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 [article id="1453177"]Iann Robinson,[/article] Jon Wiederhorn, Robert Mancini and Joe D'Angelo