recent interview, "The songs are coming along great and I think it's OK to say that this will be our most epic album so far. There's some classical, a lot of traditional metal, and, of course, a huge dose of thrash metal influences in the new stuff. Everyone in the band is very excited at this point. The demos sound killer so far. We have about 10 songs we're working on so far.

Regarding the lyrical and visual concept for the forthcoming CD, Petrozza said, "It's too early to talk about the lyrics yet; many are written, but they keep changing all the time. Visually, we have tapped Wes Benscoter [BLACK SABBATH, DIO, SLAYER, CATTLE DECAPITATION, BLOODBATH] for the cover art. I can tell you this much: The artwork will be insane!"

In an interview with Aftonbladet journalist Mattias Kling, Petrozza stated about KREATOR's collaboration with Jens Bogren, "He's really good; I like him. I like the sounds that he gets. And I think the combination — Jens Bogren and KREATOR — it will be pretty heavy."

On the topic of how the new material is different from KREATOR's previous output, Mille said, "It's always a little hard for me to talk about music has been written but is not released yet. It will definitely have all the KREATOR trademarks. The lyrics will talk about nowadays stuff, as usual, so it will be like a photography of the year 2012. Also the lyrics will deal a lot of things that are actually happening at this point in time. It will be like reading a newspaper or something [laughs], with all the stuff happening. And, of course, the music will be typical KREATOR, and we also wanna expand the sound and progress as musicians. I mean, this lineup has been the strongest lineup KREATOR ever had since ten years, and now I think we're ready to come out with an album that blows everyone away."

KREATOR is:

Miland "Mille" Petrozza – Vocals, Guitrar
Sami Yli-Sirniö - Guitar
Christian "Speesy" Giesler - Bass
Jürgen "Ventor" Reil - Drums

"Fisheye", the new video from the Norwegian "blackjazz" outfit SHINING (not to be confused with the Swedish extreme metal band of the same name), can be seen below.

SHINING released its first-ever live DVD and CD, "Live Blackjazz", on November 11 via Indie Recordings. The effort was produced by SHINING frontman Jørgen Munkeby and was mixed by Sean Beavan (MARILYN MANSON, NINE INCH NAILS, SLAYER). The mastering duties were handled by Tom Baker (MARILYN MANSON, NINE INCH NAILS).

Over the course of its impressive 10-plus-year career, SHINING has created its own unique and bizarre hybrid of jazz and extreme metal, which is easily distinguishable from the musical world of their Swedish counterparts sharing the same band name.

According to RadarOnline.com, KORN guitarist James "Munky" Shaffer married actress Evis Xheneti on Monday, January 2 in Paris, France.

"We wanted to get married in Paris because this is our city," Evis told RadarOnline.com. "James proposed at the Eiffel tower, so it just seemed like we were supposed to get married here."

Described as a 1920s-style romantic wedding, it was held inside "a small, 200-year-old church on the Seine river." A small group of family and friends attended the wedding, including the bride's sister, singer Xhoana Xheneti, KORN's manager of twenty years and one of Shaffer's best friends, Jeff Kwatinetz, and KORN's tour manager, Jens Geiger.

The newlyweds will go on a honeymoon in a secret tropical location in a few months.

Former INCANTATION bassist Joey "Fingers" Lombard passed away on January 3, 2012 at the age of 42. A resident of Windber, Pennsylvania, he was most recently employed by Lockheed Martin in Johnstown.

Commented INCANTATION drummer Kyle Severn: "Joey was one of the nicest people you could ever meet.

"Joey had stepped up to the plate and joined John McEntee and myself back in 2000 to create some of INCANTATION's finest blasphemy to date!!! He stuck with us for five-plus long years of writing and traveling the death metal roads!! He was an amazing musician and bass player. He had contributed more than most could imagine to the death metal scene. He had made many new friends through those years on the road; he was such a likable guy. I don't think he had a mean bone in his body. He will be truly missed.

"Services will be held in Johnstown, Pennsylvania Sunday evening."

Joey was preceded in death by mother Gladys (Byrne) Lombard and brother William Lombard. He is survived by father Dennis Lombard and wife Mary, Florida; wife of 16 years Cynthia (Headrick) Lombard; stepdaughter, Ariana Lamer; sisters Cathy, wife of Steve Aviles, Ohio; and Christine Lombard, Florida; and nieces and nephews, Brian, Rebecca and Emily Aviles; Cori Headrick; and Tyler and Karson Headrick; also godson Skyler Stiles.

Lombard's official obituary can be found at this location.

A very special lengthy episode of MSRcast (Mainstream Resistance Radio) dedicated to David Gold — a founding member of the Ontario, Canada-based black and doom metal band WOODS OF YPRES, who was killed on December 21 in a car accident near Barrie, Ontario — can be streamed using the audio player below.



According to Ontario Provincial Police, the accident — which involved a vehicle and a pedestrian — occurred at 1:30 p.m. on Highway 400 north of Highway 89.

The police shut down the northbound lanes at Highway 89 and traffic was diverted from the scene as OPP highway safety investigators collected evidence.

The cause of the collision remains under investigation.

The accident occurred just hours after Gold texted his mother in Sault Ste. Marie that he was on his way home, according to Local2.ca.

There were no other injuries.

WOODS OF YPRES' new album, "Woods 5: Grey Skies & Electric Light", will be released in February via Earache Records. The CD was recorded with producer Siegfried Meier (KITTIE) at Beach Road Studios in Ontario, Canada, and was mixed by John Fryer (NINE INCH NAILS, PARADISE LOST).

Earache Records set up a memorial page on its web site after learning of Gold's death.

Formed in 2002, WOODS OF YPRES has earned critical acclaim for its ever-evolving, envelope-pushing mix of blackened doom metal. Most often compared to bands such as AGALLOCH and TYPE O NEGATIVE, WOODS OF YPRES toes a thin line between the catchy, the artistic and the extreme to create an unmistakable signature sound.

KISS lead singer Paul Stanley underwent successful surgery on October 25, 2011 for "recurring vocal cord issues" that the musician said "come with 40 years of preaching rock 'n' roll." Stanley told The Hollywood Reporter that he powered through four decades of concerts "through sheer willpower" so his band could "cram in as many shows as possible to maximize profit." But, he cautioned, "the nature of rock singing is a strain on the voice and when you compound that with that amount of shows, you're not giving yourself time to recuperate and the problem is compounded… I was finding myself working harder and harder to do what was once effortless, and having already passed through puberty, I was surprised to hear my voice cracking."

In a new segment scheduled to air on January 9, Paul shares his thoughts with ABC's "Nightline".

KISS has completed recording its new album, "Monster", for a late spring release. Songtitles set to appear on the CD include "It's A Long Way Down", "Back To The Stone Age", "Shout Mercy", "Out Of This World", "Wall Of Sound" and "Hell Or Hallelujah".

Stanley recently admitted that he's never surprised by how deep KISS' fan devotion continues to run worldwide. "It really for me, resoundingly once again, I guess validates for me why this band exists," he told The Pulse Of Radio. "It's not a tepid recreation of the past, it's really an ageless beast that dominates at will. It's timeless."

January 8 marks the 21st anniversary of the passing of original DEF LEPPARD guitarist Steve "Steamin'" Clark.

Clark, who co-founded DEF LEPPARD and played with the band for almost 13 years, died from an overdose of alcohol and prescription drugs at his home in London, England.

A posting on DEF LEPPARD's official web site reads: "We are sure that you will all join us today as we remember a shining light who unfortunately parted our midst 21 years ago. Always thinking of you, Steve."

A short video message from DEF LEPAPRD drummer Rick Allen in remembrance of Steve Clark can be seen below.

Fuse TV has posted a two-and-a-half-minute lesson in "Sebastian Bach's Scream School" in which the former SKID ROW singer demonstrates various types of heavy metal screams. Check out the footage below.

As previously reported, Sebastian will play three "special concerts" in New York City at the end of January with BILLY IDOL guitarist Steve Stevens. The shows will take place on January 27, January 28 and January 29 at at The Iridium and will see Bach and Stevens "doing two sets a night," including "some special unexpected songs." Sebastian says, "I have always wanted to play with Steve, so I am really looking forward to it."

Bach's new album, "Kicking & Screaming", sold 6,600 copies in the United States in its first week of release to land at position No. 73 on The Billboard 200 chart. The singer's previous CD, "Angel Down", opened with 6,400 units back in November 2007 to debut at No. 190.

German thrash metal veterans DESTRUCTION have commenced work on their 30th-anniversary album. The CD is tentatively due before the end of the year.

Inspired by IRON MAIDEN, MERCYFUL FATE, MOTÖRHEAD and VENOM, DESTRUCTION was formed as KNIGHT OF DEMON in 1982. The band's original lineup included vocalist and bassist Marcel "Schmier" Schirmer, drummer Tommy Sandmann, and guitarist Mike Sifringer. They soon changed their name to DESTRUCTION and released a demo titled "Bestial Invasion Of Hell" in 1984.

"Day Of Reckoning", the latest album from DESTRUCTION, sold around 800 copies in the United States in its first week of release. The CD landed at position No. 58 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.

"Day Of Reckoning" entered the German Media Control chart at position No. 95. The CD was released in Europe on February 18, 2011 via Nuclear Blast Records. The first limited edition of the album did not feature the band's logo on the booklet while the vinyl version and second pressing of the CD showed a red DESTRUCTION logo on it.

"Day Of Reckoning" was the first album to feature DESTRUCTION's new drummer Vaaver (INDUKTI, ex-UNSUN).

Eric Blair of "The Blairing Out With Eric Blair Show" recently conducted an interview with vocalist Biff Byford of British heavy metal legends SAXON. You can now watch the chat below.

SAXON will release a new concert DVD, "Heavy Metal Thunder Live: Eagles Over Wacken", in early 2012. According to Classic Rock, it will feature performances from Germany's Wacken Open Air festival.

"There are five in all, from 2002 to 2009," Byford told Classic Rock magazine. "But we've not got all five shows, in their entirety, because even I would get bored watching that! The most interesting one is 2009, which was Wacken's 20th anniversary and our 30th. We did a set that included songs from all of our studio albums, as voted for by the fans. And we did it with the most recent at the start working backwards to our debut album, 'Saxon', at the end."

SAXON's new album, "Call To Arms", sold around 700 copies in the United States in its first week of release, according to Nielsen SoundScan. The CD debuted at No. 51 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 digipack version of "Call To Arms" includes a glorious bonus — a free seven-track CD, "Live At Donington 1980".

CHICKENFOOT guitarist Joe Satriani took part in a video online chat yesterday (Saturday, January 7) using Google+'s "Hangouts" feature. Check out footage of the question-and-answer session below.

CHICKENFOOT's sophomore album, "III", sold 42,000 copies in the United States in its first week of release to land at position No. 9 on The Billboard 200 chart. The band's self-titled debut opened with 49,000 units back in June 2009 to debut at No. 6.

"III" was produced by Mike Fraser (AC/DC, METALLICA) and is the much-anticipated follow-up album to the successful eponymous debut of a rock band packed with successful veterans.

Featuring guitar hero Joe Satriani and former VAN HALEN members Michael Anthony (bass) and Sammy Hagar (vocals), CHICKENFOOT's touring lineup includes legendary drummer/musician Kenny Aronoff, who is filling in for Chad Smith while Smith hits the road with his main band, RED HOT CHILI PEPPERS.

Metal Gods TV conducted an interview with SAHG — the Norwegian heavy rockers who feature in their ranks current/former members of GORGOROTH, MANNGARD and AUDREY HORNE — at U.K.'s Hard Rock Hell V festival, which took place December 1-4, 2011 at Pontins in Prestatyn, North Wales. You can now watch the chat below.

"Mortify", the new video from SAHG can be viewed below. The clip was directed by Tommy Naess.

"Mortify" comes off SAHG's third album, "Sahg III", which was released on August 30, 2010 through Indie Recordings.

An e-card for "Sahg III" is available at this location.

An Indie Recordings press release states: "Not many heavy metal bands can boast of chart positions and two-page bulletins in all the national newspapers for a debut album. SAHG can. With their gloomy chords, ten-ton rhythms and a taste for the heavy rock pioneers of the Seventies, the Bergen-based quartet had the audience and critics toss their hats in the air with excitement. 'Sahg I' (2006) filled a void in the Norwegian metal fauna, and was an indisputable success in Norway, as well as abroad. The album got 10 out of 10 points in German Rock Hard magazine, and 8 out of 10 in the U.K. edition of Metal Hammer. The success debut album brought the band on tour Stateside, as opening act for extreme metal pioneers CELTIC FROST, and made SAHG 'the one to watch' at a string of metal festivals.

"Two years later, SAHG confirmed their status as Norway's undisputable doom lords. Many considered 'Sahg II' as a more refined album than the debut, and featuring spearhead tracks like 'Ascent to Decadence' and 'Pyromancer', the album became another door-opener for the quartet. In the wake of the second album release, the band toured Europe as support act to legendary headliners TROUBLE, played arenas across India, and performed at prestigious festivals like Wacken Open Air, Inferno, and Metalcamp."

SAHG is:

Olav Iversen - Vocals/Guitar
King - Bass
Thomas Tofthagen - Guitar
Thomas Lönnheim - Drums

Interview:



"Mortify" video:

ANTHRAX guitarist Scott Ian made an in-store appearance at GearHounds Guitars & Music Gear in Lake Elsinore, California on September 11. Scott was there to perform a short set and demonstrate his new line of signature Randall MTS modules. He also hung around to sign autographs and take pictures. Check out video footage of his appearance in two parts below

The video clip below is just a small excerpt of the interview which can be watched in full online today in the free iGuitar magazine.

ANTHRAX is part of a new series of albums "featuring the greatest hits, signature tunes and fan favorites of the most popular artists in music history," which promise to offer "unprecedented value to consumers." The aptly named "Icon" series from Universal Music Enterprises (UMe) launched in August 31, 2010, with releases from 30 major artists spanning rock, pop, R&B and country.

Each album, at a "great price," includes roughly a dozen hit tracks.

Due on January 10, 2012, the ANTHRAX "Icon" compilation (Island/UMe) will feature the following songs:

01. Madhouse
02. A.I.R.
03. Armed And Dangerous
04. I Am The Law
05. Indians
06. Efilnikufesin (N.F.L.)
07. Antisocial
08. Got The Time
09. Belly Of The Beast
10. Bring The Noise
11. I'm The Man 91

ANTHRAX last month completed a U.S. tour with TESTAMENT and DEATH ANGEL. The trek kicked off on October 14 in Grand Rapids, Michigan and concluded on November 19 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.

ANTHRAX's new album, "Worship Music", sold 28,000 copies in the United States in its first week of release to land at position No. 12 on The Billboard 200 chart. The band's previous studio CD, 2003's "We've Come For You All", opened with just under 10,000 units to debut at No. 122.