3 Inches of Blood
Photo: Roadrunner Records

With swords held high and shields in position, 3 Inches of Blood have been waging a valiant battle against — well, anyone who doesn't have a soft spot for mythical beasts and medieval warfare. And, for the most part, their holy war has been a great success.

The Vancouver, British Columbia, power/classic-metallers' 2002 debut, Battlecry Under a Winter Sun, earned them a deal with Roadrunner, through which they issued their second disc, 2004's well-received Advance and Vanquish. And the band has wowed crowds on tour slots opening for Iron Maiden, Cradle of Filth and others. This summer, 3 Inches of Blood will play Ozzfest's second stage around the time they release their third disc, Fire Up the Blades, June 26.

Of course, there have been casualties along the way. Original drummer Geoff Trawick and his brother, bassist Rick, left the band in 2004, leaving 3 Inches scrambling to find last-minute replacements before recording Advance and Vanquish. Then, shortly after releasing the LP, guitarists Sunny Dhak and Bobby Froese quit the band and were replaced by Justin Hagberg and Shane Clark. After that, drummer Matt Wood quit in July 2005 because of personal and professional differences.

"War is never easy, but sometimes reinforcements are a necessity to make you stronger," singer Jamie Hooper shrugged. "I'm sure those guys think they're better off where they are, but we're definitely in a better place now, too. The new guys are more into what we're doing and they're better players, so there are skills there that weren't before. And with [newcomer] Alexei [Rodriguez] on the drums, we're able to play faster than ever."

The improvements are evident on Fire Up the Blades. Like its predecessor, the album is rooted in charging rhythms; thick, crunchy riffs that sound like a cross between Hammerfall and Judas Priest; and the shrill-yowl-meets-guttural-growl of dueling singers Hooper and Cam Pipes. But this time, the playing is sharper, the arrangements more multifaceted and the hooks more deeply embedded.

3 Inches of Blood started writing songs for the new album last fall at a house they rented in Tacoma, Washington. "We wanted to get away from Vancouver so we wouldn't be distracted by our drunken friends," Hooper said. "So we spent a few months there jamming eight hours a day and drinking even more than we would have back home."

The band entered Vancouver's the Armory and Mushroom Studios in October and spent two months tracking with producer and Slipknot drummer Joey Jordison. The oft-masked barbarian took a few turns at the drum kit and even recorded a few background chants.

"We were so stoked to find out he was a fan of our band," Hooper said. "We met him when we were on tour with Satyricon and he was playing drums with them. And that's where we really got to know him. He's an amazing producer and an even better beer drinker."

Amazingly, the partying didn't impair the band's timing or ability to groove. And, while 3 Inches of Blood have been known to argue with past members on previous occasions, this time they got along in the studio like frat brothers at a strip club. "The songs were so exciting and fun to record," Hooper said. "Nothing had to be forced and everything came out so easily."

As much fun as 3 Inches of Blood have when they're recording, they're pretty serious about the final musical results and redo anything they're the least bit unsatisfied with. The same can't be said for their lyrics, which are goofy as hell and inspired mostly by fantasy, horror and science fiction.

"We try to keep reality out of the lyrics as much as possible," Hooper said. "I like the idea of music being escapist fiction. I hate writing songs about how sh---y your day was or how sh---y the world is. Yeah, let's all get bummed out and cry. F--- that. I'd rather go off into a dream world. And, yes, we do play Dungeons & Dragons, and we're not ashamed to admit it."

The rest of the week's metal news:

Former Coal Chamber axeman Miguel "Meegs" Rascon has surfaced in a new project called Glass Pinata. The band has spent the last year recording tracks for its debut LP and plans to make its live debut April 19 at West Hollywood, California's Whisky a Go Go. Ozzfest 2007 metallers Ankla will also perform at the gig. ... The Red Chord are all set to headline a June tour with support acts Through the Eyes of the Dead, Despised Icon and All Shall Perish in tow. The trek kicks off June 1 in Philadelphia and runs through June 28 in Montreal. ... Hate Eternal have parted ways with bassist Randy Piro, frontman Erik Rutan confirms. "Randy and I both thought this was the right life change for him and I support everything he wants to do for his future," Rutan said in a statement. "Randy always gave 100 percent while in the band and I appreciate all he has done for me and Hate Eternal. I wish him nothing but the best." Piro, meanwhile, commented that his "reason for leaving Hate Eternal [was] to direct my focus and energy to" his new project, Gigan. ...

Pig Destroyer have put the finishing touches on their forthcoming LP, Phantom Limb. The follow-up to 2004's Terrifyer is set to drop June 12 and will feature "Deathtripper," "Heathen Temple" and "Girl in the Slayer Jacket." ... Light This City are in need of a new guitarist following the recent departure of Steve Hoffman. "It has come to a point where [Hoffman] feels he needs to personally and musically move in another direction," the band said in a statement. "We respect his wishes completely and thank him wholeheartedly for his time in Light This City." If you think you're up to the challenge, the band said all auditioning candidates should be between ages 18 and 25, have some touring experience under their belt, possess their own equipment, and must "be extremely comfortable playing thrash" and "melodic death metal." Check out the band's MySpace page for further details. ...

New Jersey's the Number Twelve Looks Like You have completed work on their highly anticipated new album, Mongrel, which is set to drop June 19. Look for the set to feature 10 tracks, including "El Piñata de la Muerte," "Alright, I Admit It ... It Was a Whore House" and "Sleeping With the Fishes, See?" ... Rhode Island chaos kings Daughters have booked a slate of gigs to follow their current road trip with Cattle Decapitation and the Locust. The band will play April 30 in Colorado Springs, Colorado, and tour through May 6 in Hudson, New York. ... The Chariot, Misery Signals, the Human Abstract and I Hate Sally will be spending a large chunk of May together. The bands will head out on an eight-gig tour starting May 17 in Oklahoma City, and so far, dates are booked through May 26 in Anaheim, California. Additional shows will be announced in the coming weeks. ... Bloodjinn, Vanna, Twelve Gauge Valentine and the Silent Escape will team up for a run of May shows starting in Baltimore on May 9. The brief tour is expected to wind down May 29 in El Paso, Texas. ...

Swedish death-metal act Insision's forthcoming opus Ikon will not be in stores in April as originally planned. No definitive release date has been confirmed yet, as the band's label, Dental Records, is dealing with distribution dilemmas. When the album is released, expect it to feature nine tracks, including "A Ravenous Discharge," "Depleting the Non-Being" and "Breathing the Black Dust." ... Speaking of Swedes, black-metal heavyweights Dark Funeral are planning to make a return to North America this fall, following a successful run of the continent earlier this year. The band has lined up Naglfar and Daath as support acts for the tour, which kicks off October 11 in West Springfield, Virginia, and runs through November 2 in Detroit. ... Yet another Swedish band, Disfear, will begin recording their next LP this summer with Converge guitarist Kurt Ballou at his studios in Salem, Massachusetts. Look for the yet-untitled effort to include "In Exodus," "The Cage" and "Testament."

• 3 Inches Of Blood
• Slipknot
• Coal Chamber
• The Red Chord
• Through the Eyes of the Dead

Though his old bandmates have yet to secure a new guitarist, ex-Limp Bizkit axeman Wes Borland has found a vocalist for his new project, Eat the Day. According to a post on the band's Web site, the group is in pre-production with the as-yet-unnamed new singer and is eyeing a summer release date for its debut album. ...

In a post on the band's official Web site, Coal Chamber vocalist Dez Fafara said he's patched things up with guitarist Meegs Rascon, who's currently writing three new tracks set to be included on a live album that should surface in the spring. The two had been publicly feuding in the months prior to the recent firing of drummer Mike Cox, but have since "been speaking every other day." ... Apex Theory have reached their peak with Andy Khachaturian. The singer and principal songwriter has parted ways with the group, which is in the process of auditioning new vocalists. With the white-topped singer, Apex Theory released their debut, Topsy Turvy, in April. ...

Ozzfest veterans Neurotica have called it quits. Vocalist Kelly Shaefer, who recently auditioned for the new band featuring former members of Guns N' Roses, has already begun writing for a new project. ... Twice the Sun have split up, despite the fact that they just recently signed a deal with Roadrunner Records. ...

Class is back in session for Rival Schools, who plan to hit upstate New York's Bearsville studios in February to record the follow-up to last year's United by Fate. So far the post-hardcore quartet has written a half dozen tracks for the LP, which is expected to drop in the spring or summer. ... When you're making out your Kissmas list and checking it twice, here's an item you might want to include: "Kiss: The Early Years," written by the band's Gene Simmons and Paul Stanley, which will be issued November 26 by Three Rivers Press. The 192-page book features over 250 rare photos and chronicles the band's history from 1972 to 1982. ...

Like a killer Bond gadget, Flexplay's recently unveiled proprietary DVD technology self-destructs after just a few hours, or just long enough to give someone a taste of a movie or album before they purchase it. After the DVD is removed from its packaging, a dye between the DVD's layers is slowly released, eventually rendering it unreadable from minutes to days later; the technology had its debut at last month's MTV Video Music Awards Latin America. The technology was also recently employed to promote the new Bond flick, "Die Another Day." ...

11.18.02

R. Kelly will make a 90-minute appearance on his hometown urban radio station, WGCI (107.5 FM), between 8 and 10 p.m. Monday during the Bad Boyz show. Unlike rival WBBM, WGCI has been supportive of Kelly as he battles child pornography charges, agreeing earlier this summer to play his song "Heaven, I Need a Hug." ...

Jam Master Jay's widow, Terri Corley-Mizell, and brother Marvin came out on Sunday night to help kick off the inaugural H2O Hip-Hop Odyssey Film Festival at the Bronx Museum of the Arts in New York. Others on hand were radio DJ Doctor Dre, who paid tribute to the slain Run-DMC DJ, Afrika Bambaataa, Kool Herc, Redman and more. ...

Nirvana's recently released greatest-hits album has helped push the band's catalogue sales past 50 million units, while late singer Kurt Cobain's "Journals" will debut at #1 next week on the New York Times hardcover nonfiction best-seller list. ... The original, handwritten lyrics to P.O.D.'s "Youth of the Nation" will soon be hung among the illustrious words of Jim Morrison, Jimi Hendrix and Paul Simon in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum's Lyric Room. That's not the only piece of P.O.D. up against a wall: The Hard Rock Cafe in Las Vegas has put the jumpsuit frontman Sonny wore in the "Boom" video on display. ... While the surviving members of Drowning Pool continue to search for a new singer, Rob Zombie has recorded the tentatively titled song "The Man Without Fear" with the band for the soundtrack to the Ben Affleck flick "Daredevil." Drowning Pool's DVD, Sinema, featuring tributes to late singer Dave Williams, hits stores Tuesday. ...

Guns N' Roses will attempt to earn a spot in the "Guinness Book of World Records" next month when they play back-to-back shows at Philadelphia's First Union Center (December 6) and, in a just-announced show, neighboring First Union Spectrum (December 8) — and no, it's not the record for most riots. After an unsuccessful attempt to lobby the Guinness folks with a similar stunt in 1999, the venue's owners will try to persuade the record book to create a new entry for "The Shortest Distance Ever Traveled Between Arena Rock Shows," as the venues are only 758 feet apart. ... The surviving members of Control Denied plan to release a new album next year tentatively titled When Machine and Man Collide. The band's original frontman, Chuck Schuldiner (who also once fronted seminal death metal band Death), wrote most of the new material before he died from a brain tumor in December 2001. ...

A baseball-size wad of Elvis Presley's hair in a vacuum-sealed jar fetched $115,120 from an anonymous bidder in an auction held on Saturday. The hair was collected by Presley's late hairdresser, Homer "Mr. Gill" Gilleland. ... Former Rolling Stones bassist Bill Wyman has asked American music journalist Bill Wyman of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution to cease using his given name or face legal action. The move came after the veteran music writer reviewed some recent Stones reissues for his paper, though, ironically, Stone Wyman was born William George Perks, changing his name to Bill Wyman in 1964, while writer Wyman was born in 1961. The writer has vowed not to change his name. ...

• Limp Bizkit
• The Apex Theory
• Coal Chamber
• Rival Schools
• Kiss

Michelle Branch and Santana will perform "The Game of Love" Tuesday, just prior to tip-off of the Lakers/Spurs game at LA's Staples Center to welcome the 2002-03 NBA season. The performance is to be broadcast on TNT during the 76ers/Magic game, which begins at 7:30 p.m. ET. Adam Sandler, appearing as the animated character from his film "Adam Sandler's 8 Crazy Nights," is also commemorating the new season of pro hoops with an original song written especially for the NBA, which the league will use in upcoming promotional spots. ... Speaking of Sandler and his "8 Crazy Nights," the soundtrack to the movie, which hits theaters on November 27, features eight original songs written and performed by the comedian. The album, in stores November 19, features "The Chanukah Song Part 3," a duet with comedian Rob Schneider, as well as two duets with O Brother, Where Art Thou? bluegrass star Alison Krauss and the tracks "Intervention Song," "Davey's Song," "Patch Song," "Bum Biddy," "At the Mall" and (NBA alert!) "Technical Foul." ... Meanwhile, Gillian Welch, another O Brother, Where Art Thou? alum, will release a DVD featuring videos and live performances on November 12. The live segments on "The Revelator Collection" was shot in black and white by acclaimed photographer Mark Seliger. ...

The first show in support of Pearl Jam's new album, Riot Act (due November 12), will be a hometown benefit show on December 8 at the KeyArena in Seattle with all proceeds going to a variety of nonprofit organizations including help for homeless youth, art education, scholarship funds, literacy programs and AIDS awareness and prevention. The band will kick off its world tour in Australia in February, returning to the U.S. in the spring. ... Michelle Branch, Norah Jones, Sheryl Crow, Stevie Nicks, Paula Cole, Deborah Cox and Joni Mitchell are among the aritists who will join Eagles leader Don Henley for the "Stormy Weather 2002" benefit concert on November 13 at Los Angeles' Wiltern Theater. The show, subtitled, "An Evening of Romance, Glamour, Fabulous Women, Beautiful Music & the El Nino Orchestra," is the sequel to the 1998 all-star fundraiser Henley organized for his environmental conservation group, the Walden Woods Project. ...

Jerry Cantrell passed out from extreme exhaustion and dehydration after an October 23 show in Portland, his publicist said. The former Alice in Chains guitarist canceled a hometown show in Seattle the next night and Saturday's (October 26) performance in Colorado Springs, Colorado, and will continue the tour October 27 in Lincoln, Nebraska. ... Coal Chamber parted ways with drummer Mike Cox on October 24, according to the band's label. No reason was given for his departure and there is no news on a replacement. ... With the November elections fast approaching, NoFX's Fat Mike is coordinating a grass-roots political effort to get people to vote. His Web site, www.punkvoter.com, urges people to "get off of our TV watching, video game playing, apathetic asses" and "take back our country from the corporations that are running it." The site also offers candidate suggestions. ...

The Vandals' 1993 home video, "Sweatin' to the Oldies," will be reissued as a double DVD on October 29 with a new audio commentary track by the band on the original movie. The bonus disc features unreleased footage, including an '80s commercial for an electronic drum starring then-teenage drummer Josh Freese, singer Dave Quackenbush filling in on vocals for Pennywise at a show in Italy and bassist Joe Escalante interviewing Björk during her Sugarcubes days. ... En Vogue — now a trio, with original members Terry Ellis and Cindy Braggs and newcomer Amanda Cole — will release The Gift Of Christmas on November 12. The album, manned by longtime En Vogue producers Denzel Foster and Thomas McElroy, features 11 holiday standards and four originals, including one called "Christmas Wit Cha Honey." ...

Bono has collaborated with Irish musicians Gavin Friday and Maurice Seezer on the song "Time Enough for Tears," which is to be featured in the upcoming film "In America," directed by Jim Sheridan ("My Left Foot," "In the Name of the Father"). The Cole Porter-ish song, written from a woman's perspective, will by sung by Corrs member Andrea Corr. ... Starsailor are holed up in a studio in their native England with legendary producer Phil Spector working on the follow up to Love Is Here, released in January. The man credited with creating the infamous Wall of Sound, evidenced best by the Ronettes' "Be My Baby," has also discussed working on the Vines' successor to Highly Evolved. ...

10.24.02

This year's Smoke Out Festival, hosted by Cypress Hill and Tommy Chong, will take place on November 23 at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. Artists scheduled to perform include Cypress Hill, Snoop Dogg, Mudvayne, Face to Face, Redman, Taproot, Adema, Everlast, Circle Jerks, the Used, Kush Project, Kool Keith, Poison the Well and more, including tribute acts such as Led Zepagain and the all-girl Iron Maidens. ... Beenie Man has filmed a video for the Neptunes-produced track "Bossman," the second single from Tropical Storm. The song features Sean Paul and Lady Saw, who appears on No Doubt's "Underneath It All." ...

Hank Banegas, 26, was charged Wednesday with murder and faces 26 years to life in prison for allegedly stabbing a man outside a Nelly concert last weekend (see "Nelly Fan Stabbed To Death In Concert Parking Lot; Three Men In Custody"). Banegas' uncle, Steven TeSam, 42, was initially arrested but not charged. ... An unsigned English rock group named Audioslave recently made a deal to share their moniker with the American Audioslave (ex-Soundgarden singer Chris Cornell fronting the former members of Rage Against the Machine) for a sum of $30,000, according to their manager. The English band (which formed a year before the American one) signed a deal that allows it to use the name concurrently and is considering using the payment to launch its own record company. ...

DJ Quik's The Best of DJ Quik, due on November 19, will feature two new tracks, "Streetz Iz Callin' " and "Quik's Groove VII," along with material from his six albums, including the recently released Under Tha Influence. ... Masked metalmen Mushroomhead and Boston's Shadows Fall canceled a planned tour stop in Richmond, Virginia, Wednesday night due to safety concerns stemming from the recent wave of sniper attacks in the area, according to the Shadows Fall Web site. They plan to make up the date on November 24. ... Orbital, Aphex Twin and other electronic music acts have contributed new material to The Fire This Time, an album protesting a possible war in Iraq. Due December 2, the two-CD set is aimed at addressing the impact trade sanctions have had on Iraqi civilians. ...

Tori Amos is hosting an online chat on her Web site (www.toriamos.com) on Friday (October 25) to discuss her album, Scarlet's Walk, due Tuesday. The site also features live tracks and other exclusive material in a section called Scarlet's Web. ... Green Day, N.E.R.D., Saliva, Trust Company, 311 and Mötley Crüe are among the groups whose music will be heard on "BMX XXX," an extreme sports video game that will mix music, comedy and, um, "the beautiful women from New York's famous Scores club." The game, due in November, also features songs from De La Soul, Ten Foot Pole, KRS-One, Audiovent, Eric B. & Rakim and New Found Glory.

• Michelle Branch
• Santana
• Adam Sandler
• Pearl Jam
• Jerry Cantrell

Coal Chamber's Dez Fafara
Photo: MTV News

LOS ANGELES — It's no secret Coal Chamber have been on the verge of breaking up in recent years.

Last month it almost happened onstage when singer Dez Fafara and guitarist Meegs Rascon got into a squabble (see "Coal Chamber Come To Blows, Threaten Break-Up At Texas Show").

It's also pretty obvious that although the Los Angeles foursome emerged on the scene just before the rise of nü-metal, Coal Chamber have never been able to reach as many listeners as bands like Korn and Deftones.

So when it came time to record their third album there was nothing to lose.

"We wanted to take a chance," Fafara said, sipping on a beer in his tour bus at a recent gig. "Rock and roll is a little bit watered down right now. We wanted to take a chance and do something really raw, even with the artwork and everything. We were going to do no liner notes, black cover, black everything."

In the end, Coal Chamber elected to use some cryptic white imagery on Dark Days, due Tuesday, but overall the album is one of the most raw metal albums to be released in years.

"I don't think we went back; we went forward," Fafara explained. "We thought, 'If this is going on now, what's going on next?' We wanted to make an album that we can play live. And we can do this whole record live."

The band also took risks whenever possible, starting with the selection of producer Ross Hogarth, whose résumé includes engineering albums for Jewel and John Mellencamp.

Coal Chamber wrote Dark Days rather unconventionally, as well. Rascon and drummer Mike Cox recorded ideas in their home studios and sent Fafara copies so he could write lyrics for them. The first time the band — which also includes bassist Nadja Puelen — actually played them together was in the studio with Hogarth.

The recording sessions were particularly intense, even for a metal band, since many of the tracks are about issues the band has suffered through, including changes with their record label, management (see "Coal Chamber, Osbourne Management Part Ways") and lineup (see "Coal Chamber Bassist Quits Band To Fuel Family"). Hence the title Dark Days. "A lot of the songs I don't like to talk about," Fafara said.

One song he would explain is "Empty Jar": "We came home, brotha, and our finances had not been taken care of by anyone," Fafara said. "When you're hungry and you're missing a million dollars, you have to write about it. Mine is the empty jar. What you see isn't always what you believe. People see me pull up in a Towncar because the record label just drove me to an interview, and they don't understand the struggle musicians usually have. Somewhere down the line, we weren't thinking about the business. We are now."

"Fiend," the album's first single is about the band's experiences being on tour, with lyrics like "Taking everything in sight/ All through the night/ Leaving scars/ And crashing cars" over a classic rock riff. "That is the most rock and roll I've every played," Rascon said. "Like Led Zeppelin. It's still the same [Coal Chamber sound], but more rockin'."

For the "Fiend" video, the band took another risk, recruiting first-time director Paul Brown, a popular metal photographer.

"We filmed it at the Munsters' house," Fafara said. "The idea is the band rehearses every day in a garage and all these kids come in to see us. We don't see them, but they see us. It's very artistically done, real grainy, artistic, yet simple. Paul was the perfect person to go with. It was that or pay $5 million for the same treatment and get half the effort. He captured everyone in their own element."

Coal Chamber will celebrate the release of Dark Days with a free show Tuesday at the Key Club in Los Angeles; a free New York show will likely follow later in the month. Coal Chamber will perform "Fiend" May 15 on "Last Call With Carson Daly."

• Coal Chamber

Coal Chamber
Photo: Roadrunner

Things got a little too hot in Coal Chamber earlier this week and nearly caused the metal band to combust.

Singer Dez Fafara and guitarist Meegs Rascon took the stage at their Jagermeister Tour stop Wednesday in Lubbock, Texas, with frictions visibly flaring, which proved not to be a good idea. Four songs into their set, Rascon hit Fafara on the head with his guitar, prompting the frontman to storm off the stage.

After Fafara returned to declare, "This is the last Coal Chamber show ever," the band tried continuing on, but drummer Mike Cox trashed his kit, ending the performance.

Coal Chamber did not appear at Thursday's tour stop in Oklahoma City, causing fans to believe what Fafara said to be true.

A spokesperson for the group, however, said Coal Chamber have not broken up. They will be playing Friday (April 19) and finishing out the rest of their tour, the spokesperson said, and then returning home to Los Angeles for their free May 7 show at the Key Club celebrating the release of their third album, Dark Days.

This week marks the second time in two years that rumors of a Coal Chamber break-up have surfaced. Similar talk transpired when the band dropped off the bill of the Tattoo the Earth Tour before it began last fall, but the rumors came to a halt when the band announced it was taking the time off to record (see "Coal Chamber Drops Off 'Tattoo' Tour").

Still, Coal Chamber admit that relationships within the band have not always been peachy keen.

In an interview before the band's April 11 show in Los Angeles, Fafara and Rascon said the title of their forthcoming album is a summation of their struggles over the last five years, including changes with their record label, management (see ) and lineup (see ).

Fafara and Rascon, who appeared to get along last week (with the exception of Rascon questioning Fafara's promise that Coal Chamber would play all of their new songs live), were happy to report that the band was in good spirits.

"[Dark Days] is more of a cathartic, positive kind of thing," Fafara said. "It's not like, [in a whiny voice] 'dark days,' it's like [in an energetic voice] 'f---ing dark days, put 'em in the past.'

"I feel good," Fafara added. "I'm not feeling like we're the most radio-friendly band, but I feel like we're going to put some kind of footprint in the mark of heavy music with this album. I feel real good about that. I feel good about the people backing us. And the band is in a great mood. That in itself is a great thing."

To follow up their Key Club performance, Coal Chamber are planning a free show in New York later in May. They are also scheduled to perform their new single, "Fiend," on "Last Call With Carson Daly" on May 15.

Fafara described the song as an autobiography of being on tour. " 'Taking everything in sight/ All through the night/ Leaving scars/ And crashing cars,' these are things that have happened to me," he said. "And, 'Fiend for the fans/ Fodder for the press,' that really makes sense for us. The first thing we are is a live band. After that, we'll give the press their fodder. And we've done enough sh--."

And they're still going.

• Coal Chamber

The Rock as The Scorpion King
Photo: Universal

The soundtrack to "The Scorpion King," due March 26, offers at least as much tail-stinging action as the highly anticipated film, starring pro wrestler the Rock. It features hard rock and metal cuts from Godsmack, Creed, System of a Down, Nickelback and others, ranging from moody and atmospheric to violent and bludgeoning.

The lead single, Godsmack's "I Stand Alone," is one of the week's most-added songs at rock radio. For those whose radios are broken, the track starts with a lunging beat and a guitar riff that shifts between a low, rumbling buzz and an eerie series of notes much higher up the fretboard. Then, for the verse, the song locks into a crunching, percussive riff reminiscent of Metallica before kicking back into the eerie opening passage with Sully Erna scream-singing the song's title and the lines "I'm not afraid of fading/ Feeling your sting down inside of me/ I'm not dying for it." During the midsection of the song, the music turns creepy and atmospheric, and the singer moans, "It's my time to dream/ Dream of the skies/ Make me believe that this place isn't made by the poison in me/ Help me decide if my fire will burn out before you can breathe."

Creed, one of the many other powerhouse rock acts on "The Scorpion King" soundtrack, contribute "To Whom It May Concern," which was originally a U.K. B-side. Earnest, mystical and melancholy, the song begins with ringing guitars and a midtempo pulse while Scott Stapp sings about his fear of commitment: "I didn't mean to yell, but sometimes I get beside myself/ ...Your eyes stare at me in the dark, and I hope those eyes don't steal my freedom." Halfway through, Mark Tremonti's distorted guitars sink in with some James Hetfield-style riffery, but they're balanced by soaring vocal harmonies, keeping the song tuneful even during it's heaviest moments.

System of a Down's "Streamline" is an outtake from their Toxicity session. The cut seesaws dazedly between a jagged riff that's as confounding as a three-sided square and a delicate rhythm composed of tender guitar arpeggios and weepy cello lines. The sonic confusion seems to mirror the turmoil of Serj Tankian's lyrics: "You are gone/ Goodbyes are long/ I wasn't there for you."

Nickelback's "Yanking My Heart" is also previously unreleased. The main riff is similar to Nirvana's "Territorial Pissings," but more accessible. Even so, the song rocks fast and furious. The brand-spankin' new Hoobastank cut, "Losing My Grip," flows from poignant vocals and chorus pedal-saturated guitars to choppy, staccato playing with harmonized vocals, climaxing with the infectious vocal hook "Trying hard to let you/ Let you go/ But I can't seem to loosen my grip."

"Break You" by Drowning Pool kicks off with low, down-tuned guitar scribbles, then erupts into a dark, chugging anthem. The tune contains a jolting stop-start riff, a moody midsection and an exultant chorus.

Sevendust's nonalbum track "Corrected" sees the band combining a techno-funk backbeat with soulful melodic vocals and furious guitar flurries. And for listeners who just want tribal fury, Mushroomhead offer the new song "Along the Way," which is raw, primal and haunting.

The album also includes new cuts from Coal Chamber and 12 Stone, a new mix of P.O.D.'s "Set It Off" and album tracks by Rob Zombie, Flaw, Lifer and Breaking Point.

• Godsmack
• Creed
• Sevendust
• System of a Down
• Nickelback

Slipknot
Photo: Roadrunner

"My Plague" has the potential to become a nationwide epidemic.

A remix of the Slipknot song, expected to surface at radio February 25, will serve as the first single off the soundtrack to "Resident Evil," which hits stores March 12, according to a Roadrunner Records spokesperson. The newly titled "My Plague (New Abuse Mix)," the original version of which appeared on Slipknot's latest album, Iowa, was reworked by Terry Date (Deftones, Limp Bizkit).

The soundtrack to the film — which is inspired by the horrifying video-game series of the same name — also features new songs from Coal Chamber ("Something Told Me") and Static-X ("Anything But This"), as well as new remixes of tracks by Fear Factory, Mudvayne, the Crystal Method, Depeche Mode and Ill Niño. Marilyn Manson's contribution, "The Fight Song," was remixed by Slipknot drummer Joey Jordison, while Manson himself composed original instrumentals for the film's score. Other songs on this 14-track collection that are used in or inspired by the film are rare imports, bonus tracks and B-sides.

Directed by Paul Anderson ("Mortal Kombat," "Event Horizon"), "Resident Evil" hits theaters March 15 and stars Milla Jovovich ("The Fifth Element"), Michelle Rodriguez ("The Fast and the Furious"), and Eric Mabius ("The Crow: Salvation").

"Resident Evil" track list, according to Roadrunner Records:

• Slipknot - "My Plague (New Abuse Mix)"
• Marilyn Manson - "The Fight Song (Slipknot Remix)"
• Coal Chamber - "Something Told Me"
• Adema - "Everyone"
• Fear Factory - "Invisible Wounds (The Suture Mix)"
• Static-X - "Anything But This"
• The Crystal Method - "Name of the Game (Clean Name)"
• Mudvayne - "Dig (Everything and Nothing Remix)"
• Rammstein - "Hallelujah"
• Depeche Mode - "Dirt"
• Method Man - "Release Yo' Delf (Prodigy Mix)"
• Ill Niño - "What Comes Around (Day of the Dead Mix)"
• Saliva - "800"
• Five Pointe O - "The Infinity"

• Slipknot
• Marilyn Manson
• Coal Chamber

Coal Chamber circa 2001 (l-r): Mike Cox, Rayna Foss, Meegs Rascon and Dez Fafara
Photo: Roadrunner

After almost eight years and two albums, bassist Rayna Foss-Rose has left Coal Chamber to focus on motherhood.

Foss-Rose gave birth to a daughter in October 1999 (see ) and has decided to devote more time to her husband, Sevendust drummer Morgan Rose, and 2-year-old Kayla.

"This was a hard decision to make, but is one that Morgan and I feel is important to our lives and our family," Foss-Rose said in announcing the move on Thursday.

"We as a band support this decision," frontman Dez Fafara said. "Family comes first. We will miss her greatly."

Nadja Puelen, who toured with the band during Foss-Rose's maternity leave, will take over for the departing bassist. Puelen will make her official debut as Coal Chamber's new bassist on March 8 when the band kicks off its spring tour.

Fans will still hear Foss-Rose when Coal Chamber's third album, Dark Days, is released this spring. The band's original bassist completed work on the album this winter.

• Coal Chamber

Coal Chamber's Dez Fafara
Photo: MTV News

To the facially pierced, tattooed Dez Fafara, every day seems like Halloween. For a fictional group of kids spawned by the Coal Chamber frontman's dark imagination, the same will soon be true.

Fafara and his girlfriend, Anahstasia (pictured on the cover of the band's 1999 album, Chamber Music), have penned the first of a planned 13 volumes of children's books, according to a Roadrunner Records spokesperson. The series, called "The October Bunch," involves a group of kids who don Halloween costumes every night before embarking on fantastic adventures.

"Finding Blackie," the series debut, is about the Bunch's encounter with its first black cat. An agent is shopping the book to publishers, the spokesperson said.

Fantasy books aren't Fafara's only side project. He and Coal Chamber guitarist Meegs Rascon contributed to "Where Is God," a song produced by Mötley Crüe bassist Nikki Sixx for the debut album by Overseer. It's slated to appear on the band's debut album, a follow-up to last year's EP Everything Louder Than Everything Else. The album does not yet have a release date, a Columbia Records spokesperson said.

Meanwhile, Coal Chamber are in a Los Angeles studio tracking their third album, Dark Days, with producer Ross Hogarth (see "Dark Days Ahead For Coal Chamber"). The LP is expected out early next year.

• Coal Chamber

Coal Chamber
Photo: MTV News

Coal Chamber will enter a Los Angeles studio next week to start recording their third album, tentatively titled Dark Days, according to a Roadrunner Records spokesperson. The record is expected to drop in early fall. Ross Hogarth, who's worked with Mötley Crüe, John Mellencamp and Jewel, has been tapped to handle production duties for the LP. While Orgy synth player Amir Derakh — who engineered and mixed Coal Chamber's self-titled 1997 debut and mixed and played on 1999's Chamber Music — helped to arrange the demos for the new record, he has no plans to join singer Dez Fafara, bassist Rayna Foss-Rose, guitarist Meegs Rascon and drummer Mikey Cox in the studio this time around, the spokesperson said. Fans of the ominous Los Angeles quartet have been awaiting the LP's arrival since the band withdrew from last year's Tattoo the Earth festival in the face of rampant break-up rumors to begin work on the album (see "Coal Chamber Tackles New Album, Outside Projects").

• Coal Chamber

Coal Chamber Live Photos

• Coal Chamber