METALLICA guitarist Kirk Hammett took part in a question-and-answer session last Thursday (October 11) during a signing event to promote his book, "Too Much Horror Business - The Kirk Hammett Collection", at Barnes & Noble in New York City. You can watch video footage of the interview below.

Hammett spoke recently with the San Francisco Chronicle about "Too Much Horror Business - The Kirk Hammett Collection", which came out on September 25. The oversized 228-page hardback book documents Hammett's love of all things related to the horror genre and features more than 300 photos of items from the collection of horror memorabilia he has accumulated over the years. The book also includes three lengthy interviews with Hammett, who also wrote the captions for many of the photos.

Hammett told the Chronicle, "I've been into [horror] stuff since I was five years old . . . My love for this stuff is insane and totally obsessive-compulsive. It's just one of those things. I'm still waiting to outgrow it or get tired of it or get bored with it. But it does not seem to happen."

The guitarist figures that he may have the second best horror memorabilia collection in the world, but until now only his family and close friends have seen it.

Hammett has two young children and he has been slowly showing them the monster movies he grew up on. He explained, "The other day (my kids and I) watched 'Bride Of Frankenstein', and they loved it."

He added that during a recent viewing of "Ghostbusters", "I said to the younger one, 'This is a little scary, but I'll be sitting right next to you.' And he goes, 'You don't have to do that, Dad. I'm tough.'"

Fan-filmed video footage of KAMELOT's October 3 performance at The Warfield in San Francisco, California can be seen below.

KAMELOT's new album, "Silverthorn", will be released on October 30 in North America, October 26 in Germany and October 29 in the rest of Europe via Steamhammer/SPV. The CD will mark the band's first release with new singer Tommy Karevik, the 30-year-old Swede who previously fronted SEVENTH WONDER (a group that he is still a member of).

KAMELOT recently filmed a video for the song "Sacrimony (Angel Of Afterlife)", in Belgrade, Serbia with director Ivan Colic, who has previously worked with MOONSPELL, SOILWORK, HAMMERFALL, TYPE O NEGATIVE and SYMPHONY X, among others. The clip, which features guest appearances by Elize Ryd (AMARANTHE) and Alissa White-Gluz (THE AGONIST), is expected to make its online debut in a few weeks. Alissa's cameo was filmed by Von Wong Photography at Studio Newreel in Montreal, Quebec, Canada.

In an interview with the Kamelot France web site, guitarist Thomas Youngblood stated about "Sacrimony", "We have a lot of strong songs on the album, but this one was the first one that we wanted to play [during this summer's European tour]. Ironically, it was one the last song we wrote the music for. I remember sitting with [KAMELOT keyboardist] Oliver [Palotai] in Stuttgart and I had to leave the next day for Florida. I said, 'Let's make one more song, something fast and uptempo.' That was the genesis for 'Sacrimony'. Later, [new KAMELOT singer] Tommy [Karevik] laid down a killer vocal melody and it was pretty much like on the demo. Later, we invited Elize Ryd [KAMELOT touring backing vocalist] to sing on that song."

The "Silverthorn" LP and limited edition will have one version of the cover artwork, while the standard version of "Silverthorn" will have a different but equally exquisite version. The standard version is presented as an Ecolbook. The limited edition contains the Ecolbook, a bonus CD with nearly 60 minutes of music, a 44-page book and an exclusive poster. The double LP version is a gatefold on colored vinyl and includes the CD.

Tommy first appeared as one of the guest singers on KAMELOT's very successful 2011 Pandemonium World Tour.

METALLICA guitarist Kirk Hammett spoke to Fuse about the band's addition to to the lineup for this month's Voodoo Music + Arts Experience.

The band will perform on Saturday, October 27 as the replacement for GREEN DAY, which canceled its Voodoo appearance last week, presumably due to frontman Billie Joe Armstrong's onstage breakdown and subsequent rehab enrollment.

Voodoo Music + Arts Experience is scheduled for October 26-28 at New Orleans City Park.

Commented Hammett (see video below): "We got a message about two days ago asking us if we're able to fill in for GREEN DAY, because Billie Joe was having some issues. We discussed it between the four of us and we all said, 'Yeah, it would be great thing for us to do and it would also be great to help out Billie Joe, 'cause he's a friend of ours and we love GREEN DAY. If we can help them out in any way possible, we're always happy to do it, 'cause we love those guys. It's actually an honor for us that they approached us and asked if we can fill in. So we're doing it, and I'm really excited about it."

He added, "New Orleans is known for its legends of voodoo and also vampires and haunted houses and haunted cemetaries and alligators. I love New Orleans. I love any city that has that sort of folklore behind it. I'm really looking forward to going there and hanging out, especially during the whole Halloween season."

Asked if METALLICA had anything special in mind for the Voodoo set, like playing an album front to back like they did at at Orion Music + More in June, Hammett said, "We haven't really discussed it yet. It's still new and a pretty early development. When I see the guys next week, I'm sure we're going to discuss our plan of attack."

Tickets, camping passes, and more information on the 2012 Voodoo Music + Arts Experience is available at this location.

JACK RUSSELL'S GREAT WHITE frontman Jack Russell was forced to cancel the band's scheduled concerts in Florida this weekend after he reportedly came down with "an intestinal infection and had to placed on IV and antibiotics." According to posting on the singer's Facebook page, the members of his band made appearances at the venues in Sanford and Jacksonville where JACK RUSSELL'S GREAT WHITE was supposed to perform and they played covers with local musicians. The two shows have now been moved to next weekend.

JACK RUSSELL'S GREAT WHITE is not to be confused with the other touring and recording version of GREAT WHITE, which features Mark Kendall, Scott Snyder (bass), Audie Desbrow (drums), Michael Lardie (guitar, keyboards) and Terry Ilous (lead vocals).

Russell filed a lawsuit against his estranged bandmates in March claiming that they fired him and stole the group's name while he was recovering from surgery to repair a perforated bowel. Named in the complaint were Kendall, Desbrow, Lardie and talent agency Bigg Time Entertainment. Kendall, Desbrow and Lardie responded with a 30-page counterclaim, filed on April 24 in a federal court in Los Angeles, accusing their former frontman of, among other things, "miss[ing] 80 performances in 18 months" before leaving the band; "irreparably damag[ing]" their "market reputation" by putting on performances that "are not up to the standard of GREAT WHITE; and misleading the public by stating that the musicians in Jack's new band "were once full members of GREAT WHITE." They also accuse Russell's new bandmates of "profit[ing] from their wrongful affiliation with the GREAT WHITE brand."

Drummer Donald Tardy of Florida death metallers OBITUARY was interviewed for the latest edition of "Radioactive Metal". You can now listen to the chat using the audio player below.

"Radioactive Metal" is broadcast on Pure Rock Radio Thursday evenings at 7:00 p.m. EST at www.purerockradio.net.

Interview (audio):



Quality video footage of OBITUARY's September 26 performance at DNA Lounge in San Francisco, California can be seen below (courtesy of Capital Chaos).

In an interview with Denmark's Metal Revolution, vocalist John Tardy was asked about OBITUARY's switch from Roadrunner Records to Candlelight Records and the band's current label status. "If it was up to us, we'd probably just be with the same record label all the time," he said. "Just like our music, me, Donald [Tardy, drums] and Trevor, we don't change much on how we do things, we're kinda stuck in the way we do things, but with Roadrunner we kinda felt like they kinda run the game and it got so big and started paying attention to other bands, and it didn't have the time or resources for us. And that's fine, whatever, we'll go some place else."

He continued, "Candlelight was one of the labels we looked at at the time, and they were willing to sign the agreement that we wanted signed. We kinda hung on to what we wanted and they just said yes to it. In those terms, they were good for us, but fact is that they are not a very big record label, and there were lots of things they were supposed to be doing that they wound up not doing.

"At the end of the day, I don't have any hard feelings towards Candlelight. Whatever happened, happened, but at the end of the day, we just don't feel like they did enough for us."

"The guys from Century Media actually came to Florida and visited us, and when we were on that last European tour they invited us over to their office on one of our off days and we hung out with them there. They are really a bunch of great guys, they really are into what they do, they really do like and care for their bands and do everything they can for them, so Century Media is gonna be a really good possibility for the next album of ours."

Regarding OBITUARY's plans for the next studio album, John said, "We took a few months off for the writing purposes and we just wound up doing more fishing and boating and stuff than the writing we were supposed to do, so the album we originally planned on, we really haven't done by now. It isn't anywhere near done. [laughs] The first three songs we finished are just absolutely awesome; I mean, they are just heavy and so cool, I'm really thrilled with the songs we've got. We've got most of the songs general ideas in place, but we do still have a lot of work to do.

"We're really not in any hurry to do it. It's not like we're sitting around saying, 'Oh my god, we didn't get the album done.' It doesn't really matter to us. It gets done when it gets done. After we get back from Europe and take a small break from all the touring, I'm sure we're gonna get back out here and start writing again and hopefully sometime, maybe around festival season, we can have that album finished up and think about some proper release date."

During an appearance on this past Friday's (October 12) edition of the "Merrick & The Highway Patrol" show, which airs on Australia's long-running rock station Triple M, Ozzy Osbourne's wife/manager Sharon was asked about BLACK SABBATH's current status and whether Australian heavy metal fans are going to see the band touring the country anytime soon.

"Of course you are," Sharon replied (see video below). "[BLACK SABBATH are] in the studio right now with [producer] Rick Rubin recording. And they are going to be touring here in the spring of next year. Definitely."

Original BLACK SABBATH guitarist Tony Iommi, singer Ozzy Osbourne and bassist Geezer Butler performed live together for the first time in seven years on May 19, playing an intimate show at the 3,800-person O2 Academy in SABBATH's hometown of Birmingham, England. The show, which served as a warm-up for the group's appearance at the following month's Download festival, was laced with emotion and drama: it was the first live appearance for Iommi since being diagnosed with cancer, and it was the first with stand-in drummer Tommy Clufetos, making the split official between founding drummer Bill Ward and the rest of SABBATH.

Iommi, Osbourne and Butler discussed their new album in a video interview posted at NME.com. The three musicians are working with producer Rick Rubin on their first recording project together in 34 years, with Osbourne saying, "We've written about 15 songs so far. Whether they all get on the album, I don't know. We just keep on writing." Osbourne also dropped a clue about the set's title, hinting, "Next year, 2013, is a good clue to what we're going to call the album."

As for how Rubin influenced the band's approach to writing together again, Butler explained, "He sat us down, put the first album on and said 'listen to this', imagine it's 1969, you've just done that, what would you do next?"

Iommi added, "It's taken on the flavor of the old stuff in the way we put things together, but with a different look on it."

The project suffered a blow earlier this year when Iommi was diagnosed with cancer, although he said that playing the warm-up show in Birmingham, was a boost to his spirits. "It was great," he said. "Going through what I've gone through over the past year has been like living in a different world — being onstage and to get that (reaction from the fans) is just fantastic, it really boosts you up."

BLACK SABBATH drummer Bill Ward announced earlier this year that he was declining to join his former bandmates for its scheduled 2012 dates, as well as the recording of a new album, due to a contractual dispute.

He also allegedly had his lawyers direct SABBATH to remove him from photos of the band posted at the official BLACK SABBATH web site "so as to not give the public the wrong impression about his involvement in the current BLACK SABBATH lineup," according to a statement issued by the band's publicist.

Geezer Butler issued a lengthy retort at his own web site, writing that Ward "hadn't told any one of us he was having contractual problems, and frankly those things are worked out between our representatives, and never between the four of us let alone in public."

Butler added that the band did not expect to make a lot of money from its Download appearance and planned to donate the proceeds from the Birmingham gig, saying, "Apparently, this wasn't acceptable to Bill's representatives, they wanted an amount that was so unrealistic that it seemed to have been a joke."

In addition to Download, the members of SABBATH played at Lollapalooza in early August in Chicago, their only U.S. gig. The rest of the scheduled SABBATH tour dates were played by Ozzy and billed as "Ozzy & Friends."

During a conference call with reporters on Thursday (October 11), AEROSMITH guitarist Joe Perry spoke about his upcoming autobiography, which he hopes to publish in 2013. Perry is working with author David Ritz, who has written books with B.B. King, Jerry Wexler and Bettye LaVette.

"It's going to be my story, but it's also entwined with AEROSMITH and relationships there and the how and the why of that kind of stuff," Perry explained. "People have been asking me about it for the last probably five or 10 years… I'll definitely take a different path than the other guys, the way they put their books together. I read probably 40 biographies and autobiographies, musical ones. I can see how some worked and some didn't. I hope this one works. There's a lot to fit into 600 pages or whatever it's gonna be. I'm pretty excited."

AEROSMITH singer Steven Tyler's "Does The Noise In My Head Bother You?" autobiography was issued last year, while the band's drummer, Joey Kramer, had his own tale, "Hit Hard: A Story Of Hitting Rock Bottom At The Top", published in 2009. AEROSMITH bassist Tom Hamilton is also rumored to be working on a book.

AEROSMITH's new album, "Music From Another Dimension!", will arrive on November 6 via Columbia Records. The CD was helmed by producer Jack Douglas, who previously worked with AEROSMITH on classic early albums like "Toys In The Attic" and "Rocks" as well as on 2004's "Honkin' On Bobo".

Former THE WILDHEARTS frontman Ginger (real name David Walls) has joined forces with bassist Shane Embury (NAPALM DEATH, VENOMOUS CONCEPT, LOCK UP) in a new grind/noise band called MUTATION. The group, which also features in its ranks Jon Poole (CARDIACS), Chris Catalyst (SISTERS OF MERCY), Denzel (YOUNG LEGIONNAIRE) and a guest slot from THE FALL's frontman Mark E. Smith, will release a trio of albums, the first of which, "The Frankenstein Effect", is already finished, while LP number two is almost completed (the third will be recorded in 2013).

Speaking to U.K.'s Terrorizer magazine, Ginger said of MUTATION: "The whole thing is based on my love of extreme music and not one specific genre. It's rhythmic, it's jarring, it's got more fucked up parts because of the CARDIACS elements, it's got more out-and-out thrash, it's a bit mathy in places, it's very technical. .. and then it's just really fuckin' noisy!:

Ginger described "Frankenstein" as "very early thrash mixed with really extreme arrangements", while the second offering is "way more disturbing." "That's what we were going for when we sat down together [and said ], 'Let's see what comes out when we get a member from the CARDIACS. a member from WILDHEARTS and a member from NAPALM DEATH!" said Ginger.

With Embury being a long-standing friend of Ginger as well as a massive CARDIACS fan, getting involved was something of a no-brainer.

"As much as I love NAPALM, I've been dying to do something a bit out-there lately," explained Shane. "I wouldn't say every NAPALM fan will like it, but I think a lot of them will be into it. It's pretty fucking nuts. We're not even halfway through — it's just a lot of extreme sounds and noise at the moment, just a mad collaboration of styles. It's fucking intense!"

The first two MUTATION albums are being funded via PledgeMusic.

Don Dokken recently spoke to Forever In Metal about his upcoming appearance at the Rock Harvest benefit event, set to take place on Saturday, November 10 at the Recher Theatre in Towson, Maryland.

Rock Harvest is a benefit show for FallenBlue.org, which helps the families of fallen police officers who are killed outside the line of duty.

In its first year, Rock Harvest has assembled an incredible mix of music from the rock and hard rock genres, as well as the hair, progressive, thrash, and power metal scene. The artists performing have graced some of the largest stages in the world, include the Download, M3 Rock and Rocklahoma festivals.

While the music is going, there will also be an incredible silent auction going on, which will include autographed posters from Henry Rollins, INCUBUS and SHINEDOWN, framed autographed album from Ted Nugent, an autographed Dunlop pedal from Zakk Wylde, and numerous other items.

For more information, go to this location.

On October 13, Dr. Fukk (Ralph Viera) of the South Florida band THRASH OR DIE conducted an interview with vocalist Mark Osegueda of San Francisco Bay Area metallers DEATH ANGEL on the band's tour bus outside Churchill's In Miami, Florida. You can now watch the chat below.

DEATH ANGEL's long-awaited DVD, "A Thrashumentary", will be released in early 2013. Guitarist Ted Aguilar stated about the set, "It's gonna cover the history of DEATH ANGEL from the very beginning all the way up to the current version of DEATH ANGEL now. It's gonna be jam-packed with a lot of old footage, stuff from early D.A., even their side projects after D.A., when D.A. broke up and THE ORGANIZATION formed, and the reformation of the band [for an appearance at] Thrash Of The Titans [festival in 2001]."

According to a press release, "A Thrashumentary" is a combination live video and documentary, all wrapped up in one thrashing DVD. The footage was directed by Tommy Jones (SOILWORK, KATAKLYSM) and mixed by Chris Clancy of The Studio. The film gives the viewer an in-depth look into one of the longest-running thrash acts out of the San Francisco Bay Area, a region known for turning out historic thrash bands such as METALLICA, TESTAMENT and EXODUS.

With the band surviving a span of 30 years of activity, and 25 years since the release of the classic album "The Ultra-Violence", now was the time to tell the story. Filmed on the "Relentless Retribution" world tour, the film shows the bands energetic live performance, cut with documentary-style interview footage. "Fly-on-the-wall" filming of the band talking about their career and footage of the band on the road give the viewer a personal connection to what is known as the mighty DEATH ANGEL.



Photo credit: Stephanie Cabral

Austrian extreme metallers MASTIC SCUM will release their fifth album in March 2013 via Massacre Records. The band states, "Three years after our last CD, 'Dust', (Twilight Records) we are back with a heavy load of new riffs and structures.

"We are almost at the end of a long road of rehearse and working on new tunes! At the time we are still working on the pre-production of 10 tracks.

"The new songs are shaping up in a new brutal style and also on a higher technical level. With this release, we went back to our roots putting some experimental parts and also we made a big step forward to new structures and rhythms."

"Construcdead", the latest video from MASTIC SCUM, can be viewed below. The clip was filmed in Innsbruck, Austria and was produced and directed by Sulinor.

"Construcdead" comes off MASTIC SCUM's latest album, "Dust", which was released on November 13, 2009 via Twilight Distribution. 12 songs were recorded for the effort, which was mixed at Grindlab Studio and mastered by Jacob Hansen (HEAVEN SHALL BURN, ABORTED, HATESPHERE). Artwork for the CD was created by Killustrations (SIX FEET UNDER, KATAKLYSM, AMON AMARTH).

An e-card for "Dust" can be found at this location.

MASTIC SCUM in 2009 parted ways with vocalist Will due to "musical differences" and replaced him with Maggo Wenzel (INZEST, TRISTWOOD, WATCH ME BLEED).

For more information, go to this location.

Vocalist Blaze Bayley (IRON MAIDEN, WOLFSBANE) is featured in the new video from U.K. goth rock/industrial metal band SINNERGOD. The track "A Wonderful Life" comes off SINNERGOD's new EP, "Behind Every Corner", which will be released this Halloween.

SINNERGOD performed a collaborative live performance with Blaze at Grand Central in Manchester on August 30 and will support the former IRON MAIDEN singer on his 2013 U.K. tour.

Mark Hampson - Lead Vocals, Guitar
Marc Robinson - Programming, Keyboards, Backing Vocals
Dave Jones - Guitar, Backing Vocals
Karl Parker - Bass
Chris Hampson - Drums

Fan-filmed video footage of EPICA's September 29 performance at Fundição Progresso in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil can be seen below.

EPICA will celebrate its 10th anniversary with a special performance, dubbed "Retrospect", which will take place on March 23, 2013 at Klokgebouw in Eindhoven, Holland.

"Retrospect" will be EPICA's most ambitious project to date, joined by a 70-piece symphonic orchestra and choir, international guests and lots of special effects.

Specially for this show, EPICA will be joined by the Hungarian Extended Remenyi Ede Chamber Orchestra and Choir of Miskolc National Theatre, the same orchestra and choir with whom EPICA recorded the highly acclaimed live album "The Classical Conspiracy". This anniversary show will be a "Retrospect" on EPICA's career and will contain all trademark elements you can expect from EPICA.

EPICA's fifth full-length album, "Requiem For The Indifferent", sold 4,800 copies in the United States in its first week of release to debut at position No. 104 on The Billboard 200 chart. The band's previous CD, "Design Your Universe", opened with 2,100 units to land at position No. 12 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.

"Requiem For The Indifferent" was released on March 9 in Europe and four days later in North America via Nuclear Blast Records. The CD was recorded at Gate Studio in Wolfsburg, Germany under the watchful eye of Sascha Paeth.

EPICA will embark on an extensive North American tour this fall. Support on the trek will come from ALESTORM, INSOMNIUM, SYSTEM DIVIDE and DESTINY POTATO.

Bassist Karin Axelsson of Swedish/British modern metallers SONIC SYNDICATE gave birth to her first child on Friday, October 12 at 11:35 p.m. The baby girl weighed in at 3.02 kilograms and measured 46 centimeters long.

Axelsson is engaged to André Gonzales, guitarist of the Swedish band BY NIGHT.

After an almost year-long hiatus, SONIC SYNDICATE co-headlined the Vekeri Fesztival at the end of June in Hungary.

SONIC SYNDICATE's latest album, "We Rule The Night", was released in Europe on August 27, 2010 via Nuclear Blast Records. The CD was recorded at Bohus Sound studios in Kungälv, Sweden with producer Toby Wright, who has previously worked with KORN, SLAYER, MÖTLEY CRÜE, KISS, FEAR FACTORY, IN FLAMES, STONE SOUR and OZZY OSBOURNE, among others.

On October 10, Rustyn Rose of Metalholic.com conducted an interview with singer Steve Whiteman of Maryland rockers KIX. You can now listen to the chat in the YouTube clip below.

Frontiers Records recently announced the signing of KIX. The band's first-ever live DVD and CD, entitled "Live In Baltimore", was released on September 21 in Europe and September 25 in North America.

Since KIX's return to the national stage in 2008 with appearances at two of the biggest rock festivals in the U.S., Rocklahoma in Pryor, Oklahoma and Rock The Bayou in Houston, Texas , KIX has played a large number of successful live shows all across the USA, with regular appearances at festivals, casinos and biker rallys, culminating with headlining the hugely successful M3 Rock Festival in Columbia, Maryland two years in a row. The new live CD/DVD is packed with fan favorites and a choice catalog of great hard rock KIX songs recorded live in Baltimore, Maryland.

As the demand from the fans for new KIX music has never subsided and, in fact, has only increased over the last few years, the bandmembers have decided that they can no longer ignore the overtures from the fans and are writing new KIX songs for a new album, due out on Frontiers Records in 2013.

Whiteman stated: "This is a great thing for us and we hope it's a great thing for KIX fans all around the world. We are so thrilled to finally be able to give the fans what they have been asking for, a live DVD and new KIX music in 2013! We have been hard at work getting new material together that we think will stand shoulder to shoulder with any previous KIX record. It's a really exciting time for KIX!"

KIX lineup includes original members Steve Whiteman, Jimmy Chalfant, Ronnie Younkins and Brian Forsythe, with Mark Schenker on bass.

"Live In Baltimore" was released in a CD/DVD configuration with the following track listing :

CD:

01. No Ring Around Rosie
02. Atomic Bombs
03. Lie Like A Rug
04. Don't Close Your Eyes
05. Girl Money
06. Cold Blood
07. Cold Shower
08. She Dropped Me The Bomb
09. Blow My Fuse
10. Kix Are For Kids
11. Midnite Dynamite
12. Yeah, Yeah, Yeah

DVD:

01. No Ring Around Rosie
02. Atomic Bombs
03. Lie Like A Rug
04. Sex
05. The Itch
06. Don't Close Your Eyes
07. Hot Wire
08. Same Jane
09. Girl Money
10. Ronnie "10/10" (Solo)
11. Cold Blood
12. Jimmy "Chocolate" (Solo)
13. Cold Shower
14. She Dropped Me The Bomb
15. Blow My Fuse
16. Kix Are For Kids
17. Midnite Dynamite
18. For Shame
19. Brian "Damage" (Solo)
20. Yeah, Yeah, Yeah

Digital Edition (audio only):

01. No Ring Around Rosie
02. Atomic Bombs
03. Lie Like A Rug
04. Sex*
05. The Itch*
06. Don't Close Your Eyes
07. Hot Wire*
08. Girl Money
09. Cold Blood
10. Cold Shower
11. She Dropped Me The Bomb
12. Blow My Fuse
13. Kix Are For Kids
14. Midnite Dynamite
15. For Shame*
16. Yeah, Yeah, Yeah

* Bonus Tracks

Fan-filmed video footage of LACUNA COIL's October 12 performance at DK NAU in Kiev, Ukraine can be seen below.

LACUNA COIL earlier in the year completed the "Dark Legacy" North American tour. The band's only headlining run in the United States in 2012 featured a set of more than two hours, with material spanning all of LACUNA COIL's albums.

LACUNA COIL's new album, "Dark Adrenaline", sold around 20,000 copies in the United States in its first week of release to debut at position No. 15 on The Billboard 200 chart.

LACUNA COIL singer Andrea Ferro married his longtime girlfriend Paola Penny Gigliotti on September 8.

Fan-filmed video footage of the Todd La Torre-fronted version of QUEENSRŸCHE performing on October 12 at Rock The Bay at Old Concrete Street in Corpus Christi, Texas and on October 13 at the South Texas Rock Fest at Sunken Garden Amphitheatre in San Antonio, Texas can be seen below.

The setlist for the San Antonio concert was as follows:

01. Queen Of The Reich
02. Speak
03. Walk In The Shadows
04. The Whisper
05. En Force
06. Child Of Fire
07. Warning
08. The Needle Lies
09. Prophecy
10. Roads To Madness
11. I Don't Believe In Love
12. My Empty Room
13. Eyes Of A Stranger

Encore:

14. Take Hold Of The Flame
15. Jet City Woman
16. Silent Lucidity
17. Empire

QUEENSRŸCHE members Michael Wilton (guitar), Eddie Jackson (bass), Scott Rockenfield (drums) and Parker Lundgren (guitar) announced on June 20 that they were parting ways with singer Geoff Tate and recruiting powerhouse vocalist Todd La Torre of CRIMSON GLORY as his replacement. The new QUEENSRŸCHE lineup previously played two shows in their home city of Seattle under the name RISING WEST.

As previously reported, female vocalist Pamela Moore, who is best known for her performance as Sister Mary on QUEENSRŸCHE's 1988 epic release "Operation: Mindcrime" and 2006's sequel "Operation: Mindcrime II", will join the Todd La Torre-fronted version of QUEENSRŸCHE on stage on October 27 at the Snoqualmie Casino in Snoqualmie, Washington.

Commented the group: "[Pamela] is considered family to the band, part of QUEENSRŸCHE's legacy and has won the hearts of the amazing QUEENSRŸCHE fans. It is our privilege to share the stage with her once again!"

Tate, who fronted QUEENSRŸCHE for three decades, recently sought to prevent his former bandmates from touring and operating under the QUEENSRŸCHE name without him. While ruling against Tate, the presiding judge determined that there was no legal hurdle in Tate also using the name with an all-new lineup of musicians. "I don't see any reason that Mr. Tate can't have the benefit, if he gets other members, of whatever name he uses of using the brand," Superior Court Judge Carol A. Schapira said during the July 13 court hearing. "I think [doing that would be] inherently confusing, although I'm sure the market can get these things sorted out," she added.

On September 2, Tate announced that he was launching his own version of QUEENSRŸCHE with RATT drummer Bobby Blotzer, former QUIET RIOT, OZZY OSBOURNE and WHITESNAKE bassist Rudy Sarzo and former MEGADETH and KING DIAMOND guitarist Glen Drover. Also on board in the new group are returning QUEENSRŸCHE guitarist Kelly Gray — who played with the band from 1998 until 2001 and also produced several of their albums — and keyboardist Randy Gane, who has toured and recorded with QUEENSRŸCHE and Geoff's solo group in the past.

Rock The Bay performance footage:







South Texas Rock Fest performance footage:

Dutch singer Floor Jansen (REVAMP, ex-AFTER FOREVER) made her live debut as the frontwoman of NIGHTWISH on October 1 at Showbox Sodo in Seattle, Washington.

Jansen is handling lead-vocal duties on NIGHTWISH's current North American tour after the group parted ways with Anette Olzon at the end of September.

In a new blog post on her official web site at FloorJansen.com, Floor writes, "Hello to you from our nightliner! We are driving to our show in Fort Lauderdale. If I look outside, I see nothing but beautiful green water lands. I tried to spot an alligator…did see some deer and the most amazing birds!

"Last time I wrote was in Oklahoma City. Days fly by so fast, I cannot believe we are about to do the last two shows of this USA tour already!

"In a weird way, the show on Tuesday seems ages ago, and yesterday at the same time. Coming here feels the same. Time is like the Dali clocks, liquid, relentless. But memories are timeless, and fortunately, I have beautiful ones to share with you. I just wish words could describe them better!

"How can I tell you how amazing the show in Oklahoma was? Or in Austin? Or in New Orleans? There is something special about every show. A unique night, a magical ride that always ends too soon! And with a unique audience. Hundreds of wonderful people at the meet-and-greets every day. Thousands of sweating and rocking bodies; getting just as high on the music as we do.

"We played 'Ghost Love Score' twice now [see video below]. My favorite song! Goosebumps on my entire body every time I sing, 'My fall will be for you.' Tears came to my eyes the second time we played it. First time I was thinking a bit more. Second time I only had to feel. Again, words are failing on me to describe the real emotion I had. But I have hope that the people who were that in New Orleans that night felt it too.

"Back in Austin we went shopping at Congress Avenue. A street full of antique shops and other rare and funny stores. Lovely to be in places that sell stuff you cannot find anywhere else. We had a good time!

"The next morning we were in New Orleans. Tuomas [Holopainen, keyboards], Troy [Donockley, multi-instrumentalist] and I had breakfast in a sushi restaurant, with a nice Japanese beer…a great start of a great day!

"We took a stroll through the city afterwards. A unique atmosphere is there in those streets. Beautiful neo colonial houses, bars and restaurants everywhere, the Mississippi, the huge necklaces you that have a ritual of its own, the cigars. I bought one. I never smoke but an occasional (mild) cigar is something I can enjoy.

"After a super show, we left the venue and headed into town. We went to a famous bar that sells absinthe… I tried it and it turned out so much nicer than I expected. The cigar and the drink together made me look like a femme fatale haha. We had the most amazing night off together. Really special!!!

"For now, we have the two last shows coming up. I will miss this!!! But I also look forward to come home!

"I will go back to REVAMP songwriting because we have a planning to hold on to, album will come in March/April next year!!!!!!

"On the 4th of November, the NIGHTWISH shows continue in the U.K.. I am super exited to join them on the rest of the world tour and the summer festivals in 2013!!!"

Olzon joined NIGHTWISH in 2007 as the replacement for Tarja Turunen after the latter was fired in 2005.

"Cold Black Stars", the new video from U.K. death/extreme metallers DEAD BEYOND BURIED, can be seen below. The song comes off the band's new album, "The Dark Era", which is available for free download at www.deadbeyondburied.com.

"The Dark Era" was recorded, mixed and mastered at Hertz Studio in
Bialystok, Poland with the Weislawscy Brothers (VADER, BEHEMOTH, DECAPITATED, HATE).

DEAD BEYOND BURIED is currently taking part in the "Serpent Sermon Tour" with MARDUK and IMMOLATION.

DEAD BEYOND BURIED's previous two efforts — 2010's "Inheritors Of Hell" and 2007's "Condemned To Misery" — were both released through Siege Of Amida Records.

Calgary, Alberta, Canada-based metallers KOBRA AND THE LOTUS have parted ways with guitarist Timothy Vega and have replaced him with Peruvian axeman Charlie Parra Del Riego (pictured below).

KOBRA AND THE LOTUS released its new album in the U.K. on August 6. The CD's first single, "Forever One", preceded the full-length effort on May 28.

KOBRA AND THE LOTUS last year inked a deal with KISS bassist/vocalist Gene Simmons' revived Simmons Records label via a partnership with Universal Music Canada. Simmons confirmed the signing on his Twitter profile, calling KOBRA AND THE LOTUS "real metal."

In a recent interview with May The Rock Be With You, KOBRA AND THE LOTUS singer Brittany Paige stated about the band's sound, "KOBRA AND THE LOTUS is a traditional, straight-up heavy metal band. It's not a niche, it's just driving riffs, duelling guitars, there's a melodicness to the music and there is a classic metal vocal. We are all about traditional heavy metal, but bringing in the flavors of our generation for a slight twist."

She added, "Our music will always stay as heavy metal, even though it will evolve in some shape or form. But we all listen to such different things, which is a really great thing. There's certainly death metal and black metal influences, we've got experimental and folk metal, there's so many different things that come into play, and if you listen to the music, you can hear some of those coming through, but which you wouldn't really pick up on unless you knew someone in the band was into Gary Moore, or the blues, for example, then it makes sense."

Professionally filmed video footage of KOBRA AND THE LOTUS's performance at this year's Wacken Open Air festival, which took place August 2-4 in Wacken, Germany, can be seen below.

KOBRA AND THE LOTUS is:

Brittany Paige - Vocals
Jasio Kulakowski - Guitar
Griffin Kissack - Drums
Peter Dimov - Bass
Timothy Vega - Guitar

Finnish melodic death metallers ETERNAL TEARS OF SORROW have commenced the "final recording sessions" for their seventh album. The band states, "It's time for some female [vocals]!"

"Summon The Wild", the latest video from ETERNAL TEARS OF SORROW, can be viewed below. The performance footage for the clip — which was directed, filmed and edited by Anssi Lautjärvi — was filmed at S-Osis in Turku, Finland on October 16, 2009.

"Summon The Wild" comes off ETERNAL TEARS OF SORROW's sixth album, "Children Of The Dark Waters", which entered the official chart in the group's home country at position No. 19.

"Children Of The Dark Waters" was released in Finland on May 27, 2009 via Suomen Musiikki. As was the case with the band's previous five LPs, the effort was recorded at Tico-Tico Studio in Kemi, Finland. The CD was released in the rest of Europe via Massacre Records and in Asia through Marquee/Avalon.

Mick Burgess of Metal Express Radio conducted an interview with HALESTORM frontwoman Lzzy Hale during the U.K. leg of the band's current European tour. You can now listen to the chat using the audio player below.

Interview (audio):



HALESTORM will embark on a late fall headlining U.S. tour sponsored by Jägermeister. The trek gets underway on November 8 in Mobile, Alabama, wrapping up on December 15 in Orlando, Florida. Special guests on the bill will be IN THIS MOMENT and EVE TO ADAM.

"I Miss The Misery", the second single from HALESTORM's current album "The Strange Case Of…" , was a Top Five track at Active Rock radio.

HALESTORM singer Lzzy Hale was named the "Hottest Chick in Hard Rock" in Revolver magazine's annual round-up of the sexiest female rockers, beating out contenders like Lee, IN THIS MOMENT's Maria Brink and LACUNA COIL's Cristina Scabbia.