Trivium's Matt Heafy
Photo: Paul McConnell/ Getty Images

When Trivium released their third album, 2006's The Crusade, it was immediately condemned by the metal elite, as it marked a drastic change in style for the Floridian thrashers. Most of the band's critics took issue with frontman Matt Heafy's decision to ditch the high, raspy screams he'd become known for. The singer took a more melodic vocal approach, which the band's detractors disparaged as sounding too James Hetfield-like.

Of course, Heafy, a self-professed Metallica fanboy, absorbed that criticism, but claims he didn't take it into the writing and recording sessions for Trivium's next studio offering, Shogun, which hits stores September 30.

"I knew it was going to turn heads and that it was going to make a statement, and we really appreciate that," Heafy said of his decision to go clean on The Crusade. "We've always been a band that's had things about us and things that are going on that creates big, bold waves, and what's so weird about the perception of The Crusade is we wanted to show people that we're not just a band that's going to stick to the same formula every time. On that record, we accomplished our main goal, and that was to make it the exact opposite of [2005's] Ascendancy. We didn't want to do anything that happened on that record on the next one, but we still wanted to keep it us, because we feel we're a band that can broaden its sound and not just stick with one thing. It was still metal, and it was still Trivium, just different and diversified."

And while Heafy defends the decision to switch to clean vocals for The Crusade, he has reverted to his old ways. In fact, Heafy screams more on Shogun than he ever has — but he sings more on it, too.

"With this new record, it basically summarizes everything we feel we've done right as a band, that we feel are key ingredients of Trivium, all rolled into one, with a new direction on top of it," he explained. "So, it does have a little bit of everything we've done, and some more. It has as much singing on it as The Crusade, but it has just as much, if not more, screaming than Ascendancy. The songs are longer, and there are more vocal parts. So, I do everything from the lowest possible singing notes I can do to the highest [Rob] Halford-wannabe notes, and everything in between, and the same goes for all the screaming, because we felt the music called for that stuff.

"With The Crusade, we were done with screaming — done with bands that did it, done with doing it ourselves," he continued. "We just didn't want to do it anymore. But when we started jamming for Shogun, and we heard how brutal and heavy some of the stuff was — it's the heaviest sh-- we've ever done before — we tried singing over it, and it wasn't right. What was it missing? The screaming, and that's exactly what it needed."

For Shogun, Trivium decided against working with longtime producer Jason Suecof (All That Remains, God Forbid) and instead enlisted Foo Fighters producer Nick Raskulinecz, who, Heafy said, brought a new energy to the songs.

"We decided to take an old-school approach to the record, using new-school technology, purely for convenience, because tape takes so f---ing long to record with," he said. "Nick made us play this record. The way metal is done these days, you track it a couple of times, make sure its perfect, and then you go in and fix a couple of the pieces — retrigger the guitars and drums. That's just the way it is. But we wanted to go back to the old-school way — record everything right, with no triggers on our drums. We had to make sure the performance was there and the energy was there, and hearing the end result, the stuff Nick drew out of us is just unreal. In terms of heaviness and brutality, it's the best thing we've done. Before, we'd never really considered ourselves a contender for even the word 'heavy' or 'brutal,' but this time, things are different."

Heafy said the new disc incorporates elements of death, thrash and extreme metal — "just a big combination of everything we'd loved as kids" — and that it's evidence of the progression the band's taken with its sound.

"Everyone we've played it for, they're all really excited about it," he said. "I think we've found our sound. We've just discovered it, and with the next one, I think we'll define it. It takes a band a little while to find their sound. Some bands get it on the first record, and some bands it takes several. I think we're one of those bands that's going to develop and fully come into our sound someday. We don't know what record that will be, but this record is even closer to what it's going to be."

This fall, Trivium will be heading out with All That Remains, 36 Crazyfists and the Human Abstract, for a tour that's set to launch September 9 in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida. After that, Heafy said, the band will hit the international circuit before returning to the States next year for Slayer's Unholy Alliance Tour. He said that as far as he knows, it's coming back and "we'll probably be on it."

The rest of the week's metal news:

Unearth have completed recording their new album, The March. It'll be in stores on October 14 and was produced by Killswitch Engage's Adam Dutkiewicz. Look for the LP to feature 10 new cuts, including "Crow Killer," "We Are Not Anonymous" and "Truth or Consequence."

Overcast , the band Brian Fair was in before Shadows Fall, has posted a track called "Root Bound Apollo" over on their MySpace page. The song comes from the band's re-recorded collection of old material, Reborn to Kill Again, which hits stores August 19.

According to Metal Injection, Lamb of God plan to enter the studio next month to begin recording the follow-up to 2006's Sacrament.

The rumors were true: Black Dahlia Murder will, in fact, be added to Children of Bodom's upcoming headlining run with Between the Buried and Me. That tour commences September 11 in Baltimore.

For Today, Dr. Acula and With Dead Hands Rising will be touring together next month. The first date's been set for September 1 in Allentown, Pennsylvania, and the trek runs through September 24 in San Antonio, Texas.

Suicide Silence, the Dillinger Escape Plan, Beneath the Massacre and Emmure have lined up a tour that kicks off October 10 in New York. More dates will be revealed as they're confirmed.

Hatebreed, Soilent Green, Emmure, War of Ages and Catalepsy will be touring together next month too. That jaunt starts in Detroit on September 2, and dates are scheduled through September 14 in Lancaster, Pennsylvania.

The lineup's been set for the sixth annual Robot Mosh Fest, which takes over Country Skate in West Bend, Wisconsin, this weekend. Taking the stage August 2 will be A Life Once Lost, the Tony Danza Tapdance Extravaganza and With Dead Hands Rising, while Darkest Hour, Misery Signals, Winds of Plague, Arsis and Arsonists Get All the Girls play August 3.

• Trivium
• Lamb of God
• Unearth

Dave Marcovecchio, a.k.a. Paranoidave
Photo: Dave Marcovecchio

Dave Marcovecchio doesn't care much for Avenged Sevenfold, and he's not all that jazzed about As I Lay Dying, Slipknot, From First to Last or Bullet for My Valentine, for that matter.

But the band Marcovecchio loves to hate more than any other is Florida metalcore outfit Trivium. And it's his Trivium odium that's helped the 18-year-old Brit become a YouTube phenomenon.

When Marcovecchio isn't in class studying music technology or working with his own band, Wargazm, the metalhead can usually be found at the nearest watering hole, rewriting the lyrics to songs by some of the bands he just can't stomach. When he's done, he turns to Windows Movie Maker and Photoshop to work on hilarious interpretive video creations that pair his made-up lyrics with images depicting them (like boats, coats and kids on bicycles).

"Me and my friend Ryan, we'd go down to the pub, get a bit wasted, and then come back and look up funny stuff on YouTube. There are lots of interpretations on there and we always found them funny," Marcovecchio explained. "But there were lots of ones that sucked, and they're all about emo songs. So we thought, 'We'll do one — a metal one — and show them how it's done.' "

The first song to get the Marcovecchio treatment was melodic death-metal outfit Kalmah's "Man of the King." Marcovecchio is a Kalmah fan, so the video was an homage to the band more than anything else. But it dawned on Marcovecchio that frontman Pekka Kokko's garbled growls were difficult to make out without a lyrics sheet. So Marcovecchio just wrote down what he heard.

"It was fun to do, and it got reasonably successful," he recalled. "So I made the Trivium one, and I didn't quite know what [image] to put over one bit of the song, so I said, 'Ah, these guys suck.' And more than 400,000 views later, here I am. It's sort of weird."

Marcovecchio's interpretation of Trivium's "Pull Harder on the Strings of Your Martyr" has been viewed nearly half a million times, and has become the third-most-watched Trivium video on all of YouTube. In fact, if you type the band's name into the site's search engine, the first result is "Interpretation of Trivium" — Marcovecchio's clip. (Click here to watch Paranoidave's Trivium spoof.)

But while some people are impressed and amused by his work, Marcovecchio has also received death threats. "It's hilarious," he said. "They usually fall into one of three categories: There's the 'I agree with Paranoidave, this is fantastic,' or, 'I'm a Trivium fan, but I like this anyway' or 'I'm a Trivium fan, and I'm going to f---ing kill you.'

"Allegedly, the band are big fans of it," he continued. "There's even a picture of all four of them holding signs that say 'Boat,' 'Rudder,' 'Strange' and 'Mountain' " — the lyrics Marcovecchio created for the song. "I have no idea what some of these bands are saying. To this day, I have no clue what the lyrics for From First to Last's 'Ride the Wings of Pestilence' are, and I don't want to know."

In his videos, Marcovecchio provides pointed commentary on various bands as well as his lyrical interpretations set to images. For example, the chorus from Trivium's "Pull Harder" begins, "Pull, Harder, Strings, Martyr/ Stop you cry, that's a lie/ Flush gasping, white reddening/ You smile and destroy it." Marcovecchio's version goes like this: "Boat, Rudder, Strange, Mountain/ Stomp Ukraine, this lime/ Flesh, gas pain, white, red-eye/ It's mile, with the tires."

Throughout the clip, Marcovecchio takes other shots at the band, implying frontman Matt Heafy's vocals resemble those of Metallica's James Hetfield and accusing the band of plagiarizing Slayer riffs. During the song's dual-guitar solo, another message flashes across the screen: "Please leave dual guitar solos to Scandinavians and Iron Maiden ... You are a disgrace to metal." In his take on As I Lay Dying's "94 Hours," instead of the chorus, "No, I won't let go," Marcovecchio scrolls images of cows across the screen, changing the lyrics to "Now, I want a cow."

"As soon as I know the real lyrics, I'll start hearing those," he said. "But still, [my friends] all agreed that these guys still sounded like they were screaming out my lyrics."

Marcovecchio said he listens to each of his target songs about five times, line by line, and jots down the first words that come to his head after hearing each lyric — what he thought he may have heard. Once he's rewritten those lyrics, he said it takes him about two to three hours to complete his video interpretations.

His latest, an attack on Avenged Sevenfold's "Bat Country," replaces the chorus "Can't you help me as I'm startin' to burn/ Too many doses and I'm starting to get an attraction" with "Pikachu help me, as I'm Sally Da Bum/ Two men, E doses, a nun starting to get in a tractor."

Marcovecchio said he hasn't been contacted by any record labels with requests that the video slams come down ("If you look at the YouTube rules, it's [YouTube's] problem, not mine — so YouTube will get sued if anyone does, not me ... I hope"), and he never realized how much of an underground hit his videos would be. He plans to make more videos whenever he has spare time on his hands, and added that no band is beyond the reach of his venom, including the almighty Metallica.

"The first video was done just as a laugh, to amuse myself," the black-metal diehard said. "I don't think I'm changing anything with these videos. I hope I'm encouraging one or two people to maybe look into metal a bit more, so that they'll see there's more out there than Trivium and what's on the cover of rock and metal magazines."

• Trivium

Lloyd Banks
Photo: F. Scott Schafer

In 2004, G-Unit soldier Lloyd Banks' debut disc, The Hunger for More, opened at #1 on Billboard's albums sales chart, with week-one sales topping 433,000, and Hunger ended up spending a second-straight week at #1, selling close to 164,000 units.

Of course, Banks would have liked to have seen the same results for his sophomore LP, Rotten Apple — an album that features a slew of special guests, including G-Unit associates Tony Yayo and Young Buck, Rakim, Scarface, Mobb Deep, and, on three cuts, 50 Cent.

But with first-week sales totaling close to 143,000, Banks fell more than 40,000 albums short of a chart-topping repeat, and will have to settle instead for the chart's #3 position. Because this week, the #1 slot belongs to Rod Stewart's Still the Same ... Great Rock Classics of Our Time. Rowdy Rod's new one sold to the tune of more than 184,000 its first week in record stores, which was more than enough for the Billboard title belt.

According to the latest SoundScan figures released Wednesday morning (October 18), a second-place finish wasn't even in the cards for Mr. Banks. That's because with more than 164,000 additional copies of The Open Door being carried away from retail outlets last week, Evanescence — who occupied the chart's #1 spot last week, with 447,000 in week-one scans — are sitting pretty at #2, having suffered the typical and expected second-week sales slump: a 63 percent drop.

The only other new disc to crack the chart's coveted top 10 can be found at #4 — Take the Weather With You from tropical rocker Jimmy Buffett. That album sold 121,000 copies during its initial week of release, thanks to the collective power of the Parrotheads, Buffett's legion of devoted, Hawaiian shirt-donning fans. Right behind Buffett is Bennett — Tony Bennett, of course. The iconic crooner's Duets: An American Classic continues to rack up strong sales, with another 105,000 units scanned during the album's third week in stores. The Killers' Sam's Town slides four spots to #6 this week, as second-week sales fell 68 percent, amounting to 102,000 sold.

Justin Timberlake's FutureSex/LoveSounds follows at #7, with sales reported at 92,000 for a five-week grand total of nearly 1.3 million sold. George Strait's It Just Comes Natural drops five spots to #8, with sales of 88,000, while Hinder's Extreme Behavior climbs one slot to #9, with 76,000 scans. Ludacris rounds out the top 10, selling more than 74,000 copies of his latest, Release Therapy, bringing his total album sales just short of the 500,000 mark. Not a shabby showing for an album that's been in stores just three weeks.

Just 20 new releases managed to make it into the Billboard top 200 this week, including the debut disc from country outfit Heartland, I Loved Her First, at #11, netting more than 61,000 in week-one sales. At #15 this week is Still Searching, the sophomore studio outing from New Jersey screamo specialists Senses Fail. More than 49,000 copies of the album left music retail last week, giving the band a strong, and unexpected, sales showing.

The same could be said for Florida metallers Trivium, who land at #25 with their latest, The Crusade, selling more than 31,000 units. Meanwhile, Sting's Songs From the Labyrinth claims the chart's #37 spot with sales nearing 24,000, and Sammie's self-titled sophomore LP, the R&B singer's first collection of new material in six years, opens at #42 with just over 20,000 scans (see "Where Ya Been? Sammie Graduating To Comeback, Third Eye Blind Can See Clearly Now").

Colorblind, the fresh studio set from Robert Randolph and the Family Band, bows at #75 with 12,000-plus copies snatched up, while Sister Hazel's Absolutely debuts at #86 with 11,200 sold. The Blood Brothers return to the Billboard chart with Young Machetes, which claims the #92 slot with nearly 11,000 units leaving record store shelves, and Uncovered/Covered, a collaborative release from R&B artists Kenny Lattimore and Chanté Moore, follows at #95 with more than 10,000 scans.

Cobra Starship's While the City Sleeps, We Rule the Streets debuts at #125 with 8,000 in first-week sales action, followed at #151 by singer/songwriter James Taylor's James Taylor at Christmas, which put up week-one sales of 6,000 units. And A Static Lullaby's self-titled new one takes the chart's #172 slot, with more than 5,000 scans.

• Lloyd Banks
• Rod Stewart
• Evanescence
• Senses Fail
• Trivium

Lloyd Banks' <i>Rotten Apple</i>
Photo: G-Unit Records

Spoiling the Barrel: Lloyd Banks has a friend in 50 Cent — there's no questioning that, given the three guest appearances he makes on Banks' Rotten Apple. Fellow G-Unit members Tony Yayo and Young Buck also crop up on Banks' sophomore set. But plenty of other singers take a bite out of the Apple as well: Rakim ("Dollar Bill"), Scarface ("Iceman"), Musiq Soulchild ("Addicted") and Mobb Deep ("Get Clapped"). And if you want another dose of G-Unit, don't miss Kev Samples' The Rush, a mixtape issued in conjunction with DJ Whoo Kid. The Death of R&B is just a preview of the upcoming LP debut by the singer, but it holds its own with guest spots by Jamie Foxx, T-Paine and Ray J.

Ted's Excellent Adventure: Subtitled "Look Where We Are Now," the special edition re-release of Teddy Geiger's Underage Thinking has much to flaunt. Tacked onto the end of the CD are eight extra songs: five demos, two remixes and an additional track, "As We Get Older." There's also a bonus DVD attached, and it's packed with videos for "For You I Will (Confidence)" and "These Walls," plus day-in-the-life footage, photos and a scrapbook.

Take a Bite: Their theme song "Snakes on a Plane (Bring It)" came and went along with the crash-and-burn Samuel L. Jackson novelty flick, but now Cobra Starship properly launch their career with While the City Sleeps, We Rule the Streets. A near-fatal snake bite that Uruguay-born frontman Gabe Saporta suffered in the Arizona desert nearly did him in, which inspired the band's moniker. Some of the venom might still be running through his veins, what with tracks titled "Being From Jersey Means Never Having to Say You're Sorry," "Ballad of Big Poppa and Diamond Girl" and "Church of Hot Addiction."

With next-generation metal mavens Lamb of God and Mastodon scraping the ceiling of the Billboard albums chart in recent months, Trivium might make a splash with their junior effort, The Crusade. The Orlando, Florida, posse recall Megadeth and other thrashers throughout the effort, which includes the nine-minute instrumental title track "To the Rats" and the opening tracks "Ignition" and "Detonation." Just don't be turned off by the Molly Hatchet-like cover art.

Let the Eagles Soar: While it had been reported that Eagles of Death Metal's debut DVD would be called "Death by DVD" — a play off their latest CD, Death by Sexy — it looks like the Eagles have landed a different name: "DVD by Sexy." Directed by Liam Lynch — who sat behind the camera for Eagles amigos Tenacious D ("The Pick of Destiny") and Sarah Silverman ("Jesus Is Magic") — the set is littered with rehearsal footage, five live performances and videos featuring Jack Black, Dave Grohl and more.

Road Trip: New music from across North America hits stores every Tuesday, but this week we're bothering to make a stink about it. The journey starts in Chicago, where the Baldwin Brothers have tapped Mark Lanegan and members of the Bellrays and Lo Fidelity Allstars for their second LP, The Return of the Golden Rhodes. The so-called "junk-tronica" act closes out its lounge-oriented effort with a ballad, "The Party's Over," which features Lanegan.

In the meantime, avant-pop artists Chin Up Chin Up are also serving up their second release, This Harness Can't Ride Anything. Frontman Jeremy Bolen hops into the saddle to dish about animals, Minnesota and breasts, on songs like "Blankets Like Beavers" and "I Need a Friend With a Boat." Thrill Jockey pop experimentalists Califone and Pit Er Pat also ante up with new CDs — Roots and Crowns and Pyramids, respectively — but as far as Chicago goes, this week really belongs to Bloodshot Records. After 12 years, the label is taking stock of its rootsy, bar-friendly indie acts with its first-ever DVD, "Bloodied but Unbowed: Bloodshot Records - Life in the Trenches." It scans through videos by Ryan Adams, Alejandro Escovedo and the Old 97's and hangs with others in a series of bonus features.

Venture next up to Toronto, where newbies Tokyo Police Club are building heavy buzz amid stints opening for Art Brut, Enon and Polyphonic Spree. Their debut LP, A Lesson in Crime, runs just 16 minutes in length but has been drawing raves from indie-rock musos. While you're in Hogtown, don't miss F---ed Up: The punks might sound a bit conventional, but they've been drawing raves from fellow Canadians the Arcade Fire. (Arcade Fire's violinist, Owen Pallett, a.k.a. Polaris Music Prize-winner Final Fantasy, contributes to FU's Hidden World.) The band's frontman is schizophrenic and cuts his face with razors, its rhythm guitarist is a transient, the lead guitarist raises chickens, and their manager refuses to see them perform. Isn't that reason enough?

Hop across the border to Buffalo, New York, where rockers This Day & Age are dropping The Bell and the Hammer. Produced by Ed Rose (Motion City Soundtrack, the Get Up Kids) and the band, its second release seems to have sprouted feet, what with tracks like "More of a Climb, Less of a Walk" and "Walking Contradictions." Trot a bit further down the state to the Big Apple, where Lower Manhattan-ites Chavez are taking a look back with Better Days Will Haunt You. The guitar-heavy band bundles its only two albums — 1995's Gone Glimmering and the following year's Ride the Fader — along with B-sides, compilation tracks and an unreleased cut. A DVD with a tour doc, promo clips and Easter eggs seals the deal.

Drift over to Beantown for a spell, where Protokoll were nominated for four Boston Music Awards — but, alas, didn't win any. The band self-released its eponymous EP in August 2005, but it's finally getting a proper release through IHeartComix. Ellis Paul — who's scooped up 13 BMAs over the years — is being celebrated with the self-explanatory Essentials. The two-disc set also has two new songs by the philosophical troubadour.

Head south and pass by NYC, where you'll find Bitch stepping away from her Ani DiFranco project Bitch and Animal to put out a disc of her own. She plucks away at a ukulele, bass and electric violin on Make This/ Break This — and makes an appearance in John Cameron Mitchell's new flick, "Shortbus." And then head to Long Island Shores with singer/songwriter Mindy Smith as she celebrates the Smithtown 'burb she grew up in. Her sophomore set was co-produced by Smith and longstanding Dolly Parton and Linda Ronstadt collaborator Steve Buckingham.

Continue south. First you'll hit Philadelphia, where metal marauders Passion blast censorship on The Fierce Urgency of Now, and after that, camp out in Washington, D.C., since there's some action there. Joe Lally has corralled Fugazi partners Ian MacKaye and Guy Picciotto, Scott "Wino" Weinrich and members of the Hot Snakes and Rites of Spring for Ingleside Terrace, a solo LP he's releasing under the name French Toast. In the meantime, the Drugstore Cowboys whittle down pop, crunk and hardcore into a unique blend for the long-winded Chapter 3006 of Dance Moves for the Apocalypse: If Octomaiden Was a Diabetic Joykill Addict.

Skip past Virginia and hit North Carolina, where Chapel Hill stalwarts Portastatic are still tearing it up. Laura Cantrell, Annie Hayden and Peter Holsapple guest on Be Still Please, which features "I'm in Love (With Arthur Dove)," a song devoted to the American abstract painter. Eric Bachmann — the centrifugal force behind Chapel Hill crews Archers of Loaf and Crooked Fingers — arranged the strings and horns for Micah P. Hinson and the Opera Circuit. Hinson, who was brought up in a Christian fundamentalist household in Memphis, Tennessee, reflects on dating a Vogue cover model, going bankrupt and overcoming drug problems. One of the best-known Tennessee singers of all, Dolly Parton, finds her three recent bluegrass albums combined into The Acoustic Collection 1999-2002, a box set that also features a DVD. Don't miss the clip of Norah Jones singing with Parton.

Skulk around the South and you'll find Augusta, Georgia, rising folk star Josh Kelly delivering his third LP, Just Say the Word. Over in Athens, the New Sound of Numbers get a boost from the Elephant 6 collective — Olivia Tremor Control's John Fernandes in particular — to help them scatter their Liberty Seeds. Florida's Sister Hazel get a hand from Shawn Mullins and songwriter Richard Marx for their LP Absolutely, while further west, Austin, Texas' the Lovely Sparrows fuse folk with Latin sounds on their debut EP, Pulling Up Floors, Pouring on (New) Paint. And Texas-born punk-rocker Jason Bayless picked up a camera to document Hawthorne Heights, Silverstein, NOFX and others on the Warped Tour, footage that's been compiled as "Wake Up Screaming."

Go all the way west to Long Beach, California, where I Am Ghost — recruited by Brett Gurewitz of Warped Tour regulars Bad Religion — are releasing their debut, Lovers' Requiem. Make a beeline for the north, where eclectic singer/songwriter Tommy Guerrero is stirring it up in the Bay Area with From the Soil to the Soul, which features local rapper Lyrics Born. Up in Seattle, the Blood Brothers are setting forth their fifth LP, Young Machetes, which was co-produced by the aforementioned Guy Picciotto. Also in that city — where the trek comes to a close — Crooked Fingers member Barbara Trentalange has compiled a Photo Album of Complex Relationships, with other members of her band lending support; Damien Jurado ushers in And Now That I'm in Your Shadow; and These Arms Are Snakes sing about "Child Chicken Play," "Hell's Bank Notes" and "Abracadabra" for Easter. And last but not least, Washington state heroes the Melvins live on with (A) Senile Animal, which features Big Business backing them. How's the odometer lookin'?

Song Title of the Week:

"Tomorrow Will Not Be Another Day" from Robert Pollard's Normal Happiness

Other Notables:

Robert Randolph & the Family Band's Colorblind: Dave Matthews lends his pipes to "Love Is the Only Way" and Eric Clapton his guitar prowess to a cover of the Doobie Brothers' "Jesus Is Just Alright" on the latest output by the lauded pedal-steel guitarist. Randolph was nominated for a Grammy the last time around, for Unclassified — maybe Colorblind will result in greater spoils.

120 Days' 120 Days: Purported to be the first Norwegian band to sign directly to an American label, the Vice artists were originally called the Beautiful People but changed their name after performing at Reading, Leeds and other major European fests. Their guitar-fueled brand of electronic music draws comparisons to Primal Scream and Lou Reed's Metal Machine Music, and 120 Days' maiden release boasts "Sleepwalking," "Sleepless Night #3" and "Be Mine."

Nikki Sudden's The Truth Doesn't Matter: The troubled troubadour passed away in March during his U.S. tour, mere days after his final studio album and autobiography were completed. Sudden actually recorded the 15 tracks — including "Gin Palace (Jordan's Dragoons)," "Beyond Hope" and "All This Buttoning and Unbuttoning" in Berlin late last year.

New Releases:

• 120 Days - 120 Days (Vice)
  
• A Static Lullaby - A Static Lullaby (Fearless)
  Buy Now: A Static Lullaby (Fearless)
  
• The Aquarium - The Aquarium (Dischord)
  
• Baldwin Brothers - The Return of the Golden Rhodes (TVT)
  Buy Now: The Return of the Golden Rhodes (TVT)
  
• The Be Good Tanyas - Hello Love (Nettwerk)
  
• Bitch - Make This/ Break This (Kill Rock Stars)
  
• Blood Brothers - Young Machetes (V2)
  Read: "Blood Brothers Chop It Up About Machetes, Brace For Trail Of Dead Tour"
  Buy Now: Young Machetes (V2)
  
• Buffalo Killers - Buffalo Killers (Alive)
  
• Jimmy Buffett - Take the Weather With You (RCA)
  Buy Now: Take the Weather With You (RCA)
  
• Califone - Roots and Crowns (Thrill Jockey)
  
• Chavez - Better Days Will Haunt You (Matador)
  Buy Now: Better Days Will Haunt You (Matador)
  
• Chin Up Chin Up - This Harness Can't Ride Anything (Suicide Squeeze)
  
• Circle II Circle - Burden of Truth (Locomotive)
  
• Lloyd Cole - Antidepressant (One Little Indian)
  Buy Now: Antidepressant (One Little Indian)
  
• Cobra Starship - While the City Sleeps, We Rule the Streets (Decaydence)
  Read: "Cobra Starship Owe Success To Talking Snake From The Future"
  Buy Now: While the City Sleeps, We Rule the Streets (Decaydence)
  
• Cold War Kids - Robbers & Cowards (Downtown)
  
• J.D. Crowe & the New South - Lefty's Old Guitar (Rounder)
  
• Deep Fried Funk Brothers - Out of the Frying Pan, Into the Fire (SMC)
  
• Doxies - In Search Of ... (Co-Opt)
  
• Drugstore Cowboys - Chapter 3006 of Dance Moves for the Apocalypse: If Octomaiden Was a Diabetic Joykill Addict (Lujo)
  
• Kyle Eastwood - Now (Rendezvous)
  
• El Goodo - El Goodo (Empyrean)
  
• Five.Bolt.Main - Live (Rock Ridge)
  
• French Toast - Ingleside Terrace (Dischord)
  
• F---ed Up - Hidden World (Jade Tree)
  
• Teddy Geiger - Underage Thinking (special-edition re-release with demo bonus tracks and DVD; Columbia)
  Read: "Teddy Geiger Milks 'Fat Cows' For Underage Re-Release"
  Buy Now: Underage Thinking (Columbia)
  
• Cedric Gervais - Experiment (Ultra)
  
• Gothic Archies - The Tragic Treasury: Songs From a Series of Unfortunate Events (Nonesuch)
  
• Grave Digger - Yesterday (EP; Locomotive)
  
• Tommy Guerrero - From the Soil to the Soul (Quannum)
  Buy Now: From the Soil to the Soul (Quannum)
  
• Wayne "The Train" Hancock - Tulsa (Bloodshot)
  
• Micah P. Hinson - Micah P. Hinson and the Opera Circuit (Jade Tree)
  
• Hybrid - I Choose Noise (with bonus DVD; Distinctive)
  Buy Now: I Choose Noise (Distinctive)
  
• Hymns - Brother/Sister (Rock Ridge)
  
• I Am Ghost - Lovers' Requiem (Epitaph)
  
• Shooter Jennings - Live at Irving Plaza 4.18.06 (Universal South)
  Buy Now: Live at Irving Plaza 4.18.06 (Universal South)
  
• Damien Jurado - And Now That I'm in Your Shadow (Secretly Canadian)
  Buy Now: And Now That I'm in Your Shadow (Secretly Canadian)
  
• Josh Kelley - Just Say the Word (Icon)
  Buy Now: Just Say the Word (Icon)
  
• Jess Klein - City Garden (United Opportunity)
  
• Know the Score - All Time Low (Eulogy)
  
• Kultur Shock - We Came to Take Your Jobs Away (Koolarrow)
  
• Joe Lally - There to Here (Dischord)
  
• Ali Lohan - Lohan Holiday (YMC)
  
• Lost Immigrants - Waiting on Judgement Day (Palo Duro)
  
• Lovely Sparrows - Pulling Up Floors, Pouring on (New) Paint (EP; Abandoned Love)
  
• Moanin' Michelle Malone - Sugarfoot (Valley)
  
• Natalie MacMaster - Yours Truly (Rounder)
  Buy Now: Yours Truly (Rounder)
  
• Melvins - (A) Senile Animal (Ipecac)
  Buy Now: (A) Senile Animal (Ipecac)
  
• The Memory Band - Apron Strings (Discristina Stair)
  
• Bette Midler - Cool Yule (Columbia)
  Buy Now: Cool Yule (Columbia)
  
• The New Sound of Numbers - Liberty Seeds (Cloud)
  
• Owusu & Hannibal - Living With ... (Ubiquity)
  
• Oxford Collapse - Remember the Night Parties (Sub Pop)
  
• Brad Paisley - A Brad Paisley Christmas (Arista)
  Buy Now: Brad Paisley (A Brad Paisley Christmas)
  
• Passion - The Fierce Urgency of Now (Goodfellow)
  
• Pernice Brothers - Live a Little (Ashmont)
  Buy Now: Live a Little (Ashmont)
  
• Pilot Scott Tracy - We Cut Loose! (Alternative Tentacles)
  
• Pit Er Pat - Pyramids (Thrill Jockey)
  
• Robert Pollard - Normal Happiness (Merge)
  Buy Now: Normal Happiness (Merge)
  
• Portastatic - Be Still Please (Merge)
  
• Protokoll - Protokoll (EP; IHeartComix)
  
• Robert Randolph & the Family Band - Colorblind (Warner Bros.)
  
• Sammie - Sammie (Motown)
  Buy Now: Sammie (Motown)
  
• Kev Samples - The Rush (Titan/Pyramid)
  
• Emmanuel Santarromana - Fab 4 Ever (Pschent/Wagram)
  
• Senses Fail - Still Searching (deluxe edition comes with DVD; Vagrant)
  Read: "Senses Fail Frontman Says Depression, Anxiety Made New LP Better"
  Buy Now: Still Searching (Vagrant)
  
• Sister Hazel - Absolutely (Adrenaline)
  Buy Now: Absolutely (Adrenaline)
  
• Slowtrainsoul - Santimanitay (Quango)
  
• Mindy Smith - Long Island Shores (Vanguard)
  Buy Now: Long Island Shores (Vanguard)
  
• Spider and the Webs - Frozen Roses (EP; K)
  
• Rod Stewart - Still the Same ... Great Rock Classics of Our Time (J)
  Buy Now: Still the Same ... Great Rock Classics of Our Time (J)
  
• Sting - Songs From the Labyrinth (Deutsche Grammophon)
  Buy Now: Songs From the Labyrinth (Deutsche Grammophon)
  
• Nikki Sudden - The Truth Doesn't Matter (Secretly Canadian)
  
• Trent Summar & the New Row Mob - Horseshoes and Hand Grenades (Palo Duro)
  
• Sybarite - Cut Out Shape (Temporary Residence)
  
• James Taylor - James Taylor at Christmas (Columbia)
  Buy Now: James Taylor at Christmas (Columbia)
  
• These Arms Are Snakes - Easter (Jade Tree)
  Buy Now: Easter (Jade Tree)
  
• Third Day - Christmas Offerings (Essential)
  Buy Now: Christmas Offerings (Essential)
  
• This Day & Age - The Bell and the Hammer (One Eleven)
  
• Barbara Trentalange - Photo Album of Complex Relationships (Coco Tauro)
  
• Trivium - The Crusade (Roadrunner)
  Buy Now: The Crusade (Roadrunner)
  
• Victory - Fuel to the Fire (Locomotive)
  
• Tom Wurth - Tom Wurth (Aspirion)
  
• Wynonna - A Classic Christmas (Curb)
  Buy Now: A Classic Christmas (Curb)
  
• Young Quon - Doin It ... Movin (Suave House 2)
  
• Various artists - Radio Disney Party Jams (Disney)

Notable Reissues and Archival Material:

• Burt Bacharach & Friends - Gold (Hip-O)
  
• Jeff Beck - Beck-Ola and Truth (Epic/Legacy)
  
• Chavez - Better Days Will Haunt You (two CDs and one DVD; Matador)
  
• The Cure - Head on the Door, Kiss Me Kiss Me Kiss Me and The Top (Rhino)
  Buy Now: Head on the Door, Kiss Me Kiss Me Kiss Me and The Top (Rhino)
  
• Roger Daltrey - Gold (two CDs; Hip-O)
  
• Charlie Gracie - The Best of Charlie Gracie: Cameo Parkway 1956-1958 (ABKCO)
  
• Elton John - Elton John's Christmas Party (Hip-O)
  Buy Now: Elton John's Christmas Party (Hip-O)
  
• Kiss - 20th Century Masters: The Best of Kiss - Millennium Collection, Volume 3 (Island)
  Buy Now: 20th Century Masters: The Best of Kiss - Millennium Collection, Volume 3 (Island)
  
• Eartha Kitt - She's So Good (ASV Living Era)
  
• Ali Lohan - Lohan Christmas (UMe)
  
• Barry Manilow - Barry Manilow I, One Voice and This One's for You (Arista/Legacy)
  
• Mobb Deep - Life of the Infamous: The Best of Mobb Deep (Loud/Legacy)
  Buy Now: Life of the Infamous: The Best of Mobb Deep (Loud/Legacy)
  
• Anne-Sophie Mutter - Simply Anne-Sophie (Deutsche Grammophon)
  
• Dolly Parton - The Acoustic Collection 1999-2002 (box set with three CDs and one DVD; Sugar Hill)
  
• Andy Partridge - Fuzzy Warbles Collector's Album (box set; Ape House)
  
• Ellis Paul - Essentials (two CDs; Philo)
  
• Righteous Brothers - 20th Century Masters: The Best of the Righteous Brothers - Millennium Collection (Polydor)
  
• Andreas Scholl - The Best of Andreas Scholl (Decca)
  
• Unwritten Law - 20th Century Masters: The Best of Unwritten Law - Millennium Collection (Interscope)
  Buy Now: 20th Century Masters: The Best of Unwritten Law - Millennium Collection (Interscope)
  
• Spanky Wilson & the Quantic Soul Orchestra - I'm Thankful (Ubiquity/Tru Thoughts)
  
• Betty Wright - I Love the Way You Love Me (Water)
  
• Rob Zombie - 20th Century Masters: The Best of Rob Zombie - Millennium Collection (Geffen)
  Buy Now: 20th Century Masters: The Best of Rob Zombie - Millennium Collection (Geffen)
  
• Various artists - Around the World for Lovers (Verve)
  
• Various artists - How Cool Is That Chrismas? (Epic)
  
• Various artists - Now That's What I Call Christmas! 3 (BMG Strategic Marketing)
  
• Various artists - "American Hardcore - The History of American Punk Rock (1980-1986)" soundtrack (Rhino)
  Read: "Think You Know Punk Rock? Hardcore Vets Recall Real Blood-And-Sweat Years"

Music DVDs:

• Eagles of Death Metal - "DVD by Sexy" (Downtown)
  
• Fairport Convention - "35th Anniversary Concert" (Music Video Distributors)
  
• Nuclear Assault - "Louder Harder Faster" (Screaming Ferret)
  
• Barre Phillips - "Live in Vienna" (Music Video Distributors)
  
• Porcupine Tree - "Arriving Somewhere" (two DVDs; Snapper)
  
• Rufus Reid - "Live in Vienna" (Music Video Distributors)
  
• Tupac Shakur and Notorious B.I.G. - "Tupac vs. Biggie: The Legacy Continues" (two DVDs; Music Video Distributors)
  
• U.K. Subs - "Warhead: 25th Anniversary Marquee Concert" (Music Video Distributors)
  
• Barry White - "Live in Europe 1975" (Hudson Street)
  
• Various artists - "Bloodied but Unbowed: Bloodshot Records - Life in the Trenches" (Bloodshot)
  
• Various artists - "Wake Up Screaming: Vans Warped Tour Documentary" (Music Video Distributors)

Coming Attractions:

October 17:

• C-Murder - The Tru Story ... Continued (limited-edition version with DVD and bonus tracks; Koch)
  Preorder: The Tru Story ... Continued (Koch)
  
• Glenn Danzig - Black Aria II (Megaforce)
  Read: "Glenn Danzig Preps 'Final' Tour, Film, Box Set And, Uh, Dolls"
  Preorder: Black Aria II (Megaforce)
  
• Xzibit - Full Circle (Koch)
  Read: "Xzibit's An Indie Rapper Again, With Game And Quik In Tow"
  Preorder: Full Circle (Koch)
  

October 24:

• My Chemical Romance - The Black Parade (Reprise)
  Read: "My Chemical Romance Unveil Black Parade Track List, Album Art"
  Preorder: The Black Parade (Reprise)
  
• Sparta - Threes (Hollywood)
  Read: "Sparta Return With New LP, Outlook, Tour — And No Need For 'Hipster Points' "
  Preorder: Threes (Hollywood)
  
• Various artists - "The Nightmare Before Christmas" soundtrack (special two-CD edition; Disney)
  Read: "Fall Out Boy, Panic, Marilyn Manson Add To New 'Nightmare Before Christmas' Soundtrack"

October 31:

• Deftones - Saturday Night Wrist (Maverick)
  Read: "Deftones Plan Tour With Deadsy Before LP Drops On Halloween"
  Preorder: Saturday Night Wrist (Maverick)
  
• Lady Sovereign - Public Warning (Def Jam)
  Preorder: Public Warning (Def Jam)
  
• Kevin Federline - Playing With Fire (Reincarnate)
  Read: "Federline Moving Songs From The Lab To Clubs For Testing"
  Preorder: Playing With Fire (Reincarnate)
  

• Lloyd Banks
• Teddy Geiger
• Cobra Starship
• Trivium
• Mobb Deep

Seemless
Photo: B. Bettis/ Equal Vision Records

Seemless frontman Jesse Leach has no regrets.

When he walked out on his Killswitch Engage comrades back in 2002, he knew it was time. His vocal cords were barely functional and he couldn't stand life on the road when he couldn't bring his wife along with him. Plus, his relationship with the rest of the Killswitch dudes had become frayed, and the band was teetering on the brink of total collapse. So, he did what he had to do — he hopped off the Killswitch train, just as it started to pull out of Obscurity Station.

But rock was still in his system. So, while he'd cashed in his metal chips, he hadn't given up on music altogether.

"This is where I belong — this is where I feel good," said Leach, when asked if he laments the decision to leave Killswitch for his current band, straight-ahead rockers Seemless. "Mentally and spiritually, I am in the right place. I wouldn't change a damn thing. I was miserable and had just really lost my passion for singing that kind of music. I didn't feel it anymore. This band's just much easier on my soul. After doing metal for close to 10 years, I felt like it was just getting old for me. I felt like I had done all I could do. I look at [Killswitch's 2002 LP] Alive or Just Breathing, and that was sort of my farewell to that style of music. I felt like I left my mark with that album, and that was it — it was time to move on. After that album, I was ready to just stop and 'be a normal guy and have a normal life.' But I love music so much, I couldn't escape it."

Leach — who is on good terms with his Killswitch pals — said when he first heard Seemless (at the time they had a different lead singer), he recognized that the band respected rock's roots and honored its past, while injecting a modern heaviness into the mix. And that has no doubt helped Seemless win over thousands of metalheads. "It had the stuff I was raised on," he recalled. "It just seemed like a natural progression to regress back to my roots."

But the Chris Cornell-emulating Leach said the band's self-titled 2004 debut was more like a demo. At the time of the recordings, the band was still just getting warmed up. In fact, most of the tracks were recorded before he even joined the band, which also features ex-members of Shadows Fall, Overcast and Medium. Leach said the follow-up, What Have We Become, "feels like it's our first proper album. We jell now, as a unit. We're like brothers at this point. In every aspect, this feels like our first album." It hits stores on Tuesday and features "In My Blood," "Jaded," "Parody" and the first single, "Cast No Shadow." The band recently shot a video for the latter cut, DIY-style, with director Ramon Boutviseth (Sanctity, Daylight Dies).

Seemless — who're on the road with Nonpoint through Tuesday and are set to hit the road with Trivium and the Sword in October — "wouldn't change a single thing on this record," Leach added. He said the band recorded the material in about a week, even writing several of the tracks while in the studio. "I can listen to it, from start to finish, and have no problem with it. We believe in it so much. It's just a more focused album, and we had a real strong sense of who we are as a band going into this album."

And for Leach, much of the album's lyrical content was born out of his frustration with rock's money-grubbing, narcissistic ways. "It's about my disgust with the state of music and the state of the industry," he said. "And all of the rock star crap too."

But it's obvious that Seemless — who plan to stay on the road for the remainder of the year and for much of 2007 — have found a solid comfort zone and have progressed past the initial growing pains. In fact, he said, even with the release of their second LP just days away, Seemless have started working on material for album number three.

"We write songs within hours in this band," he said. "It's never a struggle for us. It just flies right out. We're already working on our next album. We have a bunch of tracks for it, and the new stuff we're working on is even more diverse than the record we're putting out next week. I am having fun for the first time in my life, with a project that works on all levels. It's great."

Still, Leach does wish Seemless could be a bit more profitable — which means he'd appreciate it if you picked up the band's latest disc on Tuesday.

"We're not looking for the fame and the fortune," he said, adding that he's working two jobs just to make ends meet, as he's facing the prospect of car repossession. "I won't lie — I have bills to pay and I would love to make some more money. But if we can just get by, we'll continue to do this band. I just want to survive off of it. There's a real blue-collar mentality to this band."

The rest of the week's metal news: Sepultura founders Max and Igor Cavalera have been involved in an intense feud since Max's stepson Dana died in a car accident in 1996; Max left the band soon after and formed Soulfly. But on August 17, at a Soulfly show in Tempe, Arizona, in tribute to Dana, the Cavaleras took the stage together for the first time in 10 years. Igor stepped behind the drums toward the end of the set to play an instrumental jam and remained onstage for performances of the Sepultura songs "Roots Bloody Roots" and "Attitude." Even if the reunion eventually triggers the rebirth of the original Sepultura, for now Max is continuing to support Soulfly's 2005 album, Dark Ages, with a new U.S. tour that begins September 18 in San Diego and runs through October 6 in Atlanta. ... In October, McFarlane Toys will release an exclusive 3-D sculpture of the cover of Metallica's seminal 1986 LP, Master of Puppets. The sculpture will be approximately 7 by 7 inches and will be made from PVC. A sculpture of the Jimi Hendrix Experience's Are You Experienced? will follow in November. On Monday, McFarlane released a 3-D cover of the Sex Pistols' Never Mind the Bollocks, Here's the Sex Pistols. Additional titles will be announced in the coming months. ...

Belphegor drummer Nefastus, who replaced Torturer in early 2005, has left the band. Nefastus made the decision following the completion of the group's sixth album, Pestapokalypse VI, which will be released on Halloween. Players who wish to fill the vacant slot can contact Belphegor@aon.at, but they must have stage and touring experience, be able to rehearse in Austria, be able to play with a click track and be interested in black and death metal. Before announcing Nefastus' departure, the band shot two new videos for "Bluhtsturm Erotika" and "Belphegor - Hell's Ambassador" between August 8 and 11 with director Florian W. The former features a blood-covered naked succubus named Dani, and the latter includes shots of gnarly musicians, ghostly apparitions and lots of fog. ... Swedish grindcore outfit Regurgitate have announced an October 17 release date for their next album, Sickening Bliss. The disc was recorded at BackBone studios by RGTE and Patrik Jonsson and engineered by drummer Jocke Pettersson and Jonsson in April and May. Marking a return to the nauseating lyrics of the band's early days, the album features 26 tracks, including "Upheaval of Human Entrails," "Excremental Ingestment," "Battered With a Brick" and "Euphoric State of Butchery." ...

Glenn Danzig will release Black Aria II on October 17. The sequel to his 1993 classical album, Black Aria, features organ, strings, percussion, chiming, chanting and operatic vocals. Produced and written by Danzig, the record tells the story of Lilith, Adam's wife before Eve, and includes "Dance of the Succubi," "Bridal Ceremony of the Lilitu," "Unclean Sephira" and "The Succubus Feeds." Says Danzig: "The first Black Aria is very Wagnerian, and also has these violent, Scottish/ Celtic qualities. This one is more Eastern, because it's about Lilith. It still has a lot of the classic elements I like, but many of the sounds come from elsewhere because of this fascinating story, which has its origins in even older myths and legends." ...

Fear Factory, Hypocrisy, Suffocation and Decapitated will launch the Machines at War Tour on October 26 in San Francisco. Dates run through November 9 in Albuquerque, New Mexico. The only band on the bill with an upcoming album is Suffocation, who will release their self-titled album on September 19. ... Teutonic power-metal warriors Blind Guardian have announced the dates for their North American winter tour. The shows will begin November 8 in Tempe, Arizona, and will run through December 11 in Austin, Texas. Blind Guardian's A Twist in the Myth will be released September 5. ... Youthful thrash-metal flag-wavers Trivium will launch a North American tour with equally young power-metal torchbearers Cellador starting October 1 in Lake Buena Vista, Florida. Dates run through October 9 in Toronto. Doom-metal heroes the Sword and schizophrenic metallers Protest the Hero will also be on the bill. Trivium's triumphant third record, The Crusade, comes out October 10.

• Seemless
• Metallica
• Sepultura
• Fear Factory
• Trivium

Satyricon's Sigurd "Satyr" Wongraven
Photo: Century Media

Sigurd "Satyr" Wongraven, the snarling frontman for Norwegian black-metallers Satyricon, says his band's forthcoming LP, Now, Diabolical, constitutes perhaps the darkest material he's ever had a hand in writing. But he doesn't say you've got to be a black-metal disciple to relish the record.

"These songs are very direct," he explained. "Instead of 12 or 13 themes per song, there are just a handful of themes that carry each song, because I wanted the album to have an extremely solid framework — something that was undeniable and unquestionable, something that was very insisting and full of authority. A way of achieving that is to concentrate on purifying the power of a few themes, as opposed to never letting one theme establish itself.

"I think too many metal bands sound like they play music for other musicians, that the song has no higher purpose or that they don't look for a special atmosphere or anything like that," he continued. "They just play and say, 'Look at me, I can shred.' It's very typical and it's really sad."

Still, Satyr said he has no idea what sort of response Now, Diabolical's going to receive when it lands in U.S. record stores on June 13. Satyricon's previous outing, Volcano, has sold a mere 15,000 copies since its release back in 2003. Six weeks ago, Now, Diabolical was released in Europe and is one of the fastest-selling records in their homeland.

But Europe isn't America, and according to Satyr, "Americans have a different understanding of extreme-metal music.

"It's kind of weird," he continued, "because death metal is a part of what I call extreme-metal music, and death metal has more to do with America than Europe, that's for sure. It seems like there is a lot of confusion as to who's, where it concerns black metal and death metal. Europeans pinpointed a long time ago who's black metal and what bands are important. The American kids don't seem to have the slightest clue about that, so you find yourself in a situation where a band that is not popular in Europe at all ... can do really well in America, while other bands that have very solid standings in Europe are not doing very well in America. It's hard to predict.

"If I was to go by the reception and the overall status of a band like Satyricon in Europe, I would say that [the record] is going to do extremely well in America. But given what I just explained, you never know."

Before year's end, Wongraven said Satyricon hope to hit the road with a number of other true black-metal bands — nothing has been confirmed yet — for a U.S. headlining run. But a few months back, Satyricon were presented with a golden opportunity to raise their profile with metal lovers in the U.S.: a slot on this summer's Ozzfest.

Unfortunately, "we just had about a million things we were already committed to doing in Europe, so we couldn't be a part of Ozzfest this year," Wongraven said. He hopes the band will get a second chance next year, "because it's something we've always wanted to do. Every band that has a little bit of common sense must want to do Ozzfest. [Now, Diabolical] is doing really, really well in Europe, and it's not like we're going to blow that just to see what could possibly happen in America. That's the honest truth."

The rest of the week's metal news:

Experimental grindcore gurus Cephalic Carnage are working on material for what will be their fifth album. The band will record the songs this winter and plans to release the effort a year from now. On a related note, Cephalic have found a replacement for bassist Jawsh Mullen, who left the band in February. Nick Schendzielos, who also plays with Denver's AinMatter, has been filling in for Mullen since he jumped ship. ... Unearth will shoot a video next week with director Darren Doane (AFI, Strife) for "Giles," the first single from the band's August 8 release, III: In the Eyes of Fire. ... Munich, Germany, death-metallers Heaven Shall Burn have completed tracking their forthcoming LP, Deaf to Our Prayers. "We're totally satisfied with the result," the band wrote on its site of the disc, set to drop August 28. ... Vincent McAllister, a guitarist and founding member of pioneering metal outfit Pentagram, has died. McAllister, 51, succumbed to cancer May 26, and his body was discovered inside his home by one of his roommates. He had been diagnosed in 2004 and underwent chemotherapy to combat the disease. He was not married and leaves no children. ...

According to Trivium bassist Paolo Gregoletto, the band has finished tracking The Crusade, the follow-up to 2005's Ascendancy. In all, the band recorded 15 tracks, which will graduate to the mixing phase this week. "We are incredibly excited with what we have accomplished in the studio," Gregoletto wrote on the band's Web site. The Crusade was recorded in Orlando, Florida, with producer Jason Suecof (God Forbid, Bury Your Dead). ... Grindcore legends Anal Cu-- have parted ways with guitarist John Kozik and drummer John Gillis, according to the band's Web site. Guitarist Josh Martin will return to replace Kozik, but AC are still looking for a new drummer. ... Death-metal icons Cannibal Corpse will be Jamey Jasta's guests during Saturday night's "Headbangers Ball" on MTV2. The band will discuss guitarist Rob Barrett's return to the fold and this summer's Sounds of the Underground Tour. ...

Canadian technical death-metal band Beneath the Massacre are in Yan's Room Studio in Montreal working on their full-length debut with producer Yannick St-Amand (Despised Icon, Ion Dissonance). The yet-untitled album will contain 10 new songs and follow up the band's 2005 EP, Evidence of Inequity. ... The Gathering singer Anneke Van Giersbergen won the award for Best Singer at this year's Muzikantendag 2006 on May 27 in Amsterdam, Netherlands. In March, the Gathering won Holland's illustrious Edison Award for Best National Music DVD for their double-DVD "A Sound Relief." Van Giersbergen, who suffered a bronchial and sinus infection that forced the band to postpone a month of European shows between April 19 and May 28, will bring the Gathering back on the road this month. ... God Dethroned are nearly done recording their seventh, yet-untitled album at Soundlodge Studio in Germany. According to a post on their Web site, the disc will feature "Some crazy double-bass rolls, super-fast fills, but above all, groove." Expect some "technical riffing mixed with heavy melodic atmospheres" as well. The album is the follow-up to 2004's The Lair of the White Worm. ... Laethora, a new death/grind band featuring ex-members of Dark Tranquillity and the Provenance are in the studio wrapping up their debut album, March of the Parasite. A rough mix of "Black Void Remembrance" can be heard at Laethora.com. ...

Alabama Thunderpussy have hired ex-Exhorder and Floodgate singer Kyle Thomas to replace Johnny Weils. The band has been working on new material since July 2005 and plans to enter the studio in the weeks ahead. "We knew right away that Kyle was the man for the singer spot when we heard him singing on some of the new material," guitarist Erik Larson said. "As an Exhorder fan, I felt a bit star-struck that this guy was singing on our music. It's amazing." ... ATP are among the bands contributing to For the Sick - A Tribute to Eyehategod, due this fall. New York extreme-metal band Brutal Truth reunited to record cover of "Sister F---er" for the tribute record, the proceeds of which will go to New Orleans musicians whose lives were devastated by Hurricane Katrina. Other artists contributing to the disc include Byzantine, Watch Them Die, the Esoteric and Raging Speedhorn. For the Sick is scheduled for release this fall. ... Chicago's Novembers Doom will enter the studio June 16 to record the follow-up to 2005's The Pale Haunt Departure.

• Satyricon
• Trivium
• Heaven Shall Burn
• Brutal Truth

"Heavy Metal Thunder"
Photo: Chronicle Books

A few years back, metal journalists James Sherry (Metal Hammer, Kerrang!) and Neil Aldis (Rock World, Terrorizer) decided to sift through their record collections and put the best of the bunch into coffee-table-book form. That spawned "Heavy Metal Thunder," an extensive archive of the most kick-ass metal-album art of the last four decades, set to land in bookstores June 1.

According to Sherry, the book's intended to guide lifelong metalheads down memory lane — a time when you'd buy an LP based solely on the image that graced the sleeve, a time when ridiculous album covers were a genuine art form.

"We wanted the book to be entertaining for people who aren't necessarily into metal," he said. "I wanted it to appeal to people who are really heavily into the music and can look through the book and go, 'Oh, I remember that record — I had it when I was a kid.' ... But we also wanted it to appeal to people who have no interest in the music and can look through it and go, 'These covers are hilarious.' We're not afraid to poke fun at it."

The book's documents everything from the earliest days of groundbreaking bands like Black Sabbath and Judas Priest through today's current class of metallers, like Mastodon and High on Fire. The book covers all the bases, with chapters devoted to black metal, death metal, nü metal, thrash, stoner rock and glam rock. There's even a forward penned by Anthrax's Scott Ian and an interview with Derek Riggs, the man who created Iron Maiden's symbolic Eddie icon.

"We were originally going to do each chapter in a different theme," Sherry explained. "We were going to have a chapter of all covers that just featured men with swords, which there are many. It's an ongoing theme in old metal records. We wanted a whole chapter on glam-rock covers, fantasy covers, ridiculous covers — even covers with babes on them. That became way too complicated, so we decided to do it genre by genre."

Several chapters are devoted to specific bands that've become known for their album imagery. "One of the first things we decided was that we had to give Manowar their own chapter," he said. "With this book, you get a taste for the imagery of each genre. I just think that metal, more than any other music, is very visually led. As a child, I would often buy records on the strength of the album cover, on how metal the cover looked. That doesn't happen anymore. Kids can hear stuff before they buy it."

One of the more amusing chapters is the one that examines the punk-inflected thrash era. "I love the thrash covers because it's all pre-computers, and these bands would have a friend who would say, 'Hey, I could draw you a picture for your cover,' " Sherry said. "That's why there was so much drawn artwork on those sleeves, and some of it's just terrible, but brilliantly funny as well."

Several album covers were cut from the book, including Marduk's 1995 masterpiece, F--- Me Jesus, and Autopsy's 2003 album, Sh--fun.

But Sherry's favorite album cover, and one of the first that readers encounter in "Heavy Metal Thunder"? "I love the first Black Sabbath album cover, because I think that one's genuinely creepy. You kind of look at it, and it's genuinely a quite scary album cover," he said. "I like a lot of the black-metal covers, too, because there's just something a bit creepier about them that's genuinely quite scary, whereas it's hard to get too scared by men with swords."

The rest of the week's metal news:

Megadeth have signed to Roadrunner Records for the release of their upcoming album, according to a source close to the deal. The studio sessions — held at Sarm Studios, outside of London — were filmed by director Michael Sarna (Anthrax, Obituary) and are available at Megadeth.com to fan-club members. ... The first batch of dates for Rob Zombie's American Witch Across America Tour with Anthrax has been revealed. The trek will kick off in El Paso, Texas, June 30 and last — at least until more dates are announced — through July 28 in Billings, Montana. ... Trivium have finished recording their upcoming CD The Crusade. On Thursday, frontman Matt Heafy started tracking vocals at Audiohammer Studio in Orlando, Florida, where the band also recorded guitars and bass. Heafy is co-producing the disc with Audiohammer owner and previous collaborator Jason Suecof, and the album will be finished by the end of May for a fall release. Songs include "Ignition," "Contempt Breeds Contamination," "And Sadness Will Sear," "Vengeance," "To the Rats" and "Contemporary Plague." "There's one acoustic song, a Skid Row/ Mötley Crüe-sounding song, a Def Leppard, Southern-rock metal song and then 11 ridiculously technical thrash songs," Heafy said. "It's a solo insanity CD, but in a good way." ...

Bloodsimple — which features ex-members of Long Island, New York, hardcore icons Vision of Disorder — are working on material for their sophomore LP. The band plans to record the effort this summer, and guitarist Mike Kennedy claims "the new tunes are sounding killer so far." ... Hold on to your horns: Cattle Decapitation have infiltrated the mainstream. Icing by Claire's, a teen girls' accessory shop, has built a storefront display of a trendy-looking punk-rock girl wearing a Cattle Decapitation T-shirt. Even more flabbergasting, the shirt she's wearing was only sold on tour. Icing shoppers will be pleased to know that the new Cattle Decapitation record, Karma Bloody Karma, comes out July 11 and the band will be on tour through July 22. ... Nepotism is one thing, but this is ridiculous: Incubus guitarist Mike Einziger has produced the debut album by Agent Sparks, which features younger brother Ben on guitar and stepbrother Paul Fried on bass. The disc, Red Rover, comes out June 20. Ben Einziger and Fried were previously in Audiovent, which featured Incubus frontman Brandon Boyd's brother Jason on vocals. The group released Dirty Sexy Knights in Paris in 2002, but broke up soon after. ...

Horse the Band will hit the road with Gatsbys American Dream, Portugal. The Man and Forgive Durden starting May 24 in Salt Lake City. Dates are scheduled through June 14 in Nashville. ... Candice Night, the singer for Blackmore's Night — ex-Deep Purple guitarist Ritchie Blackmore's new outfit — will be crowned 2006 Queen of the Fairies at the Western Pennsylvania Fairie Festival, which takes place June 10-11. Attendees can enjoy the parade of the Fairie Queen and her court, special guest fairie artists, the astrologer to the queen, and holistic and metaphysical-medicine practitioners. ... When most metal singers shout "Kill!," they're living a fantasy, but Manowar frontman Eric Adams causes as much carnage with handheld weaponry as with his vocals. On June 27, Adams will showcase the brutality on the DVD "Wild Life and Wild Times," which he created with outdoorsman and wildlife journalist Chester Moore. The disc features the two bagging emus, American bison, snakes, elk and wild boar with shotguns, bows and arrows, and hunting knives. ...

Soilent Green, the Acacia Strain and Demiricous will tour together starting June 10 in Cleveland, with dates running through June 30 in West Palm Beach, Florida. ... This year's nominees for the second annual Peta2 World's Sexiest Vegetarian poll include Rob Zombie, System of a Down frontman Serj Tankian, Cannibal Corpse bassist Paul Mazurkiewicz, Dillinger Escape Plan's Liam Wilson and Atreyu guitarist Travis Miguel. Cast your vote at Peta2.com/OUTTHERE/o-sexyveg06.asp. ... Every Time I Die will re-release 2005's Gutter Phenomenon on June 13 with a bonus 30-minute DVD. The footage was edited from their upcoming DVD "Sh-- Happens," which is scheduled for release this fall. Every Time I Die will head out on the Warped Tour starting June 15 in Columbia, Maryland, and remain on it through August 13 in Montreal. ... Misery Signals have started working on their second album, Mirrors, with producer Ben Schigel (Zao, Chimaira). The album will feature new singer Karl Schubach, who replaced Jesse Zaraska in January. Mirrors will be the follow-up to 2004's Of Malice and the Magnum Heart and is scheduled for September. ... Progressive metallers Behold ... the Arctopus have signed with Black Market Activities. Look for their forthcoming LP to drop sometime in late summer or early fall. ...

• "Heavy Metal Thunder" Photos

• Megadeth
• Trivium
• Manowar
• Bloodsimple
• Horse The Band

As I Lay Dying
Photo: Metal Blade

Last summer Ozzfest — the Goliath of metal and hardcore carnivals — faced, for the first time since its debut, some serious competition. The David, in this case, was the Sounds of the Underground tour. The inaugural run lived up to its name, with unorthodox acts like Lamb of God, Clutch, Opeth, Poison the Well, Strapping Young Lad, Gwar and Unearth rounding out the bill, along with a dozen other black-, death- and thrash-metal stalwarts.

The trek was such a success that the organizers are returning this year with the second installment of SOTU, which will feature headliners and Ozzfest 2005 vets As I Lay Dying.

The SoCal metalcore unit — which is spending the spring with the Deftones on the Taste of Chaos tour (see "Taste Of Chaos '06 Tour Dates Revealed") — will be joined by several of the genre's other big names for SOTU. Confirmed so far are Gwar, Swedish melodic death-metallers In Flames, Florida's Trivium and Cannibal Corpse, Californian hardcore band Terror, Detroit death-metal troupe the Black Dahlia Murder, Polish power-metal trio Behemoth, the Chariot and South Carolina death-metal collective Through the Eyes of the Dead.

The Sounds of the Underground organizers are taking a different approach to this summer's festival by keeping the number of bands on the bill down and extending the length of set times. Last year most bands got no more than 30 minutes to play.

While dates for the trek — including the official launch date — are still being worked out, SOTU will return to Denver, St. Louis, Chicago, Detroit, Toronto, Philadelphia, San Francisco and Los Angeles, as well as cities in Texas, New England and western Canada. Tickets will go on sale in late March.

More bands will be announced in the coming weeks.

Get your MTV News fresh daily as a podcast — in video or audio. Click on Mac or PC for more info.

• As I Lay Dying
• The Black Dahlia Murder
• Behemoth
• Trivium

Slipknot's Joey Jordison (file)
Photo: Getty Images

NEW YORK — It was billed as the event of the year ... for metalheads, at least. Members of more than 30 current and former acts on Roadrunner Records came together to rattle the baseboards at the Nokia Theatre on Thursday night for Roadrunner United, a celebration of the label's 25th year in the metal business.

The night's emcee, Hatebreed frontman and "Headbangers Ball" host Jamey Jasta, perhaps said it best: "You can't call yourself a metalhead or a hardcore kid without owning a Roadrunner record."

The metalheads in attendance — including "American Idol" runner-up Bo Bice — were treated to 23 cuts of classic and contemporary metal supplied by the night's core group of Slipknot drummer Joey Jordison, Trivium frontman Matthew Heafy, ex-Fear Factory guitarist Dino Cazares and Machine Head bassist Adam Duce. Throughout the evening, the players changed but the feel remained the same, often coming off like a glorified jam session by one of the metal world's most gifted cover bands.

The night kicked off with a brutal rendition of Biohazard's "Punishment," with the band's frontman, Evan Seinfeld, at the mic and on bass; Biohazard guitarist Billy Graziadei, Cazares, Jordison and Sepultura guitarist Andreas Kisser backed the "Oz" star. The highlight of the energetic New York hardcore opener was Jordison's pummeling, seemingly effortless work behind the kit. Next, Jasta joined Kisser, Cazares, Jordison and Slipknot bassist Paul Gray — who, like Jordison, was sans ghoulish mask and jumpsuit — for a pulverizing rendition of Madball's "Set It Off."

The New York hardcore theme continued for one more song, with Life of Agony's "River Runs Red." LOA singer Keith Caputo's small frame bounced around the stage in an elfin manner as he belted out the song his band is perhaps best known for. Deicide's Glen Benton filled in for Obituary's John Tardy during a vicious treatment of "The End Complete," while Tim "Ripper" Owens of Judas Priest, Iced Earth and Beyond Fear fame stepped into the falsetto shoes of King Diamond and Annihilator's Randy Rampage for Mercyful Fate's "Curse of the Pharaohs," King Diamond's "Abigail" and Annihilator's "Alison Hell" (all three additionally featured Annihilator's Jeff Waters on guitar).

Trivium's performance of "Pull Harder on the Strings of Your Martyr" was one of the night's most scathing moments and featured Machine Head's Robert Flynn and Trivium's Heafy trading vocal duties. Seemless leader Jesse Leach, who left Killswitch Engage several years ago, rejoined his old bandmates — and his replacement, Howard Jones — for the band's "My Last Serenade." And H.I.M. frontman Ville Valo did his best Peter Steele imitation for Type O Negative's "Black No. 1"; the song also featured onetime Coal Chamber bassist Nadja Peulen.

Fans also witnessed several numbers from the album that inspired the concert, Roadrunner United: The All Star Sessions, being performed live for the first — and more than likely, last — time.

In between, Slipknot's Corey Taylor and Caputo hooked up for Stone Sour's "Bother," and Shadows Fall mainman Brian Fair emulated Soulfly's Max Cavalera during a cover of "Eye for an Eye." Following takes on Slipknot's "Sic" and "Surfacing" and Machine Head's "Davidian," Flynn, Kisser, Anthrax's Scott Ian, Duce and Jordison surprised the crowd with a potent, unanticipated edition of Sepultura's "Roots Bloody Roots" — a fitting end to a punishing display of metal and a testament to Roadrunner's far-reaching impact on the genre.

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

• Hatebreed
• Slipknot
• Trivium
• Fear Factory
• Machine Head

In Flames
Photo: Patric Ullaeus

It wasn't playing in broad daylight that bothered In Flames frontman Anders Fridén during his band's stint on this summer's Ozzfest, where the Swedish metallers served as the mainstage openers. It wasn't even the fact that In Flames were restricted to 20-minute sets, or that those sets were performed in arenas teeming with metalheads sitting in plastic seats and downing hot dogs and jumbo pretzels.

That Fridén could deal with. But knowing In Flames had an entire album in the hopper, waiting to be unleashed upon the world, but no label deal that would get it out there on store shelves? That bothered him.

"It's been frustrating waiting this long to get an album out," he said of the band's eighth studio LP, Come Clarity, the cover art for which has already been illustrated by renowned metal and hardcore artiste Derek Hess. "It was finished in April [of 2005]. We wrote it at the end of 2004. And now it's going to be released on February 7. The songs still feel fresh to us and to our fans — no matter when it was recorded, it's a new album to them. I think it still represents In Flames and where we are. But it was hard."

Before signing with New Jersey's Ferret Music, In Flames spent the summer wondering just what would become of Come Clarity. Now that everything's in order and the brutal Swedes have a full U.S. tour planned with Trivium, DevilDriver and Zao (set to kick off in January), Fridén's trying to relax a bit. That, too, will be hard. In Flames need to devote loads of time to pre-tour rehearsals, as they'll be introducing a number of cuts they've never performed live — including material from 1994's Lunar Strain — into their set list.

On the topic of touring, was the Ozzfest gamble worth it for In Flames? The singer's not sure. "We saw it as a big promotional machine, and we got a chance to play in front of a huge crowd that doesn't normally listen to In Flames," he admitted. "But we won't know for sure until the album is out. I mean, looking back, I'd rather have been on the second stage."

Fridén considers Come Clarity "a bit more aggressive, and a bit more uptempo," but said it still possesses all the "elements of In Flames. It's always been about this balance between aggression and melody. It's just another step in our evolution. I don't know where we're going exactly. But I know where we've come from. We just try to top ourselves each time and be happy with the result. That's all we can do. Now it's up to the public to judge us."

He said the clip for the album's first single, "Take This Life," has been shot. It'll feature performance footage of the band superimposed across billboards in Times Square, interspersed with scenes from the video's mysterious story line. Fridén wouldn't discuss the details, as director Patric Ullaeus (Lacuna Coil, Dimmu Borgir) was still working on the video's overall concept at the time of the interview.

As if In Flames isn't keeping him busy enough, Fridén's also working on the second album from his side project Passenger.

"It's in the works, but I don't have time," he said. "I would like to release [a Passenger LP] sometime [in 2006], because we've recorded 10 of the album's 12 songs already. It's been a very slow process." Fridén once again worked with guitarist Niklas Engelin, bassist Hakan Skoger, drummer Patrik Sten and keyboardist Pierre Sten on the outing, which has no definitive release date yet.

The rest of the week's metal news:

Florida death-metal demons Deicide will release the DVD "When London Burns" on March 7. The disc captures a 2004 show recorded at the club Mean Fiddler and includes "Dead by Dawn," "Lunatic of God's Creation" and "Scars of the Crucifix." The DVD also includes a 30-minute documentary called "Behind the Scars," which was filmed in 2003 during the making of the band's last disc, Scars of the Crucifix. ... Death-metal veterans Morbid Angel will launch a tour April 2 in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. Dates are scheduled through May 1 in Houston. Behemoth, Krisiun and Despised Icon will support. ... New York electro-metal outfit Genghis Tron will enter the studio in January to begin recording the follow-up to their Cloak of Love EP. The band will tour with Child Abuse starting January 2 in Atlanta and ending January 8 in Philadelphia. Genghis Tron will return to the road in March with Plot to Blow Up the Eiffel Tower and Akimbo. ... Drummer Dom Lizzio, who left Bodies in the Gears of the Apparatus two months ago, has thought twice about the move and returned to the band. "We're a f---ing family," a statement from the group read. "We've had a tight lineup with no problems for a good while now, and Dom loves this music as much as we do, so f--- it." BITGOTA's first full-length album's scheduled for an April release. ...

Buffalo, New York's Herod will release their new album Rich Man's War, Poor Man's Fight March 7. The disc is the follow-up to 2004's For Whom the Gods Would Destroy and is the first to feature singer Jason Russo, who replaced Judah Nero last year. Rich Man's War, Poor Man's Fight was recorded at Watchmen Recording Studios with producer Doug White and includes "Assimilation," "Lies and Betrayal" and "The Fire." ... The Black Dahlia Murder recently shot a video for the title track of their new album Miasma with director Joe Lynch. The group is still searching for a drummer to replace Zach Gibson, who was booted in November because he was unable to play the band's material, according to a post on the group's official Web site. The Black Dahlia Murder are scheduled to launch a European tour January 20 in Essen, Germany. ... Influential Pittsburgh math-noise band Don Caballero are working on their first album in five years for Relapse. The disc is being produced by Al Sutton at Rustbelt Studios in Detroit and will include "World Class Listening Problem," "And And And" and "He Lowered the Twin Down." No release date has been announced. ... Misery Index will issue a split 7-inch with Japan's Bathtub Sh--ter. The disc will hit stores early next year and include Misery Index's song "Conquistadores." Meanwhile the band will start working on its forthcoming second album in the middle of next month. ...

Soilwork guitarist Peter Wichers has left the band. In a statement he called it "one of [the] hardest decisions to make" and said he was "just worn out from all the touring and, I have reached a point in my life where touring is just not possible for me anymore. I need a break from the touring so that I can actually begin to build a more solid ground to stand on for the future." Soilwork responded by making session drummer Dirk Verbeuren a full-time member of the band. ... Providence, Rhode Island, mathcore band Daughters are writing and recording their upcoming album — their first for Hydra Head Records. The disc will be the band's first since the frenzied Canada Songs, which dropped in 2003. The band was formed in 2001 out of the ashes of As the Sun Sets. ... Georgia experimental band Kylesa are working on the follow-up to their critically acclaimed 2005 disc, To Walk a Middle Course. The band is also still looking for a drummer to replace Brandon Baltzley, who left in June. Auditions will be held through the end of January, and those interested in giving it the old metal try should check out the band's Web site, kylesa.com, for details. ... Witchery, the Swedish thrash/death group that features the Haunted guitarist Patrik Jensen and Arch Enemy bassist Sharlee D'Angelo, has signed a new deal with Century Media. "[We] are really glad that we will be handled by the same team that has done such a great job for our other bands," said the group on its Web site. The band's fifth album, Don't Fear the Reaper, was recorded at Berno Studios in fall 2004 and is scheduled for release in March.

• In Flames
• Morbid Angel
• Witchery
• Trivium
• DevilDriver

Roadrunner United 12.15.2005

• Slipknot
• Stone Sour
• Hatebreed
• Murderdolls
• Deicide