Skid Row has wrapped up the recording of their new CD "Revolutions Per Minute" to be released on October 24th on SPV Records. Recorded at Wire World studios in Nashville, TN with long time friend and producer Michael Wagener at the controls. More news on the disk to come. "Revolutions Per Minute" cover art can be found here.

Tracklist:
01. Disease
02. Another Dick In The System
03. Pulling My Heart Out From Under Me
04. When God Can't Wait
05. Shut Up Baby, I Love You
06. Strength
07. White Trash
08. You Lie
09. Nothing
10. Love Is Dead
11. Let It Ride

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Source:	skidrow.com
Band profile:	Skid Row

Dutch female-fronted symphonic metal outfit After Forever has entered the studio to begin recording its new album, tentatively due next year via an as-yet-undetermined label. A brand new video shot in the recording studio has been posted online here .

Read more ››

Source:	afterforever.com
Band profile:	After Forever

"Archangels In Black" will be the name of the new Adagio album! Stephan Forté has already composed almost all songs and annouced that the album will feature 9 songs + 1 Japanese Bonus track.

The band have annouced that the compositions are the ultimate balance between melodic and extreme metal and can be considered as a more brutal vision of "Underworld"

Recording sessions will start at the beggining of October.

Source:	adagio-online.com
Band profile:	Adagio

The house cleaning at Nuclear Blast continues. On October 6th the label will release a two CD compilation featuring the band's 2001 album "The Grave Digger" and the 2003 album "Rheingold".
The Grave Digger / Rheingold tracklisting:

01. Son Of Evil
02. The Grave Digger
03. Raven
04. Scythe Of Time
05. Spirits Of The Dead
06. The House
07. King Pest
08. Sacred Fire
09. Funeral Procession
10. Haunting Palace
11. Silence
12. The Ring (Overture)
13. Rheingold
14. Valhalla
15. Giants
16. Maidens Of War
17. Sword
18. Dragon
19. Liar
20. Murderer
21. Twilights Of The Gods

Grave Digger are now signed to Locomotive and will issue a new album in early 2007. The album will be called "Liberty Or Death".

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Source:	nuclearblast.de
Band profile:	Grave Digger

A replacement keyboarder for Power Metal band Dreamtale has been announced. Akseli Kaasalainen will replace departed member Turkka Vuorinen. Dreamtale don't really know what happened to Vuorinen as he dissapeared some time ago.

Here is the band's comment about Kaasalainen:

"He's a young guy (17 years!!) but a really good player and a great guy. We'll add some more info on him later."

In other Dreamtale news, the band have recently been preparing material for their fourth album. The band is just about to go into their second demo session and at the moment about 15 songs are ready. Dreamtale will update with more news about the album soon.

Source:	dreamtale.net
Band profile:	Dreamtale

Official press release :

Spain's Locomotive Records will release worldwide the new album ("Burden Of Truth") from progressive/power metal masters Circle II Circle on October 10th.
"Burden Of Truth"'s captivating concept is taken from "The Da Vinci Code" by Dan Brown and "Holy Blood Holy Grail" by Michael Baigent, Richard Leight and Henry Lincoln. Both novels theorize that Jesus Christ married Mary Magdalene, and their children's descendents prospered in France.
This "holy bloodline" has fascinated Circle II Circle singer/songwriter Zak Stevens for years. "Just imagine," he says, "that through years of research tracing back through your family tree, you uncover a secret religious society that reveals to you that you are, in fact, one of the direct descendants of Jesus!"
Circle II Circle - vocalist Stevens, guitarists Andy Lee and Evan Christopher, bassist Mitch Stewart and drummer Tom Drennan - is prepared for whatever controversy this hot-button topic engenders. The release date is the 699th anniversary of the day in 1307 when members of The Knights Templar were arrested and banished in France for espousing such beliefs.
"Fifty million fans have read these books," explains Stevens, "and I'm sure they have had some of the same feelings and questions I've had, so the band and I decided to explore our thoughts and share them with our fans. There's definitely some dark stuff on this record but if you really dig deep, you'll see that there's a very positive outcome."

The record was finished - believe it or not - on 6/6/06. The first single will be 'Revelations'. A tour is set for Europe and the U.S. later this fall.

The tracklisting is as follows :
01. Who Am I To Be
02. Matter Of Time
03. Heal You
04. Revelations
05. This Is Your Reality
06. Evermore
07. The Black
08. Messiah
09. Sentenced
10. Burden Of Truth
11. Live As One
12. Into The Wind
13. Burden Of Truth

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Source:	circle2circle.net
Band profile:	Circle II Circle

More dates have been released for Children Of Bodom's headlining North American tour which is believed to also feature Amon Amarth, Sanctity, and Gojira :

November 29 - Philadelphia, PA @ The Trocadero
November 30 - Rochester, NY @ Water Street Music Hall
December 01 - Detroit, MI @ Harpo's
December 02 - Milwaukee, WI @ The Rave
December 04 - Dallas, TX @ Gypsy Tea Room
December 06 - Tempe, AZ @ Marquee Theatre
December 08 - San Diego, CA @ SOMA
December 09 - Los Angeles, CA @ The Wiltern LG
December 11 - Denver, CO @ Ogden Theatre
December 12 - Lawrence, KS @ Granada Theatre
December 13 - Minneapolis, MN @ Quest Club
December 15 - Washington, DC @ 9:30 Club
December 16 - Worcester, MA @ The Palladium
December 17 - New York, NY @ Nokia Theatre
December 18 - Montreal, QC @ Metropolis

Source:	cobhc.com
Band profile:	Children Of Bodom

Newly signed to Armageddon Music, German black metallers Sycronomica are releasing their new album "Gate" on November 17. The CD was recorded at Hellion Studios in Munich, Germany in July.

"Gate" clocks in at around 50 minutes and features the following tracklisting:
01. Preludium II
02. Beyond The Gate Of Light
03. Für Die Ewigkeit
04. In The Distance...
05. Von Ende Und Anfang
06. To The Rivers End
07. Farewell Olden World
08. Unleashed From Ancient Chains
09. Nachtwanderung
10. The Nightly Forces

A release party is planned for November 25th at Titanic City in Munich. Details will be revealed soon.

Upcoming Sycronomica live dates include:

November
17 - Filderstadt, Germany at United We Stand Festival
25 - Munich, Germany at Titanic City (album release party)

March
30 - Lichtenfels, Germany at Ragnarök Festival (Stadthalle)

Source:	sycronomica.de
Band profile:	Sycronomica

Twisted Sister's cover version of 'I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus' (written by Jimmy Boyd and released as a single in 1953) has been posted online at the band's official MySpace page here.
The track is part of the band's festive CD "A Twisted Christmas" which is due October 17th via Razor & Tie Records.

"A Twisted Christmas" (cover art) features the following tracklisting :
01. Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas
02. Oh Come All Ye Faithful
03. White Christmas
04. I'll Be Home For Christmas (featuring Lita Ford)
05. Silver Bells
06. I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Clause
07. Let It Snow
08. Deck The Halls
09. The Christmas Song (Chestnuts Roasting On An Open Fire)
10. Heavy Metal Christmas (The Twelve Days Of Christmas)

Read more ››

Source:	twistedsister.com
Band profile:	Twisted Sister

Porcupine Tree will embark on their only 2006 mid September till November. The format of the show this time around will be a little different, with half the show dedicated to material from the new live DVD "Arriving Somewhere....", but the other half being brand new, as yet unrecorded material, something that will allow these works in progress to evolve as the tour goes on.

In view of the fact that we live in the age of file sharing and download culture, the band are asking for consideration from all show attendees in *not* attempting to record the show in any way. While the band try to discourage taping of its shows, they do acknowledge that there are those fans who like to document and share PT live performances, and as such they have a fairly liberal policy with trading of recordings among the PT fan community, as long as no money is exchanged between parties. But in this case they hope that fans will understand their feeling that people should experience this new music for the first time in performance, and not in the form of unauthorised audience recordings. It's one thing to hear a substandard live recording of a piece already familiar, but quite another to hear something new for the first time in such poor circumstances, so if you are unable to get along to a show this time, please be patient and wait for the album versions!

Now the ugly part... as there are bound to be some fans who even after reading this will feel compelled to record the show, the band regret that there will be a greater effort made to stop illegal recording on this tour, and a zero tolerance policy as regards anyone found doing so. If anyone is discovered recording a show their recording media will be confiscated, and they will be escorted from the venue, missing the rest of the show with no refund forthcoming. The band therefore ask anyone that had planned to tape these shows to reconsider in deference to the band's feelings on this matter, and your own enjoyment of the show.

The band really do appreciate your understanding and cooperation on this. This is quite an exciting experiment for them and they look forward to seeing you on the tour!

Porcupine Tree

Tour Dates:
Sep 13 2006 CAMBRIDGE, UK: The Junction
Sep 15 2006 PARIS, France: Elysée Montmartre
Sep 16 2006 ANTWERP, Belgium: Hof Ter Lo
Sep 18 2006 ROMA, Italy: Teatro Tendastrisce
Sep 19 2006 MILANO, Italy: Rolling Stone
Sep 21 2006 PRATTELN, Switzerland: Z7
Sep 22 2006 MÜNCHEN, Germany: Muffathalle

Read more ››

Source:	porcupinetree.com
Band profile:	Porcupine Tree

Bassist Glenn Barry from Power Metal band Kamelot will be absent from some shows on the band's North American tour. Barry and his wife Kristin will be expecting their second child around the time of the tour, so for that reason he will be away. Royal Anguish bassist Sean Tibbets will be filling in for Barry on the select shows of the first leg of the tour.

In other Kamelot news, two more supports for the band's North American tour have been announced. Aghora and Wolff Pack will join Cryptic Vision, Ben Jackson and Jon Drenning and Dana Burnell from Crimson Glory as supports for Kamelot.

Source:	kamelot.com
Band profile:	Kamelot

Countdown begins!!! We all are feverishly awaiting the release of KROKUS's 15th studio album called "HELLRAISER".

Starting October, KROKUS will embark on their "HELLRAISER" world tour, starting out in Scandinavia and Continental Europe, continuing in the first half of 2007 with the Americas. And make some noise, fans from "down under". Maybe this time we come and visit you in Australia & New Zealand as well. A special treat for fans and KROKUS alike will be a concert in late November in Malta, Marc's original home country. Last time Marc toured Malta with a band was with TEA in the seventies and Malta is getting ready for a pecial "welcome" of KROKUS and their native son!

Rather than waiting for the complete tour schedule (some dates still have to be confirmed), we decided to give you the dates that are definitely confirmed. And as new dates are added on, we will keep you posted accordingly. You can also check our web site ww.krokusonline.com and click on "tour" or www.pollstar.com under "KROKUS".

Get ready for a hellraiser... boneshaker experience with KROKUS and YOU at these venues:

October 14th, 2006 Teatria, Oulu FINLAND
October 15th, 2006 Klubi, Tampere FINLAND
October 16th, 2006 Tavastia, Helsinki FINLAND
October 18th, 2006 Sticky Fingers, Gothenburg SWEDEN
October 19th, 2006 Klubben, Stockholm SWEDEN
October 20th, 2006 The Rock, Copenhagen DENMARK
October 21st, 2006 Roxy Music Hall, Flensburg

DEUTSCHLAND/GERMANY:
October 23rd, 2006 Jazzhaus, Freiburg
October 25th, 2006 Rockfabrik, Bruchsal
October 26th, 2006 Matrix, Bochum

October 28th, 2006 Rockpalast, Biberist SWITZERLAND
November 25th, 2006 Old Power Station, Floriana MALTA
January 12th, 2007 AN Club, Athens GREECE
January 13th, 2007 Mylos, Thessaloniki GREECE

(More dates to be announced as they are confirmed!)

In just about a week those of you living in Europe, Israel, Australia & New Zealand can get your hands on the new KROKUS album "Hellraiser" and it will be a mind altering experience! And their new single "Angel of my dreams" might as well become the new
love anthem for hard rock fans!

http://www.krokusonline.com

Source:

krokusonline.com

Iron Maiden have posted the following call-to-arms on their homepage:

"You folks know the drill by now...

The last few years we've thrown the design of the official Iron Maiden Xmas card open to you guys. This is the card that gets sent to FC members, to friends of the band... and to the last minute people we realise we've forgotten Each year, the standard has been amazingly high and we've had a real challenge agreeing on a winner.

So, we'd like you guys to do it again. Send us your designs - conforming to the specs below - and the winner will be picked by Rod, be printed and sent to loads of people. The winner will get a credit on the card and a big bag of groovy Iron Maiden stuff.

Your design needs to be A5 size (about 21 by 15 cm) - it's up to you which way round it goes (portrait or landscape). The picture is entirely up to you.

Now here's the important stuff - as the design will be printed, you need to make sure you have a high-resolution image that you can send us if we choose your card. If you're hand painting or drawing, no problem, but if you're creating your design from scratch in Photoshop or whatever, please make sure you do it at 600dpi and not at the lower resolution you'd use for things that are going to be displayed only on a monitor. Keep the original in a very safe place, and send us a copy."

Details of sending can be checked via Maiden's homepage.

Source:	ironmaiden.com
Band profile:	Iron Maiden

Arch Enemy frontwoman/vocalist Angela Gossow has posted the following message on the band's official website:

"Hey, Just checking in quickly from the Gigantour. Its all going great, Dave Mustaine greeted everybody in person the first day - a wonderful gesture which certainly sets the tone for this tour: Nice people, relaxed and friendly backstage atmosphere + KICK ASS METAL! It's a brilliant line-up and well worth getting your lazy butt off the couch! So get moving and bang that head that doesn't bang!".

Arch Enemy has also announced that they will have signing sessions at the end of every show that they play at on the Gigantour tour.

Source:	archenemy.net
Band profile:	Arch Enemy

More set lists have been revealed from the September 6th kick off of this year's Gigantour in Boise, ID:

Arch Enemy:
Nemesis
Dead Eyes See No Future
My Apocalypse
First Deadly Sin
I Am Legend/Out For Blood
Ravenous
We Will Rise/Bridge Of Destiny Outro

Overkill:
Necroshine
Wrecking Crew
Battle
Thanks for Nothin
Long Time Dyin
Elimination
Old School
Fuck You

Sanctity:
Seconds
Road To Bloodshed
Zeppo
Beneath The Machine
Once Again

The Smushup:
Icarus Flies
Effigy
Afternoon Conversation With A Household Pet
Rachel's Day

Read more ››

Source:	gigantour.com
Band profile:	Megadeth
Event:	Gigantour 2006