Archive News Oct 22, 2001 - update 1

Through no effort of their own—and as a result of a chain of events that they clearly had no control over—it appears that ANTHRAX the band has been getting an increased amount of coverage through media outlets that wouldn't have normally covered the group. Here is a sampling of recent online articles that focus on the act and their somewhat unfortunate connection to the events that have been dominating the press in the last few weeks:

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Article feat. guitarist Scott Ian at the Washington Post

Anthrax.com featured at Wired News

ANTHRAX on Anthrax at Rollingstone.com

ANTHRAX featured on CNN

ANTHRAX @ Reuters

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Similarly, ignorant fools, such as the ones posting material at Adequacy, the self-proclaimed “news for grown-ups”, have taken it upon themselves to start a petition to get ANTHRAX to change their name, since they feel, for reasons that are not entirely clear to us or anyone else with half a brain cell, that the metal band has been attempting to cash in on bio-terrorism. Still, for comedic reasons, we feel it necessary to point out their sheer ignorance, and we encourage everyone to post their comments on the accompanying message/comment board. Here is the link.

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In related news, former ANTHRAX vocalist Neil Turbin has announced the title of his forthcoming solo debut album as Threat Con Delta. Still in the recording stage, the CD is tentatively scheduled for a mid-2002 release through an as-yet-undisclosed label. Among the songs that are set to appear on the album are:

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01. Blue Screen of Death

02. Welcome to the Rat Race *

03. Dog Eat Everything

04. Get Outta My Face **

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* featuring Kurt James (STEELER, PROJECT: DRIVER, DR. MASTERMIND) and Ronnie Borchert (AMSTERDAM)

** featuring Mitch Perry (MSG, HEAVEN, TALAS) and Ronnie Borchert (AMSTERDAM)

METALLICA's “Fuel For Fire” (a demo version with different lyrics of the song “Fuel” off Reload this version originally appeared on the European single release of 'The Memory Remains') appears on an album entitled NASCAR: Full Throttle, issued this week via Hybrid Recordings, in association with NASCAR, Turner Broadcasting, and NBC Sports. Other artists appearing on Full Throttle include SAMMY HAGAR, CREED, THE CULT, MOTLEY CRUE, and THE GRATEFUL DEAD.

German thrashers DESTRUCTION are strongly rumored to have parted ways with drummer Sven Vormann. So far, no official statement from the band has been issued, but frontman Schmier indicated on the band's official message board that it's “too early to tell” if the rumors are true and that more details would be forthcoming “within the next [few] days”. Schmier then went on to state that “not everybody can....'Thrash 'til death'... I guess...” In other postings, the bassist/vocalist makes it clear that, whoever Sven's replacement ends up being, it most certainly will not be former drummer Olly, who, according to Schmier “[has] never been into metal… he is totally into BEATLES and jazz... That's one of the reason why DESTRUCTION split up!!! He's a good drummer but ain't a f.ckin´ METALHEAD...but that's what WE need...” We will have more information on this as soon as it becomes available.

As previously reported, MEGADETH have now scrapped the plans of recording a live album in Argentina due to the current political climate, a move that has garnered the group some heat from South American fans who feel that the band's decision to cancel the tour as unwarranted and inappropriate. This, in turn, has caused MEGADETH mainman Dave Mustaine to respond with a fiery post via the group's official message board at www.megadeth.com that makes his feelings on the matter clearly known. Here is Mustaine's posting in its entirety:

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“I must tell you that except for a few very considerate and understanding people like silverwing amongst a few others, I am very disappointed with the selfishness of the people who are pissed off at us for putting our personal and families safety ahead of a live record.

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“I am disgusted with some of the things that I have read like, 'bring your son, Justis', 'f.ck you and your terrorism', 'you are imperialists', etc.

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“It makes me never want to go Argentina again. But thank God for the real fans in Argentina who 'really' love us who are 'smart' enough to realize that it is just a live record and that hopefully the war won't keep us from EVER coming down there again.

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“Think about that? How would you smart ass f.cks like it if we never came back?

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“Our personal safety is at stake here, not yours. Our whole country is at war and we are in danger wherever we go because we are American. It has nothing to do with Argentina.

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“Jesus-f.cking-Christ I thought our 'real' Argentine fans would understand.

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“I am hoping that the people who are bitching are just upset and will regain their senses. This was not an easy decision for us to make.

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“I will say this as of this second, anyone saying anything adverse to our decision to put our own safety and the safety of our families ahead of a concert, are not fans of MEGADETH, and I urge you to leave and never come back here.

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“Remember, I can understand some Spanish too, and so do some of the moderators.

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“God, I thought you'd be happy. What a waste of skin you whiners are.”

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In related news, MEGADETH drummer Jimmy DeGrasso dismissed once again the rumors of him rejoining Y&ampT for the group's upcoming California reunion shows via an audio interview posted at Rock And A Hard Place by stating simply that if the shows do take place, they will not be taking place with him sitting behind the kit. “We haven't done a gig since 1996 or 1997—that was the last time we played—and we were just doing some Northern Californian shows not too far from where we all lived at the time,” stated DeGrasso. “And that was it. The guy who manages them called me earlier in the year, and he already… he basically said, 'You're pretty busy…', and I said, 'Legally, I don't even think I can do it.' 'Cause we [MEGADETH] had just signed with Sanctuary [Records], and I think it's inappropriate, after just signing with a new label, to going out playing with new people. That's just for me personally. That doesn't hold forever, but at that point, I said, 'I'm not really available to do it'. “

COAL CHAMBER frontman Dez Fafara has posted the following update on the group's forthcoming CD, now apparently re-titled Salvation (with the group having scrapped their previous choice of Dark Days),which is currently being mixed at a California studio for an early 2002 release. “Wanted to say hello to all the fans. We are a few days away from finishing mixing one of the greatest albums of all time, and with all humbleness I must say Salvation will live up to its title. Once again we have stepped out of the box. All the members are fine and were beginning to gear up for what will be a virtual onslaught of COAL CHAMBER in the music scene. Look for the release in February or March. These are exciting times for COAL CHAMBER and COAL CHAMBER fans. I must also say from my heart on the industry side of things, now having Island Records involved with Roadrunner and Universal (the greatly-respected distribution company behind COAL CHAMBER),we are looking forward to climbing mountains. With all respect, Dez Fafara”

DEATH/CONTROL DENIED mainman Chuck Schuldiner, who was diagnosed with a malignant brain tumor over two years ago, has posted the following update on his condition via DEATH's official web site: “I want to thank everybody for your much appreciated words of support from all over the world, it has been immensely welcomed. I also want you to know that I'm finally making good progress on the road to recovery. I was able to begin the new treatment of chemo that has really made the difference, and for that I thank [TESTAMENT vocalist] Chuck Billy and his wife for their great generosity in sharing the benefits from the concert and the fans and friends who were there to make it all possible. I am looking forward to seeing you in the not too distant future. And remember, support music, not rumors!!!!”

MACHINE HEAD frontman Robert Flynn has issued the following statement concerning why the group's originally projected first single off their current Supercharger release, entitled “Crashing Around You”, has had its video and entire marketing campaign pulled in favor of “Deafening Silence”, another track off the aforementioned opus, in the wake of the September 11th terrorist attacks. '['Crashing Around You'] was originally going to be the 1st single off our new release Supercharger. However, a couple days after what happened on September 11th, we had a band meeting. In light of the WTC tragedy, as a band, we decided it was not appropriate to promote a song called 'Crashing Around You' in the United States.

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'[The] video [for 'Crashing...']was shot on August 10th in LA with Nathan 'Karma' Cox, and the song was originally scheduled to go to radio on September 17th. We expressed our thoughts with Roadrunner Records and they fully agreed with us, so we pulled this video and the radio single in the United States. It was a difficult decision for all of us to make, but we all felt it was the right thing to do for the times - mainly due to the title of the song and some of the imagery in the video [buildings on fire], both of which at the moment would not be appropriate.

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“There were some rumors going around that this song was written about the WTC tragedy. I want to make it absolutely clear that this song is not about that at all. 'Crashing Around You' was written well before all this happened. The song is actually about me having a conversation with myself...just some of the sh.t that goes on in my brain...this is some of the stuff I hear in my head.

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“Since pulling the promotion of this song, MACHINE HEAD and Roadrunner have decided to go with the track 'Deafening Silence' as the first U.S. single instead, as a tribute to the people lost in the WTC tragedy. —Robert Flynn”

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In other MACHINE HEAD news, the band have announced that ILL NINO will be the support act at “a chunk of the dates” on the group's upcoming European tour, and that THUMB and SUGARCOMA will join on for “some or all” of the UK shows, according to Flynn.

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Also on the MACHINE HEAD front, guitarist Ahrue Luster recently gave an interview to Absolut Metal, in which he discussed an incident that occurred after the band's show in Chicago on their ongoing US tour with FEAR FACTORY and ILL NINO (dubbed RoadRage) that resulted in bassist Adam Duce receiving a black eye courtesy of an off-duty cop. Here is Ahrue's quote on the matter: “A couple days ago, right after the show in Chicago, we played the House Of Blues. It was a f.ckin' amazing show, Johnny K was there, our producer, so we started drinkin' n' stuff… Actually I wasn't drinkin', but everybody else was, except.. Yeah, me and [drummer] Dave [McClain] were sober but, I went to bed around 3 in the morning and maybe 5 AM we pulled into a Denny's. Adam got out...Adam, Dave...Dave was completely sober, Adam had a couple drinks, and our crew...and basically there were these off-duty cops sitting in a booth, and one of them came up to Adam and they didn't know that they were off duty cops at the time but he's like, 'Hey, lemme get $2' and Adam's like, 'What the f.ck, I don't owe you $2', and he's like, 'Lemme get $2', and Adam's like, 'I don't owe you $2,' and then the guy got up in Adam's face, so Adam told one of the crew guys to go round up everybody on the bus just in case anything goes down. So then the cop was like 'Hey, they're gonna jump me over here', so then the other cops came over but we still didn't know they were cops. So Dave started trying to just break them up and the dude is like 'Get your hands off me, motherf.cker!', and he pulls out a badge and is like, 'You know what this is?' So right then everyone is like that's cool, you know, whatever we'll leave, they'd already ordered their food, they were walking out the door. One of the cops just grabbed Adam by the shoulder, turned him around and suckerpunched him, like punched him right in the eye. Adam was pretty f.cked up so he doesn't remember what happened right after that, but then the drum tech came out after that, after him, and he's like 20 years old, wasn't even trying to start anything and they just f.ckin' jumped on him and started kicking the sh.t outta him. He was like down on the ground, they were kicking him in the temple, kicking him in the ribs. He had to get stitches in his face...But right after that, Dave called 911 and the cops just came up immediately and took the off-duty cops to jail. A couple days after that we came back through there and pressed charges. And then they saw the one cop that started it in there when they were pressing charges and his face was all beat up, he had a broken nose n' sh.t and we didn't do that to him. He probably had his buddies beat him up so he could try to keep his job. I know that stuff happens, but like less than 2 weeks after the f.ckin' World Trade Center thing, and all that sh.t, it's sickening.'

SKINLAB have been forced to push back the release date of their upcoming third full-length album, entitled tHE reVOLTINGROOM: dISTURBING tHE aRT oF eXPRESSION, to March 6th. According to bassist/vocalist Steev Esquivel, it will be well worth the wait, as “this record is way heavier than our last records, a little more natural sounding than the others, not so over-processed. Not to take away from the other CD's, because they are all heavy in their own right.”

Swedish melodic thrashers GARDENIAN are still seeking a new record deal following their split with Nuclear Blast Records and are continuing to write new material, which they hope to record early next year for a late 2002 release. Among the new song titles that are set to appear on the as-yet-untitled CD are the following:

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01. Drowning Empire

02. Heal All Wound

03. Smother Me

Swedish melodic deathsters SOILWORK have almost completed laying down the drums for their their as-yet-untitled new album with producers Devin Townsend (of STRAPPING YOUNG LAD fame) and Fredrik Nordstrom at Gothenurg's Studio Fredman and are currently tracking the rest of the instruments before beginning to mix the effort in late December. According to vocalist Björn 'Speed' Strid, “Peter has also started to record some rhythm guitars, so everything's working out really good. Both [Fredrik's] and Devin's head are packed with ideas, so everything's really exciting right now.... I'm heading for the studio on Tuesday, and I guess I will start recording the vox pretty soon... Looking forward!!!”

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Due to be released in early 2002 through Nuclear Blast Records, the upcoming CD will include the following working song titles, among others:

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01. The Bringer

02. Blackstar Deceiver

03. As We Speak

04. No More Angels

05. Follow The Hollow

DIMMU BORGIR guitarist Galder has stated that the recordings for the forthcoming album from OLD MAN'S CHILD, the band that he had founded and put on the backburner while completing the various recording and touring commitments with DIMMU BORGIR over much of the last year, will likely start in March 2002 at Studio Fredman in Gothenburg, Sweden. Current DIMMU BORGIR and former CRADLE OF FILTH drummer Nick Barker will be behind the kit, while Galder may play the remaining instruments himself unless suitable musicians are found in the meantime.

BRUJERIA, which features in its ranks FEAR FACTORY guitarist Dino Cazares, drummer Raymond Herrera and ex-FAITH NO MORE bassist Billy Gould, has severed ties with their label, Roadrunner Records, and will be releasing their next album on their own label, Kool Arrow Records. The group's latest release, Mextremist Greatest Hits, is a collection of classic BRUJERIA songs, as well as alternate versions of songs from their three releases on Roadrunner Records. Mextremist Greatest Hits comes out on October 23rd.

ATHEIST, the long-defunct “premier death-jazz band of the century”, have launched a new official web site at http://www.atheist-music.com/ Created by Chris Burkey, brother of former guitarist Rand Burkey, the site will soon host an online chat with the members of ATHEIST, and there will be many more videos available very soon, mostly from America and a few from Europe. There will also be a live CD recording of assorted shows, from all over, available soon. Meanwhile, Rand himself has launched a web site at http://www.randburkey.com/ and is continuing to work on original music, which spans a wide variety of styles, including rock, heavy metal, fusion, progressive metal, progressive jazz, alternative rock, and contemporary music. According to the guitarist's site, “possibly Rand's most bizarre and remarkable feature is his left handed nature. Not only does he play left handed, but the guitar is upside down and the strings are kept aligned for a right handed player. This has left many a musician amazed at his ability to even play a guitar with this left hand alignment structure.” You can hear some of Burkey's recent musical compositions via his page at MP3.com at this location.

Legendary Polish death metallers VADER have set Epitaph as the title for their upcoming studio album, which is scheduled to be recorded during January/February at Red Studio (the same studio where Litany and Reign Forever World were recorded) for a May 26th release. According to the group's official site, “the title of the new album is not accidental and relates to the recent terrorist attacks in the United States. [Guitarist/vocalist] Peter promises that the new album will continue in the line of Reign Forever World, but will definitely also have surprises.” In other news, VADER have issued a statement proclaiming their displeasure at the upcoming 'Best Of...' release through Impact Records, which was apparently compiled without the consent and co-operation of the band. “First of all, the title of the album is Armageddon, which does not make clear it is a 'Best Of…' album, and it may cause problems with fans who will be ripped off by the label,” the statement reads. “VADER doesn't participate in the programme of this album, VADER never agreed to the album cover, etc, etc... Generally, the label is releasing the album without our agreement, that's all! We think it is an easy way to make money by the label, not to promote VADER at all!!! But, unfortunately what we can do? We can only leave it up to you, the fans, not to buy this album!”

Having signed a new management deal with Survival Management, DANZIG is reportedly still seeking a new label deal following the recent completion of the recordings for the group's seventh CD, provisionally entitled Danzig 7: Kiss The Skull. Among the tracks that are presently set to appear on Danzig 7… are the following:

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01. Black Mass

02. Kiss The Skull

03. Dead Inside

04. God Of Light

05. Angel Blake

06. Wicked Pussycat

07. Halo Goddess Bone

08. The Coldest Sun

09. Dying Serph

10. Dark Secret Side

11. Soul Eater

12. Malefical Bride of Hell

13. LiberSkull

14. Naked Witch