Wednesday, February 28, 2007

THE STORYTELLER, KING DIAMOND MEMBERS JOIN FORCES IN KRYPTILLUSION

Fredrik Groth from the Swedish power/heavy metal act THE STORYTELLER has formed a brand new project called KRYPTILLUSION. According to Groth, KRYPTILLUSION is musically 'pretty far' removed 'from what I've done earlier,' being 'a melodic heavy/death metal band.' The group's current lineup consists of Groth on guitars and bass, Mike Wead (KING DIAMOND, MERCYFUL FATE) on lead guitar, Stefan Westerberg (CARNAL FORGE, ASPERITY) on drums and Kristofer Nilsson (UNDIVINE) on vocals. 'Right now I'm in the process of writing new songs and recording pre-production demos which will be used in the search for a record deal,' says Groth.

To check out a KRYPTILLUSION demo track, entitled 'Frozen', visit the band's official web site.
Courtesy of BlabberMouth.net

Monday, February 26, 2007

PERRIS RECORDS CELEBRATES 15-YEAR ANNIVERSARY

The label that many a metalhead holds near and dear to their heart — Perris Records — will be celebrating its 15th anniversary come this July. Perris has issued all-new studio albums by such renowned veteran hard rock/metal acts as STEPHEN PEARCY (formerly of RATT), BANG TANGO, L.A. GUNS, VAIN, ENUFF Z'NUFF, while also managing to introduce headbangers to newer acts, including 3 LEGGED DOGG, BLIND ALLEY, and BACKWASH, among others.

Perris has grown beyond just being a label, as they have launched their own music newspaper, Rocknation, which features both artists from the label as well as other notable names — including Rob Halford, Slash, AC/DC, and MEGADETH. Thus far, two issues have hit the streets, with the inaugural issue currently viewable at the Rocknation web site. Published by Perris label head Tom Mathers, the paper features such respected metal writers as Brian Rademacher, Chris Akin, Mitch Lafon, and Todd Newton. Additionally, the 'Rocknation' TV video show will be launched the same month as Perris' anniversary, which will be made available on both Time Warner and Comcast. The show will air weekly each Sunday night, and promises to be a prime source of hard rock videos for fans throughout the nation.

'I am very excited about the launch of Rocknation,' says Mathers. 'I believe that Rocknation will bring rock back into the mainstream, and will give bands a medium to promote their music nationwide.' Rocknation is also looking for local talent for nationwide concerts — contact rocknation@houston.rr.com.
Courtesy of BlabberMouth.net

Sunday, February 25, 2007

RAGE AGAINST THE MACHINE ADDS MORE DATES

Geoff Boucher of the Los Angeles Times reports that RAGE AGAINST THE MACHINE will join the WU-TANG CLAN for three shows under the banner of Rock the Bells, the acclaimed hip-hop festival that kicks off in New York on July 28 and hits Southern California on Aug. 11.

The Southern California show will be at the National Orange Show Events Center in San Bernardino while the third show, on Aug. 18, will be in San Francisco. The sites of the New York and San Francisco shows as well as ticket sales information will be announced by organizers on Monday.

RAGE is already the closing-night headliner of the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival on April 29 in Indio, a festival that sold out 80 days in advance due to the pent-up fan demand for the Los Angeles band. RAGE played their last show in 2000.

That Coachella show was announced as a 'one-and-done' affair but the quick sellout and the harsh-priced ticket scalping already underway are among the factors in the added shows, according to sources close to the band. There's also the historical punch of performing with WU-TANG CLAN, one of the most ambitious and influential hip-hop outfits ever.

'RAGE will do four shows and just four in 2007,' said Chang Weisberg, the founder of Guerilla Union and organizer of Rock the Bells. 'Coachella is first, that's the granddaddy. And now these three with the WU-TANG CLAN represent a very, very special thing.'

Read the entire story at the Los Angeles Times.
Courtesy of BlabberMouth.net

Saturday, February 24, 2007

FASTER PUSSYCAT FRONTMAN SLAMS BRENT MUSCAT'S 'TRIBUTE BAND'

FASTER PUSSYCAT frontman Taime Downe has issued the following statement:

'FASTER PUSSYCAT is NOT playing Europe in April and May. That is Brent Muscat doing his FP tribute band, playing my songs. We will be on tour in the U.S. in May and Europe in the summer. Sorry it you already bought tickets. See you soon, fuckers!

'P.S.: Message to Brent: Didn't want it to be this way.... but you have made ME your enemy... look out!!!!'

The FASTER PUSSYCAT version featuring original members Brent Muscat, Eric Stacy, and Brett Bradshaw alongside THE UNDERGROUND REBELS vocalist Kurt Frohlich, recently played a couple of dates in Las Vegas, Nevada. According to a press release, this version of the band — which does not include Taime Downe —performs 'all classic tracks, no remixes, no B.S.'

Muscat, Stacy, and Bradshaw played their first show together in 14 years on December 30, 2006 at the Dive Bar in Las Vegas. According to Stacy, the band is 'doing songs from all three [FASTER PUSSYCAT] records, and playing them the way they were written and recorded.'

FASTER PUSSYCAT was formed on the streets of Hollywood, California, with their name derived from Russ Meyer's movie 'Faster, Pussycat! Kill! Kill!' The band was signed to Elektra Records in December 1986.

FASTER PUSSYCAT went on to record three studio albums, selling over two million records worldwide. The song 'House of Pain' was a Top 40 single and the #1 most requested video on MTV.

The band has toured the world over with the likes of GUNS N' ROSES, KISS, MOTLEY CRUE, DAVID LEE ROTH, ALICE COOPER, MOTORHEAD, OZZY OSBOURNE, WHITESNAKE, and POISON.

Maxim magazine named FASTER PUSSYCAT the #1 'Most Metal Moment' and VH1 included the band twice in their list of '101 Metal Moments'.
Courtesy of BlabberMouth.net

Wednesday, February 21, 2007

YYRKOON FRONTMAN 'RECONSIDERING' HIS POSITION IN BAND

French thrash/death metallers YYRKOON appear to be on the verge of breaking up after guitarist/vocalist Stephane Souteyrand 'lost his motivation' for the group. In a statement released today (Wednesday, February 21), Souteyrand writes, 'Since [we came] back from European tour with NILE, I have to admit that I've lost my motivation for YYRKOON. I'm the first one to be surprised by this lack of enthusiasm, but [on the other] hand, I cannot continue to lie to myself; I need a pause to reconsider my position in the band...'

As a result of this development, YYRKOON has cancelled all previously scheduled gigs.

Commented the band: 'We would like to thank all fans for their support us and all the people who have contributed to our development.'

YYRKOON's fourth album, 'Unhearthly Opera', was released in February 2006 via Osmose Productions. The follow-up to 2004's 'Occult Medicine' was recorded at Hansen studios in Ribe, Denmark and features a guest appearance by KING DIAMOND guitarist Andy LaRocque on the song 'Horror from the Sea'.
Courtesy of BlabberMouth.net

Monday, February 19, 2007

OBITUARY: AUSTRALIAN DATES ANNOUNCED

Legendary Florida death metallers OBITUARY will play three dates in Australia in May. The details are as follows:

May 16 - The Manning Bar, Sydney, Australia
May 17 - The Prince Of Wales Hotel, Melbourne, Australia
May 18 - Club Phoenix, Brisbane, Australia

As previously reported, OBITUARY has posted its video for the song 'On the Floor' at YouTube.com. The clip, which was shot on December 9, 2005 at the Masquerade in Ybor City, Florida with video producer Michael Sarna (MEGADETH's 'Of Mice and Men'), can also be seen on the band's MySpace page. Also available at YouTube.com is a video clip of OBITUARY performing the CELTIC FROST cover 'Circle of the Tyrants' in 1990 in Tilburg, the Netherlands with James Murphy (DEATH, TESTAMENT) on lead guitar. Check it out at this location.

OBITUARY's first-ever DVD, 'Frozen Alive', was released in Europe on December 11 via Metal Mind Productions (it arrived in the U.S. today, January 16, through MVD Visual). The disc includes a seven-camera shoot of the Warsaw show plus the 'Insane' video, the previously unreleased 'On the Floor' video, interviews with Frank Watkins (bass), Trevor Peres (guitar), John (vocals) and Donald Tardy (drums), and three documentaries — the making of 'Insane', the making of 'Frozen In Time' album, and 'Backstage In Poland'. A video of OBITUARY performing the song 'On the Floor', taken from the 'Frozen Alive' DVD, has been posted online at YouTube.com.

OBITUARY's latest CD, 'Frozen in Time', was released in July 2005 via Roadrunner Records. The group's first collection of new songs since 1997's 'Back from the Dead' was self-produced by the band, with Mark Prator and Scott Burns engineering, and was mastered by Tom Morris at Morrisound.
Courtesy of BlabberMouth.net

Thursday, February 15, 2007

SPV USA LAUNCHES YOUTUBE CHANNEL

After posting artists' videos exclusively on the SPV MySpace page for over a year, SPV has launched a YouTube channel which will feature all of the current roster's videos — including clips from SEPULTURA, MOONSPELL, METAL CHURCH, KREATOR, KAMELOT and BEYOND FEAR — and much more. SPV will also be doing world premiers of new videos, running contests, and constantly brining fans new material to the page.

To view, add, and share SPV's videos, go to the SPV USA YouTube channel at this location.
Courtesy of BlabberMouth.net

Wednesday, February 14, 2007

RICK RUBIN: 'I ASKED METALLICA NOT TO REINVENT THEMSELVES SO MUCH AS TO MAKE A DEFINING ALBUM'

Legendary producer Rick Rubin (SLAYER, SYSTEM OF A DOWN, AUDIOSLAVE, RED HOT CHILI PEPPERS), who was named 'Producer of the Year' at this past weekend's Grammy Awards, spoke to MTV.com about his work with METALLICA on their much-anticipated follow-up to 2003's 'St. Anger', tentatively due before the end of the year via Warner Bros.

'I saw [the warts-and-all METALLICA documentary 'Some Kind of Monster'], and it made me really nervous,' Rubin said. 'Then we started working, and it's the opposite direction of that. They're really productive, really communicative — it seems like they really like being in the room together. It's a great process. They say they're more excited than they have been in a long time about making music. We're going to start recording in March. I asked them not to reinvent themselves so much as to make a defining album, like the purest of what METALLICA is. That's the aim, so we'll see what happens.'

METALLICA drummer Lars Ulrich told Rolling Stone magazine that Rubin said that he wants to make the group sound 'like the METALLICA that made them METALLICA without going backward' — and that he's doing it by challenging old habits.

'He's questioning what key we should play in,' Ulrich told Rolling Stone. 'We've played in E flat since the beginning of the '90s. Nobody questioned it. All of a sudden, Rick is going, 'Maybe the stuff has more energy and Hetfield's voice sounds better in E.' He's forced us to rethink big-picture stuff, something we haven't done in years.'

Rubin also insisted that METALLICA rehearse and learn the material until, as Ulrich puts it, 'we can play these songs in our sleep, standing on our heads. 'With Bob [Rock, METALLICA's longtime producer], we'd go into the studio when we had some concrete ideas. But Rick wants us to take care of all the creative elements first. He wants us to capture these songs in a recording environment instead of creating them there.'
Courtesy of BlabberMouth.net

Tuesday, February 13, 2007

TESTAMENT FRONTMAN IS HOPING TO RECORD 'REALLY BRUTAL' NEW ALBUM

Peter Atkinson of KNAC.COM recently conducted an interview with TESTAMENT frontman Chuck Billy. A couple of excerpts from the chat follow:

KNAC.COM: How was the first show with [drummer] Nick [Barker, ex-DIMMU BORGIR, CRADLE OF FILTH]?

Billy: It went great. Sold-out show. A lot of energy. It was good, man. It was our first show since September or October, but it was killer, it sounded really good. It had a lot of energy, that's what I really took away from that show. And the stuff him (Barker) and Eric are writing is pretty extreme (laughs).

KNAC.COM: How did you come by him?

Billy: We've known Nick for quite a while. It's funny, we went out to dinner with the record company people and Nick was there and he was telling us how he was a TESTAMENT fan, he'd grown up playing the songs and if we ever needed a drummer to give him a call. And, of course, we thought it was just in good fun because we were drinking and having a good time. And when we came through where he was last year, we talked to Nick and said, 'Hey, why don't you learn 'Over the Wall' and you can come onstage and jam with us.' So he came down and played 'Over the Wall' and it sounded great. And at that point it was like, 'Man, that song sounded really good, it be interesting to see how the other ones sounded with him,' so that was when we decided Nick would be the drummer we worked on the new album with. And we're excited about incorporating his style of playing with us, and vice versa.

KNAC.COM: Was the idea to keep working with Louie [Clemente] and/or John [Tempesta] and they just couldn't or wouldn't do it?

Billy: Yeah, of course we wanted Louie to be here, but he has his furniture business and he has some health issues, so he wasn't able to be here. He has some arthritis issues, and if not he'd be right here with us. He did a great job with what he did with us last year, but I think playing again just kinda caught up with him. But we got to do it with the five guys, the 'classic lineup' (laughs), for a while and that was cool. It was a lot of fun. We'll have him come out and play a song or two when we're in the area, but doing a whole set is just too much for him, so doing a tour is definitely out of the question. And John Tempesta, he plays in THE CULT now, they hired him for a year or two years, so he has no time. We keep him tuned up for better, easier gigs (laughs).

KNAC.COM: When do you hope to get into the studio to record the new album?

Billy: The plan is to, hopefully, get in there in April. Nick's gonna be here up through there working with Eric. We've got probably four really great songs pretty much in the can and with a few months of writing we'll hopefully have it ready to go. Alex [Skolnick] has been out here working with the guys too, so the ball has started rolling. And as soon as they give me the music, I'll be listening to it in my car all the time until the words and melodies appear.

KNAC.COM: You mentioned what Nick and Eric had been working on was pretty extreme...

Billy: Yeah, one song they played me is really brutal, it is beyond like even 'The Gathering' stuff, like 'D.N.R.', it was really, really crushing, tight, heavy. It had everything, I loved it. If we can write 10 more songs like that, then we're going to have a fucking great record. So it's there, it's just a matter of bringing it out and getting it down on tape. We're due, and hopefully we'll have a good record out this year.

KNAC.COM: Do you have a label right now, or are you doing this on your own to shop around?

Billy: We'll, it's a bit complicated. We're still with Spitfire, but they've been sold to another company so we don't really know where we're at. So we're just forging on and writing the record and getting it ready. Someone's gonna come along and it's gonna happen.

KNAC.COM: But that's not stopping them from putting out that new greatest hits album ('The Spitfire Collection', due Feb. 13).

Billy: Yeah, that's weak. When Spitfire got sold, the company that bought it decided they needed to put out a 'best of TESTAMENT' album, and it's all the same shit that we have on the two other 'best of' albums, not to mention that album of songs we re-recorded. And these companies put them out without us letting us know or having any say into what goes into them or how they are packaged, but in the contract they have the right to do that, so what can you do? They just grab the songs and put 'em out, which I think kinda sucks.

KNAC.COM: Given all that the band has been through with the record company turmoil, the lineup changes, your illness, etc., was there a time when you thought 'let's just put TESTAMENT to rest and move on?'

Billy: Well when you're sick and you're looking at yourself bald in the mirror, yeah, it makes you wonder. I had to take these steroids as part of the treatment and gained a lot weight, really ballooned up. It was pretty rough. And during that whole process of a year, year and a half, I really didn't think of the band, talk about music, sing or any of that, really. We shut the studio down and put it all in storage and stopped. I just had to deal with what I had to do to get better. But once I was free and clear, and the doctor said I was back in good health, at that point it was like 'OK, let's think about playing music.' But me being native American (he's Pomo Indian) and always having my long hair, performing with short hair was a whole different thing for me (laughs), I would be banging my head and nothing was moving. It was weird. So that whole thing was the only hard thing about starting up. But after that it just felt great, and then Alex came back in the picture and everyone else in the band, so it was just timing I guess. And even though we've been through some rough patches, Eric and I were able to keep TESTAMENT going and maintain the spirit of what the band has always been about. I think as long as we have that, TESTAMENT will be around.

Read the entire interview at KNAC.COM.
Courtesy of BlabberMouth.net

Monday, February 12, 2007

KROKUS FRONTMAN TO GUEST ON METAL EXPRESS RADIO

Swiss hard rockers KROKUS will be the subject of a special feature on Norway's Metal Express Radio this Thursday, February 13. KROKUS frontman Marc Storace will talk about the highs and lows of the band's nearly 30-year existence.

For more information, visit www.metalexpressradio.com.

KROKUS's latest album, 'Hellraiser', entered the Swiss album chart at position No. 2. The CD, which was recorded with producer Dennis Ward (PINK CREAM 69), has already been certified 'gold' in the band's home country.

The KROKUS single 'Angel of My Dreams' has been made available for download at this location.

KROKUS's current lineup is completed by Stefan Schwarzmann (drums), Tony Castell (bass), Mandy Meyer (guitar) and Dominique Fave (guitar).
Courtesy of BlabberMouth.net

Saturday, February 10, 2007

DIMMU BORGIR: NEW ALBUM TRACK LISTING REVEALED

Norwegian symphonic black metallers DIMMU BORGIR have finalized the track listing for their new album, 'In Sorte Diaboli', due in North America on April 24 via Nuclear Blast Records. The CD will arrive in Europe on April 30 (April 27 in Germany).

'In Sorte Diaboli' was recorded and mixed at Studio Fredman in Gothenburg, Sweden with producers Fredrik Nordstrom and Patrik J. Sten. A limited edition digipack version of the CD will include the bonus cut 'The Ancestral Fever', and a bonus DVD containing the video for the album's opening track, 'The Serpentine Offering', shot by director Patric Ullaeus of Sweden's Revolver Film Company. Ordering information on both the regular and digipack version can be found at www.cdon.com.

'In Sorte Diaboli' track listing:

01. The Serpenitine Offering
02. The Chosen Legacy
03. The Conspiracy Unfolds
04. The Ancestral Fever (bonus track)
05. The Sacrilegious Scorn
06. The Fallen Arise
07. The Sinister Awakening
08. The Fundamental Alienation
09. The Invaluable Darkness
10. The Foreshadowing Furnace

As previously reported,, Nuclear Blast Records has launched a special 'In Sorte Diaboli' news page at this location.

DIMMU BORGIR guitarist Silenoz previously told Revolver magazine that the songwriting and recording process for the group's long-anticipated follow-up to 2003's 'Death Cult Armageddon' involved none of the intensive pre-production of their last two discs, no demos, and no gallinvanting around with the Prague Philharmonic Orchestra. 'It's definitely going to sound way more epic and bigger than we thought, because Mustis [keyboards] has also contributed with his keyboard ideas,' said Silenoz. 'I have to admit that some of the keyboard things on 'Death Cult Armageddon' sound better on the demo version than [their symphony versions] on the album. I probably shouldn't say that, but it's true.'

This will be DIMMU's first 'concept album,' a story set in always-epic Medieval Europe that also serves as a treatise on the modern-day political and social abuses of organized religion. 'There's this dude that works as a priest's assistant, and after a while he just discovers that he has nothing to do with Christianity,' said Silenoz of the storyline, which he conceived in full before even a note of music was composed. 'He just sort of has this awakening and realizes that he has different abilities and different powers and is leaning more to the dark side.'

DIMMU BORGIR's current recording lineup is as follows:

Shagrath - Vocals
Silenoz - Guitars
Galder - Guitars
Vortex - Bass
Mustis - Keys
Hellhammer - Drums
Courtesy of BlabberMouth.net

Friday, February 09, 2007

GUNS N' ROSES PERFORMS AT RODEO DRIVE'S WALK OF STYLE; PHOTOS AVAILABLE

GUNS N' ROSES played a two-song set at the Rodeo Drive's Walk of Style ceremony, which was held Thursday night (February 8) in Beverly Hills, California. The band, which used a stand-in bass player (Tommy Stinson was apparently unable to make the gig) for the performance, blazed through 'Knockin' on Heaven's Door' and 'Sweet Child O' Mine' to close the event, which honored Gianni and Donatella Versace. The news of GN'R's performance was broken Tuesday (February 6) during Donatella Versace's appearance on the 'Jimmy Kimmel Live!' program where she called GN'R frontman Axl Rose a 'very elegant person' who loves fashion. Axl reportedly stayed after the band's set until the party ended shortly after midnight. Former SKID ROW frontman Sebastian Bach was one of Rose's guests for the evening. Check out pictures from Film Magic.

Donatella Versace was the first designer to accept the Rodeo Drive's Walk of Style award off the famed shopping boulevard. The Rodeo Drive Walk of Style honoring Gianni and Donatella Versace was held three blocks away on the steps of Beverly Hills City Hall at 455 Rexford Drive. The exclusive dinner and concert for 400 was hosted by Rupert Everett and boasted an illustrious guest list, including Elton John, who also played a short set.

Although Rose, who turned 45 on Tuesday (February 6), posted a message in December revealing a tentative release date of March 6 for the long-delayed GN'R album 'Chinese Democracy', there's been no further word on whether the CD will actually surface on that date.

'Chinese Democracy' is the first GUNS N' ROSES album since the 1993 covers collection 'The Spaghetti Incident'. In the ensuing decade, the group has lost every original member besides Rose and burned through a reported $13 million in recording expenses.

GUNS N' ROSES' 'Greatest Hits' collection, which was originally issued in March of 2004, was certified triple-platinum on April 11, 2006 by the RIAA (Recording Industry Association of America) for shipments in excess of three million copies. The CD sold 11,000 copies in the United States last week alone (week ending Feb. 4), bringing the total number of copies sold since its release to 3.45 million, according to Nielsen SoundScan.
Courtesy of BlabberMouth.net

Thursday, February 08, 2007

MORGANA LEFAY, SACRED STEEL, CUSTARD TO TEAM UP FOR EUROPEAN TOUR

MORGANA LEFAY, SACRED STEEL and CUSTARD will team up for a European tour beginning late March. The dates so far are as follows:

Mar. 22 - Osnabruck (D) - Bastard Club
Mar. 23 - Bietigheim (D) - Farbstrasse
Mar. 24 – [to be announced]
Mar. 25 - Rotterdam (NL) - Baroeg
Mar. 26 - Hamburg (D) - Headbangers Ballroom
Mar. 27 - Darmstadt (D) - Bruchtal
Mar. 28 - Munchen (D) - Titanic City
Mar. 29 - Uster (CH) - Rock City
Mar. 30 - Villach (A) - Volkshaus Landskron
Mar. 31 - Berlin (D) - Kato

MORGANA LEFAY will release a new single, entitled 'Over and Over Again', on February 26 via Black Mark. Also included on the single will be the new cut 'Face of Fear'. Both tracks come off the band's new album, 'Aberrations of the Mind', due on March 19. Check out audio samples at this location. Two more songs from the CD — 'The Rush of Possession' and 'Reflections of War' — are available for listening on the band's web site, www.morganalefay.se.

According to a press release, 'Aberrations of the Mind' will contain 'a new level of aggression while still maintaining the traditional MORGANA LEFAY sound. The album will also feature the debut of the band's new skinbasher, Pelle Ã…kerlind (BLOODBOUND, LEDNOTE).

The band is gearing up for the Rock at Sea festival, scheduled to take place on March 10, which also includes BUDGIE, KRUX, BULLET, HAIRY BONER, THE QUILL and several noted cover bands. More information is available at www.julymorning.nu.

MORGANA LEFAY's latest album, 2005's 'Grand Materia', was a concept CD about Nicholas Flamel, a 14th-century alchemist who supposedly lived on forever.
Courtesy of BlabberMouth.net

Wednesday, February 07, 2007

BRET MICHAELS: NEW SOLO ALBUM SAMPLE AVAILABLE

POISON frontman Bret Michaels has posted an audio sample from his upcoming solo album at his MySpace page. A new video clip is also in the works.

To catch Bret and/or POISON on TV this week, be sure to check out:

* 'The Tyra Banks Show' on Feb. 07 at 9:00 a.m. ET

* 'The Greatest: 40 Hottest Rock Star Girlfriends and Wives' (20-1) on Feb. 14 at 9:00 p.m. ET on VH1

Michaels is among the artists that have signed on to serve as 'counselors' at this month's Rock 'n Roll Fantasy Camp. The cost of the five-day retreat, which will take place Feb. 15-19 in Hollywood, is $9,499, according to organizers. The camp culminates in a Battle of the Bands blowout at the House of Blues on Sunset in Hollywood, California. Other musicians scheduled to participate include Paul Stanley (KISS), Scott Ian (ANTHRAX), Bruce Kulick (KISS), Sully Erna (GODSMACK), and Mark Slaughter (SLAUGHTER).
Courtesy of BlabberMouth.net

Monday, February 05, 2007

ANTHRAX GUITARIST SHOPPING 'ROCK-THEMED' TV PILOT

ANTHRAX guitarist Scott Ian and New York City club owner Mike Diamond — who started Snitch, Pangaea and Vela, and who recently partnered with Ian to launch Retox — are shopping a rock-themed pilot to the networks, according to Michael Starr of the New York Post. No further information is currently available.

Scott Ian is scheduled to take part in the next Rock 'n Roll Fantasy Camp (RRFC), which will take place in Los Angeles Feb. 15-19, 2007 (President's Day weekend). Other musicians slated to participate include Paul Stanley (KISS), Mickey Hart (GRATEFUL DEAD), Bret Michaels (POISON), Steve Vai and Jane Wiedlin (GO-GO'S).

Sunday, February 04, 2007

DEFTONES: LIVE VIDEO, INTERVIEW FOOTAGE AVAILABLE

Video footage of the DEFTONES performing the songs 'Change' and 'Be Quiet and Drive (Far Away)' has been posted online at the AT&T Blue Room. Also available at the same location is a video interview with DEFTONES turntablist/keyboardist Frank Delgado and guitarist Stephen Carpenter.

The DEFTONES are currently touring Mexico and South America in support of their fifth album, 'Saturday Night Wrist', which has sold 187,000 copies in the United States since its October 31 release, according to Nielsen SoundScan. The group will head to the Far East and Europe in the next couple of months before coming back to North America in the spring.

The DEFTONES were featured on the 'Family Values Tour 2006' CD and DVD, which are came out in December.

Friday, February 02, 2007

EVIDENCE ONE SIGNS WITH AFM RECORDS

German melodic metallers EVIDENCE ONE have signed a deal with AFM Records. The group's third album, entitled 'The Sky is the Limit', is scheduled for release on June 22. The follow-up to 2004's 'Tattooed Heart' (Nuclear Blast) was written and produced by songwriter Robby Bobel, who has quit his position as the group's guitarist but will continue to be involved with the band behind the scenes. A replacement axeman, Jorg 'Warthy' Warthmann, has already been recruited and will join the rest of the group for the 'The Sky is the Limit' video shoot with Holland's Lowlife Media (MASTERPLAN, PRIMAL FEAR, EXODUS).

'The Sky is the Limit' track listing:

01. Can't Fight The Past
02. Gallery Of Broken Glass
03. Into The Depths Of My Soul
04. Mindmines
05. Mr. Madness
06. Propaganda
07. Raging Winds
08. Rain Road
09. The Luxury Of Losing Hope
10. The Sky Is The Limit
11. Won't Sleep Alone