Spanish power metal band WarCry have revealed their new upcoming 7th studio album will be entitled Alfa.

More details will be announced in the next few weeks.

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Source:	warcry.as
Band profile:	WarCry

The Metamorphosis Melody, the new upcoming album of Norwegian folk/gothic metal band Midnattsol will be released on April 22 via Napalm Records.

A two-minute album teaser was previously posted over here.

The Metamorphosis Melody cover art] tracklist:

01. Alv (intro)
02. The Metamorphosis Melody
03. Spellbound
04. The Tide
05. A Poet's Prayer
06. Forlorn
07. Kong Valemons Kamp
08. Goodbye
09. Forvandlingen
10. Motets Makt
11. My Re-Creation
12. A Predator´s Prey

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Source:	midnattsol.com
Band profile:	Midnattsol

Soilwork - who were originally scheduled to head out this April & May supporting Symphony X and Nevermore - have regretfully been forced to cancel their participation on this upcoming North American tour.

Drummer Dirk Verbeuren has issued the following statement: "Due to recurring issues with a herniated disc in his lower back requiring a prolonged period of resting and healing, our guitarist Peter Wichers is forced to sit out this spring's North American tour with Symphony X and Nevermore.

We did consider hiring a fill-in guitar player, but we've decided to stick together as a band and out of respect for our fans, to cancel our participation in the tour. Our apologies to those of you who were hoping to see us. If all goes well, Peter should be healed and ready to hit the road in time for the summer festivals."

108435 for this news!]

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Source:	facebook.com
Band profile:	Soilwork
Event:	Symphony X: North American Tour 2011

Original story:

Paul Di'Anno, best known for singing on the first two Iron Maiden albums and milking them dry for the last thirty years, has reportedly admitted in court to have falsely claimed a total of £45,000 (53,000?, $72,000) from the British tax-payers money.

He was arrested last year and charged with fraud. In court on the 10th of February 2011, he was told to prepare for a jail sentence after admitting eight counts of benefit fraud. The hearing has been adjourned until March the 11th 2011 for a pre-sentence report, and has bail in the meantime.

For the period between 2002 and 2008, he claimed he had nerve damage in his back, which disabled him from being able to work. The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) had an anonymous tip-off, and caught Paul out with a YouTube video of him apparently jumping around stage in 2006.

...I'm running free yeah, I'm running free...

UPDATE

Paul has been sent to jail and will serve at least four and a half months before being released on conditional bail.

While sentencing, Jane Miller QC said "Your public persona is not relevant. Your greed has cost this country a lot of money. The claims were for a long time and for a large cost. It must be a custodial sentence."

A confiscation hearing to settle payments the rocker owes to the Department of Work and Pensions will be heard at the court on June 4th 2011.

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Source:

dailymail.co.uk

Finnish melodic death metal band Mors Principium Est has just lost two guitar players, as both Kalle Aaltonen (Synestesia) and Tomy Laisto (Hateform) have left the band.

Vocalist Ville Viljanen commented as follows: "To be honest, things are pretty bad. Our guitar players feel that Mors Principium Est is not something they want be part of anymore. They have their reasons why they feel so, so...

Anyways. If we still want to continue with Mors Principium Est, we need new guitar players. This is our LAST try to make things happen. If it does not work this time, or we don't find the right person/persons, then it's game over for Mors Principium Est.

So, if you are, or know somebody, who is at least 21 years old, willing and able to write and play death metal with melodies and also would like to be a part of the new Mors Principium Est, then send us an email. YOU CAN BE FROM ANYWHERE. As long as you are eager and get something done, then you may be the one we are looking for."

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Source:	morsprincipiumest.com
Band profile:	Mors Principium Est

Remember that time Nightwish vocalist Anette Olzon broke a few ribs when she tripped over a toy lying on the floor? Well, the band has now decided to postpone the new album vocal recordings until April 4th in order to allow her a longer recovery period.

Anette Olzon blogged as follows: "Today me, Ewo Pohjola (Nightwish manager) and mainman Tuomas Holopainen decided that its better if I rest the whole month and get in shape so I can do the vocals super good and have booked my vocal recordings from April 4 instead in another studio in Finland. This is really good cause noone will be happy if the album won't sound perfect. And we don't have any hurry since the album has plenty of time to get mastered and ready still.

So I´ll rest and rest and hopefully soon be able to move a bit more. I have now been lying down for a week and even if I can't do anything it is of course quite boring."

If all goes well, Imaginarium will be released in early 2012.

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Source:	anette-olzon.blogspot.com
Band profile:	Nightwish

Jason... The Dragon, the new album from US stoner metal band Weedeater, is now available for streaming in its entirety at MySpace (the stream will be available until March 15th).

Jason... The Dragon was released on March 1st through Southern Lord Records.

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Source:

myspace.com

For their upcoming shows in 2011, Slipknot has asked Donnie Steele to fill in on bass for the late Paul Gray.

Donnie, as some may recall, was the original guitar player in Slipknot and had actually reconnected with Paul in recent years.

Commented the band on their decision: "Donnie was in the band at the very beginning, and rather than get an outsider, we thought it would be a fitting tribute to Paul to play with someone from within the family. Donnie was great friends with Paul and we can't think of a better way to celebrate his memory than with someone who was there with us at the very beginning. The eight of us are looking forward to being onstage again and honoring Paul's legacy with our families in Europe and Brazil this summer."

Paul Gray was found dead in a hotel room in a Des Moines, Iowa suburb last May at the age of 38 from an overdose of morphine.

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Source:	slipknot1.com
Band profile:	Slipknot

German power metallers Brainstorm are working on a new album, called On The Spur Of The Moment.

Brainstorm vocalist Andy B. Franck issued the following update: "Finally and long awaited, we are in the studio to record our new studio album. We decided to work together with Axel Heckert at the "Studio 22" in Ludwigsburg, near Stuttgart. He is a big fan of the band and we will definitely reach a new level with that album. The new material is even more homogeneous and aggressive than the latest songs we wrote.

Memorial Roots was super, On The Spur Of The Moment will be awesome!"


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Source:	myspace.com
Band profile:	Brainstorm

"For Victory Or Death", another brand-new track from Swedish melodeath warriors Amon Amarth, has been made available for streaming, exclusively at Metal Hammer.

Two other tracks, "Slaves Of Fear" and "War Of The Gods", are still streaming here and here respectively.

"For Victory Or Death" comes off the band's upcoming new album Surtur Rising, which will be released in Germany, Austria and Switzerland on March 25th, in the rest of Europe on March 28th, and in North America on March 29th through Metal Blade Records.

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Source:	metal-hammer.de
Band profile:	Amon Amarth

Greek metllers Septicflesh will release their new album, The Great Mass, on April 18 in Europe (April 19 in North America) via Season Of Mist. The new opus will be made available in the following formats:

- CD + Blu-ray digipak
- Collector's book, including 2 CDs + Blu-ray
- 12" gatefold LP
- CD jewel case
- Digital download

An album trailer for The Great Mass is now available at this location. More details about the album were previously reported over here.

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Source:	septicflesh.com
Band profile:	Septicflesh

Official press release

Denmark's Anubis Gate has inked a deal with Nightmare Records. The band has also parted ways with singer Jacob Hansen replaced him with Henrik Fevre.

Commented the group: "Nightmare Records is a label that we have had our eyes on for some time, but due to contractual obligations with our old label we haven't been able to join them before now. Needless to say, we are very excited about signing with Nightmare who we feel is the perfect home for our music. With a record label that really loves music (and those are few and far in-between) the future for Anubis Gate looks brighter than ever."

On the topic of the singer switch, Anubis Gate said, "With Jacob's ever-more-demanding schedule as a first-class producer, Jacob found it hard to have the time and keep his heart in the band. We fully respect his decision and reasons to leave and want to thank Jacob for being with us for an amazing couple of albums. We are still very good friends and Jacob is still involved in shaping the new album in his capacity as the best producer in metal. We wish Jacob nothing but the best in his future career. Anubis Gate has always been blessed with great singers. The decision to have Henrik take over vocal duties is a natural one for us. Henrik is the one that for a big part shaped the vocal melodies and lyrics of Anubis Gate and when Torben had to bow out of the gigs we did in support of A Perfect Forever it was Henrik who sang those gigs. Henrik has also had several songs on our albums where he performed lead vocals. Most notably "Take Me Home" on the Andromeda Unchained album. So we knew beforehand it would work out great, which it certainly has."

President and founder of Nightmare Records Lance King had the following to say about working with Anubis Gate: "Being friends with Jacob Hansen because of our work together with Pyramaze and many other bands he's produced that are signed with Nightmare, my introduction to Anubis Gate was with him on vocals. I really enjoyed their sound and have been looking forward to working with the band for quite some time. I was concerned when Kim let me know Jacob wasn't moving forward with the band. However, I'm extremely impressed with the vocals of Henrik Fevre on the rough mixes, he has a unique sense of melody and powerful and talented voice and is the perfect choice for the band in replacing the gifted vocals of Jacob."

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Source:	myspace.com
Band profile:	Anubis Gate

Lifeforce Records press release

After having released two successful albums on Nuclear Blast, we at Lifeforce Records are very proud and excited to announce the signing of Hackneyed to our roster, a band we are watching since their first steps and we can easily consider as one of the most fresh and promising Death Metal bands out there.

Hackneyed is currently in the studio working on the band's third album and Lifeforce Records debut, which is going to see its release at their Summer Breeze Festival appearance (August 18th - 20th).

Hackneyed is commenting its signing to Lifeforce Records with the following words: "The news about our new deal with Lifeforce Records reached us straight in the studio, where we currently record our third album. We are very psyched and happy about our new partnership with Lifeforce Records - a label with a great reputation, history and a very nice roster, we are proud to be part of now. We are very happy to be part of such great family now."

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Source:	lifeforcerecords.com
Band profile:	Hackneyed
Event:	Summer Breeze Open Air

Official press release

Louisiana Music Hall of Fame members, Lillian Axe are proud to announce Jackson, Mississippi, native Brian Jones, as their new lead vocalist. Steve Blaze, lead guitarist and band founder says "We have spent the last six months searching for and reviewing candidates to the point of driving us crazy." Blaze continues, "Choosing your front man is the most vital task in a band's existence, so we really took our time to make sure that the person we chose fit every category to the best of their abilities. Brian is a complete breath of fresh air. He is an amazing talent, as well as a fireball of enthusiasm, which has really sparked the attitudes of the rest of us."

Jones, vocalist for the bands Guns of Addiction and Full Moon Circus, as well as guitarist for Wind-up Artist, Papercut Massacre, approached Blaze for the job in September. He states, "When I initially approached Steve about the possibility of becoming the new vocalist for Lillian Axe, I honestly didn't know what to think and had a plethora of thoughts running amuck in my head. Having been a lifelong fan of the band and looking to Steve as a mentor for so many years, coupled with the fact that I was being asked to audition for one of my favorite bands, was a bit much to take in. I knew this was what I wanted to do and have been playing now for over 20 years, but I never would have imagined I'd be playing with Lillian Axe. The guys have been amazing and have taken me in quite nicely. I look forward to the many years to come and to the new music that we will be sharing with the fans."

The Axe has commenced recording their eleventh album at Sound Landing Studios in Covington, Louisiana with the team of Steve Blaze as producer and Rob Hovey as engineer, due for a September 27, 2011; via Love and War Records /Mega Force Records / Sony Red Distribution. The first track, "Take The Bullet", will be available for download on April 12. Says Blaze, ""Take The Bullet" is a very special song for us. Several months ago, I received an email from Air Force Major Henry Cecil, who was stationed in Kabul, Afghanistan. He expressed his appreciation and gratitude for the dedication to the troops on our last album, Deep Red Shadows. He proceeded to send me an American Flag that had traveled on several helicopter missions, official patches, coins, autographs from his squadron, and even a copy of Deep Red Shadows autographed by General David Petraeus himself. We were incredibly honored and humbled, and since then, I have become good friends with Major Cecil. Several weeks ago, he drove to Covington and spent two days in the studio with us as we recorded "Take The Bullet". I wrote this song in dedication to our troops for their heroic sacrifice for our country and their display of true brotherhood."

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Source:

lillianaxe.com

Swedish metallers Lake Of Tears will release their new album, Illwill, on April 29 via AFM Records.

Illwill tracklist:

01. Floating In Darkness
02. Illwill
03. The Hating
04. U.N.S.A.N.E.
05. House Of The Setting Sun
06. Behind The Green Door
07. Parasites
08. Out Of Control
09. Taste Of Hell
10. Midnight Madness

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Source:	afm-records.de
Band profile:	Lake Of Tears