System of a Down guitarist Daron Malakian will release Volcano by Norwegian black metal band Satyricon on April 6 through his Sony Music imprint EatUrMusic. The record originally came out last year in Europe. ... Dimmu Borgir have issued a statement addressing the recent departure of Nicholas Barker, the former Cradle of Filth drummer who played on the Norwegian black metal band's last two studio albums. "Nicholas has been removed from the lineup of Dimmu Borgir," the statement reads. "A session drummer will be used in the future. Don't waste your time speculating why, we have already moved on. See you on the road very soon! — The boyz." The band has been nominated for a Norwegian Grammy in the metal category. The awards show will take place February 28 in Oslo. ...

Fireball Ministry and CKY are teaming up for a European tour that kicks off March 1 in Dublin. The bands have just over two weeks of dates lined up. ... Members of Halfway to Gone, Puny Human, Five Horse Johnson, Novadriver and various other Small Stone Records artists recently convened to drink and make music. The result of their so-called "Rustbelt Sessions" is expected to hit stores this fall. ...

Bleeding Through will headline the Mutilation Tour beginning in March, supported by Death by Stereo and Himsa. Bleeding are in Europe supporting Sick of It All and Most Precious Blood. The band also subjected itself to an eight-camera shoot of a late-January hometown headlining show at the Glasshouse in Pomona, California, for a live DVD. It will be released as part of Kung Fu Records' "The Show Must Go Off!" series. ... 

New Jersey's God Forbid will tour in support of their February 24 release, Gone Forever, with Walls of Jericho, Blood Has Been Shed, Full Blown Chaos and A Life Once Lost. The trek kicks off the day after the album's release and runs through March 10. ... Alabama Thunderpussy will hit Richmond, Virginia's Glass Hand Recording Studio next week to begin work on Fulton Hill, the band's first album with new singer Johnny Weils. Producer Mark Miley will oversee the project. ...

Unearth recently shot their concert in Farmingdale, New York, for an upcoming DVD. Singer Trevor Phipps called the show "an amazing experience" and said the DVD "should turn out to be a great representation of who Unearth are and what we do as a band." ... Bile have pulled out of the Kings of Roadkill Tour with Six Feet Under. They will be replaced by Reflux. ...

Norma Jean have parted ways amicably with singer Brad Norris, who plans to dedicate more time to his family. Former Eso-Charis frontman Cory Putman is filling in for upcoming tour commitments. A permanent replacement has yet to be announced. ... Century Media Records has become majority owner of Now or Never, the label responsible for releases from Dillinger Escape Plan, Brand New Sin, All Else Failed and Diecast. ...Dark Tranquility will issue remastered editions of 1995's The Gallery and 1997's The Mind's I with new artwork and bonus material in the U.S. later this year. ...

Morgion are working on a new album, Cloaked in Ages, Crowned in Earth. Their Dark Symphonies label has no release date for the LP yet. ... European metalcore band Caliban are in the studio working on their follow-up to Shadow Hearts with In Flames singer Anders Friden producing. ... Angelville are home in Indiana recovering from the near-fatal van crash that sidelined their tour outside of Atlanta. Johnny V's arm required several hours of reconstructive surgery and physical therapy. ...

Eighteen Visions drummer Ken Floyd switched to the long-vacant second-guitar position shortly after the band finished recording sessions for Obsession, their follow-up to 2002's Vanity. Jason Shrout, formerly of Saved by Grace, now plays drums. Obsession is due later this year. ... Drummer Jesse Smith, bassist Rob Horner and singer Josh Ashworth have left Zao. Daniel Weyandt, who sang on the band's previous six releases, has returned to the fold as they gear up to record their first album for Ferret Records this spring. No rhythm-section replacements have been announced. ...

In Flames have resumed work on the video for "The Quiet Place," the first single from their forthcoming Soundtrack to Your Escape, now that singer Anders Friden has returned to Gothenburg, Sweden, from touring with his side project, Passenger. "I'm in a movie theater, falling asleep, falling into the movie and walking around in a 'Matrix'-like landscape, and the other guys are playing there," Friden said of the video's concept. ...

Original Mercyful Fate guitarists Hank Shermann and Michael Denner have recorded an album with their new Copenhagen, Denmark-based band, Force of Evil. The self-titled disc also features former Mercyful Fate drummer Bjarne Holm, King Diamond bassist Hal Patino and singer Martin Steene. The band came together in 1999 while Mercyful Fate were on hiatus. Force of Evil tracks include "Dawn of Dominion," "Hell on Earth," "Demonized" and "Under the Blade." ...

Hypocrisy have just completed a science-fiction video for "Eraser," the first single from the band's new record, The Arrival, due February 12. Since releasing 2002's Catch-22, the band has replaced drummer Lars Szoke with Horgh and added second guitarist Andreas Holma. ...

The fourth album by Slayer drummer Dave Lombardo's side band Grip Inc., Incorporated, comes out March 16. Track titles include "Curse (of the Cloth)," "Prophecy," "Skin Trade" and "The Gift." The album was produced by guitarist and keyboard player Waldermar Sorychta. ... Death metallists Suffocation disbanded in 1998 but reformed last year and are in the studio working on their comeback album, Souls to Deny. The band is recording at New York's Full Force Studios with engineer Joe Cincotta. The band's '90s bassist, Chris Richards, has been replaced by Scott Krall and guitarist Doug Cerrito has been replaced by former member Guy Marchais. Tentative track titles include "Subconsciously Enslaved", "Surgery of Impalement" and "Tomes of Atrimony." ...

Thrash punk band Zeke will release 'Til the Livin' End on April 6. Tracks on the Jack Endino-produced record include the title cut, "Ten to the Riverside Blues," "On Through the Night" and "Long Train Runnin." Before the record is out, Zeke will launch a tour that begins March 5 in Seattle and runs through March 28 in San Francisco. ... Dutch atmospheric female-fronted band The Gathering will release their first semi-acoustic album, Sleepy Buildings, on March 9. ... Malaysian black metal band Bazzah will release their second album, Kingdom of the Dead, this summer. Their self-titled debut, which was originally printed in a 300-copy limited edition, will also be included on the disc. ... Devilinside, the new band by members of Minnesota metalcore outfit Disembodied, will release two discs this year. Their debut EP, Prelude, recorded in 2002, will come out April 6, and a new full-length will follow soon after. ...

Former Megadeth bassist Dave Ellefson will guest in the Soulfly video for the song "Prophecy," the title track of the band's new record, due March 30. The clip was shot on Thursday in Arizona at a location seven hours outside of Phoenix. Ellefson played on the album version of the song and on the tracks "Execution Style," "Defeat U" and "Mars." ... Wrath, Attacker, Hirax and a bundle of other '80s thrash metal notables will perform at the Classic Metal Fest 4 on May 13 to 15 in Lansing, Illinois. Other bands on the bill include Solitude Aeturnus, Deceased, Impaler, Celestial Dawn and Destructor.

• System of a Down
• Dimmu Borgir
• Fireball Ministry
• Puny Human

What up, fellow metallions? Iann Robinson here. Well, there's a lot going on in the metal world right now, including the announcement that a new Motörhead box set, called Stone Deaf Forever, is on the way. This thing is gonna be a killer, with classic stuff, rarities and 19 unreleased Motörhead songs, plus all the extra crap you get with a box set: booklet, poster, button and on and on. If you worship Motörhead, as I do, prepare for it on October 7.

Well, enjoy Metal File this week and I'll be back next week with some cool stuff on Drowning Pool.

Eternal Aussie rock horses AC/DC have started writing songs for their 14th record in England. The band plans to enter the studio sometime next year. The album will be their last for current label Elektra. Much of their back catalog was recently reissued by Epic, which will handle the band's next two studio albums once the Elektra deal expires. ...

System of a Down's Daron Malakian has signed Norwegian black metal trio Satyricon to his EatUrMusic imprint and has a finished album he hopes to release later this year. "They're one of the bands in the scene who are keeping the torch lit, and I respect what they do," Malakian said recently. "And the album I'm going to put out is really powerful. It's more accessible than the last Satyricon stuff. It's got a lot of just regular, traditional metal-type things going on." ...

Hatebreed, the band fronted by the new host of "Headbangers Ball," Jamey Jasta, will launch the Rise of Brutality 2 Tour with Cephalic Carnage, Madball and Terror on September 10 in State College, Pennsylvania. Shows run through October 6 in Springfield, Missouri. ... Fireball Ministry's new album, The Second Great Awakening, will hit stores on October 7 on Nuclear Blast Records. The band recently shot a video for the album's first single, "Flatline," in Los Angeles with director Dylan Carter. ...

Clutch will be forced to use a replacement guitarist for their upcoming U.S. tour because Tim Sult has injured his wrist. ... Helmet's Helmet Unsung: The Very Best of Helmet (1991-1997) is expected late next month from Interscope. ... New York hardcore veterans Subzero are back with a new album, Necropolis: City of the Damned, the follow-up to 1997's Happiness Without Peace. ...

Former Judas Priest frontman Tim "Ripper" Owens has officially joined Iced Earth as the band's new lead singer. ... Fantômas (featuring Mike Patton and Dave Lombardo) will release their new album, Delirium Cordia, on October 13. ...

San Francisco Bay Area noise metallists Neurosis and ethereal ex-Swans singer/keyboardist Jarboe will release the experimetal bone-rattler Neurosis & Jarboe on October 21. Tracks include "Within," "His Last Words," "Taker," "Receive" and "Erase." Neurosis also plan to hit the studio next month with producer Steve Albini to begin work on their next album. ... Killing Joke have returned to stores with a new self-titled album. The collection features Dave Grohl on drums. ...

Female-fronted Swedish death metal band Arch Enemy will tour North America with Hate Eternal, Evergrey and the Black Dahlia Murder starting August 25 in West Springfield, Virginia. Dates run through September 9. Meanwhile, the Black Dahlia Murder have released a statement calling rumors of their split "definitely not true," explaining: "Some changes are just being made." One change is the addition of Set Ablaze bassist Joe Boccuto. ...

King Diamond will kick off a tour on October 18 in Los Angeles to support the new album The Puppetmaster. ... Endorsers of evil Morbid Angel will release their eighth album, Heretic, on September 23. The disc, composed by guitarist Trey Azagthoth, features such tracks as "Cleansed in Pestilence (Blade of Elohim)," "Place of Many Deaths," "Curse the Flesh" and "Victorious March of Reign the Conqueror." ...

Triumph — not the Insult Comic Dog, the Canadian power trio — will celebrate the 20th anniversary of the Us Festival with a CD and DVD called, surprisingly enough, "Live at the Us Festival," on September 23. Tracks include "Allied Forces," "A World of Fantasy," "Fight the Good Fight," "Lay It on the Line" and "Never Surrender." ... Viking-obsessed Norwegian metal band Einherjer will unleash Blot on September 15. The album was mixed by Børge Finstad (Mayhem, Borknagar). ...

Former Guns N' Roses drummer Steven Adler and some of his '80s metal cronies have been playing the Los Angeles circuit with his new band, Adler's Appetite. The group, fronted by ex-Love/Hate singer Jizzy Pearl, performs songs from the Guns album Appetite for Destruction and the Lies EP. Also playing with Adler are ex-Ratt bassist Robbie Crane, ex-L.A. Guns and Slash's Snakepit guitarist Kerri Kelli, and ex-Faster Pussycat axeman Brent Muscat. ...

— compiled by Iann Robinson, Ryan J. Downey, Robert Mancini and Jon Wiederhorn

• AC/DC
• Motörhead
• Helmet
• System of a Down
• Fireball Ministry

Judas Priest singer Rob Halford

Hey fellow metallers, what's up? Iann Robinson here. This week was just about the greatest week of my life. First up, Rob Halford is back in Judas Priest. Does it get any better? Besides that, I visited the set of the remake of "Dawn of the Dead" and they made me into a zombie for the film. I looked like death warmed over, like an Immortal video or something, all in black and my face ripped open. I got to charge and attack people, cover myself in blood — it was amazing. Between being a zombie and the return of Rob Halford, does it get any better than that? Well, that's it for me. Check out the Metal File action, and I'll have new stuff to tell you next week.

Shadows Fall will be playing 19 shows on their days off from Ozzfest. Cradle of Filth, Killswitch Engage, Sworn Enemy, Hotwire and Grade 8 will join on various dates. The first show is July 18 in Kansas City, and gigs run every few days through August 21 in Fayetteville, North Carolina. ... King's X will kick off a tour on September 28 in Louisville, Kentucky. Dates run through November 18 in Beaumont, Texas. ...

Fireball Ministry's Nuclear Blast label debut, The Second Great Awakening, hits stores October 7. ... 40 Grit have replaced bassist Kevin Young. Ryan Healy, formerly of Tongues, has joined the group and will make his debut with the band on August 8 in Palo Alto, California, sharing the bill with Death Angel. ...

Amon Amarth have joined the bill for Austria's two-day Skeleton Bash festival. My Dying Bride, Ancient and Darkseed are also on the bill for the July 26 show. ... Tourniquet drummer Ted Kirkpatrick will release a DVD of drum solos on September 1. ...

Vader have lined up a stretch of fall tour dates with Nile, Kreator, Amon Amarth and Goatwhore. The tour kicks off October 10 in Houston. ... That same month, Exodus, Nuclear Assault, Callenish Circle, Agent Steel, Mortician, Carnal Forge and Occult will join forces for the Bonded by Metal tour, which kicks off October 9 in London and will roll through Europe. ...

Sweden's Burst have signed with Relapse Records, which will deliver the band's Prey on Life on September 23. The band will tour North America and Europe in support of the release beginning in October. ... Finnish melodic thrash band Children of Bodom will release their fourth album, Hate Crew Deathroll, on September 23. The disc, recorded by Anssi Kippo, will be the band's last to feature guitarist Alexander Kuoppala, who quit after last weekend's Tuska festival in Helsinki. The band will announce a replacement before their August 16 gig in Moscow. ...

Canadian technical death metal merchants Cryptopsy are hard at work on their fifth album. The band's first LP with vocalist Martin Lacroix is due early next year. ... Extol, a Norwegian band that balances extreme aggression and melody, will release their third record, Synergy, on August 12. The band just finished a U.S. tour with Demon Hunter and the Agony Scene and will return to these shores to promote their upcoming disc. ...

—compiled by Iann Robinson, Robert Mancini, Jon Wiederhorn and Joe D'Angelo

• Judas Priest
• Vader
• Fireball Ministry
• Children Of Bodom
• Cryptopsy

Fireball Ministry
Photo: Bong Load Records

Greetings fellow metalers, how goes it? Iann Robinson here. This week was particularly good for me. I got to check out the Black Flag reunion in NYC with Henry Rollins, Keith Morris and the Rollins Band. I know a lot of people are complaining that there's no Greg Ginn or Chuck Dukowski, but I gotta tell you, you'd be a fool to miss this show. First off, it's for a great cause, the West Memphis Three Defense Fund, and if you don't know about the West Memphis Three, then check out www.wm3.org and the movies "Paradise Lost" and "Paradise Lost 2." Plus, the show is just killer. Keith comes out and does like 10 songs, and then Rollins steps out and does an hour or so of pure high-octane Black Flag magic.

I'm an old Black Flag fanatic and I was totally impressed by this show. There's also a raffle at the show that could win you a Lucite Dan Armstrong guitar signed by everybody involved with the Black Flag tribute album for the West Memphis Three. The guitars come with signatures from guys like Corey Taylor from Slipknot, Nick Oliveri of Queens of the Stone Age, Mike Patton and on and on. If you haven't checked out Rise Above: A Tribute to Black Flag, the West Memphis Three benefit album, then you should do so. If you want to catch the show, go to www.henryrollins.com and see when the tour hits your town. That's it for this week — on to the news ...

Powered by their recent success, organizers of the New England Metal and Hardcore Festival are branching out. Promoters will launch the New Jersey Metal and Hardcore Fest on November 14 and 15 at Asbury Park's Convention Hall complex. A lineup is expected to be announced soon. ... Iron Maiden will roll out a new album, Dance of Death, in September. The album, the group's 13th, once again sees the band teaming up with producer Kevin Shirley, who co-produced Maiden's last effort, Brave New World. ...

Superjoint Ritual, the metalcore band featuring Pantera singer Phil Anselmo and bassist Hank Williams III, will tour the United States in July. The tour kicks off on July 4 in Orlando, Florida, and ends July 19 in Flint, Michigan. The band's second album, A Lethal Dose of American Hatred, comes out July 22. ... The second album by Fireball Ministry, The Second Great Awakening, is tentatively due in late September. The disc was produced by Nick Raskulinecz and includes the songs "Master of None," "Flatline" and "The Sinner." ... After their tour with In Flames, Chimaira will take a second stage spot on this summer's Ozzfest. The band's stint starts July 31. ...

Kreator's live DVD Live Kreator: Revisioned Glory will turn up in stores on July 22, coming on the heels of the band's upcoming live album. The release features 17 live tracks, plus a 55-minute history of the band that includes new interview footage. … Type O Negative's Kenny Hickey and Johnny Kelly have teamed up with Dust to Dust's Rob Traynor to work on a new project. Details, including a name for the group, have yet to be hammered out. ...

Repulsion have reunited 14 years after the release of their one and only influential LP, Horrified. Relapse Records reissued a deluxe double-disc version of the album in February, and the band will perform at the 2003 Milwaukee Metalfest, July 25-26. ... Six Feet Under have finished mixing and mastering their fifth studio disc, Bringer of Blood, due September 23. The album is the follow-up to 2001's True Carnage, which featured guest vocals by Ice-T on the track "One Bullet Left." Six Feet Under issued the half-live, half-compilation disc Double Dead in late January. ...

Zyklon — a band featuring ex-Emperor members Samoth (guitar) and Trym (drums) and Myrkskog's Destructhor (guitar) — will release their latest disc, Aeon, in early September. Emperor's Faust penned lyrics for the record. The album was produced by Fredrik Nordstrom and includes the tracks "Psyklon Aeon," "Core Solution" and "Subtle Manipulation." ... Black metal outfit Abigor have split up, according to main man Peter Kubik. ... Amorphis will release the single "Evil Inside" on June 20, the first from the band's upcoming album, Far From the Sun. ... Soilwork have tapped drummer Richard Evensand (Ebony Tears, Dog Faced Gods) to replace recently departed Henry Ranta. ...

—compiled by Iann Robinson, Jon Wiederhorn, Robert Mancini and Joe D'Angelo

• Iron Maiden
• Fireball Ministry
• Repulsion
• Superjoint Ritual
• Kreator

• Fireball Ministry