Bleeding Through

Bleeding Through Make A Declaration To 'Trendy' Bands; Plus Disturbed, Madball & More News That Rules, In Metal File

19 Sep 2008 07:52:00 EDT

Brandan Schieppati says BT are influential 'whether these young bands want to admit it or not.'
By Chris Harris

Bleeding Through
Photo: Craig Burton

It's hard to believe, but Bleeding Through are coming up on their 10th anniversary as a band, and to celebrate, the speedy O.C. metalcore six-piece — and Ozzfest 2006 alumni — will release their fifth studio offering, the Devin Townsend-produced Declaration, on September 30. Even frontman Brandan Schieppati can't believe his band has been around that long — long enough, he claims, to have inspired the current crop of metalcore acts, who almost never credit Bleeding Through as an influence.

"In the world we're in now, of — for lack of a better word — a bunch of new-jack bands that are coming out of f---ing left field every day, people are always like, 'You should care about this band,' or, 'This is the next thing.' But I think you should listen to Bleeding Through's Declaration if you want to know where the roots of this type of music come from," he said, although he refused to identify any of these so-called "new-jack" bands. "Since we've been a band for 10 years, you should listen to us, especially if you want to know where these new bands got their influences from. Whether they'll admit it or not, this is kind of where it comes from."

Schieppati said the last 10 years haven't been the easiest and that every single day has been something of a challenge. Bleeding Through have seen trends come and go, and they've managed to endure, thanks in large part to their loyal fans.

"One thing that a band gets, once they're through their years and once they've been going for some time, and we've been through it time and time over ... but, it's like a bunch of backlashes and, like, a bunch of kids who were once really into your music, and then something trendy comes along, and so they pretend they were never into your music ever," he explained. "They start talking sh--, and then, all of a sudden, for some reason, it's cool to like your band again. So they come back. It's this roller-coaster effect, and whether these young bands want to admit it or not, when these young bands got into this sh-- in f---ing 2003, because they were 19 and that's when they started getting into it, tell me — what bands were around then?"

And like a band that's been around for nearly a decade, Bleeding Through's sound has evolved, as has the inspiration behind Schieppati's lyrics. Declaration lacks the heart-shattered verse that saturated the band's previous offerings, chiefly because the singer is now in a good place emotionally. He was married two years ago, not long after the release of 2006's The Truth, and he's been a happy man ever since.

"I'm not really heartbroken anymore, so I think the thing that really acts as my muse is what we've been through the last seven years of touring and being in this band and, just in general, going to places that have never accepted us," he explained. "It's sort of just about trusting your ability to keep doing this and going through the trends. There's a line in one of the songs where I say, 'There's nothing more to prove/ People come and go/ Ride their fences/ Follow trends.' I think a lot of bands get discouraged by that and break up. But for us, that was our motivation — that we've been this band from day one, and from day one, we've heard the same criticism against it, and we've seen trends come and go, and maybe people thought that we were one of those trends at one point in time, which I can't argue with. We were a new band at one point. But really, what this record is about is not being content with the state of music and people and playing and going to places but just trying to trust in your ability and move forward through it."

Schieppati added that the music reflects this new muse. "There's a certain anger to it, a certain feeling to it and a certain darkness to it," he said. "It's a reflection on the way our lives have been and our career's been so far. It's kind of a testament to that, and it's a reflection on where we're at as a band."

According to Schieppati, it was Townsend who helped Bleeding Through's sound progress naturally with Declaration, because his overall influence on the LP was rather subtle.

"He was adding things instead of subtracting and doing things his own way," he said. "He was making us feel really comfortable and kept us really focused and stress-free so we were happy. Most of the songs we'd written, before we went up to Vancouver, are, for the most part, the way they are on the record, but his input was mostly just little things that made a big difference in the music — tweaking a couple of drumbeats, tweaking a couple of song structures, adding more layers and atmospherics to the record — that was his input. The best thing about working with him is he dives in to every project he works on and treats it like it's his band. He stresses out about things, stays up all night to fix things and do things. ... He was very motivated, and it was nice to work with someone who was on the same page with us."

The record features a guest spot from As I Lay Dying's Tim Lambesis, and it was a collaboration Schieppati claims was a long time coming.

"When we were looking for a bass player in 2003 [after the departure of Vijay Kumar], Tim was actually going to play bass for us, because As I Lay Dying were losing faith in themselves, and he came to us, like, 'Hey, do you guys need a bass player, because I'd love to play bass with you guys,' " he said. "We told him that a couple of weeks prior, we'd added Ryan [Wombacher] to our band, and I think a couple of weeks after that, As I Lay Dying were signed to Metal Blade, and the rest is history. So it worked out good, because I've always wanted Tim to be on one of our records."

The rest of the week's metal news:

On September 30, Chicago's Disturbed will issue a new live album, Live and Indestructible, but you won't find it in stores. The release will be an iTunes exclusive, and we'll be bringing you more details on the downloadable LP when they're released. ... Hardcore legends H20, Bane, Energy and Cruel Hand will be joining forces next month for a U.S. trek, which kicks off in Detroit on October 28. Dates for the run are booked through November 23 in New York. ...

Sludgy hardcore act 16 have wrapped the recording of their forthcoming LP, Bridges to Burn, and the effort is being planned for a January 20 release. The guys recently re-formed with their original lineup, and they have just one gig booked: December 16 in Los Angeles. ... Even though they've thrown in the towel, San Francisco death thrashers Light This City will be releasing a new album November 11. Stormchaser will feature 12 tracks, including "Fragile Heroes," "The Anhedonia Epidemic" and "A Desperate Resolution." ...

Madball and Suicidal Tendencies will be playing together later this year. They've booked nine gigs together, scheduled for December 1 in Cleveland; December 2 in Philadelphia; December 4 in New York; December 5 in Sayreville, New Jersey; December 6 in Baltimore; December 7 in Norfolk, Virginia; December 9 in Detroit; December 10 in Chicago; and December 11 in St. Paul, Minnesota. ...

See You Next Tuesday will release their new one, Intervals, on October 14. Look for the set to feature 17 fresh cuts, including "She Once Said I Was a Romantic," "Forever on Deaf Ears" and "This Time the Keys Are Broken." ... Darkest Hour have parted ways with guitarist Kris Norris, replacing him with Mike "Lonestar" Carrigan. In November, the band plans to hit the studio to begin tracking its next effort, which will be in stores this coming spring.

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Avenged Win Over Crowd, System Snore, Ozzy Returns To Form At Ozzfest Launch

30 Jun 2006 08:45:00 EDT

Disturbed, Hatebreed among other highlights at Thursday show in Auburn, Washington.
By Chris Harris

Avenged Sevenfold's M. Shadows (file)
Photo: Giuseppe Cacace/ Getty Images

AUBURN, Washington — Some of the sun-crisped metalheads packed into the White River Amphitheatre for the first stop on this year's 11th annual Ozzfest were skeptical of "TRL" favorites Avenged Sevenfold being on the festival's main stage. But there they were on Thursday, and the naysayers weren't about to distract the band from the mission at hand: Trying to win the crowd over.

So, Avenged, led by the diamond-grilled, Axl-Rose-imitating M. Shadows, pulled the proverbial rabbit out of the hat by covering — and handily at that — a tried-and-true metal classic: Pantera's "Walk." Shadows dedicated the tune to the memory of slain Pantera guitarist "Dimebag" Darrell Abbott (see " Dimebag Darrell, Four Others Killed In Ohio Concert Shooting"), and about three riffs in, the audience — even the cynics — were sold, pumping their fists and barking the song's stilted refrain: "Re! Spect! Walk!" And for the rest of the band's set, which ended with "Bat Country," Avenged owned them all.

In short, when in doubt at Ozzfest, cover Pantera. Following the group's debut as part of the festival, Shadows — covered in sweat and chugging bottled water — seemed relieved. How would Avenged celebrate this triumph? A few hours later, they boarded their tour bus and headed for Oregon, where they'd spend Friday (June 30) fishing at a lakeside cabin.

On Thursday, with the majestic, snowcapped Mount Rainier as its backdrop, Sharon Osbourne's traveling circus of heavy metal and hard rock, bad tattoos and worse habits, launched in Auburn. The small town is about 50 minutes from Seattle and its main road is lined with smoke shops, casinos and dilapidated shacks that double as residences and pyrotechnics shops.

Fans started lining up outside the venue at around 5:30 a.m, some coming from as far as Texas for an afternoon and evening filled with debauchery and ear-splitting metal. While Avenged's set was one of the day's many highlights, the majority of the 15,000 fans were there for the same reason: Ozzy Osbourne, the festival's unstoppable namesake.

Ozzy, who closed out the kickoff's main stage but will be playing only half this year's Ozzfest dates (see "Ozzy Playing Ozzfest's Second Stage For The First Time"), whipped the audience into a jubilant frenzy Thursday night. Focusing on his post-Black Sabbath career, Ozzy pleased the crowd with "I Don't Know," "Goodbye to Romance," "Suicide Solution" and "Mama, I'm Coming Home."

Of course, it wouldn't have been an Ozzy show without songs like "Crazy Train" and the set's closer, "Paranoid." But in the end, fans were pleased that the singer not only showed — with guitarist Zakk Wylde shredding away — but finished what he started. When Ozzfest rolled through town last year, he stormed off the stage when his voice went out, abandoning his Black Sabbath bandmates (see "Ozzy Retires As Ozzfest Headliner: 'It's Time For Me To Move On' "). Ozzy was in fine form Thursday, though. He delivered an energetic performance and his voice sounded stronger than it has in years.

Of course, Ozzy wasn't the main stage's sole attraction. Following Avenged, Disturbed mounted the stage for what ended up being one of the night's more commanding sets.

Frontman David Draiman, with his crisp, potent voice, directed fans to thrust their fists above their heads, in effect re-creating the cover of the band's latest LP, Ten Thousand Fists (see "Disturbed Pummel Billboard Competition With #1 Fists"). At one point during Disturbed's performance — which was highlighted by "Liberate," "Stricken" and the closer, "Sickness" — the audience hoisted a fan strapped to a wheelchair high above their heads for a brief crowd-surf. Draiman told his stagehands to bring the fan onstage, shook his hand and wheeled him near the drum kit, where he watched, wide-eyed, as Disturbed continued to instigate the more-than-willing circle-pit moshers who raged in the arena's general-admission area.

Ozzfest vets System of a Down, who'll be going on an indefinite hiatus following Ozzfest (see "System Of A Down Aren't Breaking Up — They're Going On Hiatus"), arrived Wednesday on separate buses. They were the show's most distracting performers — or maybe the most distracted.

At first, through the opening "Soldier's Song" and the next four that followed, guitarist Daron Malakian seemed to be struggling to keep up with the rest of the band, improvising lyrics when it was his turn to bark into the microphone (although during "B.Y.O.B.," he rethought the lyric, "We don't live in a fascist nation," by quickly muttering, "Yes, we do").

Frustration manifested itself on "Lonely Day," when he improvised, "Such a lonely day, hanging out with the band/ This mother----er I can't stand." The band later told us Malakian's impromptu lyric referred to the day (as it does on the album version of the song) and not to any tension between band members, as we had originally surmised: "The only thing that makes a lonely day livable on tour is each other's company," Tankian and Malakian wrote in an e-mail. [The lyric was] referring to the day ... Not each other." None of that seemed to matter to the rabid crowd, though, which leaped, bounced and clawed its way through the pit.

System appeared bored at the beginning of the set, but by the end, they worked the crowd into an abusive mob of fist-pumping fanatics with "Sugar" and other songs. Tankian danced around goofily with his eyes closed through "Hypnotize" while Malakian mounted his guitar.

Long before Avenged even left their dressing rooms, Italian metallers Lacuna Coil led the Ozzfest faithful through a 30-minute set, which included a cover of Depeche Mode's "Enjoy the Silence" and ended with "Our Truth." England's DragonForce, Ozzfest first-timers, played a frantic, high-energy set that ended with "Through the Fire and Flames" and was followed by dozens of kids sprinting for the merch stands to buy the band's shirts.

Hatebreed, making their mainstage debut following a stint two years ago on the second stage (see "Slayer, Hatebreed Doing Double Duty On This Year's Ozzfest"), did what they always do: inspire utter mayhem. Singer Jamey Jasta growled at the audience through "Tear It Down" and then calmly asked fans to take a few steps back during "To the Threshold," as several people had become pinned against the metal barricade separating the pit from the stage. By the finale, "I Will Be Heard," the barricade had buckled, eating into Avenged's time as security crews worked to amend the situation.

As usual, this year's Ozzfest began at the ungodly hour of 9 a.m., with the always-spastic Bad Acid Trip kicking off the dingy second stage. Following A Life Once Lost's crippling cache of metal mischief, it was All That Remains' turn to pound the audience into submission. Led by frontman Phil Labonte, who ran from one side of the stage to the other, the Massachusetts metallers ripped through tracks including "Tattered on My Sleeve." After demanding the audience mosh, pogo or just wake up, during the finale, Labonte jumped into the crowd — a violation of the Ozzfest mandate — and fed the microphone to adoring fans who belched out the lyrics.

"Are you ready for some fast, brutal sh--?," asked the Red Chord's Guy Kozowyk, who, despite suffering from a nasty case of bronchitis he's failed to kick after 10 days of antibiotics, delivered one of the day's most severe and intense sets. He stared maniacally at the audience as it tore itself apart during "Love on the Concrete" and smiled at the pit, from which sneakers flew one after the next. Kozowyk screamed his lungs out — and eventually his breakfast too, as he rushed off the stage following the set and threw up near his band's bus.

Strapping Young Lad rolled out "You Suck," the first single from the technical Canadian group's forthcoming album, The New Black. Strapping abused their instruments for five songs before eventually ending with "Detox," after which frontman Devin Townsend instructed the audience to "Go right to the merch stand and buy all our sh--." He does, after all, have a baby on the way.

Later on, following a performance by Walls of Jericho, Full Blown Chaos' Ray Mazzola fought back tears as he purged the lyrics to "Solemn Promise." He told the audience he'd written the song for his mother, who has been battling cancer for more than a decade. Mazzola regained his composure and resumed barking like a pit bull into the mic.

The stage looked as though a bomb had hit it when Norma Jean dove into "Shotgun Messiah," with their amps strewn, scraped up, torched and melted in various spots. The bandmembers donned torn shirts and jeans and their faces were smeared with dirt, as if they'd just climbed out of a coal mine, as they raced through their guitar-flailing set.

Following Bleeding Through's bone-snapping performance, the crowd — slurping Sno-Cones and sporting body paint on their topless, out-of-shape frames — was wall-to-wall by the time Unearth made their way onstage. The stage undulated as the band delivered a crushing set, highlighted by the punishing "Black Hearts Now Reign."

Atreyu played next, and after they vacated the stage, it was time for Zakk Wylde's Black Label Society, a band that has become as emblematic of the fest as Ozzy himself. Wylde's leather-clad outfit unleashed a sludgy, whiskey-fueled onslaught of razor-sharp guitars, caustic drum work and blasting bass that lived up to the band's reputation of rockin' hard with no-holds-barred.

For more sights and stories from concerts around the country, check out MTV News Tour Reports.

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Mary J. Blige Outfoxes Jamie, Recovers Billboard Crown

18 Jan 2006 09:22:00 EST

Blige and Foxx trade places as Carrie Underwood and Eminem hang in the top five.
By Chris Harris

Mary J. Blige's The Breakthrough
Photo: Geffen

Since the release of Mary J. Blige's latest offering, The Breakthrough, and Jamie Foxx's second studio LP, Unpredictable, the two R&B artists have waged a fierce battle for the coveted top spot on Billboard's albums chart.

According to the latest SoundScan figures, sales of just over 118,000 copies secured Mary J.'s The Breakthrough a week-four coup, dropping Foxx's Unpredictable to #2. Foxx's LP sold over 103,000 copies, nudging total sales of the album past the 1 million mark. Blige previously bested the Oscar-winning actor in the first round by a 130,000-copies-sold margin, but Foxx turned the corner and took back-to-back #1s during weeks two and three.

Blige and Foxx's Billboard tussle has had its fair share of spectators, but none have had what it takes to intervene. The Breakthrough and Unpredictable were the only two albums on this week's Top 200 to crack 100,000 scans. The closest challenger to the Blige/ Foxx reign was America's newest "Idol," Carrie Underwood. Her debut, Some Hearts, climbs two chart positions this week to finish third with 77,000 copies sold. Newlywed Eminem's Curtain Call: The Hits slips one spot to #4 with 76,000 copies flying off shelves. And Notorious B.I.G.'s Duets: The Final Chapter jumps from #7 to #5 with just over 52,000 sales.

The usual suspects round out Billboard's Top 10: Mariah Carey's The Emancipation of Mimi holds the chart's #6 slot with 50,000 copies sold; Nickelback's All the Right Reasons follows at #7 with sales nearing 48,000; Chris Brown's self-titled debut surges four spots to #8 with just under 47,000 scans; Black Eyed Peas spend a third-straight week at #9 with sales of 40,000 and change for their Monkey Business; and the career-spanning The Legend of Johnny Cash collection claims this week's #10 with nearly 40,000 discs sold.

Sales of the Strokes' First Impressions of Earth plunged 65 percent its second week in stores. The New York band's third LP slipped from #4 to #18 with 31,000 copies sold.

It wasn't the most remarkable week for debuts, but several newcomers did manage to infiltrate Billboard's latest albums chart. Orange County, California, hardcore act Bleeding Through's The Truth was the highest-charting of this week's newcomers, finishing at #48 with sales of 17,000 plus. The self-titled debut from New York rockers Morningwood opens at #102 with close to 9,000 scans. The soundtrack to "Underworld: Evolution," which features contributions from My Chemical Romance, Hawthorne Heights, Slipknot and Alkaline Trio, follows at #106 with over 8,000 copies sold. And the soundtrack to the Disney Channel Film "High School Musical," featuring a bonus track from B5, debuts at #143 with 6,500 copies sold.

Check out the feature "Throwback With Mary J. Blige" for more on Blige's musical Breakthrough.

Head to on Overdrive to get up close and personal with Mr. Unpredictable.

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New Releases: Hawthorne Heights, We Are Scientists, Morningwood, Sharissa

9 Jan 2006 08:44:00 EST

Also due Tuesday is the 'Underworld: Evolution' soundtrack and albums by Bleeding Through and BR5-49.
By Kurt Orzeck

Hawthorne Heights' This Is Who We Are
Photo: Victory Records

Reaching New Heights: They've rammed a couple songs deep into your consciousness ("Ohio Is for Lovers," "Niki FM"), spent 50 weeks on the Billboard albums chart and have a big tour with Fall Out Boy coming up — but now Hawthorne Heights are showing their true colors with their debut DVD, "This Is Who We Are." The disc offers sneaks of three new tunes ("Light Sleeper," "Where Do I Stab Myself in the Ears" and "This Is Who We Are") and is rounded out by radio-show clips, TV spots and the inevitable behind-the-scenes footage.

Exclusive Evolution: Hawthorne's "Where Do I Stab Myself" finds itself remixed Legion of Doom-style on the soundtrack to "Underworld: Evolution." Sixteen bloody tracks are stacked onto the platter, some of them chopped into remixes, and they're all exclusive (well, for now, at least). Linkin Park's Chester Bennington puts Julien-K in a stranglehold on "Morning After," while My Chemical Romance, Cradle of Filth, Atreyu, Slipknot and Alkaline Trio also rise to the occasion. Meat Beat Manifesto, in the meantime, devolve to their earlier sound with "Suicide," which marks their first use of vocals in six years.

Weird Science: Speaking of evolution, after months as fixtures on mtvU — with "Nobody Move, Nobody Get Hurt" and "Inaction" — We Are Scientists are finally letting loose the anxious, caged beast that is their debut LP. And it's got three cats on the cover. The Scientists expand their zoo with "Cash Cow," elsewhere making their "Great Escape" and solemnly declaring "This Scene Is Dead." That's With Love and Squalor, in stores meow.

Morning Glory: Brooklyn's Scientists have to make some room for fellow New York rookies Morningwood, who are sporting their self-named maiden release this week. Produced by Gil Norton (Pixies, Foo Fighters), the record finds 23-year-old crooner Chantal Claret urging listeners to "Take Off Your Clothes," "Ride the Lights" and take it to the "Nth Degree" — on a dance floor, one can only hope.

Song Title of the Week:

"Let Jesus Make You Breakfast" (BR5-49's Dog Days)

Other Notables:

Sharissa's Every Beat of My Heart: R. Kelly's found himself caught in a number of different, uh, dilemmas in his "Trapped in the Closet" series, but he digs himself into deeper drama on Sharissa's sophomore LP, Every Beat of My Heart. On the duet "In Love With a Thug," Sharissa bemoans the drug dealer she fell in love with, voiced by Kelly. On a lighter note, the starlet finds hip-hop happiness with Wyclef Jean on "Take Me as I Am," goes clubbin' with the Game on "I'm Hot" and teams with Millie Jackson on "I'm Through," which is a play on Bobby Womack's "I'm Through Trying to Prove My Love to You."

Various artists' Hands Across the Water: A Benefit for the Children of the Tsunami: With the one-year anniversary of the Asian tsunami still fresh in mind, a bevy of folksters from the U.S., Scotland and Ireland are making another push for relief. All proceeds from the item — which features Jackson Browne, Vince Gill, Rodney Crowell, John Prine and many others — go to relief efforts.

Mass' Labour of Love, Rema-Rema's Wheel in the Roses and the Wolfgang Press' The Burden of Mules: Seminal indie-rock label 4AD is digging through its warehouse to revive three early releases, all on CD for the first time (but limited to just 1,000 copies apiece). Post-punks Rema-Rema, the label's first artists under the name 4AD, find four early tunes retouched (one was later covered by This Mortal Coil, one by Big Black), while the only album put out by Mass — an arty group featuring three members of Rema-Rema — has original show flyers and some other cool stuff. Related project the Wolfgang Press are also recalled with a revitalized version of their debut.

New Releases:

Armik - Desires (Bolero)
Avid - Altered States (Jetspeed)
Vicky Beeching - Yesterday, Today & Forever (Sparrow)
Bleeding Through - The Truth (Trustkill)
BR5-49 - Dog Days (DualTone)
Eric Burdon - Soul of a Man (SPV)
Brandi Carlile - EP (Columbia)
Chloë - Walking in the Air (Manhattan)
Conga Fury - Dear Friends (Six Weeks)
The Cottars - Forerunner (Rounder)
Dion - Bronx in Blue (Dimensional Music Recordings)
Dragonforce - Inhuman Rampage (Sanctuary)
Drop Dead Gorgeous - Be Mine, Valentine (EP; Rise)
Mary Duff - When Your Old Wedding Ring Was New (Beautiful Music Co.)
John Lord Fonda - Debaser (Citizen)
Frankel - Chatterbox EP (Three Ring)
Glasshead - Daydreams on Jupiter (New School)
Delta Goodrem - Born to Try (DualDisc same day; Epic)
Hurt Locker - Fear in a Handful of Dust (Napalm)
It Dies Today - Forever Scorned (EP; Victory)
Living Loud - Living Loud (Capitol)
Erwin McManus - Barbarian Way: Unleash the Tamed Faith (Thomas Nelson Publishing)
Mairead - Raining Up (Manhattan)
Meav - A Celtic Journey (Manhattan)
Members - At the Chelsea Nightclub (Captain Oi)
Mercury Radio Theater - Blue Eyed Model (Lujo)
Morningwood - Morningwood (Capitol)

Buy Now: Morningwood (Capitol)

Public Announcement - When the Smoke Clears (Boss Entertainment)
Randy - Randy the Band (enhanced; Fat Wreck Chords)
The Satelliters - The Satelliters (Dionysus)
Sharissa - Every Beat of My Heart (Virgin)

Buy Now: Every Beat of My Heart (Virgin)

Sia - Colour the Small One (Astralwerks)
Darden Smith - Field of Crows (Dualtone)
Sons of the San Joaquin - Way Out Yonder (Dualtone)
Soweto Gospel Choir - Blessed (Shanachie)
Switched - Ghosts in the Machine (two CDs; Corporate Punishment)
Tango Red - The Campaign (Reprise)
The Transit War - ¡Ah Discordia! (Orange Peal)
UHF - All Our Golden Tomorrows (Second Story)
We Are Scientists - With Love and Squalor (Virgin)
Read: "We Are Scientists Hope Giving Advice, Running From Bears Is Formula For Fame"
Buy Now: With Love and Squalor (Virgin)
Various artists - A Bluegrass Tale: Pickin' on Nickel Creek (CMH)
Various artists - Afterdark: Milan (Kinkysweet)
Various artists - Another Brick in the Wall, Vol. 2: The Remixes (Cleopatra)
Various artists - All Shook Up: A Reggae Tribute to the King (Trojan)
Various artists - Alright This Time Just the Girls, Vol. 2 (Sympathy for the Record Industry)
Various artists - The Bluegrass Tribute to the Strokes (CMH)
Various artists - Chicano Rap Con Reggaetón (P.R.)
Various artists - Funeral: The String Quartet Tribute to My Chemical Romance (Victory)
Various artists - Hands Across the Water: A Benefit for the Children of the Tsunami (Compass)
Various artists - Heartbreaker: Pickin' on Tom Petty (CMH)
Various artists - "Glory Road" soundtrack (Hollywood)
Various artists - "High School Musical" soundtrack (Disney)
Various artists - "Underworld: Evolution" soundtrack (Lakeshore)

Notable Reissues and Archival Material:

16 Horsepower - Hoarse (Alternative Tentacles)
The Autumn Offering - Revelations of the Unsung (Victory)
Chet Baker - Chet Baker Plays for Lovers (Concord)
Regina Belle - Love Songs (Columbia/Legacy)
Tony Bennett - Tony Bennett Sings for Lovers (Concord)
Black Market Baby - Coulda Shoulda Woulda: The Black Market Baby Collection (Dr. Strange)
David Bowie - David Live (with unreleased material; Virgin)
Dave Brubeck - Dave Brubeck Plays for Lovers (Concord)
Buckwheat Zydeco - 20th Century Masters - The Millennium Collection: The Best of Buckwheat Zydeco (Island)
Chicane - Behind the Sun (Xtravaganza)
Climax Blues Band - Rich Man (Fuel 2000)
John Denver- Love Songs (RCA)
Bill Evans - Bill Evans Plays for Lovers (Concord)
Phyllis Hyman - Love Songs (Arista)
The Incredible String Band - The Circle Is Unbroken: Live and Studio 1967-1972 (live; Castle/Ryko)
Etta James - The Definitive Collection (Geffen/UME)
Etta James - Love Songs (RCA)
Brenda Lee - The Definitive Collection (MCA Nashville)
Julie London - The Very Best of Julie London (two CDs; Capitol)
Lynyrd Skynyrd - Family (Geffen/UME)
Mass - Labour of Love (4AD)
Stephanie Mills - Gold (Hip-O)
The Move - Message From the Country (Capitol)
John Jacob Niles - I Wonder as I Wander: Tradition Years (Empire Musicwerks)
Dolly Parton - Love Songs (RCA)
Rema Rema - Wheel in the Roses (4AD)
Reverend Horton Heat - 20th Century Masters - The Millennium Collection: The Best of Reverend Horton Heat (Hip-O/UME)
Lionel Richie/ Commodores - Gold (two CDs; Motown/UME)
The Righteous Brothers - Gold (two CDs; Polydor/UME)
Nina Simone - The Definitive Collection (Hip-O/UME)
Sloan - Between the Bridges (Koch)
The Statler Brothers - Gold (Mercury Nashville)
Talking Heads - Fear of Music, More Songs About Buildings and Food, Remain in Light and Talking Heads 77 (DualDiscs; Rhino)
U.K. Subs - Complete Riot (New Red Archives)
Kyle Vincent - Gathering Dust - Rare & Unreleased, Vol. 2 (Songtree)
Andreas Vollenweider - White Winds (enhanced; Kin Kou)
Grover Washington Jr. - Gold (Hip-O/UME)
The Wolfgang Press - The Burden of Mules (4AD)
Various artists - Blues Gold (Hip-O/UME)
Various artists - Classic Railroad Songs From Smithsonian Folkways (Smithsonian Folkways)
Various artists - TBS Tunes: Fun Tracks Wisecracks (Rhino)

DVDs:

Asia - "Ultimate Collection" (Classic Rock Legends)
Blues 'N' Trouble - "Lost Deposit" (with CD; Dark Peak)
Dubliners - "Dublin" (Dark Peak)
Bob Geldof - "Geldof in Africa" (two DVDs; Rhino)
Hawthorne Heights - "This Is Who We Are" (Victory)
Living Loud - "Debut Live Concert - Sydney Fox Studios, 2004" (Capitol)
Magna Carta - "In Tomorrow" (Dark Peak)
Kevin McDermott Orchestra - "Boxed Set" (Dark Peak)
Donnie Munro and Friends - "Boxed Set" (Dark Peak)
Motörhead - "Stage Fright" (SPV)
Mountain - "Live in Texas 2005" (United States Distribution)
Nazareth - "Naza' Live" (Dark Peak)
The Rolling Stones - "Get Yer Ya-Ya's Out" (Classic Rock Legends)
Kim Waters - "In the Groove" (Shanachie)
Various artists - "One for the Money: The Birth of Rock 'n' Roll" (Passport)

Coming Attractions:

January 17

Aaron Carter - Come Get It: The Very Best of Aaron Carter (Jive)
Buy Now: Come Get It: The Very Best of Aaron Carter (Jive)
Say Anything - Say Anything ... Is a Real Boy (J)
Too Short - Pimpin' Inc. (with DVD; Up All Night)

January 24:

Cat Power - The Greatest (Matador)
P.O.D. - Testify (Atlantic)
Yellowcard - Lights and Sounds (with DVD; Capitol)

"Yellowcard Move To New York, Write LP About Hating Los Angeles"

Buy Now: Lights and Sounds (Capitol)

January 31:

Heather Headley - In My Mind (RCA)
She Wants Revenge - She Wants Revenge (Geffen)
Warren Zevon - Reconsider Me: The Love Songs (Artemis)

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Metal File: Bleeding Through, Himsa, Anthrax & More In This Week's Hard News

8 Dec 2005 08:56:00 EST

SoCal death-metal speedsters making video that marries 'Texas Chainsaw Massacre' and 'Devil's Rejects.'
By Chris Harris and Jon Wiederhorn

Bleeding Through
Photo: Trustkill

Last week Brandon Schieppati — who fronts Orange County, California's speedy death-metal sextet Bleeding Through — was back in a recording studio with his bandmates tracking four new tunes. But only two were theirs.

The other pair were covers of Black Flag's "My War," which will appear on the Black on Black tribute due March 14; and Unbroken's "Proverb," which, according to Schieppati, will more than likely turn up in a video game or on a soundtrack. (Unbroken guitarist Steve Miller performed on the latter track.)

Schieppati said it was strange to be back in the studio, considering he'd just completed work on his band's forthcoming album, The Truth. The disc will land on record-store shelves January 10 and feature "Love in Slow Motion," "For Love and Failing" and "Dearly Demented."

"That's sort of been the theme of Bleeding Through," he said of last week's studio time. "We never could take even a week off. We just keep going and keep going."

For The Truth, the follow-up to 2003's This Is Love, This Is Murderous, Bleeding Through recruited producer Rob Caggiano (Cradle of Filth, Anthrax), because they'd heard "he has a really good vision with music, as far as arrangement and all that stuff." The bandmembers put the word out that they needed a producer for the new studio LP, "and there were producers who wanted to work with us. But Rob thought that, while we were a good band, we could be better, and he had ideas right away. We wanted someone who was going to act like this band was their own, and not do it to just have their name on the record."

One of the two originals recorded last week, "13 Scars," will be available as an exclusive bonus track to anyone who buys The Truth on iTunes. The band doesn't have any definitive plans yet for the other song, "One Last Second."

Schieppati, formerly of Eighteen Visions, said he and the gang will shoot a video January 12 with director Zach Merck (Lacuna Coil, Converge) for "Kill to Believe." Schieppati said the video's going to be story-based — a sort of " 'Texas Chainsaw Massacre' meets 'The Devil's Rejects' " — interlaced with performance footage of the band. Beyond that, he didn't want to reveal too much about the concept.

"All I can tell you is it will be filmed in the desert with really dirty, f---ed-up houses, and f---ed-up old cars," he said. "All that sh--."

The band will embark on a 37-date headlining tour of the U.S. with Every Time I Die, Between the Buried and Me, and Haste the Day on February 15 in Los Angeles. Dates run through April 1 in Anaheim, California.

The rest of the week's metal news:

Death-metal veterans Cannibal Corpse have chosen Kill as the title of their new record and set a March 21 release date. The disc will feature the band's latest full-time member, guitarist Rob Barrett, who played with Cannibal Corpse from 1993-'97 and returned to tour with them after Jack Owen quit in 2004. ... Having survived an onstage electrocution in September, former Mr. America Thor will return to the concert circuit for a brief stint starting Friday (December 9) in Eugene, Oregon. Dates are scheduled through December 14 in Seattle. ... Anthrax will be back on the road in 2006 with the They're Still the Law Tour, which will also feature God Forbid, Sworn Enemy and Manntis. The tour kicks off in Baltimore on January 6 and runs until January 21 in Hollywood. Sworn Enemy will be touring to support The Beginning of the End, which comes out January 24 and was produced by As I Lay Dying singer Tim Lambesis. God Forbid recently finished a video for "To the Fallen Hero," shot with director Shane Drake. The band's new disc, IV: Constitution of Treason, came out September 20. Manntis will shoot a video for "Weathered Soul" this weekend with director Rob Hall. ...

Hardcore-turned-metalcore outfit Himsa will release their fourth album, Hail Horror, February 7. The band shot a video for "Sleezevil" over Halloween weekend in L.A. with director Derek Dale. Hail Horror will be the follow-up to Courting Tragedy and Disaster, which came out in 2003. Himsa will launch a U.S. tour with Acacia Strain, Darkest Hour, A Life Once Lost and Dead to Fall from February 17 through March 20. ... Oregon's moody black-metallists Agalloch have entered the studio to begin pre-production on their third album, Ashes Against the Grain; recording will start December 10. The disc will be the follow-up to Agalloch's 2002 record, The Mantle. ... Daylight Dies' Dismantling Devotion will hit stores March 7 and include "A Dream Resigned," "Solitary Refinement" and the title track. ... Through the Eyes of the Dead will tour with Ed Gein from January 27 in Wilmington, North Carolina, through March 5 in Detroit. The band's full-length debut, Bloodlust, came out October 25. Ed Gein dropped their second disc, Judas Goats and Dieseleaters, November 1. ... Dutch gore-metal band Severe Torture will release their fourth album, Fall of the Despised, February 7. Tracks include "Unconditional Annihilation," "Endless Strain of Cadavers" and "Impulsive Mutilation." The album follows 2003's Misanthropic Carnage and the 2005 live disc Bloodletting. ...

Swedish melodic metal band Nocturnal Rites will release their seventh album, Grand Illusion, January 24. The disc was recorded and mixed at Toontrack Studio in Umea, Sweden, and includes "Fools Never Die," "Something Undefined" and "Still Alive." ... British doom-metal veterans Paradise Lost just released their 10th studio album in the U.S. The self-titled disc is the follow-up to 2002's Symbol of Life and includes "Don't Belong," "Close Your Eyes," "Forever After" and "Accept the Pain." The band has three Mexican dates scheduled in December, but no American shows have been lined up yet. ... Ion Dissonance will launch a tour with Dead to Fall on January 4 in Chicago. Dates run through February 3 in Iowa City, Iowa. Ion Dissonance are on the road to support their second album, Solace, which came out September 6. ... Ex-Kiss guitarist Ace Frehley's former label Megaforce will release the compilation album Greatest Hits Live on January 24. Frehley's first release since 1989's Trouble Walkin' will feature former members of Frehley's Comet, including drummers Anton Fig and Jamie Oldaker, bassist John Regan, and guitarist/singers Richie Scarlet and guitarist/singer Todd Howarth. Frehley was dismissed from the never-ending Kiss reunion in late 2002. ... Most Precious Blood, With Honor and the Distance launched a tour on December 1 in Seattle. The bands will remain on the road through December 16 in Lemoyne, Pennsylvania. Most Precious Blood's third album, Merciless, came out September 20. ...

Tennessee melodic death-metal band Epoch of Unlight are working on their fourth album, the follow-up to this year's The Continuum Hypothesis. The band's touring guitarist, Steve Blagburn, has joined full-time and is contributing to the writing process. So far the group has written three songs and hopes to have the album finished in time for a 2006 release. ... Chicago dark metal band Novembers Doom are hard at work on songs for the follow-up to The Pale Haunt Departure, which came out in March. So far the new material is heavily influenced by early Chicago death metal. The band hopes to start recording in April 2006. ... Belgian black-metal band Ancient Rites have been hard at work in the studio, which they entered on November 21 with producers Oliver Phillips and Christian Moos. The disc, which should be out by summer, will mark the return of guitarist Raf Jansen and keyboardist Domingo Smets, who left in 1997 and 2001, respectively. ... Italian black-metal band Aborym will release their fourth album, Generator, February 20. The disc features Emperor drummer Faust on all tracks and Mayhem vocalist Atilla on "Man Bites God." ... Massachusetts ambient jazz-metal band Kayo Dot will release their sweeping second album, Dowsing Anemone With Copper Tongue, January 10. Tracks include "Gemini Becoming the Tripod," "Aura on an Asylum Wall" and "Immortelle and Paper Caravelle." The band features ex-members of progressive metal-band Maudlin of the Well.

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Metal File: Children Of Bodom, Bleeding Through & More In This Week's Hard News

28 Oct 2005 06:54:00 EDT

Frontman Alexi Laiho has no idea what tourmates Trivium, Amon Amarth sound like.
By Chris Harris and Jon Wiederhorn

Children of Bodom
Photo: Spinefarm Records

Finnish black-metal outfit Children of Bodom will launch a North American headlining trek on November 9 in Quebec, one that'll grind to a halt in New York on December 14. Bodom have recruited Trivium, fresh from this summer's Ozzfest, and Amon Amarth to open the tour's 27 dates. According to frontman and guitarist Alexi Laiho, Bodom had no involvement in setting things up. In fact he can't even recall what either band sounds like.

"To be honest I've heard [Trivium and Amon Amarth's] albums one time all the way through, and I was pretty drunk at the time," he confided, saying Bodom's management handled the tour's orchestration. "So I don't remember the music. I do remember it sounding cool. I'll wait to see what I think of them when I first see them live. Apparently Trivium's a lot bigger than we are in the States. So it feels a little weird that we're the headliners."

Bodom's fifth studio LP, Are You Dead Yet?, landed in stores this week; the album's been available in Europe and Japan for more than a month. It features 10 tracks, including a cover of the Ramones' "Somebody Put Something in My Drink."

"I've always been a big fan, and this track was recorded three years ago or something like that," Laiho said. "Back then it was like kind of shocking for people that we would cover something like the Ramones, because it's so different from Children of Bodom. But we thought the message of the song fits the band pretty well."

The record also features the first single, "In Your Face," a video for which debuted last week on MTV2's "Headbangers Ball." The video was shot in East Berlin "in some abandoned industrial settlement that looked like some f---ed up sh-- happened there 40 years ago," Laiho said. Bodom plan to release the video as a DVD single on November 23 with two bonus clips.

Laiho said Bodom will shoot a second clip at some point after the North American tour, but he's not quite sure for what track — that's a decision the band still needs to make.

Once Bodom have been up, down and across North America, Laiho said they'll head to Europe, Japan and then back to the U.S. for a second headlining tour, which should take them through the spring. Then there's the summer, Laiho said, which he hopes the band will be spending as part of Ozzfest 2006.

"We've been talking about it, but I don't know if it's going to happen," he said. "It would be a really good thing to do, because it does a lot of good things to a lot of metal bands. I don't know if we'll get on it. It's really a question of money. The promotional value's really good. It seems like a lot of bands — Lamb of God, Shadows Fall — really broke through after the Ozzfest. I think it would be good for us."

The rest of the week's metal news:

The third album from speedy death metallers Bleeding Through, The Truth, will hit stores January 10. Look for the disc to include a dozen tracks, including "For Love and Failing," "Kill to Believe" and "Dearly Demented." The band's West Coast tour with Day of Contempt kicks off November 11 in Petaluma, California, with dates running through December 4 in Flagstaff, Arizona. ... NYHC legends Sick of It All will release Death to Tyrants, the band's ninth studio LP, early next year through new label home Abacus. Dean Baltulonis (Madball, Most Precious Blood) has signed on to produce the effort. ... Floridian hardcore band Remembering Never's next album, God Save Us, should surface in February. The band's holed up in Planet Z Studios in Hadley, Massachusetts, with producer Zeuss (Shadows Fall, Hatebreed) working on the new material. ... New England hardcore act the Acacia Strain will start working on the follow-up to 2004's 3750 this December; the boys have reunited with producer — and Killswitch Engage guitarist — Adam Dutkiewicz (Cannae, All That Remains) for Victims, which will hit stores this spring. ... Unearthly Trance were added to the Relapse Records roster this week. The band's forthcoming disc, The Trident, will see the light of day this spring. ... Swedish metallers Khoma have signed with Roadrunner Records. Look for new stuff from them in April. ...

The dudes in Trivium dig director Dale Resteghini's work — which is why they've asked him to direct the third video from the band's disc Ascendancy. The clip for "Dying in Your Arms" will feature frontman Matt Heafy in a perverse re-enactment of "Andrew Lloyd Webber's Phantom of the Opera." ... Two ex-members of defunct industrial-techno/alternative-metal troupe Crossbreed — bassist Bishop Dolarhyde and touring drummer Chris Morris — have teamed up in a new project, Cry Havoc. The band's booked its first live gig at Boomerz Boiler Room in Seminole, Florida, November 19. ... My Son My Executioner, HeavyHeavyLowLow and Texas Is on Fire will hit the road together starting November 3 in Bakersfield, California. Nineteen days later, they'll wrap things up with a November 23 gig in Wheeling, Illinois. ... Ohio's Symphony in Peril are through. The band, which released two discs over its four-year existence, issued a statement calling the split "a completely mutual decision." No specific details on what provoked the disbanding were offered. ... Nevermore, Behemoth, Watch Them Die and Manntis will headline Century Media's second-annual Christmas BallS, scheduled for December 7 at Hollywood's Key Club. ...

Norwegian thrashers She Said Destroy are putting the finishing touches on their debut disc, Time Like Vines. The outing's slated for release in early 2006. ... Reunited Brit metal legends Cloven Hoof will release Eye of the Sun, their first LP in more than 15 years, next week. The disc will boast 10 tracks, including "Whore of Babylon," "Angels in Hell" and "Golgotha." ... Late-'80s thrash band Annihilator will release their 11th album, Schizo Deluxe, November 8. The disc, produced and engineered by frontman Jeff Waters, will include "Maximum Satan," "Like Father, Like Gun" and "Something Witchy." ... Swedish death-metal band Vomitory is looking for a new guitarist after the departure of Ulf Dalegren earlier this month. Ex-God Among Insects axeman Lord K. Philipson will fill in until a replacement can be found. Dalegren left the band after 15 years for "personal reasons." ... Ex-Dokken guitarist George Lynch will release the career-spanning double-disc retrospective The Lost Anthology November 29. In addition to tracks with Dokken, Xciter and Lynch Mob, the album will include covers with Mötley Crüe vocalists Vince Neil (Black Sabbath's "Paranoid") and John Corabi (Scorpions' "He's a Woman, She's a Man"), Ratt singer Stephen Pearcy (Ratt's "Round and Round") and Icarus Witch (Ozzy Osbourne's "S.A.T.O."). ...

Swedish guitar virtuoso Yngwie Malmsteen will release "Concerto Suite for Guitar and Orchestra in E Flat Minor With the New Japan Philharmonic" November 1. The DVD captures 17 songs performed in 2001 with the Tokyo orchestra. Tracks include "Trilogy Suite Op. 5," "Icarus Dream Fanfare" and "Prelude to April." ... English industrial-rock pioneers Killing Joke will release the DVD "XXV Gathering: The Band That Preys Together Stays Together" November 1. The video captures the band's February 24 25th anniversary show at London's Shepherds Bush Empire. The concert united original members (singer Jaz Coleman, guitarist Geordie Walker and bassist Paul Raven) with new recruits (drummer Ben Calvert and keyboardist Nick Walker). ... Geneva corrosive metal band Knut will release their third album, Terraformer, November 8. Tracks include "Kyoto," "Seattle" and "Bollingen." ... San Francisco grindcore band Vulgar Pigeons will release the three-inch clear EP Burning Episode November 8. The disc will feature seven untitled songs, all of which were recorded earlier this year at House of Faith Studios in Oakland, California. ... Zach Nelson, the original drummer of Richmond, Virginia, hardcore band Ten 33, has returned following the departure of James O'Neil. In addition, ex-the Success Story guitarist Joey Russo has replaced Billy Mutter, who also recently left the group. Ten 33 plan to return to the road after Christmas to continue supporting their album Nightmare on Grace Street.

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Slipknot Headlining Ozzfest's Second Stage

12 Feb 2004 06:01:00 EST

Hatebreed, Every Time I Die, Bleeding Through on trek as well.
By Joe D'Angelo, with additional reporting by Chris Steible

Slipknot's Corey Taylor (file)
Photo: MTV News

The nine-piece musical frenzy known as Slipknot will headline the second stage of this summer's Ozzfest.

Drummer Joey Jordison said he prefers the secondary platform over the main stage for one simple reason.

"It has a pit," he said dryly.

Joining Slipknot on the second stage will be Hatebreed, Every Time I Die, Atreyu and Bleeding Through, according to sources close to the tour.

No stranger to the Ozzfest stage, having played in 1999 and 2001, Jordison looked back on the good times spent on the annual metal fest. "I loved it," he said. "The last tour we did with Slipknot, I was on the [Marilyn] Manson bus the whole time. So that's always fun."

No official announcement on the Ozzfest lineup has been made by tour organizers, though rumors are circulating that Slayer and a reunited Judas Priest will join Ozzy Osbourne on the main stage. A lineup and itinerary are scheduled to be released February 19.

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Metal File: Hard & Heavy News On Superjoint Ritual, Cannibal Corpse, Bleeding Through, Killswitch Engage, Exhumed & More

19 Dec 2003 06:04:00 EST

Superjoint Ritual
Photo: Sanctuary

The Phil Anselmo-fronted Superjoint Ritual will start working on their new album soon after their tour ends December 21 in Scottsdale, Arizona. The LP is expected to surface late next year. Before the band heads back out on the road in March, bassist Hank Williams III will embark on a tour of his own beginning January 17 in Houston. ... Exhumed and Cannibal Corpse are teaming up for a monthlong North American tour, beginning February 12 in Houston. The outing will support Exhumed's latest album, Anatomy Is Destiny, which arose this summer. ...

New York death metal band Pyrexia's Cruelty Beyond Submission is due January 27. ... The Agony Scene have parted ways with guitarist Chris Emmons and subsequently pulled out of their planned tours with Mushroomhead and Integrity while they seek a replacement. ...

Bleeding Through were involved in a serious van accident while driving down a snow-drenched section of highway near Salt Lake City but suffered only minor injuries. The footage from the crash, captured by a local news crew on hand covering another wreck, was so spectacular that it was picked up by CNN, "Good Morning America," the Weather Channel and "Inside Edition." The Orange County metalcore mob subsequently canceled their remaining dates on the Pure Hatred Tour with Chimaira and Soilwork and returned home. Their label has set up a PayPal account at www.trustkill.com for donations to help them cover their considerable expenses, including repairing their trailer that exploded all over the highway and the van they were borrowing from the band Sinai Beach. ...

Killswitch Engage are finishing basic tracks for their next album, their first since enlisting Blood Has Been Shed drummer Justin Foley and singer Howard Jones, who will begin recording vocals in the next few days. ... Demon Hunter have selected March 4 as the date to drop their second album, Summer of Darkness, which will feature 13 tracks recorded in their hometown of Seattle. They'll be shooting a video for the album's first single in Los Angeles in February. ...

Norma Jean will begin writing their new album, the follow-up to 2002's Bless the Martyr and Kiss the Child, in January. They plan to begin recording the LP and touring the States in the spring following a U.K. run with Beecher in February. ... Swedish grindcore band Gadjet will drop their Relapse Records debut, Remote, February 3. ...

Slipknot will return home to Iowa for the holidays before resuming work on their third album in Hollywood with producer Rick Rubin. Singer Corey Taylor recently performed a solo acoustic set, which included takes on songs by Steve Miller, Wild Cherry, Metallica and his other band, Stone Sour, as part of an Axis of Justice show organized to benefit California's striking grocery workers. ... Arch Enemy canceled three shows in the U.K. due to singer Angela Gossow being taken with an undisclosed illness. ...

Gurkkhas are hard at work in their native France on a new album's worth of death metal tunes called Tyranny, which is due early next year through Chrash Music. ... Narcissus have broken up, just two months after releasing Crave and Collapse through Century Media imprint Abacus Recordings. ... Dillinger Escape Plan vocalist Greg Puciato has formed a side project with Bad Religion guitarist Brett Gurewitz called Error. The band will reportedly release a self-titled debut EP on February 24 through Gurewitz's Epitaph label. ...

British doom-metal merchants My Dying Bride will unleash their eighth studio album, Songs of Darkness, Words of Light, on February 16. ... Anthrax are filming what their management promise will be "the most kick-ass, zombie-filled video of all time" in January for the track "What Doesn't Die" based on a concept from comedian Brian Posehn, best known for his work on "Mr. Show" and "Just Shoot Me." The band recently shot a performance in Chicago for a forthcoming DVD release and is still taking votes from fans on its Web site for the track list of Metallum Maximus Aeturnus, an album that will see vocalist John Bush tackling 'thrax tunes originally recorded with singers Neil Turbin and Joey Belladonna. ...

Fireball Ministry will support David Lee Roth at the House of Blues in West Hollywood on New Year's Eve, following their return home from a run through Germany with Uriah Heep and Blue Öyster Cult in support of their newly released The Second Great Awakening. ... Mexican death metal band Ravager have decided to call it a day, with two of the members already forming a new outfit called Hacavitz. ... Former Oppressor guitarist Jim Stopper has joined the band Twelfth Gate. ...

Deicide will release their ninth album, Scars of the Crucifix, on February 24. The new record was produced by Neil Kernon (Judas Priest, Cannibal Corpse). Tracks include "Mad at God," "Conquered by Sodom," "F--- Your God" and "Pentecostal." ... Poland's Decapitated will issue their third record, The Negation, on March 9. Tracks include "The Fury," "Three-Dimensional Defect" and "Sensual Sickness." ... Sworn Enemy, As I Lay Dying and Himsa will launch a 16-date U.S. tour January 17 in Philadelphia. ...

New York's Every Time I Die will re-release their second album, Hot Damn!, with a bonus DVD on February 24. ... Soulfly's still-untitled next album will include the songs "The Prophecy," "Living Sacrifice" and "Defeat U." Former Megadeth bassist Dave Ellefson will guest on four tracks, and frontman Max Cavalera will produce the record. ... Dutch art-metal ensemble the Gathering will return to North America for the first time since 1999 when their tour kicks off February 12 in Cleveland. ...

Swedish Christian nü-metal band Blindside recently shot a video in Romania for the single "All of Us" with director Patrick Hoelck. Blindside's fourth album, About a Burning Fire, comes out February 24. ... Sepultura will return to their former hometown, Belo Horizonte, Brazil, on Saturday to play a benefit soccer match against some of the country's former professional players. The game will be broadcast on Brazilian television. ...

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