WATAIN: Reveal “The Wild Hunt” Album Cover Artwork And Tracklist

Swedish metallers WATAIN, reveal the album cover artwork and tracklist of their fifth studio album. Executed in oil and mixed materials, the cover of “The Wild Hunt” was done by Zbigniew M Bielak, the very same artist who was responsible for the “Lawless Darkness” artwork. The piece depicts one of the inmost shrines of WATAIN’s temple. As on every classic still life, each object has a significant meaning, while each song of the album is also connected to an object.

“The Wild Hunt” track listing:

1. Night Vision

2. De Profundis

3. Black Flames March

4. All That May Bleed

5. The Child Must Die

6. They Rode On

7. Sleepless Evil

8. The Wild Hunt

9. Outlaw

10. Ignem Veni Mittere

11. Holocaust Dawn

“The Wild Hunt” will be released August 19th in Europe and August 20th, 2013 in North America by His Master’s Noise, via Century Media Records.

WATAIN online:
www.templeofwatain.com

INHERIT THE STARS Announce ‘Citizens of Earth’ Video Single + Free Download Available

Sheffield’s (UK) alternative/metal outfit INHERIT THE STARS unleash their debut video single ‘Citizens Of Earth’. The video broadcasts part one of their apocalyptic Orbis Trilogy of video singles to be available over coming months. Taken from the band’s recent ‘We Were Made To Walk The Skies’ debut album, Inherit The Stars are also offering the track as a completely free download.

As one of the most exciting young rock acts to emerge from Britain this year, Inherit The Stars are most recognisable for their powerful & explosive riffs, lulling string arrangements, adrenaline-filled synth lines and anthemic choruses. Fusing elements of metalcore, pop punk, post-hardcore and alternative rock into their own distinctive voice, their debut album produced by Jim Pinder at Treehouse Studios (Rise To Remain, While She Sleeps, Fightstar) has garnered praise from both press and radio worldwide.

The song can be downloaded for free from this link.

Intent on making their mark on music history, impressive and innovative things can be expected from this young band, who dare to deliver music with a message. This is only just the beginning of Inherit The Stars.

Inherit The Stars are :

Daniel Jeffery – vocals

Theo Egginton- guitar

Chris Brayshaw – guitar

Lewis Wild – bass

Jake O’Neill – drums

More information:

http://www.facebook.com/inheritthestarsofficial

http://www.twitter.com/inheritofficial

Former TRISTANIA Singer VIBEKE STENE To Guest On GOD OF ATHEISTS Debut

GOD OF ATHEISTS, the Norwegian extreme metal project led by Asgeir Mickelson (SARKE, SPIRAL ARCHITECT, BORKNAGAR, TESTAMENT), has announced the addition of bassist Lars K. Norberg (SPIRAL ARCHITECT) and soprano Vibeke Stene (ex-TRISTANIA; pictured below) to the group’s recording lineup. Mickelson states: “Excitement is an understatement.”

GOD OF ATHEISTS is currently recording its debut album for release later in the year. The CD will feature additional appearances by Trym (EMPEROR, ZYKLON, ENSLAVED) on drums, Mickelson on rhythm guitar, ICS Vortex (DIMMU BORGIR, BORKNAGAR) on vocals, Carl A. Tidemann (ARCTURUS, WINDS) on lead guitar and former EMPEROR frontman Ihsahn on keyboards.

Video footage of the provisional studio where Ingvild “Sareeta” Johannesen (RAM-ZET) recorded violins for the project can be seen below. It shows the start of the song “Fountain Of Emptiness” with no bass and no vocals. Asgeir says: “It’s the only really mellow part on the album.” Other songtitles set to appear on the CD include “The Sapient’s Error”, “Cataclysm” and “I Am God”.

Asgeir previously described GOD OF ATHEISTS as “the extreme metal project which I wrote most of the music for in 2008. One song was originally written for BORKNAGAR back in 2004, but was never finished, so I rewrote it and it’s now way too brutal for BORKNAGAR‘s style. The overall style is kind of ‘Norwegian black metal done death metal.’ It’s brutal but also very melodic.”

He later added: “Except for the two songs I wrote for the last SARKE album, I am totally aware of the fact that you guys only know me as a drummer, so all I can say is that you’ll just have to wait and judge for yourself if I’m capable as a songwriter and guitarist too. Some of the songs were the most challenging stuff Trym has ever recorded on drums, so the only thing I can promise is that GOD OF ATHEISTS is no commercial soft shit!”

Knockout Festival 2013: SABATON, DORO, LORDI, PINK CREAM 69, SALTATIO MORTIS And KISSIN’ DYNAMITE Confirmed

Source: Bravewords.com

The Knockout Festival, Germany’s pre-holiday December get-together, have finalized the line-up for 2013.

In addition to the previously announced DORO (celebrating the 30th year of her career) and LORDI on December 14th, the Europahalle in Karlsruhe will host headliners SABATON, as well as SALTATIO MORTIS, PINK CREAM 69 and youngsters KISSIN’ DYNAMITE. Click here for details.

SLAYER – New Drummer Announced

Source: Blabbermouth.net

SLAYER‘s Tom Araya and Kerry King are very pleased to announce that Paul Bostaph has rejoined the band on a full-time basis. Bostaph will be behind the drum kit beginning June 4 when SLAYER kicks off the first leg of its 2013 international tour in Warsaw, Poland. EXODUS‘ Gary Holt will continue to fill in for fallen guitarist Jeff Hanneman.

SLAYER‘s 2013 itinerary will have the band playing 35 dates that will include headline shows as well as a number of major summer festivals in Europe, Eastern Europe and South America between June and October.

“Paul‘s a great drummer and a good friend, and we’re very happy that he’s decided to rejoin the band,” said Tom Araya. “We’re still pretty numb from the loss of Jeff, but we don’t want to disappoint our European and South American fans, and we need to begin moving forward… Having Paul back in the band makes that a whole lot easier.”

“I’m very excited to be rejoining SLAYER,” added Bostaph. “We spent a very intense ten years of our lives together, had a lot of fun, made a lot of great music, so for me, this feels like coming home.”

Bostaph was SLAYER‘s drummer from 1992 until 2001 and recorded four albums with the band — the gold-certified “Divine Intervention” (1994), the 1996 punk covers album “Undisputed Attitude”, “Diabolus In Musica” (1998), “God Hates Us All” (2001) that received a Grammy nomination for “Best Metal Performance”, as well as the DVD “War At The Warfield” (2001), also certified gold. In addition to SLAYER, Bostaph has been a member of FORBIDDEN, EXODUS, SYSTEMATIC and TESTAMENT.

Pictured below: Paul Bostaph at public memorial celebration for Jeff Hanneman on May 23 at the Hollywood Palladium in Los Angeles, California (photo credit: Stephanie Cabral)

BEHEMOTH Announces Title of the Upcoming Album : “The Satanist”

Polish extreme metallers BEHEMOTH have issued as follows:

Pick up the June/July issue of Revolver Magazine featuring Metallica on the cover to read an in-depth studio report from Nergal BEHEMOTH, who have been holed up in Hertz Studios working on their tenth full-length album, are pleased to announce the title of their forthcoming full-length album—THE SATANIST. The album will come out in the fall of 2013—stay tuned for more studio updates, music, preorder info and more at metalblade.com/behemoth.

“It took us over two decades to come up with a title that…says it all. While our new songs artistically take surprisingly adventurous directions, our message stands steadfast—Proud and Radical. THE SATANIST stands for undying yearning for liberation and love for freedom in all aspects of life. Considering all our life experiences that often took dramatic curves I couldn’t think of more appropriate and fitting statement of who and where we are now” comments BEHEMOTH front man Nergal.

More updates will be posted as they are made available. Fans can stay up to date with the absolute latest at facebook.com/behemoth and twitter.com/behemothband.

http://www.behemoth.pl/

http://www.metalblade.com/behemoth

SATYRICON: New Album Title Revealed

Norwegian black metallers SATYRICON have always pushed boundaries and never conformed to what was “expected”. That mindset continues to this day, as they announce a very special, exclusive show on September 8 at Oslo’s Norwegian National Opera House, where they will perform together with Norway’s 55-strong National Opera Chorus.

The special event is part of the Ultima Oslo Contemporary Music Festival, and fans of both SATYRICON and the National Opera Chorus can look forward to a very unique and exciting evening, which coincides with the worldwide release of SATYRICON‘s ninth studio album, which can now be confirmed to be self-titled.

Commented SATYRICON frontman Sigurd “Satyr” Wongraven: “SATYRICON excels as a band, the bigger the platform is. In Norway, there is no greater stage than the main hall of our new Opera House. There is nowhere better suited to provide the dynamics, power and authenticity to such an occasion than the Opera Choir and SATYRICON. To us, there is no better way to celebrate with our fans that we are back with our first album in five years. We are also excited to have a couple of special musical friends come and play their part as well. Ladies and gentlemen — welcome!”

The Opera Chorus‘ lead conductor, David Maiwald, adds: “Mixing different musical expressions is always exciting. When the internationally acclaimed black metal band SATYRICON meets the voluminous voices of the Norwegian National Opera Chorus, we expect a powerful and monumental result, rich in innovative surprises.”

“Satyricon” will feature a guest appearance by Sivert Høyem, the Norwegian singer best known as the vocalist of the rock band MADRUGADA.

Speaking to AOL‘s Noisecreep at this year’s Inferno festival, Satyr stated about SATYRICON‘s upcoming album: “To me, it sounds very authentic, it’s organic-sounding. And in this digital age where music is mostly played through computers, a lot of that analog vibe gets lost in translation when you play music through medias like that, but I still wanna do it because there’s nothing quite like it. To me, it just makes everything sound the way it’s supposed to sound — it’s dynamical; the music is alive, it’s not overly compressed, the levels are not pushed. So, musically speaking, it’s a very atmospheric record… This record is full of life. There are a lot of surprises here, but I think it’s gonna be a record that’s gonna help the black metal movement perhaps find a new way for the future.”

FINNTROLL – Spring Tour 2013

Date : 11.05.2013

Bands : Finntroll (FI), Keep of Kalessin (NO), Killfloor Mechanic (DE)

Location : Cologne (DE)

After the release of the latest Finntroll album Blodsvept, it was finally time for the Finnish trolls to entertain their fans throughout Europe. It wasn’t long ago that Finntroll gave a concert though, their ‘big event’ was Heidenfest in 2012 so although it had been only 6-7 months that I last saw Finntroll, I was eagerly excited for this concert. Furthermore, the support acts KILLFLOOR MECHANIC and KEEP OF KALESSIN looked promising.

The concert started with the German death metallers KILLFLOOR MECHANIC. My first impression of the band was that they were completely different from Finntroll. Although the band was formed in 2011, they showed that they look promising. I especially loved the vocalist Felix’ vocals; normally the concerts can go bad for death metal vocalists when it comes to their growls (either because of the sound system or because of the growls) but the vocalist Felix proved that the vocals (both clean and harsh) were good enough for the live performance. Furthermore, the other band members – especially the e-guitarists- definitely made the show colourful.

Generally the band performed quite a decent show although it was  a bit obvious that the crowd was not into it. Moreover, although the band was quite promising I felt that they were a bit anxious and excited at the same time. The vocalist, Felix, was practically everywhere during the performance and it was really hard to follow him throughout the performance! Surely, Killfloor Mechanic was not the crowd’s favorite that night but I gotta give kudos to them, they were quite good!

 

The second act of the night was the Norwegian “epic extreme” metallers KEEP OF KALESSIN. The band has had a tough time lately; they have had some problems with the vocalist Thebon so they had to part ways with him so the band’s performance was carried by 3 members; the bassist Wizziac, the guitarist/vocalist Obsidian C and the touring drummer Sondre Drangsland.

To be honest, I didn’t listen to the band beforehand and I kind of understood that something was wrong in the band; it seemed as though another person was missing. Nevertheless, it didn’t change the fact that they totally rocked! Although the guitarist Obsidian C, who also took over the vocal parts, looked a bit anxious about being the new vocalist, he totally pulled it off and managed to warm up the crowd.  I also found Keep of Kalessin more suitable as a warm-up band for Finntroll; their style might not have been for everyone’s taste but I could see that everybody had a great time and they really appreciated the band.

Generally, the band managed to give an amazing performance and I think that all of the events that have happened recently did not break the bond; it brought the band even closer and this could be seen in this performance. Furthermore, something has to be said about the touring drummer Sondre Drangsland; despite rehearsing with the band for only 2 days before the shows as the temporary drummer, this  19-year-old drummer  was definitely the highlight of the whole performance. He managed to fit into the band very well and someone who had no idea about the band would not even recognize that he was relatively new. Considering how much Keep of Kalessin has been through, I think they were generally the ‘survivors’ of the night; their performance and songs definitely showed that they are still there!

 

When it was time for Finntroll, the small venue got more crowded than ever and all eyes were on the stage. Even before the show started, it was really obvious that it was going to be a colourful concert; the lights were a mixture of pink and blue and that was a bit surprising!

As soon as the trolls came on stage, the headbanging started! My first impression of the band was their unique outfit of course; it was a mixture of military and cyberpunk stuff and surely, every bandmember had elf ears which looked awesome! That was also a bit unexpected from Finntroll because their outfits are normally same but this time, they decided to change the style a bit. I think the outfits also fit to the concept of the new album as well as to the performance!

The band started the show with their single “Mordminnen” from the band’s brand new album Blodsvept. The first song surprised me a lot; I was expecting to hear the first single “Blodsvept” from the new album but hey, it’s Finntroll we are talking about here so I couldn’t complain! From the first song, the whole venue was on fire; nearly everybody was headbanging!

Throughout the show, the band managed to play the fans’ favorites. As a matter of fact, the frontman Vreth stated that the fans actually voted for most of the songs in the setlist so I am sure nobody really complained about it. Considering the fans’ taste, the setlist was really perfect! There were a lot of new songs like “Ett Folk Förbannat” (which Vreth dedicated to the mankind) and “När Jättär Marschera” but also some classics like “Trollhammeren”, “Solsagan” and “En Mäktig Har” (according to Vreth, this song got the most votes in every show!). “En Mäktig Har” was one of the highlights of the show in my opinion, it is always so great to hear this song live and it feels as if one hears the song for the first time; it just makes you want to headbang and dance.

Another highlight of the show were definitely the new songs “Skogdotter” and “Häxbrygd”. Since “Häxbrygd” is my favorite song from the new album, hearing it live was a different experience; Finntroll really pushed their limits and managed to make everyone – including themselves- sweat! It became so warm that it was impossible to move; nevertheless, it didn’t prevent people from moshing around and headbanging and that’s the essence of a Finntroll show!

Speaking of the mosh-pit, the song that made the mosh-pit go crazy was “Solsagan”. I just couldn’t understand how a mosh-pit could be created at such a small venue but the crazy people could manage do it and please the band after all. A crazy mosh-pit also meant that the band was definitely back on track and kicking some major ass!

Finntroll finished their performance with the last two classics “Trollhammeren” and “Jaktens Tid”.  As a person who has seen the band 3 times – including this concert-, I can definitely say that this concert topped it all! With the release of the new album and with this performance, Finntroll proved that they are just getting better and better and there is no way to stop the Finnish trolls. The outfits, the lights, the ambience and the interaction of the band with the crowd made everyone see that it was worth the wait!

A great night with bands from different styles, a great ambience and a great crowd.. What more can a fan want? Thanks to all of the bands for a magical night!

HIM – Tears on Tape

Band :  HIM

Album : Tears on Tape

Genre : Love Metal

Release Date : 26.04.2013

Record Label : Razor & Tie

There’s a lot more to a record than simple notes, lyrics, and sounds. An impactful piece of music always remains wrapped in emotion. Love, hate, sadness, and joy resound at the greatest decibel imaginable. At the end of the day, a song’s feeling will carry on as long as the melody will—and just as loudly.

HIM holds that philosophy in the highest regard on its eighth full-length studio album, Tears On Tape [Razor & Tie]. The platinum-selling Finnish quintet—Ville Valo(Vocals), “Linde” (Guitars), “Migé” (Bass), “Burton” (Keyboards), and “Gas” (Drums)—finds rapture in divine rock ‘n’ roll hooks, eerie synths, and elegantly cinematic lyrics. You’ll undoubtedly feel each tear they shed.

Album Review

‚Tears on Tape‘  welcomes us with the amazing intro song „Unleash The Red“ . This is the perfect intro for the album; I find it melancholic but hopeful at the same time and I am sure it will make the listeners wonder how the album sounds like.  The intro also indicates that  ‘Tears on Tape’ might not be the heaviest HIM album out there but it surely is colorful and full of surprises.

The album continues with the second song, “All Lips Go Blue”. I like the fact that this song is somehow bonded with the intro and that both songs are different from each other. Unlike the intro, “All Lips Go Blue” is a full-on, ‘heavy’ HIM song full of amazing riffs and melodies. As a matter of fact, this song can be considered as one of the heaviest songs of the album. From the beginning, this song is the proof that Mr. Valo’s talent in writing songs did not disappear at all; the song is heavy, melancholic and catchy (you just gotta love the clapping part in the song! )

Tears on Tape softens up a little bit with “Love Without Tears” although the heaviness is still there. I especially love the lyrics of this song; “love without tears, just a story told to keep us hangin’ on”. One thing that is easily recognizable are the riffs once again; those riffs are definitely a tribute to the ‘oldies’ and it shows us that HIM is still dedicated to their roots a bit. The same thing can be said about “I Will Be The End of You”; I just love the beginning of the song and the catchy melodies.

With the songs “Tears on Tape” and “Into The Night”, the album (unfortunately) become pop/rockish. I immediately get that ‘Screamworks’ vibe from the album. Considering that Screamworks is my least favorite HIM album, I can’t say I like the vibe of these songs; as a fan of the heavy songs of the band, both songs were too poppish for me and I am sure the fans who love the old-era of HIM will think the same. As a matter of fact, the beginning of “Into The Night” reminded me of a typical indie rock song so I was a bit ‘surprised’.  

Just when I think I can’t be surprised anymore, the last half of the album surprises me more. With “Hearts At War”, the album gets heavier (and a bit more melancholic) and the songs “Trapped in Autumn” and “Lucifer’s Charole” make the listener wonder what is really going on! These songs are more like ‘transition’ songs which fit perfectly to the album in a really bizarre way. In contrary to these transition songs, “No Love” spices up the album again.

With the song “W.l.s.t.d.” (When love Starts To Die), ‘Tears on Tape’ reaches its doomiest state; surely, when I say ‘doomy’, I am not talking about the doomy vibe of the “Venus Doom” album (which happens to be one of my favorite HIM albums), but there is something in this song that makes me want to cry everytime I listen to it regardless of my mood.

‘Tears on Tape’ finishes with the perfect outro “Kiss The Void”. Just like the intro “Unleash The Red”, this outro fits perfectly to the album and it shows just how diverse this album is.

Generally, ‘Tears on Tape’ is an album full of diversity and surprises. The transition songs definitely add another element to the whole concept of the album and I like how the album is ‘confusing’ in a sweet way; it starts out heavy and softens and then gets heavy again. However, as a fan of the doom-side of HIM, I liked the heavy songs such as  “W.l.s.t.d.” or “Hearts at War” more than the pop/rockish songs.

One thing that got my attention is Ville Valo’s voice. I think it’s quite obvious that Ville’s voice is not the same as it used to be; I was expecting deeper, melancholic vocals but after listening to the album, I understood that it’s probably not going to happen. Especially, when I read the statements and the interviews  that  said ‘Tears on Tape’ was going to be the heaviest HIM album, I was quite excited and I expected doomy vocals but I was a bit disappointed to see that that wasn’t the case.

My favorite from the album is definitely “W.L.S.T.D.”. I think this song still shows that the band is still dedicated to its roots despite their change of style. It is also the doomiest and the most melancholic song in the album.

I can recommend ‘Tears on Tape’ to any rock music fan out there. Especially, if you like the ‘happy’ and the ‘pop/rock’ side of HIM (Screamworks and Dark Light era), you will love ‘Tears on Tape’. However if you are craving for those doomy and melancholic riffs and the typical HIM songs that want to make you cry, ‘Tears on Tape’ might be too ‘happy’ and ‘lovey-dovey’ for you.  (Speaking of ‘lovey-dovey’,  this album will take you to other dimensions if you are in love or feeling the love )

Rating : 6/10

TEARS ON TAPE Tracklisting :

1. Unleash The Red
2. All Lips Go Blue
3. Love Without Tears
4. I Will Be The End Of You
5. Tears On Tape
6. Into The Night
7. Hearts At War
8. Trapped In Autumn
9. No Love
10. Drawn & Quartered
11. Lucifer’s Charole
12. W.l.s.t.d.
13. Kiss The Void

HIM is :

Ville Valo – vocals

Mikko ‘Linde’ Lindstrom – E-guitar

Mikko  ‘Mige’ Paananen – bass guitar

Mikka ‘Gas’ Karppinen – drums

Janne ‘Burton’ Parttinen – keyboards

http://www.heartagram.com

TARJA TURUNEN – Cover Artwork For ‘Colours In The Dark’ Revealed

Source: Blabbermouth.net

Former NIGHTWISH singer Tarja Turunen will release her new album, “Colours In The Dark”, in Europe on August 23 via earMUSIC, the Hamburg, Germany-based international rock label which is part of Edel Group. The CD wil be made available in North America on August 27 through Eagle Rock imprint Armoury Records.

The cover artwork for “Colours In The Dark” was created by Dirk Rudolph and can be seen below.

Despite her light and shiny personality, Tarja‘s music has always been dressed “in black” — the color of heavy rock, of mystery and elegance.

With Tarja‘s new album, fans will find out what happens when a splice of color is added to the mix. Or — better said — when the full-color spectrum enters the picture it does not cover the black but makes it shine through with many emotions and landscapes.

Following up on the success of the multi-platinum and gold-awarded previous records “My Winterstorm” (2007) and “What Lies Beneath” (2010), Tarja finally returns with her long-awaited new rock album.

Mixed and mastered by Tim Palmer (PEARL JAM, U2) in Austin, Texas, the songs on “Colours In The Dark” do not shy away from taking a risk and surprising musical turns, introducing new sounds and new musical atmospheres. Still, they maintain a heaviness that will surely bring a big smile to the hardest of rockers. With its grand orchestra and choir arrangements, Tarja‘s next milestone emphasizes once again the impressive vocal range of the Finnish artist and shows her artistic growth. With ten brand new songs and over one hour of music, “Colours In The Dark” is definitely going to be one of the brightest moments for rock in 2013.

A lyric video for the song “Never Enough” was recently filmed in Zlin, Czech Republic and will make its online debut soon. Tarja says: “I didn’t want to make a traditional, boring lyric video for the song, so I am going to appear on the video not just the lyrics of the song…. This video is not what we can call the official first music video from my new album, but just an improved version of a lyric video. The filming took only couple hours with Martin, who worked also on directing my first solo live rock DVD, ‘Act I’.”

In a recent interview with the Music Legends web site, Turunen stated about her upcoming CD: “I have just recently found my style and sound so I would like to establish it with the third studio album. The elements on the album will remain the same as in my previous albums, also the versatile style of songs. I like to keep the big dynamic changes between my songs, so that album songs feel radically different from each other.

“I am not stressed at all this time, even though I am producing the album on my own again. I have been lucky to gather around a group of musicians who are willing to work with me, so everything is going smoothly.”

Tarja and her husband/manager Marcelo Cabuli recently became the parents of their first child.

“Act I” was released in North America on September 4, 2012 in 2-CD, 2-DVD and Blu-ray format via the Eagle Rock imprint Armoury Records, in conjunction with earMUSIC.

Tarja‘s sophomore solo album, “What Lies Beneath”, sold around 1,300 copies in the United States in its first week of release. The CD landed at position No. 24 on the Top New Artist Albums (Heatseekers) chart, which lists the best-selling albums by new and developing artists, defined as those who have never appeared in the Top 100 of The Billboard 200.