Old News - March 2009


Old News - March 2009 - Old News - More March 2009 News
March 18th, 2009	Stonelake "Shades Of Eternity" Well, Stonelake are almost ready to release a brand new album "Shades Of Eternity". All the recordings are done, just the final mixing and mastering are left. The album are once again recorded/Produced/Mixed and mastered at UMP Unlimited Music Production Studios in Furulund SWEDEN www.ump.se by Jan Åkesson. Artwork will be done by Carl André Beckston. Lineup, Jan Åkesson Guitars Keyboards (Songwriter for the Solna Eurameric/Sent from Heaven albums with Pamela Moore, Ralf Sheepers (Primal Fear)) Peter Grundström Vocals (Songwriter for the Solna Eurameric Sent from Heaven albums with Pamela Moore, Ralf Sheepers (Primal Fear)) Jaime Salazar drums (Allen/Lande, Flower Kings, Last Tribe, Bad Habit etc...) Anders Rydholm Bass, Keys on "Treat Me Right" (Grand Illusion, Steve Overland, Code, Sherwood Ball, Demon Kogure etc....) I will come back to you soon with more info. Have a nice day! Best Regards/Med vänlig hälsning Jan Akesson UMP Unlimited Music Production/StoneLake/The Crude Parkgatan 33 C 24462 Furulund SWEDEN www.ump.se www.stonelake.se www.myspace.com/stonelaketheband SNOWY SHAW Launches Record Label! Swedish multi-instrumentalist Snowy Shaw (THERION, DREAM EVIL, KING DIAMOND, MERCYFUL FATE, MEMENTO MORI, NOTRE DAME) has launched his own record company, simply called Snowy Shaw Productions, like his other side project businesses in artwork and design, photography, stage dekor & props etc. The first release from the label will be the debut album from the glam/glitter rock act XXX, entitled "Heaven, Hell or Hollywood?" For the XXX debut CD, Snowy Shaw Productions has signed license deals with the following companies: * Perris Records (North America) * King Records (Japan) * Scarecrow Records (Mexico and South America) Negotiations are still in process with Locomotive Records for Europe. "Heaven, Hell or Hollywood?" will be released in USA and Canada on February 17 ( already available for pre-order at www.perrisrecords.com ). In Japan, the album was made available in November 2008. XXX - Heaven, Hell or Hollywood? will also be available within shortly on digital download at Itunes, Napster etc. Visit the sites: www.myspace.com/snowyshaw www.snowyshaw.com www.myspace.com/xxxsweden OLD MAN'S CHILD Debut new album’s title track “Slaves Of The World” online! Norwegian melodic black metal masters OLD MAN’S CHILD led by guitarist / vocalist Galder (also in Dimmu Borgir) are about to return into the dark spotlight with the release of their highly anticipated follow-up to 2005’s “Vermin” album. Entitled “Slaves Of The World”, the fantastic new album contains nine bombastic, captivating black metal anthems and as a first impression of what to expect, you can now officially check out the album’s title track at www.myspace.com/officialoldmanschild “Slaves Of The World” was once more recorded at Studio Fredman in Gothenburg / Sweden with acclaimed producer Fredrik Nordström (Dimmu Borgir, Arch Enemy, In Flames, etc.), who had previously worked successfully with the band on their "In Defiance Of Existence" (2003) and "Vermin" (2005) albums. For drum duties, OLD MAN’S CHILD mastermind Galder decided to enlist Peter Wildoer (Darkane, ex-Arch Enemy, Pestilence, etc.) this time around, guaranteeing a mercilessly blasting, yet technically high skilled musical punch from start to finish! “Slaves Of The World” will be released in Europe on May 18th, 2009 and in North America on May 19th, 2009 via Century Media Records. The gates of hell have been opened… www.myspace.com/officialoldmanschild Also visit: www.myspace.com/centurymediaeurope www.youtube.com/centurymediaeurope ARCHITECTS - win a day with the band on the Through The Noise-tour! Check out MySpace.de as of Friday February 13th who will feature modern metal sensation ARCHITECTS on their starting page! MySpace.de and Century Media Records are joining forces for the “be an ARCHITECTS roadie for a day!”-contest that runs in MySpace.de as of tomorrow. Win a meet & greet with the band on one of the German shows on their Through The Noise-tour with Comeback Kid, Misery Signals, Bane and Outbreak. For winning a day with ARCHITECTS during which you will need to give them a hand with the different aspects from life on the road such as load-out or merchandise, but which will also give you the opportunity to hang out with the band as well as enjoy the show you will need to do the following: Post a comment on www.myspace.com/architectsuk that explains your very own “Hollow Crown” – this mean draw a picture, shoot a photo, film a short clip or even just write it down. Please understand that you need to be at least 18 to be able to participate in the contest. Again, this is for one of the following German shows: Comeback Kid ARCHITECTS (rotating slot) Misery Signals (rotating slot) Bane (rotating slot) Outbreak 13.04.2009 (D) Munich - Feierwerk 14.04.2009 (D) Cologne - Essigfabrik 15.04.2009 (D) Karlsruhe - Substage 16.04.2009 (D) Muenster - Sputnikhalle 17.04.2009 (D) Leipzig - Conne Island Booking by Avocado Booking You will be notified via MySpace. After a highly successful run throughout their native UK the Through The Noise will be the first European tour in support of their already acclaimed album “Hollow Crown” that is out in Europe on the following dates: UK: OUT NOW! GERMANY / AUSTRIA / SWITZERLAND / BENELUX / ITALY: Friday, February 20, 2009. FRANCE / GREECE / DENMARK / NORWAY / REST OF EUROPE: Monday, February 23, 2009. SPAIN / PORTUGAL: Tuesday, February 24, 2009. SWEDEN / FINLAND / HUNGARY: Wednesday, February 25, 2009. Media feedback on “Hollow Crown” is absolutely overwhelming: “A carefully layered and brilliantly crafted work, this is the sound of a band unwilling to settle for second place, uncompromising in their approach.” KKKKK - lead review Kerrang! (UK) “Insanely addictive, impossibly infectious.” Metal Hammer (UK) “While “Ruin” was already quite promising, “Hollow Crown” turns out to be a masterpiece.” Visions (D) Also, the album went straight to Number 5 in the UK rock charts! Visit ARCHITECTS online: www.myspace.com/architectsuk http://ilovearchitects.blogspot.com www.youtube.com/wearearchitects KIP WINGER Honored by United States Government and Military HOLLYWOOD, CA – Multi-platinum recording artist, producer, songwriter Kip Winger was recently presented with an honorary plaque and a historic United States of America flag by The Government of the United States. In a surprise presentation ceremony during the taping of “Legends & Lyrics” General Harold Cross honored and praised Kip for his work on Winger lV. The inscription on the plaque reads: Department of Defense Seal IN APPRECIATION OF RECORDING ARTIST KIP WINGER AND HIS MUSICAL COMPOSITION "BLUE SUEDE SHOES" HONORING THE SERVICE AND SACRIFICE OF OUR UNITED STATES ARMED FORCES AND THEIR FAMILIES. OUR SINCERE THANKS, GENERAL HAROLD CROSS (FOUR STAR GENERAL) The flag has historic significance as it was the last United States of America flag to fly over Forward Operating Base ,Kalso, located in Iskandaria, Iraq, 20 miles south of Baghdad. Before it was turned over to the Iraqis, FOB Kalso was the U.S. Army soldier’s broadband internet services facility in Iraq as well as a base to stop enemy activity in the Sunni Triangle. WINGER IV’s [Shrapnel Records] concept and emphasis was on our Military and what it was like to be solider, form a soldiers perspective, leaving politics at the door. Kip had a vision to support the American troops that are standing ground in Iraq and elsewhere. “I had been doing solo shows at Military bases and in speaking with many of the soldiers, their stories touched me” explains Kip. “It was amazing to hear how far reaching our music was and how many soldiers have been moved by it, I was truly humbled by the stories”. Capturing the spirit, mood and reality from the perspective of the soldier. Songs like Right Up Ahead, M16 and Blue Suede Shoes were inspired songs seen though the eyes of a soldier at war. The album artwork was handled by Ethan Van Sciver who wanted to put in his part for our Military – Sciver is a renowned DC Comic book artist and penciler who has contributed (among others) to Cyberfrog, New X-Men, The Flash: Iron Heights and Impulse. The “Guardian Of Freedom” album art depicts our Militaries finest protecting with guardian angels that are representative of our prayers we send. Currently Kip is promoting his latest solo CD FROM THE MOON TO THE SUN on MVD Audio and the soon to be release Blackwood Creek record. He recently completed his first Orchestral piece for Ballet Choreographer Christopher Wheeldon Director of Morphoses Ballet Co. http://www.morphoses.org that will be used for San Francisco Ballet. The Musical world premier of Ghosts will be with The Tucson Symphony November 14th and 15th 2009. Kip and Reb Beach have also just began writing for a new WINGER release. DENVER’S CRYOGEN TO RELEASE NEW EP, ‘PSALMS OF DECEIT’, FOR FREE ‘Psalms of Deceit’ EP Digital release: Tuesday, February 17th 2009 through CRYOGEN’s online music store. http://www.cryogenband.com/music The digital version will be released as a “pay what you want” download, meaning it can be downloaded for free. CRYOGEN tells the world; “We’re leaving it up to our fans to decide what the album is worth.” Dear media friends, The main distribution method of this EP will be through our website, http://www.cryogenband.com/music. We are offering our fans the opportunity to pay what they want for our new EP. That includes paying nothing. We’re leaving that decision up to each individual, and we’re happy to be the first extreme metal band to do that. We feel that this is the future of music distribution and that there is no better time to do this than right now. While record labels sit in fear of losing sales to piracy, we believe it’s up to independent bands, like CRYOGEN, to help pave a new way of distributing music. We hope you enjoy the music, CRYOGEN STINY PLAMENU – sample from upcoming album Czech sewage black metal band STINY PLAMENU (Lord Morbivod‘s band, also in TROLLECH, WAR FOR WAR…) presents new song from the upcoming album Mrtva komora (Dead Chamber). Check that song at band’s myspace: http://www.myspace.com/diveintothewastewater Album Mrtva komora will be released via NAGA productions in May’09. Click here for Cover Tracklist: 1. Uhlavsky kanalizacni sberac 2. Litinovy teror 3. Mrtva komora 4. Strojirensky sberac 5. Zar stoky v plamenech 6. Pod tihou tmy 7. Odpust vodarny 8. Zatmeni plamenu 9. Plosna ratizace Plzne HEIDEN - new album "Obsidian" New song called „Triad“ is available for listening on HEIDEN band's official website. http://www.heidenhorde.com/ Album will be out on 3rd March 2009 via NAGA productions. http://naga-productions.com/ PRESS RELEASE Basick Records sign BURY TOMORROW (UK) BASICK RECORDS are extremely proud to announce the signing of the UK’s premier underground Metal band, BURY TOMORROW to a five year, album deal. Since self releasing their debut EP 'The Sleep of The Innocents', and subsequent singles ‘Casting Shadows’ and ‘Her Bones In The Sand’ via United By Fate/Distort Inc. the quintet have made it their continuing mission to rise through the underground scene on the weight of blistering songs and powerful live performances, rising to the top of their respective genres in the MySpace Artist charts. Davyd from the band had the following to say about the deal: “We are delighted to announce that we have signed to the UK’s very own Basick Records for the forthcoming release of our Debut album 'Portraits'. We felt that as a band the thing that was most important to us was, working with a label that was as excited about our music as we are, and after speaking with several other labels, Basick's enthusiasm for what we are trying to achieve shone through. Basick work with some of the most exciting Metal acts in the country providing them with a level of support that is second to none. We feel that Basick will be a great home for us, giving us the opportunity to grow and bring the public the music we've wanted to hear for such a long time.” Basick’s very own Mikee Ward had this to say about the recent signing: “We’re absolutely f***ing stoked to welcome BURY TOMORROW into the Basick Family. We always pride ourselves on signing bands with undoubted passion, talent and enthusiasm; the BT boys tick all these boxes, and then some. We absolutely cannot wait to release their debut album ‘Portraits’ later this year.” BURY TOMORROW’s debut album ‘Portraits’ will be released via BASICK RECORDS on September 1st 2009.For more info check out the Basick Records site and the bands MySpace page: http://www.basickrecords.com http://www.myspace.com/burytomorrowband A demo track form the forthcoming album is also now featuring on the Basick AudioPlayer. PARIA TO RELEASE THE BAND’S MOST INTRICATE ALBUM TO DATE, ‘THE BARNACLE CORDIOUS,’ ON MARCH 17!! The disease that infiltrates the current trend in music has been diagnosed, and the prescribed treatment is upcoming Paria release, “The Barnacle Cordious.” Care, detail, consternation and collective intuition lay the foundation for what will prove to be Paria’s most respected album to date. “Knee jerk reactions are the intention of this record, whether or not anyone agrees that these reactions are good ones, this album stands on its own. I’m fully prepared to defend that notion,” guitarist John Claus said about the effort. Paria is aware of the importance of improvement and honing new skills, and while statements such as these may remain trite, “The Barnacle Cordious” is anything but cliché. “The Barnacle Cordious” track listing: 1. The Barnacle Cordious 2. Circus 3. The Wallabee Dance Machine 4. Pish-Posh 5. Bomb 6. Rabid McFlygrid 7. Thrash 8. Be 9. I've Never Been Here Before in a Long Time Check out an exclusive track from the release, titled “The Wallabee Dance Machine” on the Paria MySpace: http://www.myspace.com/paria Check out Black Market Activities’ webstore for pre-order information: http://www.indiemerchstore.com/blackmarket BLIND GUARDIAN Meets Magic and Motion Capture! New Sacred 2 “Making of” Video Available Sacred 2: Fallen Angel is more than just a videogame; it’s a full-on audio experience, featuring a wide variety of music - including the title track performed by the renowned musical act BLIND GUARDIAN. To illustrate the integration of the band’s music and personality into the game, cdv USA and Ascaron Entertainment are launching a three-part “Making of” video series. The video for Part 1 focuses on BLIND GUARDIAN: how they were searching to work with a videogame developer and found a perfect partner with Ascaron Entertainment, developers of Sacred 2: Fallen Angel. Download the new video to learn all about how this incredible partnership was formed. Download the new video - High Resolution (approx. 500MB) http://cdv.gamespress.com/default.asp?p=1&i=481 Low Resolution (approx. 25 MB) http://cdv.gamespress.com/default.asp?p=1&i=482 For more information about Sacred 2: Fallen Angel, please visit http://www.cdvus.com or http://www.sacred2.com. About cdv Software Entertainment USA cdv Software Entertainment USA, a wholly owned subsidiary of cdv Software Entertainment AG, is a leading publisher of third-party video games and interactive entertainment with offices in New Jersey and headquarters in Cary, North Carolina. cdv Software Entertainment USA has published critically acclaimed and commercially successful titles including Divine Divinity, Blitzkrieg, American Conquest, Codename: Panzers, City Life, DarkStar One, War Front: Turning Point and the acclaimed Sherlock Holmes: The Awakened. The company will continue to expand its offerings with upcoming titles including the highly anticipated Sacred 2: Fallen Angel. For more information, please visit http://www.cdvus.com. About Ascaron Entertainment, GmbH Ascaron Entertainment GmbH is one of the pioneers in the development of computer games. It is also one of the leading developers of computer games in Germany and has been prominent in the sales charts for more than a decade with titles such as Patrician, ANSTOSS, Vermeer, Port Royale, DarkStar One and the original SACRED. Ascaron Entertainment is headquartered in Gütersloh, Germany, and maintains an office in Potsdam, a development studio in Aachen, Germany, as well as an international department in Birmingham (UK). Currently, Ascaron Entertainment markets its products in more than 34 countries For additional information about Sacred 2: Fallen Angel, please contact: Ted Brockwood, Calico Media Communications, ted@calico-media.com, at (503) 342-8067 Sara Jenkins, cdv Software Entertainment USA, sara.jenkins@cdvus.com

March 13rd, 2009	SAMAEL Post 2nd New Track! Swiss black metal legends SAMAEL have upload another new song to their Myspace page! "Black Hole" was taken from the groups upcoming "Above" album, which can only be described as a complete and utter return to their highly influential black metal roots! The track can be heard in its entirety at www.myspace.com/Samael. "Above" will be released in Europe on the 6th of March and on the 7th of April in North America! SAMAEL will be back to will return to North America in March supporting the reunited CARCASS. The following tour dates are confirmed: CARCASS, SUICIDE SILENCE, SAMAEL, ARSIS, PSYCROPTIC 03/13-Philadelphia, PA @ The Trocadero 03/14-Cleveland, OH @ Peabody's 03/15-Chicago, IL @ The Pearl Room 03/16-Detroit, MI @ Majestic Theatre 03/17-Louisville, KY @ Headliner's 03/18-St. Louis, MO @ Pop's 03/20-Tulsa, OK @ Flytrap 03/21-Ft. Worth/Dallas, TX @ Ridglea Theater 03/22-Houston, TX @ Meridian 03/24-Denver, CO @ Gothic Theatre 03/25-Albuquerque, NM @ Sunshine Theatre 03/27-Phoenix, AZ @ The Marquee Theatre 03/28-Anaheim, CA @ The Grove / California Metal Fest Queensryche Salutes The Troops With American Soldier Concept Album Inspired By Veterans’ Stories Examines The Consequences Of War From The Soldiers’ Perspective Album Available March 31 From Atco/Rhino; U.S. Tour To Begin April 16 In Seattle LOS ANGELES — Queensrÿche envisions war through the eyes of a soldier with the band’s twelfth studio release, the epic concept album AMERICAN SOLDIER. The ambitious album encompasses a dozen songs inspired by numerous interviews with veterans conducted by Geoff Tate, the group’s singer and chief songwriter, who was intent on telling their story using their words. After speaking with soldiers who served in various conflicts—from World War II to Iraq—Tate turned their firsthand experiences from the frontlines into an unflinching musical examination of the life of a soldier and the consequences of war. AMERICAN SOLDIER will be available from Atco/Rhino on March 31 for a suggested list price of $18.98 (CD) and $9.99 (digital). Tate, Michael Wilton (guitar), Ed Jackson (bass) and Scott Rockenfield (drums) recorded the album in 2008 over the course of nine months. The idea for AMERICAN SOLDIER, Tate says, came from hearing stories from fans that are veterans, as well as his own father, who served in both Korea and Vietnam. “My father was a career military man, but until very recently he never spoke about what he went through. I think that reticence is true of a lot of veterans, which means most people never truly understand what it means to be a soldier at war. Hearing what he and some of our fans have endured made me want to share their stories with the world. This is an album about the soldiers, for the soldiers, as told by the soldiers themselves.” Those stories resonate at the heart of AMERICAN SOLDIER, imbuing each song with vivid details about both the emotional and physical impacts of war, evoking war zone battles (“Middle Of Hell”), sacrifice (“The Killer”), loss (“If I Were King”), the longing for home (“Remember Me”), and adjusting to society after returning from war (“Man Down!”). Tate recorded many of his interviews with the soldiers, and some dialogue from these discussions is mixed into several of tracks, allowing the soldiers’ own words to help tell their compelling stories. The band also brought a few of the soldiers into the studio with them to record vocals. The verses of the track “Unafraid” feature the voices of Chris Devine, a Vietnam veteran, and Sean Lenahan, a veteran of Somalia, recalling their war experiences while Tate provides the anthemic chorus. Also making a guest vocal appearance is Tate’s 10-year-old daughter Emily on the gripping duet “Home Again,” which examines the emotional toll of war from two perspectives, with Geoff singing from the soldier’s point of view and his daughter singing from the viewpoint of the child left behind. Making the album, Tate says, was an enlightening process. “I was surprised to learn how little has changed through the generations. I spoke with a Vietnam vet whose experience wasn’t all that different from a soldier who fought in Somalia almost 30 years later. But what surprised me the most was how antiwar most soldiers are. To me, that makes their sacrifices even more moving.” Soon after the release of AMERICAN SOLDIER, Queensrÿche will launch an extensive spring tour of the U.S., with international dates to follow later in 2009. The shows will be presented in three suites, with the band performing sets from AMERICAN SOLDIER, Rage For Order, and Empire. The first date of the tour will be April 16 at Snoqualmie Casino in the band’s hometown of Seattle. AMERICAN SOLDIER Track Listing 1. “Sliver” 2. “Unafraid” 3. “Hundred Mile Stare” 4. “At 30,000 ft.” 5. “A Dead Man’s Words” 6. “The Killer” 7. “Middle Of Hell” 8. “If I Were King” 9. “Man Down!” 10. “Remember Me” 11. “Home Again” 12. “The Voice” Queensrÿche U.S. Tour Dates APRIL 16 Snoqualmie, WA Snoqualmie Casino 17 Snoqualmie, WA Snoqualmie Casino 18 Portland, OR Roseland Theatre 19 Chico, CA Senator Theatre 22 Anaheim, CA House Of Blues 23 San Diego, CA House Of Blues 24 Los Angeles, CA House Of Blues 25 Las Vegas, NV House Of Blues 26 Salt Lake City, UT The Depot 28 Denver, CO Paramount Theater 29 Kansas City, MO Voodoo Lounge @ Harrah's 30 Milwaukee, WI Northern Lights Theater MAY 1 Milwaukee, WI Northern Lights Theater 3 Walker, MN Northern Lights Casino 5 Grand Rapids, MI Intersection 6 Cleveland, OH House Of Blues 7 Chicago, IL House Of Blues 8 Chicago, IL House Of Blues 9 Mt. Clemens, MI Emerald Theatre 10 Greensburg, PA Palace Theatre 12 Verona, NY Turning Stone Casino 13 Stamford, CT The Palace Theater 14 Sayerville, NJ Starland Ballroom 15 New York, NY Nokia Theatre 16 Atlantic City, NJ House Of Blues 17 N. Myrtle Beach, SC House Of Blues 19 Tampa, FL Ruth Eckerd Hall 20 Lake Buena Vista, FL House Of Blues 21 New Orleans, LA House Of Blues 22 Houston, TX House Of Blues 23 San Antonio, TX Hemisfair Park 24 Dallas, TX House Of Blues 29 Albuquerque, NM Kiva Auditoruim 30 Phoenix, AZ Dodge JUNE 3 Agoura Hills, CA Canyon Club 4 San Francisco, CA Fillmore 5 Kelseyville, CA Konocti Harbor dirge merchants Gnaw unleash This Face Gnaw present their debut album This Face, viciously assaulting listeners with their unique brew of ultra-depressive, scathing, slug-paced extreme metal. Formed in 2006 by Alan Dubin (ex-Khanate, OLD) along with Jamie Sykes (ex-Burning Witch, Thorr's Hammer, Atavist), Carter Thornton (Enos Slaughter), Jun Mizumachi (ex-Ike Yard: 80's NYC industrial legends) and Brian Beatrice (Emmy Award winning sound design/mix wizard), Dubin thought it would be fantastic to collaborate with some of his respected musician/friends, all who have diverse music backgrounds to see/hear what would develop. Gnaw's debut album This Face is the sonic culmination of over a year of sound experimentation. It's a genre-destroying journey that almost defies description. Sykes is a percussive madman blasting out anything from tribal beats to ultra slow tom killings. Mizumachi is a sound designer for film and television and is a master of electronics including synth, factory noise, metal bashing and other craziness. Beatrice is also a sound designer and mixer for film and television and was responsible for mixing This Face, as well as experimenting and adding additional sounds of torture. Thornton is a crafty musician who actually makes his own instruments, contributing guitar, bass, piano and some unnamed homemade "things" to the album. Dubin rounds out the group with his gut-wrenching vocals, noise and arrangements. Screaming, singing, whispers and chants can be heard throughout This Face. Dubin's lyrics are vivid portrayals of all things bad. This Face will be released by Belgium's Conspiracy Records on February 20, 2009. http://www.myspace.com/gnaw666 http://www.conspiracyrecords.com http://www.myspace.com/conspiracyrecords MANTIC RITUAL HIT THE ROAD HARD TO SUPPORT DEBUT ALBUM Fresh from celebrating their beloved Pittsburgh Steelers’ Super Bowl XLIII victory, Pennsylvania’s own MANTIC RITUAL are hitting the road in support of their upcoming debut album Executioner – due out in North America on March and will be teaming up with Germany’s Destruction & Brazil’s Krisiun to play 30 shows throughout March/April and later with Propain & Sworn Enemy for 38 dates in June/July. Advanced tickets for BOTH tours are now on sale exclusively on www.Enterthevault.com. Tickets for the Propain tour are on sale through March 7. On March 8, they will be available through regular ticketing outlets. Obviously inspired by the early works of thrash veterans Slayer, Metallica, Megadeth, and Exodus, MANTIC RITUAL are the rising leaders in the new school of old school thrash metal. All the essential elements of what made the thrash metal genre immortal are there: undiluted angst, blind aggression, smoldering speed, adrenaline-inducing drum beats and guitar riffs, barking & tormented lead vocals, backing gang vocals, and best of all, the manic, sweat-drenched, passionately delivered live shows. View MANTIC RITUAL’s video for “One By One” on YouTube. Stream three tracks off the debut album - “Panic,” “Murdered To Death,” and “Next Attack” - online at www.myspace.com/MANTICRITUAL WITHERED LOOKS AHEAD TO A 'FEST'-IVE SPRING The "tortured blackened doom" Georgia quartet WITHERED – who recently wrapped up a national tour with Watain and labelmates Book of Black Earth, and whose recently released Folie Circulaire was named one of Decibel Magazine's Top 40 albums of 2008 – is currently preparing for a busy spring that will see the band play three of the most significant metal festivals of the season. First up is the inaugural Scion Rock Fest, which takes place later this month in the band's Atlanta hometown. There, WITHERED will play alongside Mastodon, Neurosis, High on Fire and many more. Says vocalist/guitarist Mike Thompson, "We're incredibly excited to be a part of this. Big thanks to the Scion crew (especially Adam) for inviting us to participate in this unprecedented event. Hell, I couldn't have put together a better lineup myself. I've never attended, much less performed at, a fest where there were so many bands I'd climb over my own mother to see live! This one will be truly historical for Atlanta, and for this generation of hard rock/metal fans." Soon after, WITHERED will perform on day two of the 11th Annual New England Metal and Hardcore Festival in Worcester, Mass., where they'll play alongside Lamb of God, Children of Bodom and many of the band's Prosthetic Records labelmates. On the way to and from New England, the band will also play a handful of headlining shows. "It's great to be a part of this fest, as we had a blast in 2006 and can't wait to do it again," Thompson says. "The lineup looks fantastic and it'll be great to rub elbows with the likes of Napalm Death, Suffocation and all the other incredible bands playing. New England is one of the oldest events in extreme music, and everyone should experience it at least once in their life, so make it out if you can and have a few beers with us." Finally, WITHERED was just announced as one of the participants in the inaugural "Blackenedfest," which will see the band team with Mayhem, Marduk, Cattle Decapitation and Cephalic Carnage for a month-long tour. "We're very honored to take part in this tour," Thompson says. "Mayhem, Marduk, Cephalic and Cattle Decap are all veterans of extreme metal, and each has had a significant impact on the scene. Just being around these bands everyday will help drive our focus and performances to new levels. We'll be faced with warming up the crowds each night, but it's a welcome responsibility. It'll be great to see our fans again while also, hopefully, earning some new ones. We'll be performing selections from both of our full-length albums, and we might even pull out a new song or two just to give our dedicated fans something fresh to chew on. We'll see everyone on the road!" Four tracks from Folie Circulaire – including a cover of Necrophobic's "Into Armageddon" – can currently be streamed on the band's MySpace page, www.myspace.com/withered. The album was produced by Kylesa's Phillip Cope (Baroness), and it features artwork by Paul Romano (Trivium, The Acacia Strain, Mastodon). WITHERED on tour: 2/13 Warehouse - Atlanta, GA 2/20 Ground Zero - Spartanburg, SC 2/27 Criminal Records - Atlanta, GA (free in-store performance) 2/28 Masquerade - Atlanta, GA (Scion Rock Fest) 4/15 Sonar - Baltimore, MD 4/16 Union Pool - Brooklyn, NY 4/17 Palladium - Worcester, MA (New England Metalfest) 4/18 The M Room - Philadelphia, PA 4/19 Volume 11 - Raleigh, NC 5/21 The Fillmore at Irving Plaza - New York, NY* 5/23 Ground Zero – Spartanburg, SC* 5/24 Club Firestone - Orlando, FL* 5/26 Numbers - Houston, TX* 5/27 White Rabbit - San Antonio, TX* 5/29 Sunshine Theater - Albuquerque, NM* 5/30 Clubhouse - Tempe, AZ* 5/31 House of Blues - San Diego, CA* 6/2 House of Blues - Hollywood, CA* 6/3 DNA - San Francisco, CA* 6/4 Hawthorne Theatre - Portland, OR* 6/5 Studio Seven - Seattle, WA* 6/6 Knitting Factory - Boise, ID* 6/7 Gothic Theater - Denver, CO* 6/9 Station 4 - St. Paul, MN* 6/11 House of Blues - Chicago, IL* 6/12 Peabody's - Cleveland, OH* 6/13 Majestic Theater - Detroit, MI* 6/14 Opera House - Toronto, ON* 6/15 Foufounes Electriques - Montreal, QC* * Blackenedfest w/ Mayhem, Marduk, Cephalic Carnage, Cattle Decapitation www.prostheticrecords.com SUNN O))) release details for Monoliths & Dimensions SUNN O))) is proud to present their 7th studio album, after 10 years of existence, entitled Monoliths & Dimensions. The album showcases the core guitar duo - Stephen O’Malley and Greg Anderson - incorporating influences from a plethora of guest musicians, bringing the SUNN O))) sound to epic new levels. The band also collaborated with composer Eyvind Kang (notable for his work with John Zorn, Marc Ribot, Bill Frisell, etc.) on various acoustic ensembles, in addition to the Helios fueled electric guitars and basses. Key players on the album include Australian guitar genius Oren Ambarchi, enigmatic Hungarian vocalist Attila Csihar (Mayhem, Tormentor, etc.) and slow music godfather Dylan Carlson (Earth), as well as Julian Priester (worked with Sun Ra in the 50s, John Coltrane’s African Brass band, and Herbie Hancock’s Sextant band) and new-music horn player Stuart Dempster. There’s also an upright bass trio, French & English horns, harp & flute duo, piano, brass, reed & strings ensembles, and a Viennese woman’s choir led by Persian vocal savant Jessika Kenney. The album is not "SUNN O))) with strings" or "metal meets orchestra" material. The band took an approach concentrating on more of allusion toward the timbre of feedback and the instruments involved, so the piece is really illusory, beautiful and not entirely linear, stating that the end product is "the most musical piece we’ve done, and also the heaviest, powerful and most abstract set of chords we've laid to tape" The album was recorded and mixed by Randall Dunn & Mell Dettmer at various points over the last 2 years, and will be released late May 2008. Monoliths & Dimensions is practice in density, gravity and momentum. Monoliths & Dimensions track listing: Aghartha (17:34) Big Church [megszentségteleníthetetlenségeskedéseitekért] (09:43) Hunting & Gathering (Cydonia) (10:02) Alice (16:21) MAXIMUM VOLUME YIELDS MAXIMUM RESULTS. http://www.ideologic.org http://www.southernlord.com http://blog.southernlord.com http://www.myspae.com/southernlordrecordings HELSINKI METAL MEETING GATHERED OVER 6000 VISITORS Helsinki Metal Meeting which consisted of the Cable Factory, Tavastia and Dante’s highlight venues gathered over 6000 visitors over 3 days, between 12.-14.2. Most popular acts of the weekend were DEATHSTARS and SONIC SYNDICATE who sold out Tavastia club on Friday night, AMORAL who presented their new frontman as well as BLACK DAHLIA MURDER and LEGION OF THE DAMNED who dominated the Cable Factory, In addition to the live shows more than 50 exhibitors such as record labels, instrument brands, merchandisers, media etc. displayed their latest offerings in the expo area. Finnish Metal Awards awarded the best Finnish Metal of 2008. The people cast their votes to select the winners. Finnish Metal Awards 2008 -winners: Record of the year: Stam1na: "Raja" Band of the year: Stam1na Rookie of the year: Hateform Cover art of the year: Stam1na: "Raja" Musician of the year: Alexi Laiho Vocalist of the year: Antti Hyyrynen Demo band of the year: FM2000 Additional info: www.fme.fi Niklas Nuppola, niklas@fme.fi Jouni Markkanen, jouni@fme.fi

March 10th, 2009	TUSKA OPEN AIR METAL FESTIVAL - Tuska Open Air Metal Festival 26.-28.6.2009 Kaisaniemi, Helsinki, Finland - VOLBEAT, NEUROSIS, BULLET FOR MY VALENTINE, PAUL GILBERT, MY DYING BRIDE, PESTILENCE, GAMA BOMB, AMORPHIS etc. - Ticket sales start on March 3rd The 12th annual Tuska Open Air Metal Festival takes place in its near legendary location of Kaisaniemi on July 26.-28. This year’s line up features such international acts as VOLBEAT, NEUROSIS, PAUL GILBERT, PESTILENCE, GAMA BOMB, GOJIRA, LEGION OF THE DAMNED and JOHN OLIVA’S PAIN. Finnish experience and heritage is represented by the likes of AMORPHIS, ENSIFERUM and ROTTEN SOUND and new blood is drawn by new comers DEATHCHAIN, MEDEIA, DAUNTLESS and TUKKANUOTTA. A total of 32 bands on three stages will perform at Kaisaniemi, Helsinki over the course of three days. In addition to this, a couple of dozen bands will be appearing at the infamous evening clubs. Current TUSKA 2009 roster: Volbeat Bullet For My Valentine Neurosis Paul Gilbert Amorphis My Dying Bride Pestilence Ensiferum Gojira Parkway Drive Legion Of the Damned Mucc Girugämesh Deathchain Jon Oliva´s Pain Eluveitie Rotten Sound Firewind Gama Bomb Profane Omen Callisto Medeia Dauntless Tukkanuotta Tickets for Tuska 2009 will go on sale on 3.3. through www.tiketti.fi and www.lippupalvelu.fi. Tuska 2009 is an all-ages event. Ticket prices TBA. Additional Info on TUSKA FESTIVAL: www.tuska-festival.fi www.finnishmetalevents.fi Jouni Markkanen +358 500 574 636, jouni@fme.fi Niklas Nuppola +358 40 552 74 94, niklas@fme.fi SEPTEMBER MURDER - eCard with new track online! The debut album of german Death Metal hopefulls SEPTEMBER MURDER will hit the stores next week on february 20th 2009. Now you can visit the brandnew eCard including a new preview track "Slavery Of Heartdisruption" and some detailled album and band informations. Take a look, listen and keep your head banging! eCard: Click Here freeMP3: Click Here Web: http://maintainrecords.com http://myspace.com/septembermurder http://mypsace.com/maintainrec LACUNA COIL “Shallow Life” release dates confirmed and touring cycle starts! LACUNA COIL’s much anticipated new album, „Shallow Life“, will be released on the following dates: Europe: April 20th, 2009 North America: April 21st, 2009 “Shallow Life” was produced by Don Gilmore (Linkin Park, Avril Lavigne, Good Charlotte) at NRG Studios L.A. where renowned artists such as Linkin Park, Foo Fighters, The Used, Slayer, Papa Roach, Avril Lavigne, Good Charlotte, and many, many more worked on some of their landmark albums. LACUNA COIL comment on “Shallow Life” as follows: Cristina Scabbia: "’Shallow Life’ is a natural metamorphosis from within the band; we explored different musical territories while maintaining our own style. A mix of old and new, fast and slow... light and dark. The album production is incredibly powerful and has a beautiful purity to it. Hopefully listeners will feel the same sort of connection that we have to these songs. It would be great to think that we have produced songs that will make anybody either think, smile or cry. ‘Shallow Life’ has forced us to challenge ourselves. It represents the way we see ourselves in the days we live in through truth, love and lies.” Andrea Ferro: "’Shallow Life’ is just a mirror of what you see out there, it's something you should first see inside of you. It's a new cycle of songs and it's more clearly ourselves." The release of the album will be supported by the Music As A Weapon IV Tour http://www.musicasaweapon4.com which is going to be THE major North American tour for the 1st half of 2009. The four bands performing on the mainstage are Disturbed, Killswitch Engage, Chimaira and LACUNA COIL. Still, this is set out to be more than just a tour, because there will be a tattoo and music festival with a 2nd stage and additional bands playing as well as an extreme sports exhibition including Freestyle and Half Pipe from top action sports stars. Some of the world's major league tattoo artists will be joined by some of the top local ones in each individual market. However, LACUNA COIL’s European fans will just need to wait a tiny little longer before the band will play several major European festivals which will be announced shortly. Thus, stay tuned for updates! http://www.lacunacoil.it/ http://www.myspace.com/lacunacoil http://www.emptyspiral.net/ DEVIAN premiere video clip for "Assailant"; kick off tour with Unleashed this month! Swedish blackened death/thrash commando DEVIAN has returned from its successful European tour with Deicide, Samael, Vader and apparently had a great time as vocalist Legion (ex-Marduk) states while checking in with a band update: “The Winterfest! What a mad tour! Too many packed venues and rabid response to our set to pin-point any highlights, we had an absolute blast destroying cities around Europe and we hope that all of you out there who sweat and screamed with us enjoyed it as much as we did!! Although the tour has come to its inevitable grinding halt the DEVIAN machine won’t stop rolling! We’re just getting geared up and adrenalized to team up with our fellow country men in Unleashed to pummel on Scandinavia, make sure we won’t stop at nothing bringing hell to the Northern stages!! In the meantime we have another treat for you, the lead off video for our current album “God To The Illfated”; namely “Assailant”. A ravaging orgy in comic-book style violence to ablaze the winter for you out there. Enjoy!!” While the clip for “Assailant”, shot by Rasmus Tirzitis / Tirzitis Entertainment, perfectly fits to the band’s extremely dynamic, hellish aggressive sound and massive, thrashing riffs, it is likely to be deemed too brutal and offensive for most common TV outlets, so feel free to watch the uncensored version at the following location: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yt_W_vo3WZ8 Towards the end of this month, DEVIAN will start touring Northern Europe with Unleashed and Belphegor. This marks another great opportunity to present their masterly new album “God To The Illfated” live! See DEVIAN live on the following dates: “HAMMER BATTALION NORTH TOUR 2009” Unleashed, Belphegor, DEVIAN, Diabolical Presented by http://www.metal-portal.net 27.02.2009 (EST) Tallin / Tapper 28.02.2009 (FIN) Tampere / Yo-Talo 02.03.2009 (FIN) Helsinki / Nosturi 03.03.2009 (FIN) Turku / Klubi 04.03.2009 (FIN) Joenasuu / Kellari 05.03.2009 (FIN) Oulu / Teatria 06.03.2009 (SWE) Umea / Midnight 07.03.2009 (SWE) Ostersund / Tingshuset 10.03.2009 (SWE) Orebro / Kulturhuset 11.03.2009 (SWE) Malmoe / Debaser 12.03.2009 (DEN) Copenhagen / The Rock 13.03.2009 (SWE) Stockholm / Klubben 14.03.2009 (SWE) Goteborg / Sticky Fingers Booking: http://www.massive-music.pl For further info on DEVIAN visit the following sites: http://www.devian.se http://www.myspace.com/truedevian PARADISE LOST currently recording new album; in-the-studio videos available! Gothic metal masters PARADISE LOST have locked themselves up in Fascination Studios in snowy Örebro (Sweden) with producer Jens Bogren (Katatonia, Amon Amarth, Opeth) to record the highly anticipated successor to 2007’s “In Requiem”. Vocalist Nick Holmes and bassist Steve Edmondson have captured a few impressions from the band’s trip to the studio and the first days of the recordings, check them out! More videos will follow soon! #1 www.youtube.com/watch?v=UBEFhQ4gWeI&feature=channel_page #2 www.youtube.com/watch?v=UBEFhQ4gWeI&feature=channel_page Jens Bogren states: “It's going to be a great album, like the good old days, if I may say so! Intense, diverse riffing with wild drumming, and great songs.” After PARADISE LOST celebrated their 20th anniversary in 2008 and released the stunning “The Anatomy Of Melancholy” live DVD/live album you can now look forward to the darkest and heaviest metal album of 2009 coming to you in September via Century Media Records! For further info on PARADISE LOST visit: www.paradiselost.co.uk www.myspace.com/paradiselostuk GOD FORBID stream entire new album "Earthsblood" at MySpace! From today until February 13th, 2009, “Earthsblood”, the stunning new album by New Jersey metal titans GOD FORBID, can be heard in its entirety at the band’s MySpace page www.myspace.com/godforbid Do not miss the chance to check out this masterly new metal opus as it easily marks the most dynamic and powerful album in the band’s career. “Earthsblood” will be released as CD and limited edition Digipak (incl. bonus live CD feat. the audio part of the “Beneath The Scars Of Glory And Progression” DVD) via Century Media Records on the following dates: GERMANY / AUSTRIA / SWITZERLAND / BENELUX / ITALY: Friday, February 13, 2009. UK / FRANCE / GREECE / DENMARK / NORWAY / REST OF EUROPE: Monday, February 16, 2009. SPAIN / PORTUGAL: Tuesday, February 17, 2009. SWEDEN / FINLAND / HUNGARY: Wednesday, February 18, 2009. USA: Tuesday, February 24th, 2009. The album was produced by Eric Rachel (Atreyu) with Christian Olde Wolbers (Fear Factory, Threat Signal) handling all vocal tracking. The mixing was handled by Jens Bogren (Opeth, Soilwork, Amon Amarth). GOD FORBID will be starting their European tour with Ill Nino later this month and are already confirmed for several prestigious festivals this summer, see below for the exact dates: Ill Nino GOD FORBID Exilia 24.02.2009 Haarlem (NL) - Patronaat 25.02.2009 Eindhoven (NL) - Effenaar 26.02.2009 Cologne (D) - Essigfabrik 27.02.2009 Copenhagen (DK) - The Rock 28.02.2009 Hamburg (D) - Knust 01.03.2009 Berlin (D) - K17 03.03.2009 Vienna (AT) - Arena 04.03.2009 Stuttgart (D) - Die Röhre 06.03.2009 Milan (IT) - Zoe Club 07.03.2009 Winterthur (CH) - Salzhaus 08.03.2009 Fribourg (CH) - Fri-Son 10.03.2009 Villa Real (ES) - Salatal 11.03.2009 Granada (ES) - El Tren 12.03.2009 Madrid (ES) - La Sala Live 13.03.2009 Vigo (ES) - Sala A 14.03.2009 Villaba (ES) - Pamplona Totem 15.03.2009 Notre Dame De Gravenchon (F) - Arcade 17.03.2009 Newcastle (UK) - Academy 2 18.03.2009 Liverpool (UK) - Academy 2 19.03.2009 Sheffield (UK) - Academy 2 20.03.2009 London (UK) - Islington Academy 21.03.2009 Birmingham (UK) - Academy 2 22.03.2009 Bristol (UK) - Academy 2 GOD FORBID @ Summer festivals 06.06.2009 Bologna (IT) - Flame Fest 19. – 21.06.2009 Clisson (F) - Hellfest 26. – 28.06.2009 Dessel (BE) – Graspop Metal Meeting 03.07.2009 Münster (D) - Vainstream Rockfest 04.07.2009 Mannheim (D) - Vainstream Beastfest 05.07.2009 Roijtzschora (D) – With Full Force …more dates to follow soon! Also visit: www.godforbid1.com ALL THAT REMAINS checks in from Europe, continues U.S. radio and sales chart success Quintet confirmed for New England Metal and Hardcore Festival, Rockstar Mayhem tour Massachusetts metallers ALL THAT REMAINS are nearing the end of a successful European co-headlining tour with legendary Swedish thrashers The Haunted, a trek that concludes Feb. 15 in Brussels, Belgium. From there, the band will head to Australia, where they'll play the Soundwave Festival series alongside Nine Inch Nails, Lamb of God, Alice In Chains, recent U.S. tourmates In Flames and many more. ALL THAT REMAINS will then travel to Japan, where they'll play with Dragonforce (with whom they toured America in 2006), before finally returning Stateside in April, when they will headline the first night of the New England Metal and Hardcore Festival in Worcester, Mass. The band will perform additional dates throughout the spring before spending the summer as part of the Rockstar Mayhem tour; further details will be revealed in the near future. "It's been a while since we've been overseas and I wasn't sure what to expect," vocalist Phil Labonte says, "but many shows have been sold-out and we're hearing similar things about the rest of the tour. We were really excited to play Gothenburg. There are so many bands from there that were so influential to us and lots of other bands who are from our area. I mean, right now I'm on tour with The Haunted! That band has had such a huge impact on the sound of ATR over the years. We're also really excited for our first trip to Australia – good times all in all!" The new ALL THAT REMAINS album, Overcome, has already sold more than 120,000 copies in America since its September street date – the group's third release to cross the six-figure mark domestically. Following its #16 debut, the album to date has spent 12 weeks on the Billboard Top 200. Meanwhile, their single "Two Weeks" continues to receive impressive radio support around the country, and currently sits at #20 on the active rock radio chart (click here to view a list of stations). The band's music video for "Two Weeks" – recently voted the second-best clip of 2008 by viewers of MTV2's "Headbangers Ball" – is now available for purchase on iTunes, as are the music videos for all of their prior releases. The ATR iTunes store can be accessed at this location: www.tinyurl.com/atritunes ALL THAT REMAINS on tour: 2/12 Exhaus – Trier, Germany* 2/13 Melkweg – Amsterdam, Holland* 2/14 Nouveau Casino – Paris, France* 2/15 AB Box – Brussels, Belgium* 2/21 RNA Showgrounds – Brisbane, Australia (Soundwave Festival) 2/22 Eastern Creek Raceway – Sydney, Australia (Soundwave Festival) 2/25 The Forum – Sydney, Australia 2/27 Melbourne Showgrounds – Melbourne, Australia (Soundwave Festival) 2/28 Bonython Park Oval – Adelaide, Australia (Soundwave Festival) 3/2 Steel Blue Oval – Perth, Australia (Soundwave Festival) 3/26 Zepp Fukuoka – Fukuoka, Japan* 3/27 Zepp Osaka – Osaka, Japan* 3/30 Zepp Tokyo – Tokyo, Japan* 4/1 Zepp Sendai – Sendai, Japan* 4/4 Zepp Sapporo – Sapporo, Japan* 4/17 Palladium – Worcester, Mass. (New England Metal and Hardcore Festival) 7/10 Sleep Train Amphitheatre – Sacramento, CA 7/11 Shoreline Amphitheatre – San Francisco, CA 7/12 Glen Helen Pavilion – San Bernardino, CA 7/14 White River Amphitheater – Seattle, WA 7/17 Cricket Pavilion – Phoenix, AZ 7/18 Journal Pavilion – Albuquerque, NM 7/19 Fiddler's Green Amphitheater – Denver, CO 7/21 Sandstone Amphitheater – Kansas City, MO 7/22 Verizon Wireless Amph – St. Louis, MO 7/24 Lakewood Amph – Atlanta, GA 7/25 Verizon Wireless Music Center – Indianapolis, IN 7/26 First Midwest Bank Amphitheatre – Tinley Park, IL 7/28 Molson Amphit – Toronto ON 7/29 Toyota Pavilion – Scranton, PA 7/31 Blossom Music Center – Cleveland, OH 8/1 Post Gazette Pavilion – Pittsburgh, PA 8/2 DTE Energy Music Theatre – Detroit, MI 8/4 Comcast Center for the Performing Arts – Boston, MA 8/6 Virginia Beach Amphithea – Virginia Beach, VA 8/7 Susquehanna Bank Center – Camden, NJ 8/8 New England Dodge Music Center – Hartford, CT 8/9 Nissan Pavilion – Washington, D.C. 8/11 Ford Amphitheatre – Tampa, FL 8/12 Cruzan Amphitheatre – West Palm Beach, FL 8/14 SuperPages.com Center – Dallas, TX 8/15 Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion – Houston, TX 8/16 Verizon Wireless Amphitheatre – San Antonio, TX * w/ The Haunted Rockstar Mayhem festival * w/ Dragonforce www.prostheticrecords.com spilltheblood.net Launches with High Acclaim from Metal Fans Around the World. (Long Beach, CA) -- After years of being marginalized by the technological overlords, metalheads everywhere finally have a single resource for all their metal needs: www.spilltheblood.net Now metal fans can find all the latest metal news and music from over 500 magazines, blogs, band sites and labels from around the globe and all across the metal spectrum. Up-to-the-minute content means the latest word on your favorite band is just around the corner, and soon-to-be favorites are just a click away. Need to know who's buzzworthy? Posts from Hell collects the most popular posts on Spill the Blood for a quick primer on what you need to know. Tracks from Hell puts the newest and best mp3s front-and-center, and the STB Forums are the place to talk about it all. Bands and labels will love the fans they can reach. Bloggers will love the traffic they will get. And fans will love all the resources for music they just can't get enough of. It's a win-win-win. For more information, visit: www.spilltheblood.net Your Source for Metal News and MP3s from Blogs Around the World BLISTERING RECORDS offers free LION’S SHARE download Blistering Records is pleased to announce that we have made the first single from the new Lion's Share CD, "Judas Must Die" available as a free download on our website. Lion's Share, Sweden's melodic metal masters will be releasing their new CD, Dark Hours in the U.S. on March 24th (with similar release dates around Europe depending on the territory) so to help kick things off we are offering the track free to the public as part of a new feature on our site called "On the Download." Simply click the link www.blisteringrecords.se/downloads or you can go to www.blisteringrecords.se and click "On the Download." There you will also find free downloads for other Blistering Records artists such as Covered Call and Mandrake Project. Dark Hours was mixed by engineer extraordinaire Jens Bogren (Opeth, Amon Amarth) and features a special guest appearance my Michael Romeo of Symphony X. The CD will be released initially as a limited edition Digipak and has enhanced features that include the promotional video clip for "Judas Must Die," a mini documentary of the making of the CD and video and live performance footage. You can pre-order Lion's Share Dark Hours by visiting our webstore at http://shop.blisteringrecords.se BLISTERING RECORDS www.blisteringrecords.se http://shop.blisteringrecords.se www.myspace.com/blisteringrecords

March 8th, 2009	Earsplit wants to spice up your life with some Nashville Pussy They're back to kick your ass! For over a decade, Nashville Pussy has been bringing the fire and spirit of REAL rock n' roll to stages all across the planet. With four acclaimed full-lengths and a Grammy nomination in tow, the band has honed their most impressive recording to date in the form of From Hell To Texas. Indeed, From Hell To Texas stacks up perfectly against other masterful 'Pussy classics such as Let Them Eat Pussy and High As Hell As always, Ruyter Suys' spectacular axe-work is front and center, breathing even more whiskey-fueled passion into husband Blaine Cartwright's creations, with burners such as "I'm So High," "Drunk Driving Man," and "Pray for the Devil" leading the charge. The album was recorded at Willie Nelson's Pedernales Studio in Texas on the same two-inch tape machine which Willie himself has used to cut all of his legendary albums. In the past year, they've continued to cement their reputation as one of the hardest working bands in the world, with tours of Australia, Brazil, Japan, Europe and most recently almost a year straight with the Reverend Horton Heat all over North America. All the while, band mastermind Cartwright (vocals, guitar), Ruyter Suys (guitar), Karen Cuda (bass) and Jeremy Thompson (drums) spent three years working on the release. "We allowed ourselves this time to give the songs the chance to turn out as perfect as possible," Cartwright explains. 2009 will be another ambitious year for Nashville Pussy. Along with the March 3rd release of the new album, the band's roadmap is already set: an exhaustive trek across Europe, followed by summer festivals and full-scale North American tour. The rock never stops. Bottom line, Nashville Pussy is the genuine article. Accept no substitute! Let us pimp you some filthy rock n' roll love.... http://www.nashvillepussy.com http://www.myspace.com/nashvillepussy http://www.spvusa.com http://www.myspace.com/spvusa AMORPHIS - Album Title, Cover and Track Listing Revealed! Finnish dark metallers AMORPHIS have set "Skyforger" as the title of their new album, tentatively due out this Summer (North America) and May 29 (Europe) via Nuclear Blast Records. The follow-up to the "Eclipse" and "Silent Waters" LPs, both of which were certified gold in the band's native Finland, was recorded at Sonic Pump Studios in Helsinki. The track listing for the CD is as follows: 01. Sampo 02. Silver Bride 03. From The Heaven Of My Heart 04. Sky Is Mine 05. Majestic Beast 06. My Sun 07. Highest Star 08. Skyforger 09. Course Of Fate 10. From Earth I Rose Check out the cover artwork here. AMORPHIS' last CD, "Silent Waters", entered the German Media Control chart at position No. 44. Released in North America on September 18, 2007, the CD is the second AMORPHIS album to feature singer Tomi Joutsen (SINISTHRA). It was recorded at Sonic Pump studios in Helsinki, Finland. Mixing duties were handled by Mikko Karmila (NIGHTWISH, STRATOVARIUS) at Finnvox studios. PRIME CUTS MUSIC - New website up & running Prime Cuts Music has a brand new website! Check it at: www.primecuts.com.au New look, new layout, new releases! Hundreds of CD titles to choose from including the largest selection of Australian metal on the web at the cheapest prices anywhere! Make your order now. Support you local metal scene! Cheers & beers Dysie Prime Cuts Music PO Box 235, Greenwood Western Australia, 6924 Email: pcuts@bigpond.com Web: www.primecuts.com.au www.myspace.com/primecutsmusic A NOTE FROM LES CLAYPOOL Having trod the stages of such events as Lollapalooza, Woodstock 94, Redding, Bonnaroo, Ozzfest, etc. I’ve come to realize that there really hasn’t been an event that truly represents the type of idiosyncratic performers that I am kin to. In my youth I was always scouring the radio, clubs, record stores and concert halls for that group or individual that had new and unique perspectives to music. The freaks. THE ODDITY FAIRE: A MUTATED MINI-FEST, is just the event where one will encounter such diverse and unique artists. The notion of the festival is to bring together folks that naturally dwell outside the box so that they may perform before a collective audience that is looking for something that hasn’t been cultivated by American Idol or crammed down their throats by the Disney Corporation. THE ODDITY FAIRE: A MUTATED MINI-FEST is a multi-medium event that will play in intimate environments around the country. The musicians and performers will rotate from region to region. Importantly, the ticket price for a 3-4 hour event will be well within reason given the current state of the economy. THE ODDITY FAIRE: A MUTATED MINI FEST, a “brain-candy bargain for a recessed age”, promises to be a smorgasbord of irregular and unconventional entertainment for all. Come on down, Les Claypool Crucial Blast Records is proud to announce the next two additions to their arsenal of aural oppression... First up: THE HUMAN QUENA ORCHESTRA - The Politics Of The Irredeemable CD Release date: 4/21/2009 We will be releasing The Politics Of The Irredeemable, the second album from The Human Quena Orchestra in April. Some of you might have heard this pulverizing industrial-doom duo on their first disc Means Without Ends that came out a couple of years ago on Daft Alliance. If you did, then yer already schooled in how bleak and devastating the soundwaves get from the Orchestra. You know us - we like it heavy. And when these guys sent us a copy of their initial recordings for this album, their immense droneological blackness and eschatological nightmares knocked us f'ing flat. Politics is one long, dead stare into the imminent collapse of the human species, and I'm banking on this being one of the heaviest releases -both in tone and in sound- that Crucial Blast will be releasing in 2009. We've got free MP3s of the songs "Mores (Part Two)" and "Aspiration" from The Politics Of The Irredeemable that are now available for download below. Listen to em now. Human Quena Orchestra first took shape as a solo project from Ryan Unks, who had previously played guitar in the final lineup of the Pittsburgh metal band Creation Is Crucifixion. After moving from CIC, Unks began to work on a new project that would incorporate elements of black metal, crushing drone music, extreme psychotropic noise and psychedelic/krautrock influences into a sound that would be much heavier any of his previous projects. The first album from Human Quena Orchestra was released in 2007 on Daft Alliance; Means Without Ends was a disturbing, introspective slab of blackened industrial doom that stood out in stark contrast from the rest of the slow n' low extreme doom scene, utilizing layers of harsh textured distortion and electronics to create a caustic form of monstrous doom that shared as much of industrial music's cold, machine-like aesthetic as it did the ultra-slow riffage of the most extreme variants of doom metal. At the same time that the bands debut was taking shape, Unks was joined by another former member of Creation Is Crucifixion, Nathan Berlinguette (who was also a member of the dark ambient project M.Kourie and the deathdrone duo 5/5/2000). With the addition of Berlinguette's skilled application of dark ambience and expansive soundscapes, Human Quena Orchestra began to move into even more textured territory which has culminated with the second HQO full-length, The Politics of the Irredeemable, a series of apocalyptic visions and epiphanies of end time realization, prophetic screeds that look to a future rendered pustulent and war-stricken by the failed machinations of the human race, presented as six chapters that enter your consciousness through a delivery system of extreme industrial dread. The Politics of the Irredeemable is crushing and oppressive, a crawl through abstract fields of low-end sound that move from punishing blasts of ultra-heavy machine-doom and earth-shaking tectonic riffs, to thick fogs of black electronic ambience that shimmer with subsonic pulses and celestial drones, the presence of malevolent electricity crackling in the air around the lumbering, nightmarish electro-sludge monstrosity of the Human Quena Orchestra. And at the same time, there are passages of immense beauty on this album that lurk at the peripheries of HQO's malevolent crush; the track "Aspirations" for instance, where pummeling slow-motion industrial percussions grinds in an infinite loop beneath a swirling nightsky of kosmiche synthesizers and heavenly, blissed-out ambience, the drums becoming like distant mortar blasts heard over the horizon as terrified screams ring out and stars fall dead from the skies. This is seriously apocalyptic deathmachine grind ambience. FREE MP3s available now from Crucial Blast from the upcoming release The Politics Of The Irredeemable: Human Quena Orchestra "Mores (Part Two)" http://www.crucialblastshop.net/audio/humanquena_politics_morestwo.mp3 Human Quena Orchestra "Aspiration" http://www.crucialblastshop.net/audio/humanquena_politics_aspirations.mp3 http://www.myspace.com/thehumanquenaorchestra and to follow soon after: OVERMARS - Born Again CD Release date: 6/09/2009 Previously released through the French label Appease Me overseen by members of Blut Aus Nord, Born Again is the latest full length from the French sludge band Overmars, a single album-long piece that descends deep into themes of self-immolation, horror, and rebirth. France's Overmars have already established their atmospheric, electronically-tainted sludge-metal sound with their previous splits with Donefor,Iscariote, Fugüe and Icos, and their excellent 2005 album Affliction, Endocrine...Vertigo, but Born Again is something new from the band; this forty-minute epic moves from pulverizing industrial dirge blanketed with heavily textured layers of guitar and fearsome gutteral roars intermixed with captivating female vocals, to passages of haunting dark ambience and bottom-heavy churn, and a magisterial finale that stretches gloom-ridden, moody riffage, vaporous electronics and dramatic singing out over the song's last fifteen minutes, building into an earth-shaking crescendo. Immensely bleak and heavy, Born Again brings together elements of Godflesh's industrial pummel, black metal, tribal dirge , the crushing nihilism of Swans, death metal, and psychedelia into an austere sound of their own that moves them even further away from the Neurosis comparisons that have surrounded their earlier releases. As soon as I heard this, it became one of my new favorite French metal albums. We are doing a deluxe CD edition for the US release of the album through Crucial Blast, with different packaging than the original Appease Me release, and we'll be putting together some other cool stuff for the release of Born Again here in the US. The band is also looking at touring here in the States later in 2009, and I'll be posting information on that as it comes together. In the meantime, here are a couple of MP3 samples from Born Again for you to check out: http://www.crucialblastshop.net/audio/overmars_bornagain1.mp3 http://www.crucialblastshop.net/audio/overmars_bornagain2.mp3 http://www.crucialblastshop.net/audio/overmars_bornagain3.mp3 http://www.destroyalldreamers.org http://www.myspace.com/overmars http://www.crucialblast.net http://www.myspace.com/crucialblastrecords SCALE THE SUMMIT FEATURED IN APRIL ISSUE OF GUITAR WORLD Band posts “The Great Plains” on MySpace page, unveils new behind-the-scenes video LOS ANGELES, Feb. 11 – Houston’s Scale The Summit, the prog instrumentalists whose sophomore album Carving Desert Canyons arrives in stores on Feb. 17, are featured in the April issue of Guitar World as well as the accompanying CD-ROM, on which guitarists Chris Letchford and Travis Levrier unveil the secrets behind the “tapping section” of the album track “The Great Plains.” To celebrate the impending release of the new album and the coverage in Guitar World, that song has now been added to the band's MySpace page, www.myspace.com/scalethesummit. The magazine, which hits newsstands this week, describes Carving Desert Canyons – the band’s Prosthetic Records’ debut – as “full of tightly woven guitar interplay, irregular time signatures and tasteful licks.” Other early reviews point to the inventiveness this young band has brought to not only progressive hard rock, but to instrumental music in general. Decibel’s Adem Tepedelen commented, “I’m getting wood just thinking what the tablature for this album must look like,” while MetalSucks said Carving Desert Canyons “will elevate Scale the Summit to the level of serious prog-metal contenders.” Over the past three months, the band has released behind-the-scenes videos from their recording sessions with producer Tom Beaujour at New Jersey’s Nuthouse Recording. The third of these videos can now be seen here: http://vimeo.com/3166098. Les Claypool To Embark On “The Oddity Faire: A Mutated Mini Fest” Tour In Support Of Latest Masterpiece OF FUNGI AND FOE HOLLYWOOD, CA - Les Claypool will embark on the “The Oddity Faire: A Mutated Mini Fest” tour and will take over North America starting March 4, 2009. This tour is in support of yet another brilliant work of art, OF FUNGI AND FOE releasing March 17, 2009 on Prawn Song Records. "OF FUNGI AND FOE" is the expansion of material Claypool has recorded over the past few years for the video game “Mushroom Men” and the motion picture “Pig Hunt”. Being inspired by these 2 projects Claypool decided to keep creating and turn it into an album. The song Mushroom Men on this release is a more in depth version of the theme song from the video game. Additionally a jam session with Gogol Bordello’s charismatic front-man Eugene Hutz turned into the track “Bite Out Of Life”. The band is comprised of Les Claypool on bass/vocals, Paulo Baldi on Drums (Cake), Mike Dillon on Percussion (Ani Difranco), and Sam Bass on Cello (Deadweight). TOUR DATES CONFIRMED: 3/4/2009 - San Diego, CA - House Of Blues - Yard Dogs 3/6/2009 - Las Vegas, NV - House Of Blues - Yard Dogs 3/7/2009 - Los Angeles, CA - Hollywood Palladium - Mutaytor Saul Williams, Yard Dogs 3/8/2009 - Lake Tahoe, NV - Montbleu Theatre - Yard Dogs, Saul Williams 3/10/2009 - Portland, OR - Roseland Theater - Yard Dogs Saul Williams 3/11/2009 - Seattle, WA - Showbox SODO - Saul Williams, Yard Dogs 3/13/2009 - Salt Lake City, UT - The Depot - Saul Williams, Secret Chief 3 3/14/2009 - Denver, CO - Fillmore Auditorium - Yard Dogs,Saul Williams, Secret Chief 3 3/16/2009 - Kansas City, MO - Beaumont Club - Devotchka, Saul Williams, Secret Chief 3 3/17/2009 - St. Louis, MO - The Pageant - Devotchka, Saul Williams, Secret Chief 3 3/19/2009 - Minneapolis, MN - Myth - Devotchka, Saul Williams, Secret Chief 3 3/20/2009 - Milwaukee, WI - The Rave - Devotchka, Saul Williams, Secret Chief 3 3/21/2009 - Chicago, IL - Riviera Theatre - Devotchka, Saul Williams, Secret Chief 3 3/22/2009 - Cleveland, OH - Agora Theater - Devotchka, Saul Williams, Secret Chief 3 3/24/2009 - Toronto, ON - The Guvernment - Saul Williams, Secret Chief 3 3/26/2009 - Boston, MA - House Of Blues - Saul Williams, Secret Chief 3, O'Death 3/27/2009 - Philadelphia, PA - Electric Factory - Saul Williams, Secret Chief 3, O'Death 3/28/2009 - New York City - Terminal 5 - Saul Williams, O'Death Secret Chief 3 For more information go to www.lesclaypool.com or www.myspace.com/thereallesclaypool