Jerry Gaskill, the 54-year-old drummer and singer for the progressive hard rock band KING'S X, suffered a heart attack Saturday night (February 25). The musician was operated on and is said to be in stable condition.

KING'S X was scheduled to launch a three-week tour on March 28 in Austin. There is no word yet on whether those dates will be postponed or canceled.

Gaskill and KING'S X bassist/vocalist Doug Pinnick have been playing together since 1979, when they met in Springfield, Missouri.

KING'S X is celebrating the 20th anniversary of its self-titled Atlantic debut this year.

Former IRON MAIDEN singers Paul Di'Anno and Blaze Bayley took part in a joint press conference earlier today (Sunday, February 26) in Moscow, Russia prior to their concert tonight at Plan B.

Di'Anno and Bayley were scheduled to perform classic MAIDEN tracks while accompanied by Russian musicians as part of a Russian tour, which kicked off on February 22 in St. Petersburg.

A short video clip of today's press conference can be seen below.

The 48-year-old Bayley, who was born in Birmingham, was the original frontman in WOLFSBANE, but left in 1994 to replace Bruce Dickinson as the lead singer of IRON MAIDEN.

Di'Anno was the frontman of IRON MAIDEN when they took the world by storm and shot to fame between 1978 and 1981. He was fired by MAIDEN in 1981 under a cloud of drug-taking allegations he always denied.

In his post-MAIDEN career, Di'Anno has issued numerous albums, as both a solo artist and as a member of such bands as GOGMAGOG, BATTLEZONE and KILLERS and he has been featured (either as the artist or as a guest) on more than 60 albums released worldwide.

Finnish folk metallers ENSIFERUM recently entered the studio to begin recording their fifth album for a fall release via Spinefarm Records. The band states, "[We] started working at the famous Petrax studio (CHILDREN OF BODOM, NIGHTWISH) [in Hollola, Finland] last week with producer Hiili Hiilesmaa (HIM, SENTENCED) who is also mixing the album. From Petrax studio, the band will move on to two other locations in the Hämeenlinna area.

ENSIFERUM's new album will contain 10 tracks and will include guest appearances by members of DIE APOKALYPTISCHEN REITER and the legendary Finnish singer and actor Vesa-Matti Loiri.

The second in a series of websidodes featuring behind-the-scenes footage from the new CD recording process can be seen below.

ENSIFERUM's fourth album, "From Afar", sold around 900 copies in the United States in its first week of release. The CD landed at position No. 44 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.

"From Afar" was released on September 9, 2009 via Spinefarm Records. The CD was produced by Tero Kinnunen (NIGHTWISH, AMORPHIS) and Janne Joutsenniemi ('Victory Songs' producer) and was mixed by Hiili Hiilesmaa (HIM, SENTENCED, AMORPHIS).

Guitarist Phil Demmel and Dave McClain of San Francisco Bay Area metallers MACHINE HEAD were interviewed by MusicFeeds.TV when the band performed earlier today (Sunday, February 26) at Olympic Park in Sydney, Australia during this year's Soundwave Festival. You can now watch the chat below.

MACHINE HEAD has just completed a North American headlining with support from SUICIDE SILENCE and DARKEST HOUR.

MACHINE HEAD's new album, "Unto The Locust", sold more than 17,000 copies in the United States in its first week of release to land at position No. 22 on The Billboard 200 chart — putting MACHINE HEAD in the Top 25 for the first time in the band's 17-year history.

MACHINE HEAD has consistently averaged more than 100,000 copies sold in the U.S. for each of its seven albums and has shifted double that overseas (accruing several silver records in the U.K.), resulting in cumulative worldwide sales of more than 2.4 million.

MACHINE HEAD's previous CD, "The Blackening", opened with just under 15,000 units back in April 2007 to debut at No. 54 on The Billboard 200 chart. The band's 2004 effort, "Through The Ashes Of Empires", premiered with less than 12,000 copies to land at No. 88.

COAL CHAMBER, the reformed '90s alt-metal band fronted by current DEVILDRIVER singer Dez Fafara, performed yesterday (Saturday, February 25) at RNA Showgrounds in Brisbane, Australia during this year's Soundwave Festival. Fan-filmed video footage of their appearance can be seen below. Also available is new a video interview with the band conducted by MusicFeeds.TV.

As previously reported, COAL CHAMBER drummer Mikal "Mikey" Cox broke two fingers during the Brisbane concert.

COAL CHAMBER is playing its first reunion dates in late February and early March as part of Soundwave.

When asked by Full Metal Jackie in a recent interview how he feels about the return of COAL CHAMBER, Dez said, "Unbelievable. Full circle. I mean, to get those guys back in my life and clean off hard drugs and want[ing] to do shows, it's incredible. The feeling is incredible and the love had been just incredible as well. I woke up at 4:30 the other morning with my phone ringing off the hook and my Twitter, everything going crazy, it's so good to see. After all these years, we haven't played together in 10 years. . . We've been going over the setlist and it's been nothing but fun right now. I mean, going back and forth about a setlist with these guys just turns into jokes and hours of e-mails of jokes and we forget what we're doing. So you realize that these guys are a big, big part of my life and I don't even know if I'd be here with DEVILDRIVER for Meegs [guitar] and Mikey drums], so it's good to have them back in my life and getting ready to go do COAL CHAMBER shows."

Regarding why neither of the two former COAL CHAMBER bassists — Nadja Peulen or Rayna Foss — is involved in the band's reunion, Dez said, "Rayna was not [asked to be a part of it]. Rayna has been out of the band for a very long time. We did speak to Nadja. She has other things going and it wasn't really in the headspace where we were at as a band. We found Chela; she's Canadian and she's a bad-ass player. She's been playing for nearly 12 years. She plays five-string and it's going to be good to have her on bass. She grew up with COAL CHAMBER. She's only 26-27 years old. She knows the songs, and just hearing her on the phone, the excitement [in her voice], that's really what I wanted brought to the table. Where Meegs and Mikey and I am right now, we're really excited so we needed someone that filled that excitement drawer and she did for sure; she's stoked."

Performance:



Interview:

Original DEATH ANGEL guitarist Gus Pepa made a special appearance during the band's headlining show this past Friday night, February 24 at Slim's in San Francisco. The group stated, "We [hadn't] shared the stage with Gus since 1990!"

DEATH ANGEL will join forces with SEPULTURA, KRISIUN and HAVOK for a North American tour in April/May.

DEATH ANGEL will release a DVD entitled "A Thrashumentary" in the spring. 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.

"Relentless Retribution", the latest album from DEATH ANGEL, sold 2,700 copies in the United States in its first week of release. The CD landed at position No. 10 on the Top New Artist Albums (Heatseekers) chart, which lists the best-selling albums by new and developing artists, defined as those who have never appeared in the Top 100 of The Billboard 200. The band's previous album, "Killing Season", opened with around 2,300 units back in March 2008. This number was in line with the performance of its predecessor, "The Art of Dying", which registered a first-week sales tally of around 2,100 back in May 2004.

On February 24, David Felix of RockEyez conducted an interview with former SKID ROW singer Sebastian Bach. You can now listen to the chat in the YouTube clip below.

Bassist Jason Christopher — who filled in for Shawn Economaki during STONE SOUR's spring 2011 tour and who previously played with SLIPKNOT/STONE SOUR frontman Corey Taylor in the JUNK BEER KIDNAP BAND — recently joined Bach's solo group. Bach says, "I have known Jason for years, ever since he tried to pickpocket me at the Rainbow [in West Hollywood] aeons ago."

Bach kicked off a short run of North American dates on February 1 in Winston-Salem, North Carolina.

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.

CrankItUp.se recently conducted an interview with drummer Tomas Haake of Swedish experimental extreme metallers MESHUGGAH. You can now watch the chat below.

MESHUGGAH's new album, "Koloss", will be released in Germany on March 23 and the rest of Europe on March 26 (March 27 in North America) as a CD digi, limited-edition Magic Cube (CD digi plus DVD exclusive to Nuclear Blast mail order) and two-LP brown vinyl via Nuclear Blast Records.

The track listing for the CD is as follows:

01. I Am Colossus
02. The Demon's Name Is Surveillance
03. Do Not Look Down
04. Behind The Sun
05. The Hurt That Finds You First
06. Marrow
07. Break Those Bones Whose Sinews Gave It Motion
08. Swarm
09. Demiurge
10. The Last Vigil

In a recent interview with MSN's metal music section Headbang, Tomas Haake stated about MESHUGGAH's decision to call the new album "Koloss", "It's not so much like a theme, it's kind of how the overall album is more towards something heavier than anything that we've ever done. We wanted something that had that sound to it, something monolithic, something huge. Also a few things that tied into that was the stress and anxiety that a few of us went through up until we started recording this album because of previous sessions where we felt we were doing things the wrong way. That lingers with you, you don't want to do the same mistakes again, you want to save the mental health of a few in the band as well, try to do things another way. So it felt like a colossal thing to get out of the hat this time, even though it went smoother in a lot of ways. Also once we knew what artwork we were using, because it's not artwork that was designed for this album, it was an existing piece of art by this Russian artist Luminokaya, we just fell in love with the piece and we found out it hadn't been used for anything, so we could buy the rights for it. Once we saw that, and we already had the title 'Colossus', we had that song in there, we just felt like this creature on the cover looks like, is it a god, is it a devil, what is it? The word 'Koloss' just fit for some reason."

Regarding how the band found the album artwork, Haake, "I don't even remember, I think I was just looking through random art online probably three or four years ago I saw this guy's art the first time. I got in contact with him, and initially he was supposed to do something for the album but we trailed off into other things and we didn't stay in touch for a while. I just took for granted that the piece had been used for something already, but when I finally asked him he said no, it was up for grabs. He's done a lot of additions and renditions and versions of it for the whole layout, so he's spent a lot of time on it too, and we're really stoked that we ended up using this art."

Regarding the suggestion that "Koloss" sounds like MESHUGGAH deliberately tried to expand its sound even more than on "ObZen", Haake said, "We definitely pushed ourselves hard with 'ObZen', too, but maybe that one feels even more like a flirtatious thing with the stuff we were doing earlier on and the stuff we grew up with. I still feel there's some of that on this one too, with the different tunings, and a couple of the songs are actually written for six-string guitar and not all of them being really down-tuned eight-stringed stuff. That's definitely to get that old-school thrash vibe in there, even though the music is different, of course. There's definitely a little bit of that going on this album, too. But apart from that, we basically tried to create something that we find intriguing. We always try to find new ways of writing our own music, so to speak, to see if there's an additional lateral movement, a sideways step that we can take for ourselves to feel that we did something new with this one and that we pushed ourselves into doing something that came out cool and refreshing. That's kind of what we always aim for, and this time it came out like this."

Released in March 2008, MESHUGGAH's last album, "obZen", debuted at No. 59 on The Billboard 200 chart and at No. 14 on the iTunes Top Rock Albums chart.

MESHUGGAH's first DVD, "Alive" sold around 3,000 copies in the United States in its first week of release to debut at position No. 8 on the Top Music Videos chart.

Interview:



"Break Those Bones Whose Sinews Gave It Motion" lyric video:

Video footage of SOULFLY performing the SEPULTURA classic "Roots Bloody Roots" on February 25 at Via Marquês (moved from Santana Hall) in São Paulo, Brazil can be seen below. Also available is footage of SOULFLY performing SEPULTURA's "Troops Of Doom" with a special guest appearance by former SEPULTURA and current CAVALERA CONSPIRACY drummer Igor Cavalera.

SOULFLY is currently touring Brazil for the first time since 2002. The band's guest drummer for the trek is SOULFLY/ex-SEPULTURA frontman Max Cavalera's son Zyon Cavalera, who also plays in LODY KONG.

It is Zyon's unborn heartbeat that can be heard during the intro of SEPULTURA's classic song "Refuse/Resist".

SOULFLY's eighth album, "Enslaved", is due on March 13 via Roadrunner Records. The CD was recorded at TallCat Studios in Phoenix, Arizona and was produced by Chris "Zeuss" Harris, the seasoned knob twiddler behind some of the most notable bands in metal today, such as SHADOWS FALL, HATEBREED, THE RED CHORD and more.

"Enslaved" standard CD features the following 11 tracks:

01. Resistance
02. World Scum
03. Intervention
04. Gladiator
05. Legions
06. American Steel
07. Redemption of Man By God
08. Treachery
09. Plata O Plomo
10. Chains
11. Revengeance

The digital-only edition includes the following three bonus tracks:

12. Slave
13. Bastard
14. Soulfly VIII

SOULFLY's current lineup features Max and guitar dynamo Marc Rizzo, with STATIC-X's Tony Campos taking up the bass. The lineup is rounded out by drummer David Kinkade (BORKNAGAR, ARSIS, MALEVOLENT CREATION), a new-school, extreme skinsman whose brutality behind the kit brings a new flavor to the band.

Northeast Ohio-based metallers WRETCH have parted ways with longtime vocalist Colin Watson.

Commented WRETCH guitarist Nick Giannakos: "I have been in this band with Colin on and off for 26 years. I am very sad to see this day come. He told us he does not want to be in a band full-time anymore. I will miss his vocals but most of all I will miss having him around on a regular basis. Not only have we been in a band together for that long, we have also been friends for just as long.

"We are going to continue finishing the new album. We are currently looking for a new vocalist with the same type of vocal ability who is good at writing lyrics. I am not sure if we will continue with the name WRETCH but we will definitely keep playing and writing the same type of power metal that we love to play."

Interested vocalists can contact Giannakos at nshred1@yahoo.com.

After playing 350 shows internationally during their "World Domination Tour" with such bands as DIO, W.A.S.P., QUEENSRŸCHE, DORO and LORDI in support of their last album, "World Domination", Swedish hard rockers FATAL SMILE spent over a year writing and recording songs for the follow-up effort. Entitled "21st Century Freaks", the new CD was recorded in the tour buses, hotel rooms and studios all over the world before eleven songs were singled out and re-recorded during 2011.

Ten top names tried out for the mixing job, all mixing the song planned as the second single of the album. The band put together a jury of friends to pick out their favorite mix, which turned out to be mix No. 5, not knowing it was mixed by FATAL SMILE's own drummer Philty and guitarist Mr. Y!

According to a press release, "this time [the bandmembers] have done everything on their own to make it the ultimate FATAL SMILE album, from recording and engineering to producing and mixing the album and the result is massive, with 'in-your-face' songs and a 'larger-than-life' sound!"

"21st Century Freaks" was produced by Mr. Y, engineered/recorded by Philty and mixed by the two of them together. The mastering duties were handled by Mats "Limpan" Lindfors at Cutting Room Studios.

The first single, "Welcome To The Freakshow", will be released in March, to be followed by the full-length album on April 27 via Metallville Records. A massive world tour will follow.

A trailer for "Welcome To The Freakshow" can be seen below.

FATAL SMILE is:

Mr. Y - Guitar
Blade - Vocals
Alx - Bass
Philty - Drums



Photo credit: Tallee Savage / www.savagebeauty.se

KITTIE and ECLIPSE ETERNAL are among the artists who will contribute songs to an upcoming tribute album to David Gold — a founding member of the Ontario, Canada-based black and doom metal band WOODS OF YPRES, who was killed in December in a car accident near Barrie, Ontario.

Participating acts so far:

* KITTIE – "Everything I Touch Turns To Gold (Then Coal)"
* THE GOV' AND FRIENDS – "Intro: The Looming Of Dust In The Dark"
* ROB CRANNY – "Suicide Cargoload"
* DETS – "A Meeting Time And Place" +
* AMARANTH – "Allure Of The Earth"
* ARAWN – "Our Ontario Town Is A Burial Ground"
* ERIK VILARDO AND STEFFAN ST-HILARIUS – "You Were The Light"
* PAGAN RITUAL – "Shams Of Optimism" +
* ECLIPSE ETERNAL – "Crossing The 45th Parallel" +
* BEGOTTEN – "The Sea Of Immeasurable Loss"
* EMPYREAN PLAGUE – "Shedding The Deadwood"
* ROK KODBA – "The Sun Was In My Eyes Pt 2"

* Song selection not yet confirmed

For more information, visit the project's official Facebook page.

A memorial concert for David Gold will be held on Thursday, April 5 at The Annex WreckRoom in Toronto, Ontario., The event, which will also double as the release party for WOODS OF YPRES' new album, "Woods V: Grey Skies & Electric Light", will feature a headline performance by Chicago's NOVEMBERS DOOM, as well as tribute performances by ECLIPSE ETERNAL, EMPYREAN PLAGUE, GYPSY CHIEF GOLIATH, HALLOWS DIE, KITTIE, PAGAN RITUAL, PANZERFAUST and more. Admission is solely by donation, and proceeds will be given to the Gold family to help cover the expenses of David's final arrangements, and to support the annual David Gold Music Scholarship made available to Sault College students.

For more information, go to this location.

"Woods 5: Grey Skies & Electric Light" 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).

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.

Comprised of musicians from some of the biggest bands in recent rock history, the Rock 'N' Roll Allstars is a live show unlike any before. Bandmembers include:

* Gene Simmons (KISS)
* Joe Elliott (DEF LEPPARD)
* Matt Sorum (VELVET REVOLVER, GUNS N' ROSES)
* Duff McKagan (VELVET REVOLVER, GUNS N' ROSES)
* Gilby Clarke (GUNS N' ROSES, ROCK STAR SUPERNOVA)
* Glenn Hughes (BLACK COUNTRY COMMUNION, DEEP PURPLE, BLACK SABBATH)
* Ed Roland (COLLECTIVE SOUL)
* Sebastian Bach (SKID ROW)
* Steve Stevens (BILLY IDOL)
* Mike Inez (ALICE IN CHAINS)
* Billy Duffy (THE CULT)

Despite the fact that he was previously announced as one of the musicians taking part in the Rock 'N' Roll Allstars tour, former METALLICA and VOIVOD bassist Jason Newsted will **NOT** be making an appearance at the event.

Promoter Gabe Reed will host a press conference to officially announce the Rock 'N' Roll Allstars tour of South and Central America in April/May 2012 on Thursday, March 1 at 12:00 p.m. PST at The Roxy Theatre in West Hollywood, California. Also expected to attend the press conference are Simmons, Sorum, McKagan, Clarke, Bach and Hughes, among others. (**Important**: This event is open to members of the media only.)

Swedish guitarist Magnus Karlsson, who has been a member of the German power metal band PRIMAL FEAR since early 2008, will sit out the group's upcoming live shows "due to family obligations." The band says, "This is serious and very private" before adding, "it's tough for us to replace Magnus on the next shows as a guitarist, but it's even harder to replace his wonderful character. We've searched for the last couple of days for the best possible substitute and decided to recruit Constantine (MYSTIC PROPHECY, NIGHTFALL) — a 24-year-old phenomenal talent from Greece. After the current rehearsals, we're sure he will NOT disappoint!"

Constantine will make his live debut with PRIMAL FEAR at the opening show of the band's "Metal Nation Tour", which is scheduled to kick off on March 30 in Leipzig, Germany.

PRIMAL FEAR's new album, "Unbreakable", sold around 600 copies in the United States in its first week of release. The CD landed at position No. 44 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.

As previously reported, "Unbreakable" entered the German Media Control chart at position No. 31. The group's previous CD, 2009's "16.6 (Before The Devil Knows You're Dead)" , opened at No. 46, while 2007's "New Religion" premiered at No. 60.

Released on January 24, 2012 in the U.S. via Frontiers Records, "Unbreakable" was tracked in part at House Of Music studios in Winterbach, Germany with producer/bassist Mat Sinner and engineer Achim Köhler (EDGUY, MASTERPLAN).

According to a press release, "Unbreakable" "combines the skills of the strongest PRIMAL FEAR lineup ever with a well-balanced 'back-to-the-roots" vibe and an ambitious learning process during their longest tour so far. Classic and ultra-fresh PRIMAL FEAR riff-rockers like 'Strike', 'Give 'Em Hell' [and] the high-speed track 'And There Was Silence' will hit the bulls-eye, like the rhythm-paced metal anthem, first single and new video clip 'Bad Guys Wear Black'. Less experiments, more rock! But there [is also] a nine-minute epic journey with a lot prog approach named 'Where Angels Die', a classic wonderful ballad 'Born Again' and the melodic power bomb 'Metal Nation'."

Commented Ralf Scheepers: "The plan was to record an album for the fans with rough metal riffs, screaming vocals and good melodies ...and finally it became a monster — a tough 'bang-your-head' metal album called 'Unbreakable'."

"Bad Guys Wear Black" video:

MÖTLEY CRÜE has entered drummer Tommy Lee's studio called The Atrium in Calabasas, California to begin recording a new song that will be released to coincide with the band's upcoming summer tour.

Commented MÖTLEY CRÜE bassist Nikki Sixx: "Been in the recording studio cutting new MÖTLEY CRÜE with the guys. We are recording at Tommy's studio (which is insane) and James Michael [SIXX: A.M.] is producing.We laid down the bass and drums yesterday and Mick Mars comes in today to blast the guitars. Then Vince [Neil] is coming in next week to do his vocals.

"Haven't been in the studio in a few years with the guys and it feels like magic. Hard to explain what it sounds like other than just straight-out sexy...maybe throw some dirt and sarcasm on top, too."

MÖTLEY CRÜE's latest studio album, "Saints of Los Angeles", sold 99,000 copies in the United States during its first week of release. The CD was CRÜE's first studio album since 2000's "New Tattoo", which has sold over 200,000 copies in the United States, according to Nielsen SoundScan. The band's previous studio effort with all of its original members was 1997's "Generation Swine", which debuted and peaked at No. 4 on The Billboard 200, and has sold more than 300,000 units.

"Saints of Los Angeles" was loosely based on the band's memoir, "The Dirt", which was published in 2001.

MÖTLEY CRÜE's latest "greatest-hits" collection, suitably titled "Greatest Hits", was released on November 17, 2009 via Eleven Seven Music/Mötley Records.

CRÜE performed its classic 1989 album, "Dr. Feelgood", in its entirety on Crüe Fest 2, the sophomore outing of the band's summer festival tour, to celebrate the record's 20th anniversary.

Eleven Seven Music/Mötley Records re-released "Dr. Feelgood" on September 21, 2009.

The second in a series of webisodes featuring behind-the-scenes footage from ICED EARTH's North American leg of the 2012 "World Dystopia Tour" can be seen below.

ICED EARTH's video for the song "Anthem" was filmed on December 7, 2011 at Essigfabrik in Cologne, Germany.

"We had a blast making that video," said guitarist/mainman Jon Schaffer. "I think the fans can see it on our faces. 'Anthem' captures the energy of our live shows, as well as the fun we're having together as a band."

Produced and directed by Kosch Fabian Film, "Anthem" is the second music video from ICED EARTH's new album, "Dystopia", which sold around 6,100 copies in the United States in its first week of release to land at position No. 67 on The Billboard 200 chart.

ICED EARTH's previous CD, "The Crucible of Man (Something Wicked Part II)", opened with 6,700 units in September 2008 to debut at No. 79.

ICED EARTH's 10th studio offering, "Dystopia", was released in Europe on October 17, 2011 and in the U.S. on October 18 via Century Media Records. Two bonus tracks were also recorded for inclusion on special editions of the album.

RockNLive.org recently conducted an interview with former HELLOWEEN and current UNISONIC members Michael Kiske and Kai Hansen. You can now watch the chat below.

In addition to Kiske and Hansen, UNISONIC features in its ranks Dennis Ward (bass) and Kosta Zafiriou (drums) of Germany's PINK CREAM 69 and Swiss guitarist Mandy Meyer (who has previously played with ASIA, GOTTHARD and KROKUS).

The self-titled debut album from UNISONIC will be released on March 30 (nine days earlier in Japan) via earMUSIC/Edel. The effort will be made available in the following configurations:

Europe & rest of the world:

* CD jewel case
* CD limited edition Mediabook format with and extended booklet plus bonus track
* Vinyl and CD package limited edition

Japan:

*CD jewel case
* CD limited-edition digipack plus bonus track (exclusive for Japan)

The cover artwork, which was created by graphic artist Martin Häusler (MEAT LOAF, GOTTHARD, HELLOWEEN, MOTÖRHEAD), can be seen below.

"Unisonic" track listing:

01. Unisonic
02. Souls Alive
03. Never Too Late
04. I've Tried
05. Star Rider
06. Never Change Me
07. Renegade
08. My Sanctuary
09. King For A Day
10. We Rise
11. No One Ever Sees Me
12. Over The Rainbow (limited-edition bonus track)

UNISONIC's video for the song "Unisonic" can be seen below. According to a press release, the clip, which was directed by Häusler, "shows a powerful band performance at a magnificent ballroom in Heidelberg, Germany."

UNISONIC released its debut EP, "Ignition" on January 27 via earMUSIC/Edel. The effort includes the track "Unisonic" plus one demo song and a cover version of the HELLOWEEN classic "I Want Out", recorded live on October 15 at last year's edition of the Loud Park festival at Saitama Super Arena, a multi-purpose indoor arena located in Saitama City, Japan.

After the addition of Hansen to the group's lineup in early 2011, UNISONIC continued the songwriting process for its debut release, incorporating Kai's talent for writing great anthemic rock songs into its existing material. The recordings for the album started at end of September at ICP studios in Brussels, Belgium.

UNISONIC's music is very versatile and shows a broad approach to heavy rock without sacrificing the power and strong, catchy melodies that characterized the bandmembers' previous projects.

Kai Hansen's position in GAMMA RAY will be unaffected by his involvement with UNISONIC.

UNISONIC is:

Michael Kiske (vocals)
Mandy Meyer (guitar)
Kai Hansen (guitar)
Dennis Ward (bass)
Kosta Zafiriou (drums)

Interview:

"Unisonic" video:

Italian singer Mariangela "Mary" Demurtas of Norway's TRISTANIA will make a guest appearance on "Caligvla", the sophomore album from KATAKLYSM frontman Maurizio Iacono's Ancient Roman-themed arsenal EX DEO. According to Iacono, "every invited guest on this album will have Roman or Greek descent."

Iacono recently completed laying down vocals for "Caligvla". He says, "It wasn't without any hard work, blood and sweat and also close to a fainting spell after one of the hardest-longest screams I ever made. Ten days of vocal tracking, some of my best work in my career, the gods will be pleased … Some solos are left, some guest appearances to track and we start mixing this beast, should be all done by end of March.. eight months in the making people, soon we will give the metal world a well-deserved punishment!!"

EX DEO recently canceled its participation in the "Paganfest America Part III" tour with TURISAS, ALESTORM, ARKONA and HUNTRESS.

Commented Iacono: "We were all excited to play this festival and premier some new material, but unfortunately our new album, 'Caligvla', has been delayed, and we need to finish it and make it perfect. Add to that, the KATAKLYSM DVD is also on its final production phase... We decided it would be best to concentrate on giving every bit of attention to the album you have been waiting for, and also for the KATAKLYSM documentary to kick major ass. This being said, we will still perform with EX DEO on the Montreal [April 1 at Club Soda] and Toronto [April 2 at The Opera House] shows with Paganfest, as we will be in studio in the area, closing up the album 'Caligvla'. Everything else is cancelled for EX DEO. We will return to support the album in the fall... Word from Rome is that the plans are already in motion for world conquest! We ask our fans to support Paganfest and the great bands playing this year!"

EX DEO's sophomore album, "Caligvla", is being recorded with producer Jean-François Dagenais (KATAKLYSM, MALEVOLENT CREATION, MISERY INDEX, DESPISED ICON). The CD is tentatively due late summer via Austria's Napalm Records.

The artwork and layout for "Caligvla" will be handled by classic artist Seth (SEPTICFLESH). Songtitles set to appear on the CD include "I, Caligula", "Burned to Serve the Nocturnal Light", "In War & Conquest/Roma Caput Mundi" and "Teutoburg (The Ambush of Varus) - Part 1".

EX DEO last year completed a North American tour with NILE, PSYCROPTIC and KEEP OF KALESSIN.

"Romulus", the debut album from EX DEO, landed at position No. 90 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.

Finnish metallers CHILDREN OF BODOM took part in a signing session Austin Bazaar in Austin, Texas on February 21 prior to their headlining concert later that night at Emo's. Video footage of their appearance can be seen below. Check out photos at this location.

CHILDREN OF BODOM is scheduled to commence the songwriting sessions for its next album late spring, according to Henkka.

Speaking to Plug'd In Magazine, Henkka stated about CHILDREN OF BODOM's plans for the immediate future, "We'll [complete the current North American] tour, and then we go home. And then we will actually start writing new songs for an album in May and then we'll go back on tour for summer and keep writing for the that album. Hopefully we can start recording at the end of the year."

CHILDREN OF BODOM's last album, "Relentless Reckless Forever", sold nearly 11,000 copies in the United States in its first week of release to debut at position No. 42 on The Billboard 200 chart. The band's previous CD, 2008's "Blooddrunk", opened with 19,000 units to land at No. 22. This number was roughly four times the opening tally of "Blooddrunk"'s predecessor, "Are You Dead Yet?", which premiered with 5,000 units back in October 2005 to enter the chart at No. 195.

"Relentless Reckless Forever" was certified gold in the band's home country for first-day sales of over 10,000 copies. The CD was recorded in Finland's Petrax Studios with famed rock producer Matt Hyde (SLAYER, MONSTER MAGNET).

Regina, Saskatchewan-based Canadian extreme progressive metallers INTO ETERNITY recently tapped Amanda Kiernan of the Edmonton, Alberta-based metal band THE ORDER OF CHAOS as their new touring vocalist. Kiernan takes over from Stu Block, who was hired away last year by American metallers ICED EARTH, leaving INTO ETERNITY without a full-time singer.

Kiernan made her live debut with INTO ETERNITY on February 24 at the 11th edition of the Manitoba Metalfest at The Zoo in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. Fan-filmed video footage of the performance can be seen below.


INTO ETERNITY founder and guitarist Tim Roth told the Regina Leader-Post that he invited Kiernan to Regina to try out for the band after hearing a tape of her performing his songs.

"I had all these guys who told me they could do the songs and hit the notes Stu could. So I had them try out and it was like, 'No way.' Nobody could do it," Roth said. "But Amanda's got this great voice … none of the dudes could hit the notes Stu could, so maybe it makes sense that only a chick can do it. Besides, she already fits in like she's one of the guys."

Kiernan, who said she's been an INTO ETERNITY fan since she was in high school, told the Regina Leader-Post about her audition, "At first, I was pretty intimidated. These guys are rock stars to me. There were times when I was sitting around with the guys, and then all of a sudden I'd get this little burst of energy because I reminded myself that I was sitting with INTO ETERNITY."

INTO ETERNITY 's new single, "Fukushima", was released earlier in the month. The track was written about the Fukushima Daiichi, Japan nuclear disaster, a series of equipment failures, nuclear meltdowns, and releases of radioactive materials at the Fukushima I Nuclear Power Plant following the Tohoku earthquake and tsunami on March 11, 2011. The song talks about the struggles involved, and the amazing ability of the Japanese people to overcome such a tragedy.

"Fukushima", which features guest death vocals by Rob Doherty, was engineered, mixed and mastered by Justin Bender at Touchwood Studios in Regina. The artwork for the single was created by Mattias Norén.

INTO ETERNITY's signature sound has often been described as a hybrid of latter-day DEATH and CONTROL DENIED, combined with the technical stylings of DREAM THEATER.

INTO ETERNITY last year released its first new material since 2008 in the form of a new song called "Sandstorm". The track, which is available on iTunes and Bandcamp, features guest death vocals by Rob Doherty and marks the recording debut of Newbury, who was previously known in the western Canadian metal scene as a member of Edmonton, Alberta-based group DEATH TOLL RISING.

"Sandstorm" was written the day the USA took out Osama Bin Laden, and is inspired by the events that transpired.

INTO ETERNITY's last album, "The Incurable Tragedy", came out in 2008 via Century Media.